The Road of Kings (Conan)

Things are happening in The Road of Kings that no other Conan spinoff has yet to achieve. Among them are political intrigues that other writers have yet to capture so deftly in a Conan saga. The Road of Kings is marked by strong character development, a riveting plot with unexpected twists and turns, and vivid sorcery. Wagner's writing style is more literary than the other spinoff authors, so The Road of Kings doesn't come off as so much of an adventure tale for the pulp market. Maybe that's why some reviewers call it "not a real Conan" story. But good writing is always worth reading, so I would definitely recommend this book. Enjoy!

Plucked from the gallows by the daring rebels of the White Rose, the mighty Conan joins his rescuers in their blood-soaked struggle to rid Zingara of its hated despot. Soon Conan himself will draw steel against a new, still crueler tyrant and his terrifying Final Guard - the indestructible warriors of stone from the age of legends.

Karl Edward Wagner has done a masterful job at creating another fantastic adventure for Conan and the reader. He is a welcome addition to the ranks of Conan authors. There is no shortage of action and intrigue in this Conan novel. For any Conan fan this one is a must and for any who have never read a Conan novel this is a good one to start with. I look forward to more from Wagner...

This is the very best Conan the barbarian Book. Too bad it is out of print.

Written in the late 1970s, "Conan: The Road of Kings" is a good novel, the best of all the many Conan "pastiches" or, continuing stories by another writer other than the creator, that came out between the 1950s and 1990s. Although Karl Edward Wagner was an outstanding writer of fantasy and horror - his "Kane" novels are quite entertaining - his Conan is not quite the same as Robert E. Howard's. He seems less intense, less grim (in fact, Wagner's Kane character reminds me more of Conan than Wagner's Conan). In Conan of Cimmeria, Howard not only created a much imitated, rarely equalled literary type by the time he was 25, he was also a fine poet. If you can't get Howard, or know his stories too well, read Karl Edward Wagner. You won't be disappointed. Wagner was a pretty great writer considering that he seems to have had serious substance abuse problems in his latter years.