The Stone of the Witch Queen

"The Stone of the Witch-Queen" is a fantasy short story by American writer L. Sprague de Camp, part of his Pusadian series. It was first published in the magazine Weirdbook for fall 1977.[1][2] It has also been translated into Dutch and German.[2] Chronologically, "The Stone of the Witch Queen" is the fifth of de Camp's Pusadian tales, and the third to feature his protagonist Gezun of Lorsk.[1]

"The Stone of the Witch Queen"
AuthorL. Sprague de Camp
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SeriesPusadian series
Genre(s)Fantasy
Published inWeirdbook
Media typePrint (Magazine)
Publication datefall, 1977
Preceded by"The Hungry Hercynian"
Followed by"Ka the Appalling"

Plot summary

Gezun of Lorsk becomes embroiled in schemes surrounding a magical gem known as the Potent Peridot, which confers control over the opposite sex. Having been once victimized by the gem, he steals it and plans on returning his prize to a previous owner, the witch-queen Bathyllis of Phaiaxia, who has offered a reward for its return. With his ally, Aristax, he undertakes the harrowing journey into Phaiaxia and begins negotiating with the queen. But nothing is straightforward when dealing with a witch, and there are also other interested parties poised to complicate the situation...

Setting

In common with the other Pusadian tales, "The Stone of the Witch Queen" takes place in a prehistoric era during which a magic-based Atlantian civilization supposedly throve in what was then a single continent consisting of Eurasia joined with Africa, and in the islands to the west. It is similar in conception to Robert E. Howard's Hyborian Age, by which it was inspired, but more astutely constructed, utilizing actual Ice Age geography in preference to a wholly invented one. In de Camp's scheme, the legend of this culture that came down to classic Greece as "Atlantis" was a garbled memory that conflated the mighty Tartessian Empire with the island continent of Pusad and the actual Atlantis, a barbaric mountainous region that is today the Atlas mountain range.

References

  1. Laughlin, Charlotte; Daniel J. H. Levack (1983). De Camp: An L. Sprague de Camp Bibliography. San Francisco: Underwood/Miller. p. 245.
  2. The Stone of the Witch Queen title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
Preceded by
"The Hungry Hercynian"
Pusadian series
"The Stone of the Witch Queen"
Succeeded by
"Ka the Appalling"
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.