Startling Stories, May 1947; and Lands of the Earthquake by Henry Kuttner
(DMR Books, June 2017). Cover art by Earle Bergey and Logon Saton

Lands of the Earthquake/Under a Dim Blue Sun is a “Double” novel, in the tradition of the old Ace Doubles. It contains a long novella by Henry Kuttner called Lands of the Earthquake, and a shorter novella by Howie K. Bentley called Under a Dim Blue Sun. Both fit the Sword & Planet mold (S&P).

The publisher here is DMR books, and it’s printed in the old paperback size that I like. You can find DMR Books online or on Amazon. The cover art on the Kuttner piece is Logon Saton.

The Kuttner piece was first published in 1947 in Startling Stories but has not been reprinted until now. It involves a modern Earthman, William Boyce, being transported to a fantasy land where time stands still but physical space moves. This temporarily brings different lands close enough to each other to interact.

[Click the images for planet-sized versions.]

Boyce finds a land where Crusaders still live but are embattled by a city of sorcerers. He must solve the mystery of who is friend, who is foe, and who brought him there, and for what purpose. The writing is excellent, very atmospheric and with well-executed scene setting and characters.

Howie K. Bentley’s Under a Dim Blue Sun starts out as an SF sort of tale, set in WWII, with an American soldier named O’Brien assigned to sneak behind German lines and steal a NAZI UFO. As soon as O’Brien accomplishes that, though, he loses control of the craft and is carried through a wormhole to another planet, landing just in time to take a hand in a war between humans and snake men. From here, the story becomes almost purely an interplanetary adventure in the tradition of Burroughs and Brackett.

The writing is strong and very fast paced. It hits all the right notes. Characters are well drawn. The action is deftly handled. The story could easily have been longer. In particular, the theft of the UFO could have been expanded. You don’t miss that once you get to the planet, though, and the central action of the story unfolds. Overall, a highly enjoyable tale.

No specific artist is listed on the Bentley piece. It just says cover by “PanSpec.”

The Snake Man’s Bane (Wild Hunt Books, May 24, 2018). Cover by Lionel Baker, II

Bently also has a collection of Sword & Sorcery stories out called The Snake Man’s Bane, one of which is a collaboration with David C. Smith, from Wild Hunt Books. Cover by Lionel Baker II.

In addition to his writing Howie Bentley is an accomplished heavy metal musician and has a band named Cauldron Born. I’ve got a couple of their CDs and they are heavy. Many of the songs and lyrics deal with sword & sorcery themes.

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Charles Gramlich administers The Swords & Planet League group on Facebook, where this post first appeared. His last article for Black Gate was a look at The Heroic Fantasy of Mike Sirota.