Magical Hack - MTG 4E

 

This guy's work would go a lot faster if he used a computer. What a schlub! Of course, maybe I could hire this guy to destroy AI data centers across the world. About time Magic does something useful.

Diamonds Are Forever (James Bond #4) 3Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: Diamonds Are Forever
Series: James Bond #4
Author: Ian Fleming
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 205
Words: 72K
Publish: 1956

There is a reason why the movies have overshadowed these books. For about 75% of the book, it was just boring, boring, boring.

Bond gets involved with the American Mob and diamond smuggling and one train blows up after Bond gets beaten up. That’s it. I know I’m jaded in terms of thrillers and adventures, but seriously, that’s it. Cold War thrillers are just so slow and move/countermove and then counter/counter/countermove. Blah, blah, blah. It’s not bad story telling or anything, it’s just a style that has, thankfully, passed.

If I was still doing my food comparisons for books, I’d liken this to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on white bread.

★★★☆☆

From Grokipedia

James Bond is assigned by M to infiltrate and dismantle a major diamond smuggling pipeline that is costing Britain millions in lost dollar earnings, running from the mines of Sierra Leone through London and into the United States. [3] The pipeline begins in Sierra Leone, where African miners conceal rough diamonds in their mouths during staged dental visits to a corrupt Afrikaner dentist, who extracts the stones and transports them by motorcycle to a remote thorn bush rendezvous; there, a German helicopter pilot collects the diamonds (worth around £100,000 per shipment) and flies them toward Dakar, from where they are forwarded through cut-outs to London. [3] In London, the stones are handled by the House of Diamonds, a front for Jack Spang (alias Rufus B. Saye), who packages them for couriers to smuggle to the U.S. end operated by his brother Seraffimo Spang. [3]Bond impersonates Peter Franks, a known diamond courier arrested by Special Branch, and meets Tiffany Case, the organization's American go-between, at the Trafalgar Palace Hotel in London. [3] She briefs him on smuggling the diamonds concealed inside six Dunlop 65 golf balls in his golf bag and provides expense money before he departs. [3] Bond flies to New York via BOAC Stratocruiser, clears customs without issue, and checks into the Hotel Astor as instructed. [3] He meets Shady Tree, a hunchbacked intermediary for the Spangled Mob, who pays him part of his fee and directs him to Saratoga Springs to collect the remainder by betting on the fixed horse Shy Smile in the Perpetuities Stakes. [3]In Saratoga Springs, Bond reconnects with Felix Leiter, now a Pinkerton's detective investigating the same mob, and they collaborate to sabotage the fix. [4] Shy Smile, a ringer substituted for the original horse, appears to win but is disqualified after its jockey deliberately fouls another horse, thwarting the payout. [3] Bond is then rerouted to Las Vegas to win his fee at the rigged blackjack tables of the Tiara Hotel and Casino, owned by Seraffimo Spang. [3] Tiffany Case, dealing blackjack, arranges for Bond to win $5,000 legitimately, but he defies orders by continuing to play roulette and winning more, drawing the mob's attention. [3]Bond is captured by the killers Wint and Kidd, taken to the ghost town of Spectreville, and severely beaten by Seraffimo Spang's men after his imposture is discovered. [3] Tiffany Case, disillusioned with the mob, helps Bond escape; they flee on a hand-pumped rail car while setting Spectreville ablaze. [3] Seraffimo pursues them in his antique steam locomotive, the Cannonball, but Bond shoots him through the cab window, causing the train to derail and crash in flames, killing Seraffimo. [3] Bond and Tiffany escape with assistance from cab driver Ernie Cureo, who is wounded during a violent car chase in Las Vegas. [4]They travel to New York and board the Queen Elizabeth for England, but Wint and Kidd follow aboard with orders to assassinate them. [3] Bond confronts the pair in their cabin, kills Wint with a thrown knife and Kidd with his Beretta, then stages the scene as a murder-suicide stemming from a gambling dispute. [3] Bond then flies to Freetown, Sierra Leone, where he ambushes the pipeline's African end. [3] Jack Spang, piloting the helicopter himself after murdering the regular German pilot, arrives at the thorn bush rendezvous, but Bond fires a Bofors anti-aircraft gun, striking the tail rotor and causing the helicopter to crash in flames, killing Spang and destroying the smuggling operation. [3]

Main characters

The main characters in Ian Fleming's Diamonds Are Forever revolve around James Bond and the key figures he encounters in his investigation of the diamond smuggling network.James Bond, the seasoned British Secret Service agent designated 007, adopts an undercover persona as a criminal to infiltrate the smuggling operation. [5] His usual detachment gives way to rare emotional vulnerability in his evolving relationship with Tiffany Case, where he assumes a supportive role and develops genuine concern for her well-being. [5]Tiffany Case is a tough, quick-witted American woman serving as a professional diamond courier for the Spangled Mob. [5] Her backstory includes profound trauma: at sixteen, she was gang-raped by mobsters after her mother's San Francisco bordello failed to pay protection money, prompting her to run away, struggle with alcoholism, and later enter the criminal world under Seraffimo Spang's influence. [5] Tiffany projects a cold, self-reliant demeanor marked by sharp dialogue, defiance, and competence, yet her psychological complexity reveals melancholy, mood swings, and a protective wariness toward men rooted in her past. [5] She forms an eventual alliance with Bond that blossoms into a romantic relationship characterized by cautious intimacy and mutual trust. [5]Felix Leiter, Bond's longstanding American ally, has left the CIA after debilitating injuries in a prior case and now works as an operative for the Pinkerton detective agency. ) He provides crucial assistance to Bond in Saratoga Springs and maintains a loyal partnership. )The Spang brothers, Jack (known as ABC) and Seraffimo, lead the Spangled Mob, the U.S.-based syndicate orchestrating the diamond pipeline. Jack oversees operations strategically, while Seraffimo handles more direct enforcement.Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd are homosexual professional assassins working for the Spang organization, distinguished by their contrasting physical builds—Wint tall and ginger-haired, Kidd shorter and dark-haired—and their methodical, unconventional killing techniques.Supporting figures include Shady Tree, a crooked comedian functioning as a key contact and fence in the smuggling chain; Ernie Cureo, a Las Vegas taxi driver who becomes Bond's reliable local ally; and M, the head of MI6, who assigns Bond the diamond smuggling investigation.

Imperatoris Chronicorum IV

 Well, it's been a full week and I've been busy as usual saving the World from Bad Books and Bad Authors. It's a necessary job, but rather thankless and at times, like around midnight when the moon is rising and I'm sitting on the rooftops overlooking the Big Town of X which is under my protection, I wonder. Is it really worth it? Do the citizens of X, or the World for that matter, appreciate the sacrifices I make on their behalf? Do they even CARE? Maybe they DESERVE those bad books. But then my sacred duty as a Gatekeeper comes to the fore and I remember that I chose this life as the Dark Book Crusader. Resolve strengthened, I can continue on with my job. And every once in a while, there is some appreciation.

I was talking with Nancy about this subject in one of my recent posts and she was kind enough to send this wonderful award. It is my first TAGA and I will cherish it deeply. It's the little things like this that keep me moving forward instead of curling up in a ball like a little soiboi. Nancy, while the Big Town of X will never know how close they came to being over-run by bad books and how close to utter destruction they were, this award was the edge I needed in my secret war and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

After something as momentous as that, it's kind of hard to transition back into talking about my regular secret identity life, you know? But secret wars hidden in the shadows of midnight don't come cheap and I have bills to pay. So onward to the humdrum and ordinary, da da dum!

Deary Diary,
Sunday it was almost 90degrees and it was sooooooo hot. But because I'm a cheap yankee, I refused to turn on the air conditioner. Instead I turned on the little window fan and felt good about the 3dollars I saved on our electrical bill. Mrs B told me to turn off the fan and stop being a drama queen, because, in her words "it was only 90 degrees'. Well I never! I totes would have unSpaced her on my Instatokagram account, but neither of us have that, so I couldn't. But I would have! That'll teach her a lesson. Ooohhhh, burn!
After not talking to each other for like, you know, FOREVAH, 5minutes later we made up and decided to go eat at Teriyaki Madness. I was like all "Girl, you know you'll like it" and she was all like "Boy, you know I will". How can I stay mad at someone who gets me and so deeply understands the secrets of my heart? Its like we are soulmates, destined to be together FOREVAH!!! Love is rice, chicken and tofu.

Captain's Log, Monday, month Centurion in the Year of the Cylons

*blaring alarms
*red flashing lights

Captain Bookie: "Number One, are the Cylons attacking? Prepare the warp torpedos and reverse their polarity! They'll never know what hit them!"

First Mate: "Captain, it's just your alarm, it's time to wake up."

Captain Bookie: "You know, land surveying would be a whole lot easier if I could just warp torpedo all of nature and pave the whole planet."

First Mate: "But Captain, think of the little squirrels!"

Captain Bookie: "Oh, I am!"
*insert laugh track

*fast forward several hours

Captain Bookie: "First Co-Worker, reverse the polarity on your machete and chop down that tree. It will never know what hit it!"

First Co-Worker: "Aye aye El Capitan!"

Captain Bookie: "Wut, wut!? This is Space America!!!! We only speak Space American here!!! None of your filthy space commie lingo around here!"

First Co-Worker: "ha. ha. ha. I kid Captain Bookie, I kid."

Captain Bookie: "What a jokester! What will these wacky kids do next?"

*pan back, show Captain Bookie, First Co-Worker and four random people all patting each other on the back and laughing uproariously

and thus ends this episode of "As the Total Station Turns". Tune in tomorrow when Captain Bookie gets an ouchie and swears for 10minutes straight.

"Is it Tuesday? I can't tell, I've lost track of time, I'm so confused!"

*looks into camera

"I'm hot on the trail of the Cursed Sub Sandwich. I've heard that if you eat it, on a very hot day, it will either kill you or make you invincible. Just yesterday I met someone who claimed to have eaten one and they weren't dead, so the legend must be true, it just must be!"

*camera jiggles all over the place, the words "Market Basket" vaguely appear in the background, muttered whisperings are barely audible

"I've DONE IT!!!!!!!!! It has taken me all week, but I ATE THE SANDWICH!!!! And I'm not dead. I am INVINCIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

*camera crashes to the ground
a grotesquely swollen head appears in view
and then explodes
battery symbol glows in red and then there is nothing but static....

Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing to you today, Wednesday May 10th, and hope this letter finds you well. Now I realize you don't know me from Adam, but let me hasten to assure that this is not a spam letter (no, I am NOT a Nigerian Prince) nor is it a form lettre (see that mispelling? Pure human did that) and finally, this is not a chain letter (nobody has to die, I promise).
What this letter is is an opportunity, for you! An opportunity to impress your neighbors, your friends, even your coworkers. Do you have a hobby that you talk about? You do? Well, stop it. Nobody cares about your *bleeping Corvette and the solenoid this and the clutch that. Seriously.
I realize this might sound not quite like an opportunity, but if you want to stay alive, which seems like a great opportunity to me, please follow these steps:
1) Shut. Up.
Yes, it is that simple. Just shut your flipping mouth.
Sincerely,
The Imperator formerly known as the Prince of Nigeria

*carnival music & lights flashing Thursday! Thursday! All Day, Every Day! Thursday! Thursday! Thursday!

Come one, come all, today's your lucky day! Roll the golden dice and see what you win! Could be a yacht! Could be a penny. Could be anything in between! Roll the dice and see what Fate has in store for you this evening.

*middle aged Sweet Summer's Child walks by

Sir, yes, you sir! You look like a cunning and discerning man of the world. Would you care to roll the golden dice and see what fate has in store for you? Just sign on this dotted line and away you go, the whole world ahead of you.

*middle aged Sweet Summer's Child rolls the dice around in his hand, the pulls out a gun and shoots the suspicious looking carnival barker's hat off, revealing a set of horns

"Sorry, old Scratch. I've already had dinner with my wife and two dear friends from church. I have everything I need right now. But I'm always willing to spread the love of lead if you'd like some!"

*the devil disappears in a puff of smoke

The moral of this story? Be content with the little things you have and you won't have to worry about being tempted by the things that will just make you miserable.
~from Bookstooge's Fables

"The Sabbath is coming, the Sabbath is coming!"
~Bookstooge Revere informing the Colonists that the Sabbath was coming

The only thing that got me through the day was knowing that the Sabbath was coming and that I could just stop then. It's been in the 90's and muggy all week and I finally caved and turned on the A/C, just to dry out the air. Work has sucked the life out of me in this weather, but even though I've been going to bed early, I then tend to wake up early (3-4am) and that makes for a very long day. I have no plans this evening and if I'm lucky, I'll be asleep by 8pm and stay asleep until 7 or 8 tomorrow.

Blessed Sabbath to you all!

The White Rose (The Black Company #3) 4Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: The White Rose
Series: The Black Company #3
Author: Glen Cook
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 314
Words: 99K
Publish: 1985

Once again, I thoroughly enjoyed this re-read, to the point where I was looking forward to my down time so I could pick this up. But once again, I didn’t remember a blessed thing from my initial read in 2015. I was worried that maybe my brain was starting to go, but I didn’t write this review for over a week once I finished the book and by the time I went to write this, I had completely forgotten the plot almost completely again. It took reading the Grokipedia entry to bring me up to speed. Which means it is not me but something about these Black Company books that just slide off my mind as soon as I’m done with them, even while I really enjoy them. Crisis Averted!

At the end of the previous book, Shadows Linger, the Black Company was reduced to a much smaller company, under 100 people. By the end of this book, they are down to under 10 people and they “officially” disband with the end goal being to return The Annals back to Khatovar, the Black Company’s point of origin back in the misty past. It makes for a good tying off point for the series if you weren’t wowed but at the same time gave Cook the necessary loose threads if he wanted to write more, which is what ended up happening. Many more Black Company books came into being and even to this day, he is pumping them out. I just hope he finishes the current series before his own pump gives out. The guy is old after all.

The other thing stood out to me, was the inclusion of a past storyline about Bomanz the Wizard, It took me a while to realize it was happening in the past. I don’t think that incomprehension was Cook’s fault this time, it was squarely on me. I am writing this little bit because I believe that Book 10 is about Bomanz and by the time I get to book 10 I have a feeling I’m going to have forgotten who he is, hahahahaa :-)

To end this review, I’d like to talk about the cover. For the past couple of books I’ve been able to find alternate covers (even as I chose to go with the original one for the first book) but for this one, this is the only English cover I could find. There was one other one, but it was ugly, enough so that I didn’t even consider it. I guess I’m spoiled. First World Book Problems...

★★★★☆

From Grokipedia

The novel is set six years after the events of Shadows Linger, with the surviving members of the Black Company having taken refuge in the Hole, a network of caves beneath the Plain of Fear, where they form the core of Darling's New White Rose Rebellion.[10] The Plain of Fear's magical inhabitants—such as windwhales, mantas, talking menhirs, and the sentient Father Tree—provide protection against the Lady's forces, while Darling's expanding null field suppresses magic in its vicinity, offering the rebels a strategic sanctuary.[10] [11] The Lady surrounds the Plain with armies commanded by the Taken, including the vengeful Limper, whom the Company believed they had killed years earlier.[10]Croaker, the Company's annalist, receives mysterious packets narrating the story of Bomanz, the wizard who unleashed the Lady decades ago, along with a summons to travel north into Imperial territory.[10] Darling authorizes Croaker to lead a small group—including wizards One-Eye and Goblin, the enigmatic Tracker, and his hound Toadkiller Dog—on the journey, traveling aboard a windwhale and witnessing Darling's successful strike against Whisper's headquarters at Spit.[10] In the Barrowland, the group discovers that Raven, a long-deserted Company member, sent the packets and now lies in a coma after a failed attempt to probe the Great Barrow using sorcery.[10] Flooding from the Great Tragic River erodes the Dominator's prison, threatening his awakening and release.[10] [11]After evading initial Imperial capture and fleeing the Barrowland garrison, Croaker is seized and delivered to the Lady at the Tower at Charm.[10] Recognizing the Dominator as the greater threat, the Lady proposes an uneasy alliance with Darling's forces, withdrawing her troops from rebel areas and accompanying Croaker back to the Plain of Fear disguised as his companion.[10] There, revelations surface that Tracker and Toadkiller Dog are ancient demons bound to the Dominator, freed by Raven's actions; Father Tree intervenes to subdue them and thwart an assassination attempt by Taken Scorn and Blister.[10] Darling and the Lady forge a truce, enabling their combined forces—including the Company remnants, Plain creatures, and Imperial troops—to march north to confront the Dominator.[10]At the Barrowland, the alliance revives Raven and Bomanz while systematically releasing and destroying the Dominator's lesser demons.[10] The Dominator breaks free but is confined within Darling's null field, where his powers are neutralized; when briefly freed, he unleashes devastating sorcery, killing several Company members including Elmo and the Lieutenant.[10] [11] Tracker battles the Dominator in a brutal melee, and One-Eye and Goblin drive a silver spike into the Dominator's head, binding his essence and planting the spike in a sapling grown from Father Tree.[10] The Limper attempts to betray and kill the Lady with a crossbow bolt bearing a false True Name, but Croaker beheads him in retaliation.[10]In the battle's immediate aftermath, the Lady betrays the alliance by naming Darling's True Name, destroying her null field forever.[10] Silent speaks for the first time in the Annals, naming the Lady and stripping her of her sorcery.[10] The Black Company, reduced to six surviving members, departs the field and heads south toward Khatovar, accompanied by the now-powerless Lady.[10]

Major characters

The major characters in The White Rose include the remnants of the Black Company and key figures on both sides of the conflict against the Lady and the looming threat of the Dominator. Croaker, the Company's physician, historian, and primary narrator, emerges as a central leader of the depleted group, guiding its survivors and developing a nuanced, personal relationship with the Lady that reveals her more human aspects. [12] [11]Darling, the deaf-mute prophesied White Rose, serves as the symbolic leader of the New White Rose Rebellion and possesses a powerful null field that cancels nearby magic, positioning her as the prophesied counter to sorcerous domination. [12] Her true name is Tonie Fisk. [13]The Lady, the Empire's formidable sorceress ruler, displays increasing humanization through her interactions with Croaker while facing significant challenges to her power, including a temporary alliance against a greater evil and a reduction in her magical dominance. [12] [11]One-Eye and Goblin, the Company's veteran wizards, provide essential magical support and endure dramatic changes during key events, contributing crucially to rituals aimed at containing ancient threats. [12]Raven, a former Black Company member who deserted years earlier, returns with actions that nearly free the Dominator and complicate the rebellion's efforts. [12]Tracker and Toadkiller Dog appear as enigmatic companions to the Company, with Tracker's dumb strength and affability masking their revealed nature as demonic entities bound to the Dominator. [12]The Limper, a resurrected Taken and the Company's longstanding nemesis, commands Imperial forces with boundless hatred toward the mercenaries and meets his final death at Croaker's hands. [11]Supporting figures include Silent, a quiet Company wizard skilled in finger speech; Bomanz, a wizard whose historical actions in the Barrowlands prove vital to the story's resolution; and Old Father Tree, the ancient sentient entity ruling the Plain of Fear and offering cryptic guidance amid the conflict.

• The White Rose (2015 Review)

• All of My “Black Company” Reviews

Lure - MTG 4E

 

This looks like the kind of apple that the evil stepmother fed to Snow White. Doesn't say very much for Snow White's observational skills though does it? Tsk, tsk, tsk...

Jane Austen: Edgar and Emma 3Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: Jane Austen: Edgar and Emma
Series: ----------
Author: Jane Austen
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Satire
Pages: 4
Words: 1K
Publish: 1787

Ahhhh, shortest read of the year! I’m not even including a synopsis because it is just a scene of two families meeting and one teen girl crying because her love interest didn’t come because he’s off at college and her whole life is now ruined.

Hahahahahahaa. Oh, Austen really knew how to lay on the satire. She does it so masterfully in just these few pages.

★★★☆☆

• All My “Jane Austen” Reviews

• Reading Austen 2025 Master Post

The Black Colossus (Conan Chronicles #4) 3.5Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: The Black Colossus
Series: Conan Chronicles #4
Author: Robert Howard
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 45
Words: 14K
Publish: 1933

This was a quintessential Conan story. A country is in trouble, threatened by an old time’y sorcerer, Conan gets hired to fight the horde the Sorcerer has raised, there’s a beautiful (probably semi or completely naked) girl involved and Conan kills said old time’y sorcerer with ye olde time’y sword.

I kind of wish there had been more to this story. A 3,000 year old sorcerer is resurrected, begins the conquest of the world and Conan ends the whole shebang by spearing him with a sword. Apparently old time’y sorcerers just aren’t what they used to be. My goodness, back in my day sorcerers used to wipe out whole nations with just a gesture of their hand. To kill one you needed a super secret jewel dipped in extinct alien blood. That’s the kind of sorcerer we had back in the bad old days!

Hahahahahaaa.

Not high on my personal list of Conan stories. Not bad, hence why I’m still giving it 3.5stars but not one I’d voluntarily go back and re-read because I enjoyed it so much.

The cover is pretty cool. It’s by the same publisher that did The Tower of the Elephant. I think I’m going to try to find these covers whenever I can.

★★★✬☆

From Grokipedia.com

"Black Colossus" takes place in the Hyborian Age, opening in the desolate ruins of Kuthchemes in eastern Shem, where the master thief Shevatas penetrates the ivory-domed tomb of the ancient sorcerer Thugra Khotan in search of treasure but meets a gruesome end at the hands of a guardian serpent and the tomb's lingering magic. [14] [15] The narrative shifts to the small kingdom of Khoraja on the Kothian frontier, where Princess Yasmela rules as regent while her brother is held captive in Ophir. Yasmela is plagued by psychic visitations from Natohk the Veiled One, a mysterious desert prophet who has united thirty nomadic tribes, fifteen cities, rebel Stygian elements, and five thousand chariots into a vast invading horde threatening Khoraja. [14] [15]Desperate for guidance, Yasmela consults the ancient oracle of Mitra in a hidden palace shrine. The god's voice instructs her to walk the midnight streets alone and entrust the kingdom's fate to the first man she meets. [14] [16] She encounters Conan the Cimmerian, a scarred mercenary captain serving in the employ of General Amalric's regiment. Despite skepticism from nobles including Count Thespides, Chancellor Taurus, and Amalric himself, Yasmela appoints Conan supreme commander of Khoraja's forces. [14] [17]The Khorajan army, bolstered by mercenaries, Shemitish archers, and aristocratic knights, marches south to intercept the invaders at the strategic Pass of Shamla, with Yasmela accompanying them in a camel litter. Conan deploys the troops defensively around the Well of Altaku, positioning archers on ridges and holding the main strength on the plateau. [15] Natohk's horde emerges from an unnatural mist, and the battle erupts when Count Thespides leads an unauthorized charge that falls victim to Natohk's sorcery—a glittering powder that explodes in blinding white flame, annihilating the knights. [14] [15] The disciplined core of the enemy, including Stygian nobles and mailed Shemitish asshuri, advances relentlessly, clashing in brutal hand-to-hand combat at the pass's narrow neck. [15]Conan directs Amalric's mercenary cavalry on a flanking ride through hidden paths while leading a suicidal downhill charge with Khorajan spearmen on half-wild mounts. The combined assault shatters the horde's cohesion, causing the nomads to panic and the disciplined units to collapse in rout. [14] [15] In the final chaos, Natohk seizes Yasmela in a driverless chariot drawn by a monstrous black creature and flees toward desert ruins. Conan pursues alone, confronts Natohk—who reveals himself as the resurrected Thugra Khotan after three thousand years—and slays the sorcerer with a thrown sword. [14] [15] The invading threat is decisively ended, and the story closes with an intense personal moment between Conan and Yasmela amid the aftermath. [14]

• The “Essential Conan” Trilogy

• All of My “Conan the Barbarian” Reviews

• All of My “Conan Chronicles” Reviews