Ill Met in Lankhmar (Swords and Deviltry and Swords Against Death)

Poor Fritz Leiber. He has never truly received the credit he deserves for fostering the fantasy genre. Along with the old Conan stories and Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, this is amongst the most influential works of fantasy fiction.Fascinating worldbuilding, intrigue and exciting characters abound in these tales, all told with Leiber's exceptional artistic skills. Not only are the plots and personalities compelling, but Leiber has a magical rhythm to his storytelling and descriptions. This is one of the few stories that is on my "reread" list.Pick this up and you'll love the stories--and when you look at the copyright date of these tales, you'll come to appreciate just how much Leiber has affected the fantasy authors that have come since.

"Ill Met in Lankhmar" contains some of the very finest fantasy stories ever written. A short review such as this cannot even begin to convey their exquisite perfection, their vista-expanding cannon volleys of purest, most unfettered imagination, their sun-core bright wit and ebullience. The writing alone is enough to make one laugh and cry at the same time, such is Leiber's complete mastery of the written word. It is a source of unending mystification to me why so few people these days seem to have read the Fafhrd and Gray Mouser stories. And now, artist supreme Mike Mignola has created a new set of covers. WHAT MORE COULD YOU POSSIBLY ASK FOR? Renewed youth? The power of second sight? Immortality?

Fritz Leiber packs more into one paragraph than most others take a chapter to, telling a story with depth, detail, and clarity, which makes the majority of today's fantasy - Sci - Fi offerings seem like overblown puff. The story, Ill met in Lankhmar, takes a mere seventy three pages to do a better job than what seems to require four to five hundred pages to achieve nowadays, and with no benefit to the reader whatsoever. For further demonstration, just read the first two pages of the Bazaar of the Bizarre - a clever swipe at consumerism - for an even better example of F.L's sophisticated, though economical style. There's so much said, so clearly, in so very few pages. The Bazaar of the Bizarre is said to be F.L's favourite story, and from my perspective, I think it's because it has an elan to the writing that carries through the entire piece, a quality he manages to do for short spells only, in longer tales. The story itself isn't any better than the Snow Women, Ill met..., or the bulk of his others - which in themselves carry a lot of future-use references - but it stays very focused from the start to the finish of its thirty pages, as if it was written in one - long - brain storming session. From, Induction: `No one at that moment could have guessed that The Gray Mouser was once named Mouse, or that Fafhrd had recently been a youth whose voice was by training high-pitched, who wore white furs only, and who still slept in his mother's tent although he was eighteen.'

Before I begin my review talking about the content of this compilation - - let me first begin by saying that the structure, illustrations, and organization of these compilations are extremely well done...complete and beautiful, these compilations are a must have for any fantasy reader...even if you have the original novels. Now, the content was unbelievable...so thick and rich, I believe Fritz would have compared his own writings to a tall, warm tankard of stout ale, and long drag from a joint. So rich, thick and satisfying, the words take time to digest and they sound perfect in your head. The story, besides having the greatest adventures, has the two best characters of all literature...in fact the characters and the stories told by Leiber are so pungent, that it is not only the two anti-heroes, but three...you as the reader are there with them, you can feel the COOLTH of the wine tankard as it is quaffed, and you feel the stinging wit and sacarsm shared. You are mystified by the unreal in Newhon, and you embrace the taverns and wet, soupy mist. My kids will grow up reading Leiber, as should we all

Are you tired of the typical young man who must find his inner power and save the world from the big evil bad thing? If you are, then you've come to the right place. Read about the two greatest heroes ever to walk on the face of Nehwon; Fafrd the giant barbarian and the diminutive Gray Mouser. Finally a real pair of heroes who are like us. They get drunk, have sex, and are always living paycheck to paycheck. It's all here, magic, swordplay, romance, comedy, and drama. You've read the rest. Now read the best.