“You Are A Grim Hero”;
topical highlights of Grimdark’s history (Zothique, Fighting Fantasy)
Many "Grimdark" fans seem young enough
to miss some of this history. Thanks to Francesco La Manno for inviting me to discuss it. Wish I
could read Italian to enjoy his other posts! BTW, the article is in English :).
As
“Grimdark” matures and gathers traction, readers seem interested in defining
its scope. Many blog posts already cover
the topic of “What is Grimdark,” including posts from champion Mark Lawrence
(author of Prince of Thorns). This
post will not try to disambiguate the boundary between overlapping/similar
genres, but it will highlight a few books/topics that aficionado’s and
newcomers should enjoy:
1) 1930’s Grimdark/Sword &
Sorcery: the oft-overlooked Clark Ashton Smith
2) 1980’s Grimdark/Sword &
Sorcery: the origins of Grimdark stem from Game’s Workshop’s Fighting Fantasy
series