Book Review: The Jewel In The Skull by Michael Moorcock

Book Review: The Jewel In The Skull by Michael Moorcock

Published in 1967, 1977 The edition owned is the revised 1977 Edition Daw Fantasy


Cover art by Richard Clifton-Dey

From the book

“Then the Earth grew old, its landscapes mellowing and showing signs of age, its ways becoming whimsical and strange in the manner of a man in his last years…"
-The high History of The Runestaff

The Jewel In The Skull if the first book dealing with the Incarnation of The Eternal Champion known as Dorian Hawkmoon, Last Duke of Koln and bearer of the Black Jewel.

With the opening lines pulled from the novel, it drew me in that first time back when it was published new and I was just discovering another Incarnation, Elric of Melnibone.
It was so reminiscent of the Kane novels by Karl Edward Wagner and The Pastel City by M. John Harrison, that I remember I scoured the newsstand store and stationary store back in Sioux City IA looking for the others in the series. The opening line drew me in and like with Elric or Corum (who I discovered after Hawkmoon but before Erlic Skarsol or Erekose) I was hooked from the opening lines.

Dorian Hawkmoon lives in a post-apocalyptic Europe ravaged and fragmented by war with the Empire of Granbretan. The Dark Empire, as it is known, is seeking to subjugate the entire continent and then onward to the distant lands of Asia Communista and far off Amarehk. Their goal is total world control and domination under the Empire of the Mask, as all inhabitants of the island of Granbretan wear a mask of the Order they belong to. They live their lives under these masks rarely removing them even among themselves.

The Dark Empire has conqurred the lands of Koln and taken the rule, Duke Dorian Hawkmoon captive and in a scheme to undermine and conquer the lands of The Kamarg, ruled by Count Brass, implant a Black Jewel (Of the title to the book) that is linked by both sorcery and technology to a machine in the capital city of Londra. With the jewel they can see what the Duke sees and along with mental conditioning they send him as a secret turncoat agent to kidnap the daughter of Count Brass, Yisselda, and to bring her as a hostage to the Dark Empire.
The rest of the book relates how Dorian Hawkmoon falls into love, is released from the Black Jewel’s power, and aids in setting the machinations of The Dark Empire back.

The Jewel in The Skull is an excellent example of Michael Moorcock’s writing style and a great introduction to some of the core concepts of his Multiverse Stories. There is a total of 4 novels in the History of the Runestaff as well as 3 follow on novels dealing with Count Brass and more with Dorian Hawkmoon.


If someone is interested Mongoose Publishing has created the Hawkmoon Roleplaying Game. It is no longer in production per Sales at Mongoose Publishing. The author has not had a chance to pick up a copy so no impressions are available. There was another one based on the Runequest game system, which I had seen once many years ago.


Links Section:
The Jewel In The Skull online

Michael Moorcock Online

M. John Harrison

Karl Edward Wagner