Where to Start Reading Conan the Barbarian
If you want to read Conan the Barbarian, your starting path depends on whether you value textual purity or a complete, chronological biography. For the vast majority of modern readers, the best and most authentic starting point is the Del Rey (Wandering Star) Trilogy. These books present Robert E. Howard's original, unedited stories in the order they were written.
- Step 1: Start with The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian (2002). This collection contains Howard's first Conan stories, including the debut tale 'The Phoenix on the Sword' and classics like 'The Tower of the Elephant'.
- Step 2: Continue with The Bloody Crown of Conan (2004), which features Howard's only Conan novel, The Hour of the Dragon.
- Step 3: Finish the original run with The Conquering Sword of Conan (2005), which compiles Howard's final Conan tales, including the gritty masterpiece 'Red Nails'.
Chronological vs. Publication Order Caveats
Robert E. Howard did not write the Conan stories in chronological order. Instead, he wrote them as episodic tales, jumping from Conan's youth as a thief, to his days as a mercenary, to his later years as the King of Aquilonia. Fans generally agree that reading them in publication order is superior, as it allows you to watch Howard develop the character and the Hyborian world naturally.
Attempting a strict chronological reading requires relying on later editorial versions (such as the Lancer/Ace paperbacks), which heavily edited Howard's prose, completed unfinished fragments, and inserted stories written by other authors (pastiches) to fill in the timeline. Many purists find that these forced additions disrupt the raw energy and tone of Howard's original work.
Major Conan Book Collections
1. Publication Order of Conan The Cimmerian (Del Rey) Books
Highly recommended. These volumes restore Howard's original texts, free from posthumous editorial changes and pastiches.
- The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian (2002)
- The Bloody Crown of Conan (2004)
- The Conquering Sword of Conan (2005)
2. Gnome Press Editions (1950–1957)
The first hardcover collections of Conan stories, edited by John D. Clark and L. Sprague de Camp. These began the trend of trying to arrange the stories chronologically, though they stayed closer to Howard's original words than later paperback editions.
- Conan the Conqueror / The Hour of the Dragon (1950)
- The Sword of Conan (1952)
- King Conan (1953)
- The Coming of Conan (1953)
- Conan the Barbarian (1954)
- Tales of Conan (1955)
- The Return of Conan (1957)
3. Lancer/Ace Paperbacks (1966–1977)
Edited by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, this highly popular series arranged Conan's life chronologically. To achieve this, the editors revised Howard's stories, finished incomplete drafts, rewrote non-Conan stories into Conan tales, and added their own pastiches.
- Conan the Adventurer (1966)
- Conan the Warrior (1967)
- Conan the Usurper (1967)
- Conan the Conqueror (1967)
- Conan the Avenger (1968)
- Conan of the Isles (1968)
- Conan (1968)
- Conan the Freebooter (1968)
- Conan the Wanderer (1968)
- Conan of Cimmeria (1969)
- Conan the Buccaneer (1971)
- Conan of Aquilonia (1977)
4. Donald M. Grant Deluxe Editions (1974–1986)
These are beautifully illustrated, standalone editions of individual Howard stories and novellas published during the mid-70s and 80s.
- The People of the Black Circle (1974)
- A Witch Shall Be Born (1975)
- The Tower of the Elephant (1975)
- Red Nails (1975)
- Conan in The Devil in Iron (1976)
- Rogues in the House Conan (1976)
- Queen of the Black Coast (1978)
- Jewels of Gwahlur (1979)
- Black Colossus (1979)
- The Pool of the Black One (1986)
5. Conan Ace Maroto Series (1978–1981)
An illustrated paperback line featuring art by Esteban Maroto alongside pastiche novels and graphic stories.
- Conan and the Sorcerer (1978)
- Treasure Of Tranicos (1980)
- Conan the Mercenary (1981)
- The Flame Knife (1981)