Swords & Dark Magic - Reviews Round Up

Reviews are starting to pour in for Swords & Dark Magic, the sword and sorcery anthology I co-edited with Jonathan Strahan. Here are a few of the good ones:

 "...a thoroughly entertaining read." Nine out of Ten - Graeme's Fantasy Book Review

"Sword and sorcery is back, with the same dark, violent and gritty verve that made it so appealing the first time around. Strahan and Anders have managed to find writers who can grab the bloody prizes, and evoke the ancient magic with mere words. The old tools always work best." - The Agony Column

"If you are a fan of old school Sword & Sorcery this is a collection not to be missed. It is filled with everything S & S lovers want: action, magic, grey characters, and evil baddies. ...A few of these deserve inclusion in one of the Years Best Anthologies at the least. I give Swords & Dark Magic 8 out of 10 hats." - The Mad Hatter's Bookshelf & Book Reviews

"...really the epitome of fun. In the introduction ("Check Your Dark Lord at the Door"), Lou and Jonathan get together and dynamically discuss the origins of the term 'sword & sorcery,' all the way back to the Odyssey. From Conan to Elric they cover it all . . . and then present a series of very strong original tales from some of the masters of the genre. Steven Erickson, Glen Cook, Robert Silverberg, Tanith Lee -- sometimes predictable but always entertaining, you may want to read this with a bucket of popcorn." - Orson Scott Card's InterGalactic Medicine Show

"Fortunately, this volume proves my fears were premature and Sword & Sorcery is indeed alive and thriving. This volume features some old friends and some new writers to keep the genre alive. ...This volume comes along as we start a new decade, one that looks to be filled with Swords & Sorcery. It’s a magical volume. " The Baryon Review

And, to be fair, the one bad one:

"I think that my main problem with Swords & Dark Magic is the fact that, in the end, it did not reinvent the subgenre as advertized. It's more a case of revisiting sword and sorcery, not bringing anything new to the table. Which is all good if you are already a fan of sword and sorcery. But for people who prefer epic fantasy or other subgenres, those who are thinking of buying the anthology because it contains short stories by some of their favorite SFF writers but are not necessarily familiar with sword and sorcery, it might cause more than a little bit of disappointment." Pat's Fantasy Hotlist