Good news for all fans of non-standard fantasy
Paizo has released the latest edition of Who Fears the Devil? by Manly Wade Wellman.
It is a jewel of a collection, stories by one of the great and unfairly forgotten masters of American fantasy, Manly Wade Wellman. These stories are all set in Appalachia after the Korean War and involve a wandering minstrel named John who wanders the heights and hollers of the back country... and meets supernatural monsters and evil spell-hurlers at every turn.
The stories are written in the dialect of the mountain folk, and it's very well done. You will not for one moment confuse this with anything else, but you will understand what's being said. And Wellman uses something other than tired old Northern European mythology for the background, combining Cherokee and mountain folklore with a hint of Lovecraftian eldritch horror to astonishing effect. No dwarves or elves or dragons here. In the stories about John the Balladeer, you'll meet the Ugly Bird, One Other, Kalu the Bone, the Raven Mockers, and the ghost of Devil Anse Hatfield among many, many others.
Look, just get a copy of the book. It'll be the best $16 you ever spend.
Best all and happy reading!
It is a jewel of a collection, stories by one of the great and unfairly forgotten masters of American fantasy, Manly Wade Wellman. These stories are all set in Appalachia after the Korean War and involve a wandering minstrel named John who wanders the heights and hollers of the back country... and meets supernatural monsters and evil spell-hurlers at every turn.
The stories are written in the dialect of the mountain folk, and it's very well done. You will not for one moment confuse this with anything else, but you will understand what's being said. And Wellman uses something other than tired old Northern European mythology for the background, combining Cherokee and mountain folklore with a hint of Lovecraftian eldritch horror to astonishing effect. No dwarves or elves or dragons here. In the stories about John the Balladeer, you'll meet the Ugly Bird, One Other, Kalu the Bone, the Raven Mockers, and the ghost of Devil Anse Hatfield among many, many others.
Look, just get a copy of the book. It'll be the best $16 you ever spend.
Best all and happy reading!