The Bloody Crown of Conan

By: Robert E. Howard

Narrated by: Todd McLaren

Length: 17 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

In his hugely influential and tempestuous career, Robert E. Howard created the genre that came to be known as sword and sorcery - and brought to life one of fantasy's boldest and most enduring figures: Conan the Cimmerian, reaver, slayer, barbarian, king. This volume gathers together three of Howard's longest and most famous Conan stories:

"The People of the Black Circle": Amid the towering crags of Vendhya, in the shadowy citadel of the Black Circle, Yasmina of the golden throne seeks vengeance against the Black Seers. Her only ally is also her most formidable enemy - Conan, the outlaw chief.

"The Hour of the Dragon": Toppled from the throne of Aquilonia by the evil machinations of an undead wizard, Conan must find the fabled jewel known as the Heart of Ahriman to reclaim his crown...and save his life.

"A Witch Shall Be Born": A malevolent witch of evil beauty. An enslaved queen. A kingdom in the iron grip of ruthless mercenaries. And Conan, who plots deadly vengeance against the human wolf who left him in the desert to die.

©2003 Conan Properties International, LLC. (P)2009 Tantor

Great Conan must read

Robert E. Howard some of his best work slashing and hacking blood & gore
Greatest work for Conan fans every where

Conan King of Aqulonia

Loved it! Robert E. Howard was a master storyteller. The narrator does an excellent job. Hour of the Dragon is a spectacular piece of storytelling.

Don't read this if you're a Tolkien or Martin fan.

When your listening you realize that the authors of Game of Thrones & Lord of the Rings cannibalized the Conan stories. When I finished all 3 books I was ashamed that I liked either series.

A Seminal Work of Fantasy

Come witness the birth of fantasy as we know it. it is amazing to hear this after spending years wasting my time on modern drivel. Robert Howard was a visionary. Modern authors could do with being inspired by his work.

More misses than hits

The stories of Conan have always been hit or miss with me and I have found this collection to be more misses than hits.
Robert Howard's stories when they are good get my blood pumping and creates a world that is different and yet somehow close at hand.
When they are not, it is work to get to the end. I had to drop this book and pick up another book often, before eventually returning to Conan, determined to finish.
The story at the beginning was of a longer format than usual. The plot itself was interesting, but I found a longer story made it more difficult to keep the blood pumping and I am now convinced that Conan is at its best in quick-paced short bursts.

Crom!

Long-form REH Conan! I would argue that this is a great place to start with Conan.

A must for fantasy and conan fans

A must for fantasy and Conan fans, with some of Robert E Howard more in depth Conan tales, this is great writing beautifully produced.

Fantastic and Essential

Howard is the blueprint for all Sword&Sorcery. He is the earth upon which giants stand!

The second Conan book in a collection of Robert E. Howard stories that is as important as the first. People often say that a good writers stand on the shoulders of giants. Howard is the earth on which the giants of High Fantasy and Sword&Sorcery stand. He is the big bang that sparked a whole new genera during his short time on earth.

If your a fan of Fantasy and Weird Fiction then this is one of three essential authors you must read. The other two being H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith who were Howard's contemporaries and friends.

Fine performance with one small nit-pick

This definitive series is doubtless the best version of Howard’s Conan, presented as it is in order of publication. The performance here is superb with one minor exception: The word “Celt” is pronounced like kelt, not selt, unless you’re just a baseball fan. And that word is used a lot in this volume. Be prepared to grind your teeth a bit when being yanked out of Howard’s world by this and other mispronunciations. Once I could let this go the experience became top notch.

Unbelievable

As great as always. I'm listening to a nearly one hundred year old story from an author who made meager wages on various short stories, when he may have been a millionaire in this age. His talent reveals that. Such a shame he died so tragically by his own hand when something much larger than life was created by the same. I pray for your soul, Howard, and am grateful for the work you did. The Conan stories are truly phenomenal.