3.5 of 5 stars – Good Sample of Stories for Dark Fantasy Fans.(I'm excited to have won this as part of a Goodreads Giveaway – so thanks!)This anthology will be much appreciated by imaginative readers more familiar with the mythos and this type of dark fantasy/horror, as well as those who like fantasy in general (like me), supernatural and horror and are willing to further explore dark weird fiction.As is the benefit of anthologies, I was interested in further exploring a genre that I like (fanta...

The Iron Hut By Maurice Broaddus Jon Carver of Barzoon, You Misunderstood By Graham J. Darling Sun Sorrow By Paul Jessup The Wood Of Ephraim By Edward M. Erdelac Truth is Order and Order is Truth By Nadia Bulkin Spirit Forms of the Sea By Bogi Takács The Bones of Heroes By Orrin Grey Light By Diana L. Paxson The Serpents of Albion By Adrian Chamberlin The Call of the Dreaming Moon By Thana Niveau Black Caesar: The Stone Ship Rises By Balogun Ojetade And After the Fire, A Still Small V...

The premise of this collection sounds awesome. Unfortunately it fails to deliver almost completely. While the stories included are not necessarily bad, almost all of them seem to have been written who know neither what Sword & Sorcery is nor Lovecraftian horror.The one shining exception is the last story of the book and if you give it a try but want to put it down and stop, read at least this one! The guy who wrote this clearly is a huge Lovecraft fan, which immediately becomes noticable when it...

4.5 starsIn this vibrant anthology, horizons shift at the turn of a page. I loved the variety of locales and cultures. As I read, I found myself sorting the stories into two categories: romps and plots. The "romps" were episodes of discovery or battle, whereas the "plots" told fuller stories. (since I'm not well-versed in sword & sorcery or mythos, this categorization is definitely a YMMV thing)Among the romps, "Black Caesar: The Stone Ship Rises" by Balogun Ojetade was easily my favorite, a thr...

This is one of the stronger anthologies I've encountered for a while, and if you're at all fond of Lovecraftian stories, this should have plenty of appeal for you. There are a few pieces that feel slight, and I wasn't as impressed by the essays. The variety of tales partake of many different cultures while leaving behind the rampant racism and sexism of Lovecraft's own stories. Those I particularly enjoyed included Nadia Bulkin's "Truth Is Order and Order Is Truth," "The Iron Hut," by Maurice Br...

The 140 character review: Sword & Mythos: everything you want from Robert E. Howard, minus the questionable race and gender views. (Or at least an entirely different and self-aware set of views.) If you like sword and sorcery stories, there's something in here for you. If you like your fantasy creatures to be born of nightmare, there's something in here for you.LIGHT by Diana L. Paxson is my favorite of the anthology by a safe margin. It is the perfect mix of AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS and THE

I'm not sure the title "Sword & Mythos" is really the best fit for this book. Because of it, I went in expecting a lot of stories of mighty thews and flashing swords and the clash of civilization vs. barbarism within the tiny pool of light cast by humanity, outside of which is the outer dark. Instead, I got a lot of historically-inspired adventure stories with some mythos tinges and a few stories that were definitely mythos stories, much like Historical Lovecraft. And now that I'm writing the re...

On the whole, an overwhelming MEH. I bounced off almost every single story in the anthology. The few exceptions:"Spirit Forms of the Sea" by Bogi Takacs -- a nice little story that centers on positive female friendships and interaction, and a very cool incorporation of mythos into the historical."The Sorrow of Qingfeng" by Grey Yuen -- creepy, lyrical and the only story that actually got me to care enough about what was going on I stayed up past bedtime to finish reading it. An effective use of

More charitably, probably closer to a 3.5.I admit this wasn't quite what I was expecting -- based on the title, I was hoping it was going to be a mixture of full-on sword & sorcery and Cthulhoid horrors -- sandals grinding jeweled thrones, tentacled monstrosities that may be rugose and/or scaly, the whole nine yards. Instead, I think the stories in this book would have been better described as historical Cthulhoid adventure fiction.Which isn't to say they weren't enjoyable. The settings ranged f...

An astounding look at all the nooks and crannies around the world where the dark magics of the Cthulhu mythos could have slipped into our world. From Africa, China, Arthurian Camelot, Biblical Israel, Mars and many more.The authors have all use their stories to explore human cultures and the Cthulhu mythos. Recasting the Deep Ones as heroic creatures. Re-imaging John Carter's Mars as expansive body horror. Taking Biblical battles and entwining monsters within it.Overall a wonderful read and a se...

This anthology just really wasn't enjoyable to me. I've enjoyed other Mythos based on Lovecraft's tales, but none of these captured me. Others may enjoy them more than I did...

"Fifteen writers, drawing inspiration from the pulp sub-genres of sword and sorcery and the Cthulhu Mythos, seed stories of adventure, of darkness, of magic and monstrosities. From Africa to realms of neverwhere, here is heroic fantasy with a twist."This quote in the back cover and the amazing cover art made me buy this book, being a great fan of lovecraftian and sword & sorcery fiction and expecting to read stories about barbarians, warriors (chainmail bikini clad she-devils with a sword in the...

SWORDS AND MYTHOS is the latest anthology from Innsmouth Free Press, combining tropes of heroic sword and sorcery with classic Cthulhu Mythos elements. I'd been looking forward to reading this since I first heard of it's coming out and was pleased to be able to include it in my "Year In Weird". It is a very strong collection of stories and essays that excels in not only paying homage to the classic sword and sorcery genre but also explores the Mythos in new and original ways; many of the stories...

Have you never wondered how things would be if they weren't set in Arkham? Here are stories about the Great Old Ones in settings not often used. Find out what manner of evil Master Yue found...

I enjoyed many stories from this book. The editorial section was interesting, but it didn't seem like there was a lot to say on the subject. I love how many parts of the world were covered in the different stories and eras of history too!

Sword & MythosEdited by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. StilesCover illustration: Nacho Molina ParraSword & Mythos is a brilliant anthology exploring the intersection between the Cthulhu mythos of H.P. Lovecraft and the Sword and Sorcery genre of Robert E. Howard and C.L. Moore.I’ve had trouble with Lovecraft. I loved his stories when I was younger, although I read a few too many at once and started laughing every time another nameless horror would show up. I mean, yes, horror is better implie...

I had seen the call to submissions for this anthology, and was very excited to see it come about. I had always had an interest in the mythos direction some Conan stories took, as well as later writer's take on that subject. Even the description of the book had me interested: "Fifteen writers, drawing inspiration from the pulp sub-genres of sword and sorcery and the Cthulhu Mythos, seed stories of adventure, of darkness, of magic and monstrosities."What I got when I picked this anthology up was n...

Θα είμαι απολύτως ειλικρινής μαζί σας: Είχα στείλει κι εγώ ένα κείμενο, αρκετά φιλόδοξο, γι' αυτήν την ανθολογία (λιποτάκτης χωροφύλακας+η αποξήρανση της Κωπαϊδας+ελονοσία+Κθούλου) και έφαγα πόρτα. Αγόρασα την ανθολογία, μόνο και μόνο για να δω τι ήταν καλύτερο από μένα (ξέρω, είναι μάλλον κακομοιριά από μέρους μου, αλλά τι αν κάνουμε μμια στο τόσο επιτρέπω στον εαυτό μου και δυο-τρεις κατινιές). Για να πω την αλήθεια κάποια από τα διηγήματα μου φάνηκαν πραγματικά κατώτερα του δικού μου. Αλλά εί...