Black Gate highlighted Rogues in the House (RitH) podcast in 2022, and in a few years, that crew rapidly expanded with Sword & Sorcery publications that include: A Book of  Blades (2022)  and A Book of Blades Vol. II (2023), and a collection of John R. Fultz’s stories in The Revelations of Zang (2024)

This post reviews the newest collection of stories from RitH’s own Matthew John released this June: To Walk on Worlds is available now in eBook and paperback. Matthew John is fascinated with adventure fiction and moonlights as a writer and game designer for Monolith in addition to his podcast responsibilities.  This post reviews To Walk on Worlds with excerpts.

If Gandalf was an a**hole, then we’d call him a “Meddler” instead of an “Istar”

The back cover indicates Lachmannon may be the protagonist of focus, and this Northman of Kaelta displays clear, Conan-like vibes while featuring in many of the stories as the key barbarian. He rocks, but the everpresent, and more unique character (anti-hero?) across the book is Maxus the Meddler. A “meddler” is a sorcerer, and Maxus gains the god-like power to move (and exploit and dominate) multiple realms; the titular phrase ‘To Talk on Worlds’ emphasizes that readers will experience Maxus’s exploration and machinations.  Interior illustrations by Sandy Carruthers feature Maxus most, and he appears physically like Gandalf. So Maxus is phenotypically a wizard, but he is otherwise a bonafide a** hole. In the rare instances Maxus requires assistance from other beings, he does not form a fellowship. He may lure in rogue champions, like Lachmannon, to aid him but he would never consider them a partner. Maxus the Meddler is a splendid character, and it is super fun to witness him gain power and exploit other characters.

The table of contents (below) reveals eleven stories, seven of which were published in popular S&S venues.  They read even better together, with four additional stories helping flesh out the land containing the capital city of Pathra, Kael, Vescivius, Spatha, and the Burning Isle. Oddly, perhaps on purpose, every story has an abundance of grinning characters.  Matthew Johns’s writing style is very accessible, moving at the fast pace one would expect from pulpy fiction.

Check out the excerpts that convey (1) weird foes, (2) desperate melee, and (3) vile sorcery!

Cover Blurb

From the Burning Isle to the hellish depths of Zanzara, beyond the demon-haunted planets circling the Black Rim, only Maxus the Meddler may walk on worlds…and woe to any other who tries.

Kings and generals are but pawns for the immortal sorcerer, as are the vengeful creatures from the stars. The machinations of Maxus require many cogs, and only one among them has ever risen beyond his station.

Lachmannon the Kael, a man born from the stony bones of the earth, becomes the meddler’s most useful asset. But the Kaelish mercenary’s head is as hard as his fists. When Maxus’ monomaniacal goal–to master the sorceries of every world and every age–becomes clear to him, will he remain an expendable tool?

Not bloody likely.

John’s tales of swords, sorcery, and subversion have previously appeared in the pages of Weirdbook, Whetstone, and Tales From the Magician’s Skull. To Walk on Worlds collects nearly a decade’s worth of sardonic dark fantasy, as well as a fistful of new stories printed here for the first time.

Table of Contents

1. “To Walk on Worlds” (Death’s Sting Where Art Thou, February 2020)
2. “A Simple Errand” (Tales From the Magician’s Skull #10, April 2024)
3. “The Circle” (Weirdbook #40, April 2019)
4. “Gift of Gallah” (A Book of Blades, July 2022)
5. “Cries From a Sleeping City” (A Book of Blades Volume II, July 2023)
6. “Man of Xerus” (Original to this volume)
7. “A Final Errand” (Original to this volume)
8. “The Meddler”(Weirdbook Annual: Zombies, October 2021)
9. “A Fate Worse than Exile” (Original to this volume)
10. “A Chance Burden” (Whetstone Amateur Magazine of Sword and Sorcery, Issue #4, December 2021)
11. “Black Harvest” (Original to this volume)

Excerpts

“Weird Foes”

…Lachmannon struck again, cleaving off a portion of Marick’s head. His remaining ear clung tenuously to a sagging flap of his scalp.

The guard stepped back in horror, but for Marick it was as if the blow hadn’t landed.

“It’s inevitable, Kael,” he said, grinning as blood streamed past his lips. “She’s already here.” As he spoke, a dark liquid erupted from the wound in his scalp. After a thick, oily gout, tiny worms spilled out, sloughing from his head to the floor where they writhed in chaotic black clusters.

Lachmannon’s next blow severed Marick’s head. Blood fountained from his neck, spraying down the remaining guard.

Marick’s meaty frame tumbled bonelessly to the floor with a wet thud. Black ichor oozed from the wound, crawling with tiny, human-faced worms…

“Desperate Melee”

The blood rain ceased as the scralek dropped the bowl and hopped down from the cage. Then he picked up a shit-coated stick and began jamming it between the bars of bleached bone, trying to further humiliate Quent. When he proved too quick and agile for the game, the fiend moved on to the northman. A few pokes landed before the giant acknowledged the slight. Then—in a blur of motion—he snatched the prod from his torturer and thrust it back through the bars. The jagged stick pierced the scralek’s crude chest piece, punching through the armor on his back. A gurgle escaped his lips as he crumpled to the red sands.

A nearby cluster of scraleks began shouting what might have been war cries or tributes to their grim gods; others laughed and pounded their drums in faster succession. The northern giant returned to his slumped position, brushing the blood and shit from his hands.

“Vile Sorcery”

“….Szrak!” The final word burst from his lips. His arm shot forward, twice the span of its natural length, striking like a whip. The talisman pierced the breast of Plyxtra and the alien’s inhuman wail pealed through the chamber. Seconds later the beast exploded into violet flames.

For this last spell to work, Vulka had dispelled his wards. Without their protection he took the full brunt of the blast. His robes burst into flames, and he dropped to the floor. He rolled and screamed out the Words of Winter’s Breath. A swell of snow and ice blasted the dais, smothering the fire and blanketing man and demon with a chilling pall.

Despite the spell, Vulka’s flesh was screaming agony, covered in patches of angry red flesh. His hair and beard were all but burned away, his robes reduced to blackened wisps. Hot licks of pain tried to steal his focus, yet his chest heaved with maniacal laughter. He was nearly cooked, but he was whole. He’d done it! He’d slain a demon and the one man he’d hated all his life. All the treasures—all the powers of Xerus—were his. He needed only to peel himself off the tiles and—

 

About Matthew John

Matthew John is an English language arts teacher and employee of Monolith Games (Conan, Batman: Gotham City Chronicles). He lives with his wife, two children, and countless cats and dogs in Nova Scotia, Canada. When time allows, he likes to write short fiction, waste time at the gaming table, and chat sword and sorcery on the Rogues in the House Podcast. His work has been published in Grimdark Magazine, Tales from the Magician’s Skull, Skelos (SkelosPress), Weirdbook (Wildside Press), and Robert E. Howard’s Conan the roleplaying game (Modiphius Games).

---