I’d already been a huge fan of Ramsey Campbell’s horror tales long before I learned he’d written a series of sword and sorcery stories. I was thrilled when I finally got my hands on his collection which assembled them all together. The adventures Ramsey wrote involving his titular hero Ryre the Swordsman did not disappoint as they expertly blended elements of horror and high fantasy together. That collection, Far Away and Never, was published in 1996 but the actually stories were published between 1977 and 1979, so it would be forty-six long years before Ramsey would pen another Ryre tale in the form of “The Sign of Daoloth” which appeared in the anthology, Into the Cthulhu-Universe: Lovecraftian Horrors In Other Literary Realities edited by Steven Paulsen and Christopher Sequeira (IFWG Publishing International 2025). Adding to my excitement for this new tale was the fact it brought Ryre up against Ramsey’s Lovecraftian, cosmic entity Daoloth which has haunted the pages of several Campbell novels, most notably in his trilogy The Three Births of Daoloth.
About The Story:
“The Sign of Daoloth” – Countless years of of adventuring and death-dealing have taken their toll on Ryre as he senses his end is near. He travels to the walled city of Hythgimi seeking enlightenment upon the meaning of his tormented life. Once there, he settles into a small inn run by a corpulent man and his kind, much younger, wife Fedele. Across the city lies an area where darkness reigns ever-present even in daylight. Receiving an amulet he’s told can be used only once in a time of great need, he heads that way. Danger lurks awaiting him there inside a black temple dedicated to the cosmic entity Daoloth. This long-awaited return of Ryre is a worthy successor to the four previous offerings, and I find myself once again ravenous for more. I can only hope Ramsey gets the urge to write the continuing journeys of this stoic, wandering swordsman.
Amazon Link to the anthology Into the Cthulhu-Universe: Lovecraftian Horrors In Other Literary Realities: https://www.amazon.com/Into-Cthulhu-Universe-Lovecraftian-Literary-Realities/dp/1923382004
Here’s the link to my 2015 review of Ramsey’s collection featuring the previous four Ryre stories, plus a few other unrelated sword and sorcery stories he wrote as well: https://horrordelve.com/2015/02/09/far-away-and-never-by-ramsey-campbell-review/
Amazon Link to the collection Far Away and Never: https://www.amazon.com/Far-Away-Never-Ramsey-Campbell/dp/1956173013
Article by Matt Cowan
Horror Delve 