Two fantasy books in one! I have to admit to being partial to Charles De Lint but Fritz Leiber is excellent as well.
I enjoyed both of these books.
I enjoyed both of these books.
Of all the Charles DeLint books I've read this has to be the least favorite. I didn't care that much for it and I didn't read the one on the other side.
Steven C. (SteveTheDM) -
Ill Met in Lankhmar
I picked up this book because the tales of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser were listed in the back of the first edition Dungeon Master's Guide for the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons as being a source of inspiration for the game. I'd read one Leiber book earlier (The Big Time), and was unimpressed, but decided to give this story a go to see if his "adventurer" stories were any better.
In short: Nope. Leiber might very well be one of the creators of the popular fantasy genre, but his writing is still atrocious. In particular, Leiber is an absolute master of the run-on sentence. As an example:
"When Fafhrd was halfway to the seventh doorway, from which the monotonous yet sinister recitation continued to well, there shot out through it a slender, whey-faced youth, his narrow hands clapped over his mouth, under terror-wide eyes, as if to shut in screams or vomit, and with a broom clamped in an armpit, so that he seemed a bit like a young warlock about to take to the air."
And that was one I just happened to pick out. Every time one of these monstrosities came along I cringed.
Yes, these adventurers are forefathers of the genre. And if you're doing a scholarly review of fantasy, I'm sure you should read Leiber's work. The rest of us, though? Stay away.
1/5 stars.
The Fair In Emain Macha
The "other" story in this double volume does a much better job of being interesting. It's set in a group of islands (Britain) during the time when druids were powerful, and there were kings aplenty. The thrust is a story of a warrior under a king's curse trying to cause a king-breaking on the king who laid the curse and has in the meantime arranged an alliance with the Norsemen.
It did a good job of presenting the faith of druids and their interactions with the gods they revered. I was impressed with how nicely everything was presented, as I rarely read stories of this time period.
3/5 stars.
I picked up this book because the tales of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser were listed in the back of the first edition Dungeon Master's Guide for the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons as being a source of inspiration for the game. I'd read one Leiber book earlier (The Big Time), and was unimpressed, but decided to give this story a go to see if his "adventurer" stories were any better.
In short: Nope. Leiber might very well be one of the creators of the popular fantasy genre, but his writing is still atrocious. In particular, Leiber is an absolute master of the run-on sentence. As an example:
"When Fafhrd was halfway to the seventh doorway, from which the monotonous yet sinister recitation continued to well, there shot out through it a slender, whey-faced youth, his narrow hands clapped over his mouth, under terror-wide eyes, as if to shut in screams or vomit, and with a broom clamped in an armpit, so that he seemed a bit like a young warlock about to take to the air."
And that was one I just happened to pick out. Every time one of these monstrosities came along I cringed.
Yes, these adventurers are forefathers of the genre. And if you're doing a scholarly review of fantasy, I'm sure you should read Leiber's work. The rest of us, though? Stay away.
1/5 stars.
The Fair In Emain Macha
The "other" story in this double volume does a much better job of being interesting. It's set in a group of islands (Britain) during the time when druids were powerful, and there were kings aplenty. The thrust is a story of a warrior under a king's curse trying to cause a king-breaking on the king who laid the curse and has in the meantime arranged an alliance with the Norsemen.
It did a good job of presenting the faith of druids and their interactions with the gods they revered. I was impressed with how nicely everything was presented, as I rarely read stories of this time period.
3/5 stars.
