Audiobook Showcase: Savage Realms Monthly

It’s Monday so it’s time for the second installment of my Sword & Sorcery Audiobook Showcase series. After last week’s Conan Showcase, I thought I’d keep it in the same realm with a phenomenal magazine that was launched two years ago titled Savage Realms Monthly. Of the handful of magazines I’ve perused over the past two months, this one has completely won me over. It scores bonus points since it’s also available on Audible, which due to my increasingly poor eyesight has become my medium of choice to consume and collect books/magazines over the course of the past three years.

Savage Realms Monthly goes straight to the point: fantastic Sword & Sorcery tales every issue, every month (or almost every month). At the time of writing this, four issues are available on Audible and issue 17 has just been released in print and on Kindle. Hopefully they’ll get through the backlog and release them all on Audible! They feature up-and-coming as well as seasoned authors. The first issue has four stories, and every other one after offers three tales. In audio format, every issue runs between two to two and a half hours in length. It’s S&S at its best with thrilling tales of barbarians, sorcerers, monsters, magic, and epic clashes between good and evil. There’s one recurring author by the name of Willard Black who’s crafted a daring hero named Redgar that channels Robert E. Howard’s Conan. It’s always a treat to read Redgar’s ongoing adventures and worldbuilding. So far, every author has delivered the goods and there isn’t a single clunker in the first three issues. I haven’t had time to listen/read issue 4 yet, but I’m confident it’s just as great because they’d really nailed their recipe to a T by the third issue and the stories are always captivating.

Another cool thing is that you get a short interview with every writer in between stories which allows us to hear about what inspired them to write in the Sword & Sorcery genre and also get a glimpse of their process. A great book/magazine can easily be ruined in audio format if you don’t have a good narrator. Have no fear—every tale in every issue is expertly read and acted out by Moose Matson whose raspy voice fits the genre to perfection. His portrayal of the various characters and his cadence make every tale a joy to listen to.

Savage Realms Monthly has concocted an ideal formula for a Sword & Sorcery magazine. I hope they’ll be around for a very long time and that they’ll continue to produce audiobooks of each issue they put out as that is something that isn’t always easy to come by. Fans of classic Sword & Sorcery in the tradition of Robert E. Howard, Lin Carter, Clark Ashton Smith, and Michael Moorcock will find a lot to love with Savage Realms Monthly. Tune in next week for the third episode of Sword & Sorcery Audiobook Showcase.

Rating: Five stars out of five

Get your copy on Audible

Get the latest issue, number 17, in print or on Kindle