The Centaur Solomon Kane Series: The Right Hand of Doom by Robert E. Howard

by Gary Romeo

“The Right Hand of Doom” was first published in Red Shadows, Donald M. Grant, 1968. This hardcover book featured four color illustrations by (as known then) Jeff Jones. These illustrations are available on the web, but here they are as they appear in the book with their captions:

The first paperback appearance of this story was in Solomon Kane, Centaur Press, 1971. The cover reused the stunning Jeffery Catherine Jones portrait of Kane from the Grant book:

The text was unedited. The Grant, Centaur Press, Bantam, etc. versions are all the same as the pure-text version in The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane, Ballantine (Del Rey), 2004.

Marvel Comics published the comic-book version in Savage Sword of Conan #13. The story is by Doug Moench and the art by Steve Gan.

Kane pauses at a tavern not far from Torkertown.

This is a very short story. Kane is at a tavern and hears a patron boasting that Roger Simeon, a necromancer, is to be hanged at dawn. Kane says, “[…] you have this day done a damnable deed. Yon necromancer was worthy of death, belike, but he trusted you, naming you his one friend, and you betrayed him for a few filthy coins. Methinks you will meet him in Hell, some day.”

Kane, being a big Bible reader might be overly sensitive concerning paid informers having read about Judas Iscariot’s betrayal of Jesus. Judas “repented himself” and “cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.” Usually, informants want to remain confidential. The idiot informer in this story brags about his betrayal.

John Redly, the idiot, and Solomon Kane spend the night at the tavern’s inn. Kane awakens in the night, aroused by scratching noises. The noise is coming from Redly’s room. Kane arrives at the man’s room and sees a disembodied hand strangling Redly. Kane is too late to help Redly. Kane stabs the hand and sees “a thin silver ring was on the second finger, a curious ornament, made in the form of a coiling serpent.”

Kane tosses the hand in a fireplace and later finds out the hand belonged to Roger Simeon. All in all, a nice little story with a Judas-type getting his comeuppance. Justice is served.

But … hey … that ring?

I will be doing a full-length review of “The Haunter of the Ring” in a few days. This is a story where REH has Thoth-Amon’s ring featured in a modern setting. I’ll try to tie together that story with Solomon Kane and Conan. Could be fun.