Conan the Unconquered is a fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 novel written by Robert Jordan

Robert Jordan

Robert Jordan was the pen name of James Oliver Rigney, Jr. , under which he was best known as the author of the bestselling The Wheel of Time fantasy series. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Reagan O'Neal and Jackson O'Reilly.-Biography:Jordan was born in Charleston, South Carolina...

 featuring Robert E. Howard

Robert E. Howard

Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....

's seminal sword and sorcery

Sword and sorcery

Sword and sorcery is a sub-genre of fantasy and historical fantasy, generally characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent conflicts. An element of romance is often present, as is an element of magic and the supernatural...

 hero Conan the Barbarian

Conan the Barbarian

Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...

. It was first published in paperback by Tor Books

Tor Books

Tor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...

 in April 1983, and reprinted on a number of occasions. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books

Sphere Books

-History:Founded in 1961, Sphere Books began work on its first publication, the 1962 paperback edition of Gottfried Benn's The Trainee Man. Originally part of The Thomson Corporation, Sphere was sold to Pearson PLC in 1985 and became part of Penguin...

 in February 1988. The first trade paperback edition was published by Tor in 1991. It was later gathered together with Conan the Invincible and Conan the Defender

Conan the Defender

Conan the Defender is a fantasy novel written by Robert Jordan featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Tor Books in 1982...

into the omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles

The Conan Chronicles (Robert Jordan)

The Conan Chronicles is a collection of fantasy novels written by Robert Jordan featuring the sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian, created by Robert E. Howard. The book was published in 1995 by Tor Books and collects three novels previously published by Tor.-Contents:* Conan the...

(Tor Books, 1995).

Plot

The young Conan, newly arrived in the Turanian city of Aghrapur, is approached by Emilio, a crony from his thieving days in Corintha. The thief's lover Davinia desires a necklace in the possession of the Cult of Doom, and Emilio wants Conan' to help him steal it. Conan is uninterested until the astrologer Sharak convinces him that his life is linked to that of the necromancer Jhandar, leader of the cult, with one or the other fated to die.

Reception

Reviewer Harvey Ryan felt "[t]he book has a feeling of comfort food: neither challenging nor surprising, but providing decent sword-and-sorcery entertainment." He considered Jordan's writing style "like an over-imitation Howard," but "isn’t bad despite its flawed approach to evoking old pulp prose ... [and] it still moves forward steadily and takes the reader along with it." He identified "[o]ne of the book’s biggest weaknesses [as] its women. They’re basically trivial."

Reference

• Fantastic Fiction entry for Conan the Unconquered