Product Description: Explore the origins of Sword & Sorcery with Henry Kuttner's Elak of Atlantis! Published in Weird Tales to satisfy fans of Conan the Barbarian in the wake of Robert E. Howard's death, the four long stories depict a brutal world of flashing swords and primal magic, touched by a hint of Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos. Never collected in a mass market edition since their publication in the late 1930s, these exciting tales helped to establish a genre and are a critical part of any fantasy library. Included as a bonus are Kuttner's two Prince Raynor stories from 1939's Strange Tales. With seminal, thrilling adventure tales from one of the most important writers in science-fiction and fantasy, Elak of Atlantis is not to be missed!
Excellent sword and sorcery A colection of four stories (Thunder in the Dawn, Spawn of Dagon, Beyond the Phoenix, Dragon Moon) concerning the exploits of the adventurer Elak of Atlantis (otherwise known as... but thats telling) and two stories of Prince Raynor (Cursed be the City, Citadel of Darkness) this is one collection well worth buying. The action is well describe and swift, the heroes bold, forthright and well, heroic. The villians are a collection of foul wizards, evil gods and things from beyond.
I have to admit to being more impressed with the two stories about Prince Raynor than I was with Elak of Atlantis but the final Elak story may be the best in the book. Unfortunately there were only two Raynor stories and that was just enough to leave me wanting more.
Henry Kuttner is indeed a Neglected Master (as Ray Bradbury refers to him) of science fiction and fantasy. Hopefully through the release of these Planet Stories Library novels he will have a chance to be noticed and recognized for his achievements.
Super Reader Yet another cool Paizo Planet Stories book. This one collects Henry Kuttner's Sword and Sorcery stories from the magazine era.
The two heroes in this collection (Elak, the first 4 stories, Prince Raynor, the last two) are or a somewhat different breed from the brooding barbarians Conan and Kull, or the immortal sorcerer survivor Kane.
The pair are more along the lines of Harry Turtledove's Gerin the Fox - both nobility to begin that that prefer the hands on adventuring to sitting on big fancy chairs.
Elak's weapon of choice is the rapier, and as Joe Lansdale points out in his introduction (which you can basically find at Subterranean magazine online 'Kuttner Sharpens His Literary Sword' for those that would like to check it out), meaning he is a rogue with a little more finesse, both at the sharp end, and with the ladies. The latter is where we find him in the first story, late from an assignation to rescue a friend, and wanting to go back for more kisses before facing off with the evil warlock with his mates. Luckily in this story at least, the woman in question fancies going along.
Further, Elak says "...tested the metal of his rapier. It's good to have a weapon like this again. I'll give this blade its baptism today."
"And I'll give mine," Velia broke in, coming lightly up the hill toward them. Her slim armor-clad body gleamed in the gray light of false dawn.
Elak wants her to say, but "Velia smiled and shook her head. "I've tasted awar, and I like the draft. Listen!"
Raynor's female companion also prefers the road to staying at home.
There's something here for the Lovecraft fan, too, in some of the style, and opponents.
The only things that might stop people short now are an evil sorcerer type named 'Elf' - not the best name for such an individual you might come up with, perhaps, and the fact that at times it may seem like Elak's druid protector might not need him for other than political ends, if he can call down the lightning.
Kuttner's Sword and Sorcery tales are certainly of good quality. Well done to Paizo for collecting these obscure stories and giving them another go round.
Elak Of Atlantis : 1 Thunder In the Dawn - Henry Kuttner Elak Of Atlantis : 2 The Spawn of Dagon - Henry Kuttner Elak Of Atlantis : 3 Beyond the Phoenix - Henry Kuttner Elak Of Atlantis : 4 Dragon Moon - Henry Kuttner Elak Of Atlantis : 5 Cursed Be the City - Henry Kuttner Elak Of Atlantis : 6 The Citadel of Darkness - Henry Kuttner
Elak has to find his brother, and hope his druid and drunk mates can give him enough of a hand to survive warlocks, Viking warlords and the odd monster and jilted husband.
3.5 out of 5
An adventuring pair of swordsman are betting on which runnel of blood will get where first, and have an argument.
They end up being hired to get rid of a wizard. They didn't expect to end up on the wizard's side vs Cthulhoid beasties that is for sure.
3.5 out of 5
Elak and Lycorn have to deal with someone that has a fondness for being possessed by Bal-Sagoth.
3 out of 5
Some pleading is required before Elak will return to Atlantis. He is a bit keener when he finds out the Pallid One has taken over a king, and his home and the throne are in a fair bit of trouble.
4 out of 5
If gods like Pan turn up, time to get the hell out of Dodge, thinks Prince Raynor and friends.
3.5 out of 5
Zodiac wizardry, basilisks and bandit barons stand in Prince Raynor's way this time.
3.5 out of 5
More Proof of Kuttner as One of America's Greatest Sci-Fi Writers I was introduced to Henry Kuttner twenty years ago as one of a number of authors included in yet another Martin Greenberg edited collection of pulp stories. After suffering through several poor examples of purple prose, Kuttner's brilliant cadence and rhythm immediately stood out from the rest. I became an instant fan of Kuttner and have remained so. This newest collection of the four Elak of Atlantis stories (along with two more featuring another Kuttner character, Prince Raynor) is a welcome addition to my Kuttner collection. Elak is a very human version of so many Sword and Sorcery heroes and more often than not, he is overwhelmed by a greater threat and has to rely on his fat friend Lycon, or his ever-helpful diety Mider to help him out. To me, this just adds to the appeal of Elak; he's not the strongest or best fighter in the room, but he usually is the smartest. As for Kuttner's work being "bland," "flat" and "uninteresting," you should read the stories yourself. If you are a fan of Tolkien, Howard and Moorcock you will not only be surprised by Henry Kuttner's writing, you will be impressed. Well worth the $11-13 to take a trip to the lush, expertly crafted worlds of Henry Kuttner. Thank you to Planet Stories for this beautiful reprint edition.
Just not a very good read.... I am buying these Paizo releases out of curiosity. I am just not very impressed with the Henry Kuttner offering. Elak and Prince Raynor are both very bland characters and the stories just fell flat and were uninteresting.
A fun romp
Styled as an exploration of the early sword-and-sorcery genre in the vein of Robert Howard's Conan, this compilation of several Elak and Prince Raynor stories delivers a healthy dose of adventure, cliche and magic with just a touch of Cthulhu thrown in for good measure. Kuttner's writing style may not be as florid as Clark Ashton Smith's but his view of slaying swordsmen, hapless maidens and icky, tentacled creatures is quite similar and lovingly revealed in this book.
The book itself is a nice softbook with only a few minor flaws, mainly 1) very wide outside margins which forces the reader to bend the book more than is necessary; 2) a few spelling errors (page 88, "sliver"; page 182, "heart") and 3) a rather ugly typeface. My favorite softback books are those of Bester and Dick from Vintage and I urge the editor to consider upgrading the line a little bit in this direction.
Apart from these minor irritations, the stories are great fun and a wonderful source of inspiration for budding S&S GMs looking for some classic two-fisted action. If you like Howard, Leiber, Burroughs or Doc Smith, you'll definitely enjoy Kuttner's Elak.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
