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Neither Beg Nor Yield: Stories with S&S Attitude Kindle Edition

by Jason M Waltz (Author), Glen Cook (Author), Chuck Dixon (Author), Format: Kindle Edition

4.7 13 ratings

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Can you handle the truth?

Sword & Sorcery has always been about the attitude.

Stop seeking elaborate definitions. Cease arguing over semantics and accoutrements. Quit making it more difficult than necessary. Learn the fundamental immutability of the S&S Riddle: Protagonists with nonchalant mercenary motivations & indomitable wills. It’s all in their attitude.

The definition of S&S has never been clearer.

Sword & Sorcery warriors are very, very dangerous people, considered barbaric, who act according to their own codes of honor in pursuit of their own ends. Brothers (and sisters) to THE WILD BUNCH, comrades of the SEVEN SAMURAI, partners of every MAN IN BLACK, and riders in every WILD HUNT. They don’t just seize the day—they seize Life itself by the throat and squeeze until it begs. They don’t falter in the dark or before the unknown—they spit in the face of Death itself and stomp it into the dirt until it yields.

“Life is not breath but action.” ~ Jean Jacques Rousseau

“Fear won't stop you from dying, but it can stop you from living.” ~ James Norbury

“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that Death will tremble to take us.”
~ Charles Bukowski

“Laugh or die.”
~ Angélique Kidjo

NEITHER BEG NOR YIELD: STORIES WITH S&S ATTITUDE is filled with over 180,000 words in 20 stories! This is THE BOOK OF SWORD & SORCERY that will define the genre for generations. Reading the powerful tales from these storytellers will permanently answer the question: WHAT IS SWORD & SORCERY?

It’s always been its attitude!

Discover the truth as Eadwine Brown, Adrian Cole, Glen Cook, Steve Dilks, Chuck Dixon, Phil Emery, Steven Erikson, John R. Fultz, Steve Goble, John C. Hocking, Howard Andrew Jones, William King, Joe R. Lansdale, David C. Smith, Jeff Stewart, Keith J. Taylor, Frederick Tor, Eric Turowski, Bill Ward, Lawrence A. Weinstein, and C.L. Werner share it!

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CSB3Y2CY
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Rogue Blades Entertainment (January 26, 2024)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 26, 2024
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 18717 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 466 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ B0CTXSVGH4

Best Sellers Rank: #558,954 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #444 in Nordic Myth & Legend Fantasy eBooks
- #895 in Norse & Viking Myth & Legend
- #4,966 in Dark Fantasy Horror

Customer Reviews:
4.7 13 ratings

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Jason M Waltz
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Jason M Waltz tells heroic tales, mostly within the speculative and grand adventure genres. Jason is also THERogueBlade, a high octane adventure publisher sharing heroic literature at Rogue Blades Entertainment, and founder/publisher at Rogue Blades Foundation, a literary publisher exploring heroics. As such, he gets to produce the wonderful titles from RBE & RBF listed here.
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Steve Dilks
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Steve Dilks (1971- ) is an English writer working primarily in the field of sword-&-sorcery. He has also written poetry, science-fiction, adventure and horror. Since 2015 he has been the editor and publisher of THE HYBORIAN GAZETTE and TWILIGHT ECHOES for Carnelian Press.
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John C. Hocking
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Winner of the Harper’s Pen Award for sword and sorcery fiction, John C. Hocking is the author of two novels starring Conan the Cimmerian. His short fiction has appeared in the Flashing Swords ezine, Black Gate, Skelos, Weirdbook and Tales from the Magician’s Skull. Recently retired, he is currently working on a new novel. He lives in Michigan with his wife, son, and an alarming quantity of books.
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Phil Emery
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4.7 out of 5

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Matt Wilson

An essential S&S collection!

Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024

Verified Purchase

This is pretty much the All-Star roster for modern sword and sorcery. If you want the absolute best of what this genre has to offer from writers still writing today, then you absolutely have to get this.

Steve Dilks has another amazing Bohun story and John R Fultz continues his tales of Gnori the Hammerfist. These two were my favorites, but every story is incredible!

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J. K.

Awesome Sword and Sorcery!

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2024

I will admit, I’ve been waiting with eager anticipation for this release. Once I heard the premise, I knew this would be a can’t miss book for Sword and Sorcery fans the world over. Neither Beg Nor Yield is bombardment of everything I think of when I want to read S & S tales. Indomitable will, survive at any cost, live free and breathe deep---the protagonists in this volume display these characteristics and a slew of other vicious traits. This book has an old school feel with a new age edge. Simply put, this was an oasis for one parched in the desert. This was a feast for one who hasn’t eaten in a week. Gold.

Neither Beg Nor Yield offers 21 short stories by a who’s who club writing S & S and Heroic Fantasy today. Excellent artwork is presented at the beginning of each story. After each story, editor, Jason M. Waltz describes traits about the story, author, and how it fits into the overarching theme. This offers a nice, clean presentation. Below I will give brief glimpses without a lot of detail, as not to spoil the reading. Let’s start diving in, shall we?

1. “It’s not Gentle” by Jason M. Waltz- A fiery short piece devoted to the embodiment of the type of sword and sorcery within this tome. One of my favorite lines is when Jason states “S&S demands an attitude of not merely surviving, but dominating living, all else-everything else-be damned. The heroes of S&S continue living deeply until there are no more breaths to take.” We have Howard/Conan quotes, and many other descriptors to prepare the reader for what is to come. Well done!

2. “Hunters and Prey” by C. L. Werner- Werner starts this off with a bang. Hunters and Prey is set in a fantasy world like Feudal Japan with another adventure of Werner’s character Shintaro Oba, a samurai. While being hounded by a former samurai turned bounty hunter, Oba quests to the lair of the “Spider King.” Oba fights against the Spider Demon’s magic while also facing the bounty hunter. Oba proves his worth against both and learns there are four other former samurai traitors seeking his life. Really good start to the collection!

3. “Prince of Dragons” by William King- King has quite a number of books in print for the character, Kormak the Guardian. This story reads as a semi- origin story and fits nicely into the theme. Kormak’s people are destroyed by an Old One Demon type called the Prince of Dragons. A young Kormak survives, and an intervention by one of the Guardians of the order of the Dawn sends Kormak on a path he could have never dreamed. This is written at a torrid pace. A final battle with The Prince of Dragon’s looms. Excellent!!

4. “Suspension in Silver” by Eric Turowski- This story takes place in modern day Fargo. The main character is Irons-a monster hunting biker type. Irons ends up fighting werewolf type creatures. He ends up using colloidal silver from a health store to aid in his battle. This was just Meh for me. Not my type.

5. “Soldier, Seeker, Slayer” by John Hocking- This is a delightful sword and sorcery story. The protagonist is a warrior know as Creon. Creon’s daughter is taken early in the piece. Creon has a sorcerer created “preceptor hand” which gives him supernatural abilities at a terrible price. This is very well constructed story where Creon finds retribution against the one who enslaved him with the device. He reunites with his daughter as his senses come back. Excellent!!

6. “Harvest of the Blood King” by Steve Dilks- Dilks continues his excellent series of Bohun adventures with another banger. In the beginning of the story, Bohun arrives at a fort in chains. Tiberius, the fort commander, immediately releases his old friend, Bohun. Bohun agrees to help Tiberius on a mission to release a senator’s son from barbarians of Ulvastygg. Deep laid plans go awry when a druid’s sinister sorcery intervenes. Bohun and Tiberius battle for their lives against a changeling chieftain who was turned into a monster by dark druidic rites! Superb!!!

7. “The Stone from the Stars” by Chuck Dixon- Dixon creates a nice mercenary duo named Hagen and Pilsner. The duo jumps from a lost war into an even stickier situation between a necromancer and a sorcerer. The banter between the duo is fun without too much ridiculousness that you sometimes see in this type of story. They end up in a battle against a creature from the cosmic void!! Good, solid S&S!

8. “Evil World” by John R. Fultz- Fultz continues with his Gnori character with an origin type story. Gnori starts off as an 11-year-old boy. His mother, a user of magic, relates the tale of the loss of Gnori’s father and their city to a race of underworld giants. Gnori’s mother uses a magic elixir on her son to become a force capable of defeating the giants. As Gnori comes of age, he leads a band of 40 warriors and his sorceress mother against the giants to retake their city. Gnori and his mother survive to reclaim their land. Gnori ends up leaving to wander and discover new lands and adventures. Very nice!!

9. “Reckonong” by Keith Taylor- This is pure S&S/Fantasy as only Taylor can write. Nasach is the main protagonist. He is of the Firbolg people (think people from the continent that eventually settled Ireland only to overthrown by the Tuatha D’e Danann.) This has me immediately thinking back to Taylor’s Danan series from the late 80s. This is a blazing, magical piece starting with Nasach and his 4 companions joining a Reaver’s ship crew. He immediately discovers the ship’s leader is the same man who killed his father and resulted in his enslavement in Caledonia. Brilliant S&S read where Nasach gets his revenge. This is wonderfully scripted with Taylor’s usual lore, magical creatures (Merrow-think seafolk mermaid), battle scenes, wordplay, etc. Nasach’s indomitable will is exactly what this book is about. In my opinion, this is the Crown Jewel of the anthology.

10. “Golden Devils of the Crypt” by Phil Emery- Corlagh, a barbarian warrior, and Norad a cunning female thief, team up with a with a sorcerer on a mind-bending journey where each seek something the same yet different. Set in a post- apocalyptic world where remnants of science merge with sorcery, barbarism, and twisted forms of new civilizations, Emery creates a riveting S&S tale. Magical!!

11. “The Void of Sul-Atet” by David C. Smith- S&S Titan, Smith, sets this story in a dark time in his Attluma continent. Oron is long gone. This takes place in the dark time of Engor. If you’ve ever read “Engor’s Sword Arm,” then you know how far Attluma has fallen. Demons and dark sorcerors are taking the land as the southern people seem to ignore what is happening. Land is falling into the sea. Engor’s friend Etain makes a deal with a demon lord to conquer a vile sorcerer. Etain and Engor lead an army against the sorcerer. What price does Etain have to pay for only one generation to see peace from the demon? Of course, Engor flashes his destructive battle prowess. Very dark, grim, and sad- as it is with Engor. Very, very good story! Much better than “Engor’s Sword Arm.”

12.” The Shades of Nacross Hill” by Frederick Tor- This story starts off with a trio of tomb raiders led by Kaimer, a fighting man of various abilities. Suddenly beset by ghost-like beings and an ancient sorcerer, Kaimer is running for his life. Kaimer’s exception indomitable will saves his life from the shades, and ultimately the Ancient. Really Good S&S!

13. “The Organ Grinder’s Monkey” by Joe R. Landsdale- Set in a modern type setting, this is a new adventure by Landsdale’s character Greasy Bob. As far as I’m concerned, the story had a bunch of un-needed cuss words and stupid sexual talk which gives noting to the story. Birds are attacking everyone. Bob and sidekick jump into a car and go through a portal to another dimension. The duo confronts the Organ Grinder’s Monkey (the one sending the killer birds) and find out he’s mad because his girlfriend, the 3 toed sloth, was murdered by “The Lords of Upholstery.” Landsdale usually writes some good fantasy, science fiction, and comics, but this just didn’t work. This read like a juvenile comic. Bad in more ways than one. Awful.

14. “Vengeance by Wind and Tide” by Eadwine Brown- Azirah is a corsair captain, and her indomitable will is evident from the start. They find a sister ship with a murdered crew. A strange gem is discovered which leads Azirah and her crew to find the sorcerer responsible. They begin a quest to a fabled island in the Western Ocean. Once on the island, they discover more than they bargained for. Bloody tower battles, sorcery, and a captured djinn. Will a deal with the djinn help against the dreaded sorcerer? Real S&S here. Excellent!

15. “Isekai Sengokumonogatari” by Glen Cook- Shinzutoro, a young ex- soldier is our protagonist here. The story is set in an alternate universe in a time of warring states. Shinzutoro is tasked with leading a strange group across the island. This is a great fantasy piece with sword and sorcery elements. All is revealed in the end of this question laden quest. Excellent creatures abound in this fantastic short fantasy. I didn’t know if I would like this at first, but I should have known Cook would deliver. 40 plus years of writing fantasy can do that. Really good job!

16. “Bona Na Croin” by Jeff Stewart- Set in ancient Ireland. Fergus is looking for employment for his sword arm. Two rival kings are at odds. Fergus gets caught up in the bloodshed (a lot of the bloodshed is due to his own prowess.) Fergus ends up facing an Elder Being summoned by a druid from Gaul. This is rousing S&S! This is the exact type of story I want to see in every sword and sorcery anthology. Give Stewart a medal! Fantastic!

17. “Virgins for Khuul”- by Steve Goble- Goble continues his adventures of Calthus in this story. Calthus is a great warrior resurrected by monks 600 years after his death. Calthus rescues a trio of chained women marked for sacrifice to the Giant Lizard Creature, Khuul. Will Calthus, a monk, and the trio of freed captives be able to save 300 other captives in the lair of Khuul? This is epic S&S. Righteous in all aspects. Goble is currently writing mysteries. I wish he would write S & S all day, because this is how it should be written. 5 stars easy!

18. “The Last Vandals on Earth” by Steven Erikson- The protagonist of this read is Respendial, a Vandal, and the wife of the narrator. Vandals in North Africa are wiped out by Byzantines. A little party of the surviving Vandals are fleeing the area. A lot of the sarcasm and humor seems off for this kind of a tale. A lot of useless cuss words and vulgarity seems to serve no purpose. The fateful humor of Vandal history, other civilizations, and Christianity fails miserably. The story becomes somewhat redeeming when the group finds a magical oasis and a goddess within. There is also some intrigue with Respendial as she becomes the last Vandal after the final battle. Respendial is a lethal swordswoman, and I wish more of the focus and story revolved around her. She is definitely a character worthy of a different type of S&S story. We know Erikson can write, but this was kind of meh overall. Not for me.

19. “The Barbarian’s Lawyer” by Lawrence Weinstein- This story features two protagonists- Blazgorn, a barbarian fighting man, and Cynric, a public defender lawyer type. The story begins with Blazgorn chained in a cell for stealing from a noble. Cynric reveals he is Blazgorn’s lawyer, even though Blazgorn has no idea what a lawyer is. Blazgorn realizes Cynric will defend him in a trial of words, not steel. Once in the trial, a magical jewel given to Cynric by Blazgorn for payment, unleashes power revealing the accusing noble as a lizard man. Blazgorn breaks his chains, saves the High Arbiter from the lizard man, kills the false noble, and is sentenced freedom! Sometime later, in another city, Blazgorn finds Cynric in a jail cell, falsely accused, and gets to return the favor by fighting for him in the arena. This is how you write humor into a S&S story and pull it off. Fun and unique!

20. “Reflection from a Tarnished Mirror” by Howard Andrew Jones- If this is any indication of how the rest of the Hanuvar series is, I’m really going to enjoy it. Using an amulet, Hanuvar’s armor, and personal effects, a wizard ensorcelles a brain injured soldier of the Dervan Empire. The soldier becomes the living embodiment of Hanuvar. The false Hanuvar frees scores of gladiators and other slaves thinking he is actually Hanuvar. During a raid on a villa, he meets the real Hanuvar as he was freeing some of his people from slavery. The false Hanuvar finds out about his ensorcellment and realizes he has just a few fleeting days before the enchantment dissolves. Even though he remembers he is a soldier of the Empire, he and a few of the freed gladiators create a ruse to help Hanuvar bring some of his people to freedom. Well written S&S story with loss and sacrifice for a cause. Great!!

21. “Maiden Flight” by Adrian Cole- Well it’s just not a S&S anthology without Adrian Cole, and he doesn’t disappoint. Ulric is part of a band of Viking raiders on the losing end to a village of Gaels. A Valkyrie marks him to take him to Valhalla. Ulric has the indomitable will to survive and wounds the Valkyrie with a sword stroke. There is a lot of back and forth between Ulric and the Valkyrie. At one point, she summons the dead to use against Ulric. Ulric reveals the death of his wife and how the gods wouldn’t listen to his pleas. Sometime later, Ulric frees a few Vikings that were staked to poles in the Gaelic town. The Valkyrie eventually teams up with Ulric against an army coming from the sky with Odin himself. Due to the courageous duo’s indomitable wills, Odin grants them one year before his return, and to use it well under his service. This was a great embodiment of the theme and a wonderful S&S tale to close it down!

Jason M. Waltz and RBE really pulled out the stops with this anthology. What an exciting group of authors, and an exciting time for sword and sorcery. 18 out of 21 pieces were of the highest quality. This is a sword and sorcery fan’s dream. There’s something in here for all lovers of sword and sorcery, heroic fantasy, and dark fantasy. Highly Recommend!!

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