The main character is an American named El Borak. He has lived in and around the Afghan mountains for a number of years, establishing a reputation for being a dangerous fighter.
He is hired to escort and guide two Englishmen to rescue a friend. However, the mission was a fraud, as they were really after a young woman, Yasmeena, who serves a demonic cult as a goddess. Their intent is to capture her and return her to the man who 'loved' or felt insulted by her desertion.
He has similar characteristics to Conan. He is very strong and capable of withstanding physical trauma that would break anyone else. He manages to take over a group of men by killing their leader and promising great monetary rewards.
He manages to foil the kidnapping, and discovers the mining operation that had veins of gold so large that he could work chunks of gold out with a knife.
I didn't find this story quite as entertaining as "The Feud Buster," which I read last night. However, it's entertaining enough.
One comment, though, is that Howard has a way of touting the superiority of the white man. A white man living in the harsh reality of the Afghan is stronger and smarter than the others. The survival instinct, once mastered, gives him an edge over the natives around him who are in turn stronger than civilized men. This is a pattern that can be identified in other stories such as Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan stories where Lord Greystoke is raised as an ape, but has natural superiority of intelligence that gives him an edge over both his adopted ape brothers and the Africans whom he fights with.
There are moments of brilliant description that I admire that add a kind of poetic edge to his style.
No comments:
Post a Comment