A Redder Sonja: Jirel of Joiry

Jirel of Joiry is riding down with the score of men at her hack,
For none is safe in the outer lands from Jirel's outlaw pack;
The vaults of the wizard are over-full, and locked with golden key,
And Jirel says, 'If he hath so much, then he shall share with me!'

- Quest of the Starstone

N-Spiration: Jirel of Joiry

Who is Jirel?

The Lady of Joiry - unconquered - hair crimson like flame; eyes yellow and vibrant! Taking no husband, as no man can yet best her - Joiry needs no lord so long as it has its queen!

Jirel - our protagonist - is the sword half of a sword and sorcery yarn: a ruler by day, warlord and baroness over a middle ages fiefdom, but far-traveled afield among the strange places that wait in parallel to the Earth - for body and for spirit. She is a master of the blade - wielding a two handed sword in battle, wearing heavy mail armor: but is no stranger to dirks and daggers. Inspired by - or at least influenced by - the days of struggle and adventure in Aquilonia or in Pellucidar, Jirel is brash and brave - as strong of arm as she is strong of will - her loves deep, but her enmities without restraint.

A product of the golden age of pulp, Jirel also represents among the earliest of protagonists in the fantasy adventure genre and within the newsstand medium hailing from the fairer sex: something that - in particular - is of note, in that she is also among the first (or, at least, the foundational) to have been written by a likewise female author: C. L. Moore.

Of C. L. Moore

C. L. - or, Catherine Lucille - Moore was a native of Indianapolis, born into the first World War (technically just before in 1911), grown in the Roaring '20s, and then broke onto the professional and literary scene during the Great Depression. Her first publications for a student magazine at Indiana University, at which she matriculated, went to print between 1930 and 1931 - only two short years before her first appearance in pulp magazines in 1933: at which point she adopted her initials as a pseudo-pen name. Curiously - in a world dominated by men, that is: the world of pulp fantasy and really literature in general in the 1930s - one might think that she adopted her initials rather than continue to publish as Catherine as a marketing ploy, concealing her gender: however, on all accounts, it was more so that writing was her passion, not her livelihood - she perceived it better to separate her writing persona from her real name to conceal it from her then employer, Fletcher Trust Company, for which she was employed as a secretary.

Early in life, C. L. Moore experienced chronic illness that prevented her from engaging in many typical girlhood pursuits. Instead, she spent a great deal of time reading - developing during that time a taste and fondness for fantasy: a taste and fondness which would turn into a knack - and eventually then into a vocation.

Her pulp fiction career would run until 1958 with the death of her husband, fellow author Henry Kuttner - with whom she collaborated under various pen names. Thereafter, she would teach writing at the University of Southern California and work occasionally as a screenwriter - but following her remarriage to Thomas Reggie, her writing ceased and her creative career was at an end.

C. L. Moore would pass in 1987 at the age of 76 after a battle against Alzheimer's: but not without having received the Fritz Leiber Award in 1978, the Gandalf Grand Master Award in 1981, and a posthumous honor: induction into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

And fires flame high on the altar fane in the lair of the wizard folk,
And magic crackles and Jirel's name goes whispering through the smoke. 

- Quest of the Starstone

Why should I read Jirel of Joiry?

First and foremost, a red-headed swords-woman, capable as any man, free of spirit and fiery of temper, is a staple of sword and sorcery - having been popularized tremendously by the cultural phenomenon around Red Sonja. Thus - as I'm sure the reader has already inferred - it becomes important to make a parallel, showing the influences that Jirel would have had on Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith's brainchild.

• In her original 1975 incarnation, Sonja wore a mail shirt and fought with a longsword.
  In 1935, Jirel Meets Magic, Jirel wears full armor, wielding a longsword.
• In 1975, Sonja is favored by Scáthach, but must never lie with a man who doesn't defeat her in combat.
• In 1934, Black God's Shadow, Jirel - though shriven of her sins by Gervase, the priest, she finds she has only ever loved the man who was able to best her.
• In 1977, Sonja is cast into a maze of illusions and mirrors for rescuing a waif from brigands.
  In 1935, again Jirel Meets Magic, Jirel is cast into a tower of illusions and mirrors to seek an evil sorcerous pair.
• In 1985... well... we won't talk about what happened in 1985.

The inspiration is obvious - and it is not the intent of this article to denigrate the Marvel series: but instead to illustrate the progression, the evolution of the independent and fierce heroine, as it pertains to the storytelling of modern sword and sorcery. While Sonja has moved on and changed with the times - new authors, new artists moving her arc forward, much the same as Conan (whose author, Robert E. Howard, penned the tale from which Sonja draws her name, The Shadow of the Vulture: interestingly in 1934... in a similar timetable as when Jirel appeared...) has been moved forward as his legacy moves from IP-holder to IP-holder in the wake of the author's passing - Jirel is unchanged: frozen in the brickwork, its legacy providing the giants' shoulders on which the Isaac Newtons of pulp adventure may stand. 

So in short - if you enjoy or are inspired by Red Sonja, you are likely to find common enjoyment and inspiration in Jirel of Joiry.

To branch away from the comparison - and to tie into another key element that permeates Appendix N: Jirel is set in the real world... with the exception that the protagonist regularly finds herself involved - voluntarily or not - with the supernatural. Spirit realms, alternate realities, and worlds beyond our own are consistent themes in Jirel's adventures - a form of portal fantasy where Joiry, her home base, is - if Quest of the Starstone is to be believed - is in France at the turnover of the 15th century into the 16th: but then the demon prince who has abducted her for his bride - not France at all! The hidden hell beneath the flagstones of the castle: again, France disappears - Earth with it - into a whole new planet. Which is another thing - The Black God's Kiss: the first story in the Jirel of Joiry collection: the entire premise is going deeply under an ancient castle and into an alternative reality: a mythic underworld too horrifying, to alien to remain in for long - where darkness itself becomes a commodity: groping through the unseen, far from the sun, and skirmishing with (or hiding from) the strange creatures found underneath. Have you ever run a mythic underworld? So has C. L. Moore.

But not every encounter is a combat.

Jirel has to use her discernment to identify which battles she can win and which battles are best fought in the mind - and further, which battles can be won if a weakness, a hidden mystery or flaw is determined and exploited. In 1936's The Dark Land - for example - Jirel manages to turn a reaction roll in her favor: learning from a banshee about how to defeat a demon king, otherwise invincible to mortal means. Jirel doesn't shy away from a fight - and isn't afraid to take knocks where they come - but she knows that a fight isn't always in her favor: and if that means negotiating with a hidden spirit for unknown malevolent magic? So be it.

Lastly - as might have been inferred from the examples, but that can't be overstated: recall, Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy was published between 1954 and 1955. While The Hobbit had been published earlier, it was The Lord of the Rings which sealed his place as the father of modern epic fantasy. Jirel of Joiry - the stories therein - were all written before even that: the latest among them, Quest of the Starstone, being published in November if 1937 - easily half a year before Houton-Mifflin brought The Hobbit across the Atlantic the following spring. And again - this is not to denigrate Tolkien - but instead to praise Moore: her work was done in a Tolkien vacuum. Fantasy before The Lord of the Rings is its own bear - its own tone - its own entity: uncorrupted by comparisons made to the ever-popular Middle Earth.

For that reason - Jirel is refreshing, even to one whose tastes are different to those of the reviewer, as it is a breath of fresh air. It cannot be compared to Tolkien, reacting against or conforming to, because Moore would not have been aware of it. For this reason - if no other - like the work of Burroughs, like the work of Dunsany, like the work of L. Sprague de Camp... it is written from a place where fantasy was at greater liberty, executed without the need for license to deviate from elves and dwarves: and if for nothing else, it's a brilliant read - seeing into the world of sword and sorcery, of adventure fantasy, as it was - before the genre was turned over to epics. 

Jirel technically does not go to space. But the space man is a C. L. Moore character.

Of Note

As mentioned, the author - Catherine Moore - is female and did not make any effort, nor showed any intention, to hide the fact. This is evident in the writing - I think - in that it feels different than action-fantasy written in a parallel timeframe by her male contemporaries. There is greater introspection - more character emotion - and as frequently as not, those same emotions, that same cognition and intuition, make prominent features across the story.

This is not uniquely because she is female - the stories are action packed and do not shy away from traditional elements of sword and sorcery: black magic, red blades, ... - and I've met plenty of women very capable of appreciating and enjoying male authors like Anderson or C. A. Smith - but there is a distinct tone, a different-ness to the stories which make Jirel of Joiry stand out among Appendix N stories. I am reminded - when I was younger - reading the works of C. J. Cherryh - Hugo Award winner and author of works like the Fortress series and Heroes in Hell: I will not speak poorly of the works, but as you read, you can tell a female author penned them.

There is a bit of antiquated language, a bit of "old feel" - you can tell it was written in the 1930s - but that's the case for most of Appendix N. Thus, it wouldn't be fair to hold it against the book nor the stories therein. Over all - there is very little that I would criticize this series over.

Further Reading

For those fond of C. L. Moore and her style - during her career, she authored dozens of other books and stories - cataloged quite conveniently on the Science Fiction Encyclopedia: convenient because many of these works were written under a pen name, or in collaboration with other authors - frequently her husband, Henry Kuttner.

Some are of a fantastic or portal-fantasy vibe - others venturing into science fiction or other genres. While I intend to dig deeper into the list over time, as of this article, I will be at the mercy of you, the reader, to tell me which ones you like - as opposed to Jirel, for which I can make my own recommendation.

But magic fails in the stronger spell that the Joiry outlaws own:
The splintering crash of a broad sword blade that shivers against the bone,
And blood that bursts through a warlock's teeth can strangle a half-voiced spell,
Though it rises hot from the blistering holes on the red hot floor of Hell!

- Quest of the Starstone

In Conclusion

Jirel of Joiry is quintessential Appendix N. Containing open battle against evil sorceries, ranging through portals into strange underworlds, and indulging in deep dungeon delves: confined or otherwise in search of power or for the sake of exploration, itself - Jirel of Joiry works very well to inspire an OSR game table and deserves a place in our cherished appendix.

It would be unfair and dishonest to rate Jirel of Joiry anything other than 1: Full-Armor OSR.

Several reprints and republications of the Jirel stories exist - and there being only a handful of them, they will make a quick read and small addition to your personal gaming library. I am glad to have found this book, and I hope you too might give it a chance - as it will improve, or at a minimum compliment, your OSR game.

Thank you for reading - and delve on!

Golden Age Masterworks: Jirel of Joiry was published in 2019 by Gollancz, an imprint of the Orion Publishing Group Ltd., Carmelite House, London, UK - a Hachette UK company. Cover art for Jirel of Joiry, 1969 printing, is not credited - however the collection was published by Paperback Library. Cover for The Complete Jirel of Joiry illustrated by Arnold Tsang is copyright 2016 to Jerry eBooks. Cover for French edition Jirel de Joiry / Les adventures de Northwest Smith, painted by Hervé Leblan and retrieved from PulpCovers.com in December 2024. 

Stories contained within Jirel of Joiry - Black God's Kiss, Black God's Shadow, Jirel Meets Magic, The Dark Land, Quest of the Starstone, and Hellsgarde - are copyright C. L. Moore, jointly with Henry Kuttner in the case of Quest of the Starstone, and originally published in Weird Tales magazine. 

Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, and all imagery or references thereto related are property of Wizards of the Coast. Red Sonja, 1973, illustration is by Barry Windsow-Smith, published and owned by Marvel Comics - as of 2005, the Red Sonja intellectual property is owned and copyrighted by Dynamite Comics.

Clerics Wear Ringmail makes no claim of ownership of any sort to any of the aforementioned media, text, or images and includes references to or facsimiles of them for review purposes under US Code Title 17, Chapter 107: Fair Use.

The slide-in of Gary... I got from a meme.