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brendan_h's review against another edition
5.0
Hands down the best adventure stories I've ever read.
rbreade's review against another edition
"The Jewels in the Forest" is particularly strong.
adru's review against another edition
Paavli kaltsukas varustab taas klassikalugudega: yyratu peen sõnavara e-v pätitegude kirjeldamiseks ja tundub, et autor hoidis kirjutades vaevu naeru tagasi. Aeg-ajalt oli isegi põnev ja õudne ja lõbus, kui kõik need pääluud ja tegelased seal ringi sebisid.
jorgefernandez's review against another edition
4.0
Más y más aventuras. Al estar los relatos escritos en diferentes épocas y aquí reunidos cronológicamente, algunos de ellos bajan el nivel, aunque de manera casi imperceptible.
A por el siguiente.
A por el siguiente.
lukutoukka90's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
devinb333's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
bums's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Finished Swords Against Death, the second Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser book/collection. Very fun, and I think Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser might be my new favourite sword and sorcery protagonists (Sorry Elric and Moonglum). I love the way they almost bumble their way through their adventures half the time, it's very fun to read, and those adventures felt very varied. Dark Gods, ancient ruins, multiversal madness, thieves' guild shenanigans, and deals with wordy wizards; they go through a lot over the stories.
The pace is fast as well, which I really appreciated. As much as I enjoy something like ASOIAF or Farseer/Liveship where chapters are spent traveling places with long introspection, sometimes I just want "and so Fafhrd and the Mouser adventured over many miles, cutting their way through the deep jungles of Klesh, evading pursuit across the great Mingol Steppe, and creeping fearfully past the City of Ghouls. But, in time, they reach the Shadowlands, where the ghosts which had plagued them for so many months lay, waiting."
The aspect that has aged very poorly is the way women are treated. They're all, without fail, evil and manipulative harpies who often cannot get over how hot the mcs are. It's aged worse than Conan and Elric have, and they're not good things to have aged worse than in that area. At least in the Conan stories some female characters had 1. some agency and 2. weren't universally evil/wildly attracted to Conan. It's probably on par with early (1960s/70s) Elric before Michael Moorcock learned how to write decent female characters in the late 1970s/early 80s, after taking the crazy step of talking to women and listening to their criticism. Anyway, apart from that they're very fun adventures stories, would highly recommend.
The pace is fast as well, which I really appreciated. As much as I enjoy something like ASOIAF or Farseer/Liveship where chapters are spent traveling places with long introspection, sometimes I just want "and so Fafhrd and the Mouser adventured over many miles, cutting their way through the deep jungles of Klesh, evading pursuit across the great Mingol Steppe, and creeping fearfully past the City of Ghouls. But, in time, they reach the Shadowlands, where the ghosts which had plagued them for so many months lay, waiting."
The aspect that has aged very poorly is the way women are treated. They're all, without fail, evil and manipulative harpies who often cannot get over how hot the mcs are. It's aged worse than Conan and Elric have, and they're not good things to have aged worse than in that area. At least in the Conan stories some female characters had 1. some agency and 2. weren't universally evil/wildly attracted to Conan. It's probably on par with early (1960s/70s) Elric before Michael Moorcock learned how to write decent female characters in the late 1970s/early 80s, after taking the crazy step of talking to women and listening to their criticism. Anyway, apart from that they're very fun adventures stories, would highly recommend.
mschlat's review against another edition
2.0
The last two stories ("The Price of Pain-Ease" and "Bazaar of the Bizarre") were diverting, but many of the stories in this collection weren't so much about Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser as they were about puzzles involving the duo. There's a treasure or an enemy or a supernatural incursion, and the pair need to solve the puzzle (somewhat cleverly) while still ending up with almost nothing to their name. After a while, it just got a bit tiresome.
readerxxx's review against another edition
3.0
Leiber's books are classic works of fantasy. Reading them brings to mind many hours spent as a teenager playing Dungeons and Dragons in my friend Joe's spooky house. Whenever I start a fafhred and grey mouser book I start with excitement but end in disappointment. The stories are trite and without depth. The situations are contrived and the sequence of events too unbelievable for me to believe that they occurred even in a fantasy novel.
I read them for the memories of my youth than I do for the stories themselves. That said, I do recognize that when I read them as a youth, I enjoyed them, so much more because I had not been jaded through the reading of thousands of really good books after it.
Leiber paved the way for many really good fantasy writers after him so for that his works remain classics.
I read them for the memories of my youth than I do for the stories themselves. That said, I do recognize that when I read them as a youth, I enjoyed them, so much more because I had not been jaded through the reading of thousands of really good books after it.
Leiber paved the way for many really good fantasy writers after him so for that his works remain classics.