Probably one of the better Solomon Kane novels, as it takes the Puritan hero out of Europe and into Africa, against a murderous African queen of a lost tribe. A mix of magic and sword and rapier action.
No event inspires as much English nationalism and a pity party as the Norman invasion. So of course this event inspires what might be Henty's absolutely WORST book ever. I can sum it up as: English=good, Normans, Welsh, Bretons=evil.
It is so bigoted in its depiction of anyone not English (Saxon) as to be laughable. At one point, he states "the Saxons never harm women or children." Ahem, how about the St Brice's day massacre to start with.
The saddest thing is that Henty really believed his Saxon/English racial superiority to an extent that would make any rational person uncomfortable.
This is one of the better Conan stories, with a cannibal cult, a magician, a strangler-killer and a topless damsel in distress. All one needs for an adventure.
Top literature. Much better than the more famous King Arthur. Orlando and the peers of Charlemagne is a truly epic work which should be more known in the English speaking world. (Translated from Italian).
REH's attempt at writing a Fu Manchu, yellow peril adventure (although the title villain is actually Egyptian), is serviceble enough, but Howard was never his best when he tried to imitate his contemporaries. It's a decent if unmemorable read. You can find better REH on this site.
And the usual blah, blah, blah, complaints about racism whenever the villain isn't German.
This is the first piece of fiction I've found on this obscure conflict, the Russo-Japanese war. It involves an unnamed American-Polish spy working for the UK and as a double agent for both the Russian Czar and the Japanese Mikado. It involves spy ships, trans-siberian railway and beautiful, seductive princesses.
It does have an annoying characteristic of not fully naming characters, calling them Princes Y____ and Prince Z____.
I was curious to see how Henty would handle a female protagonist, since all of his male protagonist are exactly the same character. Well, he just turns the plucky English girl into a plucky English boy. She even shaves her head and dresses up as soldier.
A nice lost world style adventure. generally a fun read but its been done so many times since it loses impact. I would have liked a female character to be on the adventure.
Personally, I prefer the Professor Challenger stories.
Recent comments: User reviews
It is so bigoted in its depiction of anyone not English (Saxon) as to be laughable. At one point, he states "the Saxons never harm women or children." Ahem, how about the St Brice's day massacre to start with.
The saddest thing is that Henty really believed his Saxon/English racial superiority to an extent that would make any rational person uncomfortable.
And the usual blah, blah, blah, complaints about racism whenever the villain isn't German.
It does have an annoying characteristic of not fully naming characters, calling them Princes Y____ and Prince Z____.
Personally, I prefer the Professor Challenger stories.