The Saga of Solomon Kane

Solomon Kane is one of those iconic characters who transcends the page, like Elric of Melnibone, Druss the Legend and R.E. Howard's other great creation, Conan. Kane stories are heaped with atmosphere, testimony to Howard's own bleak world view and the circles in which he moved. Fundamentalist morality is pitted against Lovecraftian evil in a relentless series of dualistic conflict. I first encountered Kane in the pages of "Dracula Lives!" over thirty years ago. Whilst I didn't come across him again until this year, he remained a buried influence, an unconscious inspiration for my own character, Deacon Shader. Kane is harder than Shader, much more uncompromising. He is an avenger who will cross the oceans to mete our justice. There are elements of Kane in David Gemmell's Jerusalem Man too. The artwork in this collection is stunning - a return to the beauty of what is for me the golden age of comic books (before computers!) The stories are simple tales of vengeance and horror but perfectly convey the conflicted nature of Kane, a Puritan with wanderlust and a need for danger. It's always great fun to see him breaking away from the embrace of a typically Howardian temptress and cursing her as a succubus.

Excellent adventure in Puritan times.Superb artwork and lots of it. Hard to put down adventure with some occasional partial nudity. A good read. Highly recommended.

These collected stories are a great deal for the price! You get stories that are hard to find any where else today. And art by greats like Neal Adams,John Buscema,Howard Chaykin and my personal favorite Rudy Nebres. Dark Horse has done a fine job in orginising and presenting these stories.They were all originaly in B & W to start with so you still get all the original impact. Bottom line these are great stories from a great time in comics.