Skulls in the Stars

By Robert E. Howard

He was a Puritan, who flinched not from the gates of Hell. Tall, gaunt, hollow-eyed in his opposition to the forces of darkness, he defied the devil himself. Kane, cold, steely-nerved duelist, snatched his long rapier from its sheath and thrust it into the heart of evil... Ghoulish laughter follows him . Foul horror haunts his way. Kane, a man whose blood quickens with adventure. Kane, a man more dangerous than a famished wolf.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Start Publishing LLC
• Release date: Aug 21, 2014
• ISBN: 9781633556447

Book preview

Chapter I

There are two roads to Torkertown. One, the shorter and more direct route, leads across a barren upland moor, and the other, which is much longer, winds its tortuous way in and out among the hummocks and quagmires of the swamps, skirting the low hills to the east. It was a dangerous and tedious trail; so Solomon Kane halted in amazement when a breathless youth from the village he had just left overtook him and implored him for God's sake to take the swamp road.

The swamp road! Kane stared at the boy. He was a tall, gaunt man, Solomon Kane, his darkly pallid face and deep brooding eyes made more sombre by the drab Puritanical garb he affected.

Yes, sir, 'tis far safer, the youngster answered to his surprised exclamation.

Then the moor road must be haunted by Satan himself, for your townsmen warned me against traversing the other.

Because of the quagmires, sir, that you might not see in the dark. You had better return to the village and continue your journey in the morning, sir.

Taking the swamp road?

Yes, sir.

Kane shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.

"The moon rises

Reviews for Skulls in the Stars

[michael5rimmer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There are some excellent stories in here, and a poem thrown in for good measure.

Solomon Kane is my favourite Robert E. Howard hero, possibly because he's English so I more readily identified with him when I first encountered him in graphic form as a back-up feature in the UK reprint comic Savage Sword of Conan. As well as being English he was also dour and grim, which appealed to my pre/early teen moodiness, and probably appeals now to my middle-age grumpiness!

The action in these tales of the Puritan avenger swings from the mist-shrouded moors of Devonshire, to the benighted forests of France and Germany, on to the jungles of Africa and then the Spanish Main. Ghosts, revenant wizards, psychotic Barons, decadent Atlantean Queens and savage pirates, all fall before Kane's muskets and rapier.

My favourite story here is Blades of the Brotherhood which sees Kane back in England, after a trail of years, tracking down the pirate captain, Jonas Hardraker, the Fishhawk, to wreak bloody vengeance against him. Kane is outnumbered, but never outclassed! Stirring stuff.

[questbird · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I always found Robert E. Howard's Conan stories hard going (though I liked the graphic novel adaptations). However this earliest Solomon Kane story was very good. Kane's dour character comes across as well as the vaguely Lovecraftian horror of the tale. I look forward to reading more.