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Gondwane . . . In the last days of Earth, the continents drifted together again after aeons of separation, and that was Gondwane.

Gondwane . . . When all the kingdoms of all the peoples of Earth had come and gone and new ones arose, it was on Gondwane they created their ephemeral glories.

On Gondwane, amid the turmoil of the last wars and the last quests and the last efforts of scientists and alchemists, there arose one final hero, the mighty Ganelon Silvermane.

The saga of Ganelon is the telling of master fantasist Lin Carter. And it is in the story of the Scarlet Enchantress that Ganelon first found the meaning of manhood. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Zarkon is Great!
Nemesis of Evil is absolutely the best puzzle yarnbook I have ever read. Lin Carter has crafted a marvellous mystery that kept me guessing until thevery end. I finished the entire book in just a few days, even missedwatching a Dallas Mavericks game! Besides a great mystery, Lin Carter haspopulated the book with an amazing diverse cast of characters: Doc Menlo,Ace Harrington, and my favorite: Scorchy Muldon. I wish Scorchy got alittle more of the "action" he is always pining for. The onlyaspect of the book that is a bit unbelievable is that Lin Carter would haveus believe Zarkon is virtually anonymous. What? A handsome bronze hunk likehim, a Prince, a vastly wealthy man? Prince Zarkon would be on the cover ofGQ, People, Business Week, etc. As an added bonus, the cover of my copy ofNemesis of Evil has a Don Maitz painting! ... Read more

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UK edition. Third title in Jandar series. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Flashing Swords full of fun
This is classic sword and sorcery with a dash of fun. Those who criticize it on literary grounds do not know what they are talking about.
You can't go wrong with Leiber and Poul Anderson, and Lin Carter's addition shows real imagination, while spoofing the whole genre.
In fact, the "omniscient" viewpoint is perfect for this kind of story.

Dated narrative, slow in places, but still some dashing S&S charm.
Ah, the early 1970s, when Led Zeppelin and Oakland A's ruled the world, when fantasy was booming with the first US paperbacks of _The Lord of the Rings_, and when original series anthologies edited by famous writers were the hot new thing.Lin Carter and several of his writer pals were fans of Howardian sword & sorcery, a style perfect for a theme anthology series.Carter recruited sword & sorcery veterans Fritz Leiber, Jack Vance and Poul Anderson, added an original tale of his own, and thus was born the first volume of _Flashing Swords!_.

Leiber is a legend in sword & sorcery for his classic thief duo Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.Their origin story "Ill Met in Lankhmar" won the Hugo and Nebula awards in 1970; however, the new Fafhrd and Gray Mouser adventure penned for _Flashing Swords! #1_ feels vague and thin compared to that classic.The protagonist is Death himself, plotting the downfall of the two heroes.He brainwashes two warriors to attack them, but Fafhrd and the Mouser easily, quickly, and rather misogynisticly defeat them.

Jack Vance, author of the classic Dying Earth tales, contributes a tale of squabbling sorcerers chasing after powerful stones.The beginning drags with constant bickering between these innumerable wizards.The pace finally picks up once they board a flying palace and track down their pawn on another world, told in Vance's uniquely vivid and crisp language.

Anderson's novella is set in a vivid alternate-Viking world, based on his own historical knowledge of Icelandic epics.However, the early sections of this tale stumble through long passages of societal backstory and Christian ritual.Once the eventual mermen protagonists finally set sail to recover treasure from a submerged city ruin, the story becomes more interesting.

Carter explains that his tale, introducing a barbarian warrior, was influenced by Robert E. Howard's Conan.His barbarian, a "man god," is so supernaturally gifted that he easily conquers all tasks.Carter's prose is so over-the-top, in passages like the description of the barbarian's huge physique, that it teeters between obsequious and farcical.The barbarian receives his divine mission, but then the story shifts to his sorcerer sidekick and that mission is largely forgotten.The two heroes get waylaid en route to their destination and sit through a whole chapter of boring theological discussion.They escape in implausible fashion; then the story ends with the original mission left for another tale.

The old-fashioned omniscient point-of-view makes all of these stories an odd read for the modern audience.In some cases, the omniscient voice provides interesting detail on the setting.However, that same focus on setting, combined with the shallow depth of penetration into characters' thoughts, leaves the reader at a distance from the characters.Modern readers, in an age dominated by TV and movies, demand a closer and more intimate focus on their protagonists than this point-of-view can provide.

Despite that handicap of its era, _Flashing Swords! #1_ does provide a few delightful moments of fantastical awe and visceral sword & sorcery glory. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good swashbuckler, but ...
Starting with "Mind Wizards," Carter's book titles seemed to lose touch with the books they titled. "Renegade" continues in that vein. I think I know who the 'renegade' was supposed to have been. That worthy individual, however, has been one of the series hero's most loyal deputies. And, because of some arcane technicalities, was never officially outlawed. He never turned on his people to begin with, just followed a higher law, and never even had reason to file a conflict of interest statement.

No matter. The buckles swash a mile a minute. Amazing coincidences void every warranty issued under the laws of statistics. Any lone female human-type person turns out to be a princess. (Around here, the paparazzi keep a much closer eye on our princesses.) Everyone and their dog can take down their own age in implacable bug-type foes. And, of course, glory flows like bubbles in a hot tub aorund all the majestically deserving folk who star in our show.

Harken back to the mindset that let you enjoy Doc Smith, the Buck Rogers serials, or the hurtling moons of Barsoom. Then, crack the cover and relive the days when a storyteller could tell a story in only 200 pages.

-- wiredweird

PS: Carter introduces a fascinating bit of aquatic sequel-bait toward the end of this one, an implicit promise that appears never to have been kept. ... Read more

Product Description
Come with us out of this dull, workaday world to Terra Magica, tha land beyond World's Edge, where knights ride out on wonder quests, where beautiful princesses wait for rescue from sea serpents, where sky-high giants seek human morsels for their cookpots, and where a king may seek a champion to set aside his realm's enchantment.

Here again is Kesrick, knight of Dragonrouge, in combat against villainy. At his side stand a Scythian princess and a lost nobleman of Tartary. Here be wizards of good and wizards of evil; here be mighty giants and witches of utter meanness. Here be high fantasy from thne golden pen of the Grand Master himself, Lin Carter! ... Read more

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THONGOR AT THE END OF TIME. Made in Germany in German language. 1968 publishing. Thick paperback. ... Read more

Product Description
Ganelon Silvermane, the genetically designed superhero of the Earth's fabulous final age, has rapidly become the most popular of all Lin Carter’s creations. Brought to life prematurely, Ganelon’s adventures in a world of crumbling empires, ravaging hordes, and marvelous relics of forgotten scientific empires are always edge-of-the-seat wonder novels—the best creation of the author of the Thongor, Green Star, and Callisto books, to mention but a few!

Now, in this fourth novel of Gondwane, the world's last continent, Ganelon Silvermane has offered himself as hostage to the worst band of barbarians to roam the plains. As a captive of the Horde, Ganelon rises to greater heights of heroism than ever before . . . and begins to assume the full power of his mighty being! ... Read more