No. 38 - Rage of the Behemoth

edited by Jason M. Waltz

Started: August 21
Finished: September 7

Notes: It's with more than a little glee that I get to read this collection of Sword and Sorcery short stories featuring gigantic monsters. I like Sword and Sorcery. I like big monsters. And most importantly, I like the editor, who I've had the pleasure to work with on a few occassions, including when he published my story "Deep in the Land of the Ice and Snow" in the Return of the Sword anthology last year. Another nice thing about short story collections is I don't feel the need to read the whole thing all at once; I can read a story or two, then go read a novel or something else, then get back to the collection. Also, I'm familiar with the works of a good number of the writers in this anthology. So, what's there not to like?

Mini review: Fans of sword-slinging action need to read this, especially if they're also fans of big monsters. There are all different kinds of beasties to be found in these 21 tales. Of the stories here, three were my favorites, "Beyond the Reach of his Gods" by Brian Ruckley, "The Rotten Bones Rattle" by C. L. Werner and "Nothing Left of the Man" by Jeff Stewart. But those were just my favorite three. There are plenty of other tales of all kinds here, and each is great in its own way.