Believe green buds awaken in the spring,
That autumn paints the leaves with somber fire;
Believe I held my heart inviolate
To lavish on one man my hot desire.
The Song of Belît
Queen of the Black Coast was published in the May, 1934, issue of Weird Tales, one month after the previous story, Iron Shadows in the Moon. It is the tenth published story in the Conan canon.
The tale cannot be discussed without spoilers, so be warned.
This should be the introductory tale to any curious but uninitiated reader: it is the best to date.
The passions are deeper and richer than a mere adventure story, the prose both in dry humor and dark pathos is some of Howard’s best, the supernatural horror strikes grimly close to Conan’s heart, and the whole as a legendary feel to it, from the madcap flight on horseback in the opening scene, to the viking funeral at the close.
Here, for the first time, Conan meets a woman as fierce, wild, bold and free as himself. She is his equal and more.
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