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Five Things I Think I Think (February, 2026)

Five Things I Think I Think (February, 2026)

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What? It’s been TWO WHOLE WEEKS since I told you what I’ve been thinking about?

Well, we certainly can’t have that now, can we? I start with a bit of snark, and finish with a mini-rant. But hey, Ohio thinks a foot+ of snow, and consistently negative wind chills, is perfectly acceptable. So, I’m doing some grumpy old man this Winter.

1 – READING IS FUNDAMENTAL

We are not nearly the reading culture we were in the past. Online has massively increased ‘watching’ bite-sized content. Which is rarely as intellectually as fulfilling as reading. Or even watching en entire movie.

And I happen to believe the messed-up state of the world is in part attributable to the decrease in intelligence (ignorance runs rampant) resulting from video being as filling as cotton candy and replacing reading (somebody scrolling tik-tok for three hours a day is not learning the way someone reading a half hour a day is).

You don’t have to read Shakespeare, or bios of physicists, or Wuthering Heights. There’s plenty of ‘more accessible’ non-fiction. And while there’s a lot of garbage fiction out there, the choices are endless.

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Intrigue, Betrayals, and Plenty of Swordplay: Eda Blessed III by Milton Davis

Intrigue, Betrayals, and Plenty of Swordplay: Eda Blessed III by Milton Davis

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“I’ve been away from Sati-Baa for ten years,” Omari said. “I’ve walked every inch of Ki Khanga and never truly felt at home. Now I have the means not only to return but establish something of my own. The closer I get, the more eager I am to see it done.”

I first encountered Milton Davis way back in 2012 when I bought Griots (2011), a collection of sword and soul tales he co-edited with Charles Saunders. I bought it on the combined strengths of Saunders’ name and the cover. As a quick side note, if you don’t own it, you can buy an e-book for $3.99, so you have no excuses. It and its companion volume, Sisters of the Spear (2013), are fantastic collections and deserve way more recognition than they’ve received.

I enjoyed Davis’ own story in the book so much, I immediately bought the first Changa book. Changa Diop is a noble adventurer and merchant in 15th century Africa who travels to the Far East and back, ever intent on regaining his father’s kingdom from an usurper. At the heart of the sword and soul explosion of the last two decades, these are great additions to the catalog of heroic fantasy.

Davis’ other major character, Omari Ket, is a very different sort of adventurer. He is a rake, a gambler, a mercenary, but, most importantly, blessed by the goddess Eda. She is the wife of the god Daarila, and with him, co-creator of the heavens and the earth. This has protected him in many instances as well as altered his plans as Eda has used him for her own greater plans.

Omari’s adventures take place in the African-inspired world of Ki Khanga. The setting was created by Davis and Balogun Ojetade for a RPG. To christen it, they released an anthology of stories places, Ki Khanga (2013), in the setting and one of my favorites was “Simple Math” featuring Omari. It’s a fun book, filled with warriors and sorcerers, talking gorillas and elephants with guns, and I reviewed it over at my site. …

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The Sword & Sorcery of Robert Holdstock: The Berserker Series

The Sword & Sorcery of Robert Holdstock: The Berserker Series

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Robert Holdstock’s Berserker Series, published under the name Chris Carlsen. Sphere Books, 1977-1979. Covers by Melvyn Grant

A series that I wanted but had a difficult time getting was the Berserker series by Chris Carlsen. There are three books, all from Sphere Books, published in 1977, 1977, & 1979 respectively. I finally got the last one and just finished reading it. The series is:

1. Shadow of the Wolf (August 1977)
2. The Bull Chief (October 1977)
3. The Horned Warrior (1979)

ISFDB lists Melvyn Grant as the cover artist on #1 and 3, and I’m pretty sure book 2 is by him as well. These books are pot boiling, action pulp style Sword & Sorcery novels, and it was quite a surprise when I found out Chris Carlsen was really Robert Holdstock (1948 – 2009).

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Dark Muse News: Anna Smith Spark’s A Sword of Bronze and Ashes

Dark Muse News: Anna Smith Spark’s A Sword of Bronze and Ashes

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A Sword of Bronze and Ashes, September 12, 2023, FLAME TREE PRESS (Cover illustration by Broci)

Welcome to more Dark Muse News. This post reviews Anna Smith Spark’s A Sword of Bronze and Ashes. It was released in September 2023 (Flame Tree Press, cover illustration by Broci) and is the first book of the series The Making of This World: Ruined. The sequel, A Sword of Gold and Ruin, was recently published in October, 2025.

Anna Smith Spark is known as the Queen of Grimdark, a moniker she acquired with her Empires of Dust series. You can expect the same poetic brutality here.  Her style and approach are very unique but are reminiscent of Tanith Lee. Literary wording may keep you distanced as a reader, but the raw emotion expressed throughout is so real that it makes the fantasy feel real, too.  We interviewed Anna Smith Spark in 2019 – Disgust and Desire as part of our Beauty in Weird Fiction series, where she revealed all sorts of muses and inspirations. That year, we hosted a Q&A Session at Gen Con; there, she, John O’Neill, and I showed off our footwear (link); Anna’s footwear won hands down!
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The Conan novels of John Maddox Roberts

The Conan novels of John Maddox Roberts

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The Conan novels of John Maddox Roberts (Tor Books, 1985-1995). Covers by Boris, Ken Kelly, and Julie Bell

The name John Maddox Roberts (1947 – ) first came to my attention as a writer of Conan sword & sorcery pastiches from Tor. He wrote eight, and when I talk to other REH fans Roberts’ name is almost always listed near the top of the Conan pastiche writers.

Of the pastiches that were published by Tor between 1982 and 2004, I’d have to agree, although I like the earlier pastiches by Andy Offutt and Karl Edward Wagner better.

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The Problem of the Invincible Warrior: Frank Frazetta’s Death Dealer by James Silke

The Problem of the Invincible Warrior: Frank Frazetta’s Death Dealer by James Silke

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Frank Frazetta’s Death Dealer, Volumes 1-4, by James Silke (Tor Books, 1988-1990). Covers by Frank Frazetta

James Silke (1931 – ) is something of a renaissance man in the arts. He’s a visual artist and prose writer, a set and costume designer, photographer, and comic book guy. Most people who I meet recognize him as a comic artist/writer, although I’ve never read any of his graphic stuff.

I’ve seen a few of the movies he’s worked on, including King Solomon’s Mines and The Barbarians. My only experience with Silke’s writing is the four Sword & Sorcery books in the Frank Frazetta Death Dealer series.

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Forever An Important Life – Howard Andrew Jones (1968 – 2025)

Forever An Important Life – Howard Andrew Jones (1968 – 2025)

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(As long as Black Gate lets me post here, this will run every year the week of Howard’s passing (January 16), to help keep his flame alive)

A LIFE IS NOT IMPORTANT EXCEPT IN THE IMPACT IT HAS ON OTHER LIVES – Jackie Robinson’s epitaph

Mark Rigney, Howard Andrew Jones, Bob Byrne

I did an interview last week with Jason Waltz for his ’24 in 42′ podcast (Yeah, I know: You just can’t wait to hear that one…).

One of the questions was about my favorite quote/lyric/poem/motivational thought. Some of you who know me probably figure it’s a Bible verse. And there are a couple that are right up there.

But it’s the epitaph on Jackie Robinson’s gravestone, which leads off this post.

My buddy Howard Andrew Jones has passed away from brain cancer. You’re going to see a LOT of people singing his praises in the coming weeks. All of it deserved. If I can stop crying long enough, my Monday morning post will be on Howard.

But you’re gonna see a common thread in the talk about Howard. The impact he had on other people’s lives. Especially in encouraging and helping writers – mostly in the sword and sorcery field.

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The Sword & Planet of Adrian Cole

The Sword & Planet of Adrian Cole

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The Dream Lords trilogy by Adrian Cole (Zebra Books, February 1975 – December 1976). Covers: Thomas Barber, Jack Gaughan, and Thomas Barber

I discovered Adrian Cole (1949 – ) in the late 1970s through his Dream Lords trilogy.

1. Plague of Nightmares (1975)
2. Lord of Nightmares (1975)
3. Bane of Nightmares (1976)

All were from Zebra books, with covers by Tom Barber, Jack Gaughan (maybe), and Tom Barber respectively. Volume 2 was also published with a Tom Barber cover but I don’t have it. I’ve shown it below and wish I owned it because it’s cooler than my version. However, the Barber cover does wrongly list Lord of Nightmares as Volume 3.

I absolutely loved the Dream Lords trilogy. Not only did it have great ideas and a powerful story, but the writing was beautiful and poetic, which I don’t find nearly enough.

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The Sword & Planet of Roland Green: Blade by “Jeffrey Lord”

The Sword & Planet of Roland Green: Blade by “Jeffrey Lord”

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Jeffrey Lord’s Blade paperbacks, published by Macfadden-Bartell (1971) and Pinnacle Books (June 1973 – March 1976). Covers by Tony Destefano, Tran Mawicke, and others

Jeffrey Lord was a house name used for a series of 37 fantasy/SF novels published between 1969 and 1984. They were billed as an “adult” fantasy series, meaning that they had sex in them. However the sex was pretty mild by today’s standards. The hero is Richard Blade, an agent who works for the British Intelligence service MI6. He’s a combination of James Bond and Conan, although he doesn’t have much of the anti-hero aspects of those characters. He’s pretty much of a white hat guy.

Despite the character and general setting being British, the books were published by Pinnacle Books, an American Publisher, and all written by American authors. The three authors involved were Manning Lee Stokes (1911- 1976), Roland J. Green (1944 – 2021), and Ray Nelson (1931 – 1922). Stokes wrote the first 8 and then Green (apparently) wrote the rest except for #30: Dimension of Horror, by Ray Nelson.

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The Best of Bob: 2025

The Best of Bob: 2025

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Happy 2026! Let’s kick butt for another year. Or at least, limp to the finish in 52 weeks. I really enjoy ‘meeting’ with my friends – and some strangers – here at Black Gate every Monday morning. Keep checking in, and let’s keep the discourse going on things we love. Or at least that catches our eye. Black Gate really is a family. My time writing here has almost been longer than my marriage was!

I continued to evade the Firewall at Black Gate (no, I do not earn a cent a word every time I mention ‘Black Gate.’ like some kind of blogging Pulpster), so I showed up every Monday morning. I had a much harder time conning other folks into writing my column for me – they’re catching on. Drat! So, I had to do my own work this past year.

Here are what I thought were ten of my better efforts in 2025. Hopefully you saw them back when I first posted them. But if not, maybe you’ll check out a few now. Ranking them seemed a bit egotistical, so they’re in chronological order. Let’s go!

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