Tales of the Dying Earth Series by Jack Vance
Tales of the Dying Earth #1
The Dying Earth (aka Mazirian the Magician)
Jack Vance
ebook, 186 pages
Published 1950
Spatterlight Press Cover art by Li-An (borrowed)
Originally published as "The Dying Earth" (but also titled as "Mazirian the Magician").
Jack Vance is one of the most remarkable talents to ever grace the world of science fiction. His unique, stylish voice has been beloved by generations of readers and inspired various fantasy writers.
One of his enduring classics are various stories collected together under the label "The Dying Earth"—a fascinating, baroque tale set on a far-future Earth, under a giant red sun that is soon to go out forever. The book contains six works of loosely-connected fantasy short fiction including "Turjan of Miir", "Mazirian the Magician", "T'sais", "Liane the Wayfarer", "Ulan Dhor", and "Guyal of Sfere". A must-read for any fan of fantasy.
Set in a bizarre, darkly beautiful far future near the very end of Earth’s lifespan at a point when the sun is almost exhausted and magic has reasserted itself as a dominant force. Wwizards duel with spells of dreadful potency under a waning, almost burnt-out red sun. Twk-men ride dragonflies and trade information for salt. There are monsters and demons. Each being is morally ambiguous: the evil are charming, the good are dangerous. Seekers of wisdom and beauty include lovely lost women, eccentric wizards and man-eating melancholy deodands.
The various civilizations of Earth have collapsed for the most part into decadence. The Earth is mostly barren and cold, and has become infested with various predatory monsters (possibly created by a magician in a former age). The Moon has disappeared and the Sun is in danger of burning out at any time. A certain fatalism characterizes many of the inhabitants as a consequence.
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Tales of the Dying Earth #2
The Eyes of the Overworld (aka Cugel the Clever)
Jack Vance
Paperback, 190 pages
Published 1966
Spatterlight Press Cover art by Li-An (borrowed)
The Eyes of the Overworld (previously titled Cugel the Clever)
Cugel the Clever is a novel-length adventure of Cugel the trickster, the thief, the very questionable hero in this decadent, dying world. Caught by the magician whose house he was robbing, Cugel is set the task of retrieving certain rare objects as penance.
Iucounu the Laughing Magician dispatches unwilling Cugel on a difficult quest, to deliver a violet glass cusp worn in the overworld by warring demons of the eighteenth aeon. Cugel's trials and adventures are diverse as he makes his way from Shanglestone Strand back to Almery, and his revenge upon Iucounu.
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Tales of the Dying Earth #3
Cugel's Saga (aka Cugel - the Skybreak Spatterlight)
Jack Vance
Paperback, 334 pages
Published 1983
Spatterlight Press Cover art by Li-An (borrowed)
Cugel's Saga (previously titled Cugel - the Skybreak Spatterlight)
Cugel the Clever is still seeking revenge on the magician Iucounu, whom he blames for his exile and all his troubles. But revenge is hard to come by, and the adventures on the way are so very diverting.
Cynical and crudely charming Cugel again ventures back to Almery, after his spell misfires against nemesis Iucounu the Laughing Magician. He connives out of wage-slavery, in debt to the company refectory, as he dredges for a disassembled demiurge's scales in a slime pit. He and a co-worker sabotage each other scrubbing disease off huge worms that power ship Galante.
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