"Conan the Usurper" by Robert E. Howard

   This volume, part of the first softcover printing of Howard's Conan stories edited by LeCamp, chronologically fits between Conan the Warrior and Conan the Conqueror.  Conan is in his 40s and looking forward to become king of Aquilonia, the strongest of the Hyperborean kingdoms.  The volume containts four stories.  The first, about a pirate's treasure guarded by demons, has been heavily rewritten by LeCamp and notes the start of Conan's interest in leading Aquilonia's rebelion.  The second story is set in Conan's universe, but only remotely mentions Conan himself as leading the rebellion.  The third story is about the campaigns of Conan and him fighting and winning over the wizard Thoth-Amon on his path to the crown of Aquilonia.
  The fourth and final story is actually the blueprint for the last (as in Conan's age) Conan volume, Conan the Conqueror, and describes the events in a more concise manner.  This is probably the weakest Conan volume overall, but Conan's allure has always been set out in those few great stories like Red Nails and the imagination of the subsequent writers like Robert Jordan, the comics franchise and the movies.