Volume #9 takes us to the jungle worlds of Conan's equivalent of African continent. Here Conan, sailing with Belit and her pirate crew, will come across various warlords, riders of giant crocodiles/dragons and Amra, lion master, unnaturaly strong wild-man not unlike Tarzan but his exact polar opposite when it comes to morals and ethics.

Art as always is great, John Buscema's is beautiful and coloring is just exceptional. In here we have more over-dramatic (at least to me) presentation of our heroes as they fight and bare teeth at each other and growl and cry out their battle-cries. I am not fan of this but it did not ruin the experience at all.

Higly recommended to fans of Conan and sword-and-sorcery in general. ( )

Another fine set of stories by Roy Thomas, John Buscema, Valm Mayerik, and others (the essay in the back always does a great job crediting the creative team, and their efforts, with lots of fun tidbits about the creative process).

Some of the elements of these stories are a bit too gonzo for me, but overall I still enjoyed them. The artwork is good throughout, and I can clearly see the change of inker in the last couple of stories. ( )

Conan's adventures continue, this time in the company of his beloved Belit, pirate queen of the south. Roy Thomas invents or adapts various adventures that the pair had together, giving this collection its theme. There are two main stories, separated by an eerie reminiscence by Conan. The first story has Belit captured by crocodile riders (after being given an sleeping draught by her mentor N'yaga, an act which is never explained) and of course Conan seeks her and finds himself in conflict with a lion-raised wildman. The second story has a mysterious city which the crew of the Tigress discover after a wild storm. There are plots, pirates, sacrifices and fights galore. Overall the book explores the character of Belit, and Conan's relationship with her and the rest of her crew in a pleasing manner. ( )