Fantastical Tales - The Ultimate Collection of Sword & Sorcery Action-Adventures, Time Travel & Mythical Worlds (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Sword & Sorcery, Time Travel, and Mythic RealmsBy Robert E. Howard
Length70h
About this audiobook
Fantastical Tales gathers Robert E. Howard's kinetic visions of sword-and-sorcery adventure, lost ages, time-haunted civilizations, and mythic violence into a sweeping panorama of pulp imagination. Its stories move with muscular urgency: battles are rendered in stark, rhythmic prose, landscapes loom with archaic grandeur, and history dissolves into legend. Situated within the fertile context of early twentieth-century weird fiction, the collection reveals Howard's crucial role in shaping heroic fantasy as a genre of primal conflict, fatalism, and dark wonder. Howard, born in rural Texas in 1906, wrote from the margins of literary respectability yet transformed the pulp magazine into a vessel for enduring myth. His fascination with barbarism, frontier life, ancient cultures, and cycles of rise and decay informed his fictional worlds. Personal isolation, voracious reading, and an intense historical imagination helped produce tales that feel both antiquarian and urgently modern. This collection is recommended for readers seeking the foundations of modern fantasy, admirers of mythic adventure, and scholars of popular literature. It offers not merely escapism, but a fierce meditation on civilization, heroism, and the brutal poetry of imagined worlds.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.5 (18)
Includes Amazon, Goodreads
GenreFantasy
Length70 hrs
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 1, 2016
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Fantastical Tales - The Ultimate Collection of Sword & Sorcery Action-Adventures, Time Travel & Mythical Worlds (Annotated)
26CHAPTER II
2Introduction
27CHAPTER III
3Author Biography
28CHAPTER IV
4Historical Context
29Queen of the Black Coast
5Synopsis (Selection)
30I. — CONAN JOINS THE PIRATES
Show all chaptersShow less
6'Conan the Barbarian' Saga:
31II. — THE BLACK LOTUS
7Cimmeria - A Poem
32III. — THE HORROR IN THE JUNGLE
8The Hyborian Age
33IV. — THE ATTACK FROM THE AIR
9The Frost Giant's Daughter (Gods of the North)
34V. — THE FUNERAL PYRE
10The God in the Bowl
35The Slithering Shadow (Xuthal of the Dusk)
11The Tower of the Elephant
36CHAPTER I
12CHAPTER I
37CHAPTER II
13CHAPTER II
38CHAPTER III
14CHAPTER III
39A Witch Shall Be Born
15Rogues in the House
40I. — THE BLOOD-RED CRESCENT
16CHAPTER I
41II. — THE TREE OF DEATH
17CHAPTER II
42III. — A LETTER TO NEMEDIA
18CHAPTER III
43IV. — WOLVES OF THE DESERT
19Shadows in the Moonlight (Iron Shadows in the Moon)
44V. — THE VOICE FROM THE CRYSTAL
20CHAPTER I
45VI. — THE VULTURE'S WINGS
21CHAPTER II
46The Devil in Iron
22CHAPTER III
47CHAPTER I
23CHAPTER IV
48CHAPTER II
24Black Colossus
49CHAPTER III
25CHAPTER I
50CHAPTER IV
Time Travel Adventures of James Allison (Annotated)Robert E. Howard2h 54m$2 · $0.00
Conan the Barbarian - The Complete Series (Annotated)Robert E. Howard42h 46m$2 · $0.00
Conan The Barbarian - All 20 Books in One Edition (Annotated)Robert E. Howard42h 45m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Works of Robert E. Howard: 300+ Titles in One Edition (Annotated)Robert E. Howard178h 10m4.6 (140)$2 · $0.00
WESTERNS COLLECTION: The Breckinridge Elkins Series, The Pike Bearfield Series, The Buckner Jeopardy Grimes Stories & Other Wild West Tales (Annotated)Robert E. Howard27h 27m4.5 (28)$2 · $0.00
THE STEVE HARRISON SERIES – Complete Detective Mysteries in One Volume (Annotated)Robert E. Howard5h 56m4.2 (22)$2 · $0.00
THE WEIRD WEST TALES - Supernatural & Occult Western Series (Annotated)Robert E. Howard5h 38m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Adventures of Robert E. Howard (80+ Titles in One Edition) (Annotated)Robert E. Howard168h 33m$2 · $0.00
THE SOLOMON KANE SERIES – Complete Fantasy & Action-Adventure Collection (Annotated)Robert E. Howard8h 7m$2 · $0.00
The Shadow of the Vulture (Annotated)Robert E. Howard3h 14m3.6 (231)$2 · $0.00
THE CTHULHU MYTHOS – Complete Collection (Annotated)Robert E. Howard5h 31m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Adventures of Robert E. Howard (80+ Titles in One Edition)Robert E. Howard169h 9m$2 · $0.00
Collected JuveniliaRobert E. Howard1h 30m$2 · $0.00
The Valley of the WormRobert E. Howard2h 10m4.3 (220)$1 · $0.00
Gates of EmpireRobert E. Howard2h 47m4.3 (33)$2 · $0.00
Red Blades of Black CathayRobert E. Howard2h 29m4.0 (24)$2 · $0.00
The Devil in IronRobert E. Howard2h 37m3.6 (589)$2 · $0.00
Conan The Barbarian - All 20 Books in One EditionRobert E. Howard42h 24m4.4 (2.8K)$1 · $0.00
THE SOLOMON KANE SERIES – Complete Fantasy & Action-Adventure CollectionRobert E. Howard7h 47m4.3 (1.2K)$1 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
Remarkably Bright CreaturesShelby Van Pelt11h 17m4.4 (1.7M)$29 · $0.00
Before the Coffee Gets Cold: A Toshikazu Kawaguchi Book SetToshikazu Kawaguchi18h 55m4.5 (1.4K)$40 · $0.00
The Song of AchillesMadeline Miller11h 15m4.3 (2.3M)$29 · $0.00
The Left and the LuckyWilly Vlautin6h 40m4.4 (1.1K)$24 · $0.00
Hunt of the DragonJuliette Cross9h 46m4.4 (736)$20
Deadly GameChristine Feehan13h 20m4.3 (15.8K)$30
Lolth's WarriorR. A. Salvatore13h 20m4.6 (2.4K)$33 · $0.00
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du BoisHonoree Fanonne Jeffers29h 49m4.5 (58K)$8 · $0.00
Lola in the MirrorTrent Dalton13h 40m4.5 (43.9K)$33 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett13h 36m4.5 (163.8K)$33 · $0.00
The Leo Tolstoy CollectionLeo Tolstoy9h 1m4.5 (4.9K)$12 · $0.00
Sword and ShadowMichelle Sagara16h 51m4.5 (2.2K)$40 · $0.00
A Tree Grows in BrooklynBetty Smith14h 55m4.4 (577.6K)$33 · $0.00
Dark GuardianChristine Feehan12h 32m4.5 (26.3K)$33 · $0.00
The Neil Gaiman ReaderNeil Gaiman27h 3m4.5 (3.2K)$53 · $0.00
The HobbitJ. R. R. Tolkien10h 51m4.4 (4.9M)$12 · $0.00
Bad HabitAlana S. Portero5h 37m4.4 (52.3K)$24 · $0.00
Science Fiction & Fantasy CollectionH. P. Lovecraft16h 32m4.5 (2.7K)$2 · $0.00
The Undead PoolKim Harrison16h 13m4.4 (34.6K)$33 · $0.00
You may also like
The Fantasy Collection of Robert E. Howard (Annotated)Robert E. Howard69h 59m4.5 (251)$1.99 · $0.00
Conan the Barbarian - The Complete SeriesRobert E. Howard42h 26m4.5 (2K)$2 · $0.00
Conan The Barbarian - All 20 Books in One EditionRobert E. Howard42h 24m4.4 (2.8K)$1 · $0.00
Red NailsRober E. Howard3h 38m4.2 (3.6K)$2 · $0.00
Beyond the Black RiverRobert E. Howard2h 42m4.3 (1K)$4
The Sea FairiesL. Frank Baum4h 38m3.8 (2K)$1 · $0.00
Conan the Barbarian: Beyond the Black RiverRobert E. Howard2h 33m4.3 (2.5K)$1 · $0.00
The Ultimate H. Rider Haggard Collection (Annotated)Henry Rider Haggard600h 30m4.6 (392)$1.99 · $0.00
Beyond the Black RiverRobert E. Howard2h 26m4.0 (800)$2.30
Hacks for Minecrafters: Combat EditionMiller, Megan2h 1m4.2 (1.3K)Free
Red NailsRobert E. Howard3h 31m4.2 (3.1K)$2.30
Beyond the Black RiverRobert E. Howard2h 34m4.3 (7.4K)$5 · $0.00
The Collected Norse SagasAnonymous, Snorri Sturluson99h 42m4.4 (284)$1 · $0.00
The MabinogionLady Charlotte Guest10h 34m4.0 (10.5K)Free
Conan The Barbarian - All 20 Books in One Edition (Annotated)Robert E. Howard42h 45m$2 · $0.00
Fantastical Tales - The Ultimate Collection of Sword & Sorcery Action-Adventures, Time Travel & Mythical WorldsRobert E. Howard68h 45m$1 · $0.00
Conan the Barbarian - The Complete Series (Annotated)Robert E. Howard42h 46m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Adventures of Robert E. Howard (80+ Titles in One Edition) (Annotated)Robert E. Howard168h 33m$2 · $0.00
80+ ADVENTURE TALES OF ROBERT E. HOWARD - The Ultimate Action-Packed CollectionRobert E. Howard167h 12m$2.99 · $0.00
ROBERT E. HOWARD Ultimate Collection – 300+ Cult ClassicsRobert E. Howard177h 13m4.3 (185)$1 · $0.00