Fritz Leiber Books

The Fafhrd and Gray Mouser series is a great find for the fantasy reader. I highly recommend all the books in this series. Fritz Lieber is a fantastic writer, if you have never read his books you are in for a treat.

The Lankhmar series has two main characters Fafhrd the Barbarian and the Gray Mouser. Fafhrd is a barbarian and thief. The Gray Mouser is a small quick-witted thief and sometime wizard. They are best friends and go on many fantastic adventures together, which are told as a series of short stories. This book is a reprinting of two books: Swords and Deviltry (The First Book of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser); and Swords Against Death (The Second Book of Fafhrd and The Gray Mouser).

The first book describes where Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser come from and how they meet. In the second book Fafhrd the Barbarian and the Gray mouser lose their first loves to death, and they set forth on a quest that leads them throughout Newhon on a series of adventures where they finally steal the mask of death from Death himself.

To sum up, if you like fantasy, you'll like this book.

This book is the earliest adventures of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser, their early lives, how they met and adventures. The novellas are rich in detail of the surroundings and show that the world of Nehwon is well-developed. Fafhrd and The Grey Mouser's interactions are realistic (except perhaps for the high-flown language) and kept me turning pages eagerly. Lots of hack'n'slash as well as intellectual puzzles, a few moments of hair-raising suspense and some definite sizzle. Classic swords & sorcery with very little mumbo-jumbo and no complicated explanations.

Fritz Leiber is without a doubt one of the the most over-looked of a group of authors that are basically the fathers of the modern Fantasy genre. Ill met in Lankhmar is an excellent collection of short stories detailing the meeting and early adventures of the two most renowned Heroes/Rogues in the fabulous world of Nehwon Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. What is most enjoyable about the stories is the crisp action filled pace Lieber sets while still managing to describe everything in a way that gives you a feeling of immersion in the rich, exoctic world of Nehwon and the vast City of Lankhmar which is the Heroes main base of operations. The main characters are exceptional creations. Two lovable never do wells who usually emerge from there various adventures victorious but with little or nothing to show for it. There is a comic bent to their various escapades that is very enjoyable. Overall, just a great collection of short stories.

The book reads like a series of short stories. Cele Goldsmith commissioned Fritz Leiber to write a series of Fahrd and Gray Mouser stories for Fantastic Stories pulp (one of the two early plups edited by Cele Goldsmith). That says it all. They are a fast read with plenty of action and very little of the long, dreary and seemingly endless descriptions of scenery etc.. found in many other books. The stories revolve around characters and the deeds of those characters. Unlike Jordan's Wheel of time series, which provides pages and pages of explanation of the types and colours of curtains found in each room of a house, something happens on every page.

Fahrd is like a Viking big, lustful and not scared to kill. Gray Mouser is an apprentice wizard that is not scared to use the black arts to get revenge eg. burning enemies to a crisp. Forget political correctness which is expected in so much of the literature these days, you will not find it in this book. It is like the old Star Trek (kill anything that gets in your way) and unlike the Next Generation (lets us open up the lines of communication so we can have meaningful dialogue).

If you like short stories that are well written, do yourself a favour and get a copy of this book.

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.

Full of brilliant characters and bursting with wry humour, "The Swords of Lankmar" (the novel forming half of this volume) is illuminating about the inhabitants of our world whilst being most entertainingly set in Leiber's alternative one. This transcends its genre to be wonderful literature.

Essentially two relatively brief novels with six short stories intermixed between, Leiber continues the adventures of two of the most original characters to grace fantasy fiction, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Though after reading "Ill Met in Lankhmar" and "Lean Times in Lankhmar" Leiber's at times over-worked prose is beginning here to wear thin, he nonetheless retains an ability for vividly worded description and a well-turned phrase that sets his work apart from other fantasy fiction. Ever inventive in plot, Leiber is even able to construct a war between Lankmar's human inhabitants and underworld rats and pull it off, creating the best fable of human and rodent relationships since the "Pied Piper of Hamlin."

While I would agree with an earlier reviewer regarding the last two tales included--"The Frost Monstreme" and "Rime Island"--I would have to say that at least four of the included short stories are insubstantial, including "The Sadness of the Executioner" lauded below. Further, there has been better rounded works in fantasy published since Leiber wrote this series. Nonetheless, this belongs on any serious fantasy afficianado's reading list; though, being out of print, one may need to undergo some effort to find it.

Fritz Leiber was a fantasy writer when that genre existed in people's minds, Jeckyll and Hyde style, as either the Christian allegories of the Inklings (C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams) or the garish pulp of Edgar Rice Burroughs or Robert E. Howard. Leiber, no shrinking violet, considered himself the literary equivilent of the former but embraced the visceral stylings of the latter. Indeed, the Lankhmar books, Leiber's penultimate achievement, are a much more enjoyable read when one has seen Leiber's notes and commentary on his contemporaries and predecessors.

This is why White Wolf Publishing's new collection of Leiber's Lankhmar tales is such a fine accomplishment. In addition to the stories themselves, a number of Leiber forwards, postscripts, correspondence, and related writings are included in each volume, giving the readers rare and valuable insight into the author of these fantasy favorites. Indeed, the heart of any literary fan must go aflutter at the possibilities when Leiber writes off-hand about his near-attempts to write stories based on the Cthulhu mythos of contemporary and friend H.P. Lovecraft. Those musings, along with the greatest of Leiber's works, "Swords of Lankhmar", and others are included in this third part of White Wolf's reissue.

"Return to Lankhmar" is, far and away, the most enjoyable and engaging of White Wolf's Lankhmar compendium, both for the casual scholar and voracious fantasy reader. "Swords of Lankhmar", apart from being Leiber's greatest story, is one of the high watermarks in fantasy literature all together - a mix of action, wit, and self-reference that is sure to win over the hearts of any fans of the genre. A must on anyone's "To Read" fantasy list and a book (indeed the whole series) that should find a home on the shelf of any fan.

Set mostly within Lankhmar - Above and Below - The Swords of Lankhmar is the obvious one here for maximum entertainment value, incorporating lots of great characters, F.L's passion for contact sports, and the Twains' willingness to indulge in such, given opportunity - yet always ready to defend Lankhmar, if coincident with their own interests. This is a book in its own right, with a huge amount of detail and plot for a hair over two hundred pages. A short mid section comprising a half dozen very short stories, leads onto, The Frost Monstreme and Rime Isle ( two parts of a novella, precursor to the fourth volume of the set, Farewell to Lankhmar). Reviews that I have read regarding these last two stories describe them as being below par, and drab. I don't agree with this at all. They are of the same quality as, The Swords of Lankhmar, except Lankhmar isn't much a part of the picture, and the cast of characters aren't as dramatically differentiated: No eight teated rat-queen (Hisvet), white-hot-wire whip wielding mistress ( Samanda), invisible girl-ghoul ( Bonny-bones), bat-carrier albatross, Glipkerio, Skwee, etc. F. L's use of language, and ability to integrate a lot of unlikely themes - not so much the Twains' use of weapons - are the primary factors, which make these stories work so well today. I'm not saying that it's style over content, but without it, they would come across as pulp adventure tales, for which they were geared towards in the first place, and where in-depth character development was inappropriate. So whilst the last two stories are, in essence, as good as the first of the book, with respect to style and construction, they lack colour due to the reduction in location and up-front character dynamics, needing more of the character insight details as used in, The Mouser goes Below (Farewell to Lankhmar ), to compensate.

Leiber is one of the best writers of this century in or out of the fantasy genre. His stories are amazing poetic works -- as well as brilliant tales. His two heroic but flawed and realistic characters were the first complex and adult protaganists in pulp fiction -- far more interesting to watch while saving the world (or simply their own skins) than the belligerent Conan or self absorbed Elric. That Leiber also includes some other elements rare in fantasy lit is a bonus: realistic combat (based on his own fencing knowledge), a wry but understanding knowledge of religion, comments on metaphysics and philosophy, the nature of true friendship, complicated relationship and sexual situations (including more than of a touch of the fetishistic and kinky), unnerving elements of horror, and especially the more than waiting-to-be-rescued women of his stories. The Swords of Lhankmar is his only novel of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser -- and it is easily the best adult fantasy novel ever written. From it's ironic and violent opening to it's last-minute rescue finish, it is better than anything published in this field since. It is strange, violent, a bit perverse, and very funny. The story The Sadness of the Executioner -- which is in Swords and Ice Magic -- gets my vote as the most elegant peice of fantastic literature ever written. A short, short story that is mostly a prose poem about the nature of mortality, it is surprising, somber and funny, all within a dozen pages.

And what of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser themselves? Fafhrd is the surprisingly complex barbarian warrior with a poet's heart and sometimes gullible nature. The Mouser is ever cynical, slightly evil, always self-involved, and too clever by half. The two are unbeatable in battle, but too likely to fall for the right scam or the wrong set of lovely eyes. The argue, brawl, drink, discuss the nature of reality, explore, steal, serve masters good and ill, and swashbuckle their way across the most imaginative stories ever... Read and enjoy.

An abbreviated version of the old "Ill Met in Lankhmar" volume that White Wolf published several years ago, the new Tales of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser is still a joy to see on the shelves, and to once again have a copy to loan out.

The new Lankhmar volume has five of the early Fafhrd and Gray Mouser stories, beginning with "The Snow Women." This is a long, but fun, introduction to the character of Fafhrd and brings him into perspective in a lot of ways. "The Unholy Grail" is a similar, if considerably shorter, meeting with the Gray Mouser. Becoming well-rounded, and all.

The third story, and the centerpiece of the whole thing, is "Ill Met in Lankhmar." This is the one where Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser become a team. Along with "Bazaar of the Bizarre," "Lean Times in Lankhmar," and "Swords of Lankhmar," this is one of the best city-based stories in the series.

"Ill Met" is followed by "The Circle Curse," which includes F&GM's first encounters with Ningauble of the Seven Eyes and Sheelba of the Eyeless Face, the wizards who are to be their somewhat regular advisors and sometime patrons.

The volume finishes with "Jewels in the Forest," one of the quintessential adventure pieces for this duo. It's nothing special as plot goes, but it's a lot of fun, and if nothing else you'll be well set up for the further stories of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser.

This is at least a hundred pages shorter than the volume in the old White Wolf series, and sixty pages longer than the original volumes. There were a lot more of the short stories in the first White Wolf volume, going as far as the INCREDIBLE "Bazaar of the Bizarre." But that's out of print, and this one is still available. If you're a fan of lighthearted, but well-told, fantasy, do check this volume out. Fantasy fans owe this one to themselves while it's still around.

If you are a fan of the sword-and-sorcery genre of literature then the Fafhrd and Grey Mouser stories are a must. They are classic, enchanting, lots of fun.

Please, reader of reviews, dismiss A. Nguyen's words. The poor lad has no idea who Fritz Leiber is, and seems to be a heathen by saying not to pay even ten bucks for this. Dont worry, god will judge him.

No this is not a comic book, and I dont know why one would think so. Although, Dark Horse is gonna publish, in November I think, the first volume of comics/ graphic novels based on Leiber's Lankhmar tales.

The world of Lankhmar is a well known one for fans of sword and sorcery. Leiber's work has long been recommended to to me, but I was never able to find the books, given that they are out of print. That said, I was happy to find that White Wolf has decided to publish the adventures of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. This volume is a collection of their early adventures, and it provides a good introduction to the world of Newhon. The first two stories, which detail the origins of the two heroes, are somewhat slow, and probably not the best way to get acquainted with them. The third tale, Ill Met in Lankhmar, is a classic. It's like the original buddy cop story. Leiber's prose is fairly smooth, sometimes a bit wordy, but it's certainly much better than your typical fantasy stuff. You won't find two characters better realized that Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. I'm looking forward to reading more of their capers. Highly recommended. i would've given it 5 stars, but the first two stories are a bit weak.

The story takes place in Zululand, Africa. It happens so that Allan Quatermain stops by his Zulu friend's kraal (to those of you who never read Haggard, Kraal=household) to find that yet another friend is madly in love with the well known beauty: Mameena, or, in other words, Child of the Storm. Allan is curious to see this well known Mameena, but his friend who is in love with Mameena (his name is Saduko) goes on a crazy battle to win 100 cattle for Mameena's dowry. After going with Saduko on his quest and helping him win 600 cattle, Allan meets Mameena, and determines she is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen, and, though at that time Africans were thought of as savages (most unjustly, I have to add), Allan, after observing some treachery done by Mameena while pretending to be unconscious, after knowing she was false, cannot find any reason to resist her love to him, for indeed Mameena tries to engage him in a marriage, but Allan remembers her treachery and tells her no. Many adventures follow after that, until the Zulu King declares Mameena a witch, and Mameena pleads guilty. It is not the kind of Salem witchcraft that is talked about here. It is more like herb-knowledge and doctoring that the Zulus call witchcraft. After recieving her death sentence for many more offenses, including causing a civil war and it's outcome, Mameena makes a last wish. The last wish is... You'll have to figure out this as you read along with the mystery of Mameena's character. Suggested background books: Any Allan Quatermain book. Here are some Allan Quatermain titles: Allan and the Holy Flower, Marie, Allan's Wife, King Solomon's Mines, She and Allan, The Ancient Allan, Et cetera.

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn Starring: Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn Starring: Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn Starring: Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn Starring: Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair

Professor Saylor and his wife Tansy are newcomers to the university. Even thought they are not of the same conservative material as the others they seem to be doing quite well. Professor Norman Saylor of the sociology department is the author of "Parallelism in Superstition and Neurosis." He gets this irresistible urge to snoop around in Tansy's personals and is surprised to find that she is a practitioner of the craft. He is not really upset, and only wants to help her to free her self by burning all the paraphernalia (except her diary).

It is not hard to guess what happens next. Yep his life falls apart and he is destined to be run over by a truck if other evil things do not get to him first. He finds that there are more evil forces at work (all female of course) each with her own agenda.

The real question is does Norman ever get sucked up in the system or is he still convinced that it is just coincidence?

As with most movies that are an abbreviation of the book the one made for his story has the same feel "Night of The Eagle, aka Burn Witch Burn" (1962) with Peter Wyngarde as Norman, and Janet Bliar as Tansy.

Burn Witch Burn Starring: Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair