Swords of Steel IV

Ten years ago the first Swords of Steel anthology was unleashed. With its novel concept of heroic fantasy stories written by heavy metal musicians, it received a tremendous reaction from readers old and new alike. Now the time has arrived for the heavy metal bards to once again inject a much-needed dose of adrenaline into the sword-and-sorcery scene! Featuring members of bands such as Bal-Sagoth, Smoulder, Cauldron Born, and DoomSword, these authors prove they are just as talented at crafting epic stories as they are at making epic music! As critically acclaimed author Schuyler Hernstrom writes in the introduction, “It burns horribly, the formless desire, the nameless need, the yearning. We want danger. We want blood. We want things this world can’t give us. This state of affairs would be completely unbearable without an outlet. Lucky us, the world has given us two. Metal and Fantasy. Two expressions of the thing that burns in us. Some people like one or the other. But some of us need both, a great deal of both, to make it through this world. If you get it, this collection is for you.” Stories included: Introduction by Schuyler Hernstrom “When the Stars Invert” by Matthew Knight (ETERNAL WINTER) “The Last Bastion…” by Howie K. Bentley (CAULDRON BORN) “The Fall of Karynthos Keep” by Joe Minichino (DOOMSWORD) “The Shrine of the Six-eyed Avatar” by Byron A. Roberts (BAL-SAGOTH) “Shadows from Night Eternal” by Peter Salatellis (BLOODSTONE) “Wraiths of Pongus Maw” by Jo Gamel (METAL OF JUPITER) “Escape from the Bad Magick” by Jean-Pierre Abboud (VIPERWITCH) “For an Unnamed Succubus” by Howie K. Bentley “The Wizard and the Tower Keep” by D.R. Lackner (LEGENDRY) “The Dead God’s Spell” (poem) by Howie K. Bentley “Dragonslayer’s Doom” by Sarah Kitteringham (SMOULDER)