The Swords of Lankhmar

The Swords of Lankhmar, fifth volume in Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and Gray Mouser books, stands out among the others by being the only novel in the series. It has often been remarked upon that this form is not really suited to the tales Leiber tries to tell, and I am finding myself in agreement with this. Not that The Swords of Lankhmar wasn’t a fun to read, but it does drag a bit in places, in particular during the sea voyage described in its first part which is almost a standalone tale.

Most of that voyage is given to Fafhrd’s and the Gray Mouser’s courting of a female passenger, trying to outdo each other in gaining her affections and generally behaving in a way that is very reminiscent of adolescent teenagers. This is somewhat show more mitigated by the sheer outrageousness of their behaviour which raises suspicion that maybe they are not quite serious about it all and only play-acting to pass the time on a boring sea-voyage, but even so it does appear rather out of character – while this is certainly not the first time that our two protagonists have fallen for a pretty face I cannot remember any previous instance where they forgot themselves quite as much as here with Hesvit.

Although I have to admit that I found Hesvit rather enjoyable myself – it is clear pretty early on that she is up to no good and one of the novel’s bad guys, and while she does not exactly have a lot of character depth beyond her being evil for evil’s sake, what there is is quite fascinating, mysterious and aloof, always dancing just out of everyone’s grasp and generally a very colourful villain who gives our heroes – the Mouser in particular – quite the run for their money.

The novel becomes markedly more lively from its second third onwards, when the location shifts to Lankhmar. Or at least the Mouser’s location shifts, for once again our protagonists are going separate ways for most of the story. Unlike previous instances, though, it has to be said that the split in The Swords of Lankhmar is not quite symmetrical – while Fafhrd’s long detour towards Lankhmar is mostly devoid of events and, while fun to read, is only marginally related to the central plot, the Gray Mouser has all the excitement, magic and adventure in his chapters. He really steals the spotlight from Fafhrd this time round and The Swords of Lankhmar is very much the Gray Mouser’s novel – which, in a way, is even fitting, seeing how the novel’s main antagonists are rats.

The Swords of Lankhmar is the most fanciful instalment in the Fafhrd and Gray Mouser series (or the silliest, if you are feeling less generous) – with people shrinking down to the size of and dressing up as rats, rats growing to the size of men and getting into fencing duels and lots of other bizarre and colourful shenanigans, the reader at times almost feels like having strayed into a Sword & Sorcery version of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s Nußknacker und Mäusekönig. And maybe this is another reason why this novel made me once again think a lot of Terry Pratchett – at times, The Swords of Lankhmar seems to switch entirely into comical mode and Leiber seems to play it entirely for laughs, even more so than in stories like “Lean Times in Lankhmar” where the sharp satirical thrust kept things from becoming merely quirky, humoristic Fantasy. Which is not a bad thing in and of itself, but I have to admit that at times I rather missed the realistic edge that usually even the most outré and over the top Fafhrd and Gray Mouser stories have somewhere. There is almost no sense of menace in this novel, and the villains, while bizarre and fascinating never really come across as threatening.

This installment of Fafhrd and Gray Mouser is a bit of a mixed bag, then; it does not quite live up to the best volumes in the series but still is very enjoyable to read. The Swords of Lankhmar is also the final volume of the original series, the remaining two volumes are later additions and everyone seems to agree that they mark a distinct drop in quality. Only one way to find whether that is true or not, I suppose… show less

Only reading Fritz Leiber can I reliably find words I've never read/heard before, and also read about poo.

The Lankhmar books, for all they've contributed to and generated fantasy tropes and cliches alike, always surprise me, and that's why I'll definitely read all of them. Leiber's writing breaks every MFA-modern-writing-rule, and is fantastically engaging, beautifully written, succinct where it must be, poetic where it wills, shocking, hilarious, and even moving, on occasion.

The Swords of Lankhmar will appeal most to those who've read some of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser's adventures already, harkening back to a number of previous stories and happenings (Praise Issek!). It's all one long story, rather than the more typical shorts, and show more so manages to explore in greater depth some aspects of the characters, Newhon, and Lankhmar than previously allowed.

As usual, Leiber's writing is full of snappy retorts and sharp words and sharper blades. The fights are excellent, perhaps among Leiber's best-written, and the plot littered through with surprises and red herrings. It was an absolute blast to read, although the length, compared to other F&tGM stories, came off a little jarring. I expect if I wasn't used to his short stories that wouldn't have been the case. Great addition to a great series. show less

Unusually inventive--hard to believe this is a product of decades long past, rather than the latest outing from a Matthew Hughes or Scott Lynch. I have been reading in internal chronological order, and this, the only true novel, is a fitting climax to the series (of course, there are more stories to go--may they provide equally fitting denouement).

I was the tiniest bit worried that Leiber might not be able to maintain a novel's length worth of interest, especially since some of his novelette-sized tales dragged a bit. But the author of Conjure Wife (one of my favourites) has risen to the occasion and I feel a bit silly for doubting him.

The protagonists are male, but the prominent female characters are scarcely helpless maidens--in show more fact, I've rarely seen such a diversity of female characters, though each is (to borrow an anime term) a bit fan-service, two of them being prominently naked at all times. That's the only aspect of this that carries a hint of the times with it--otherwise this is a fresh, entertaining romp of a novel.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve! show less

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

I never get tired of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser — I adore those two rogues! In The Swords of Lankhmar (a full novel rather than the usual story collection), the boys have been hired as guards for a fleet of grain shipments because several ships have recently disappeared. Aboard the ship they meet a couple of enchanting women who are escorting a troupe of performing rats across the sea. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser soon discover that these are not ordinary women, and those are not ordinary rats.

Back in Lankhmar they find that the city is dealing with rats, too. The rodents have become belligerent and troublesome. The Mouser begins to suspect that there might be a connection between those two ladies show more and Lankhmar’s troubles. With the help of his magical patron, the Mouser goes underground to spy on the rat army.

The Swords of Lankhmar is an expansion of Leiber’s novella Scylla’s Daughter (1961, Fantastic Stories of Imagination) which was nominated for a Hugo Award. The Swords of Lankhmar has everything fans have learned to expect from one of Fritz Leiber’s LANKHMAR series. It’s strange, creative, fast-paced, and fun. Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are a couple of the best characters in all of fantasy fiction — if you haven’t read any of their adventures, you’re really missing out.

Let me again recommend the audio version of this series which has been produced by Audible Frontiers — Jonathan Davis’s performance is so entertaining! show less

I recently re-read for the Pulp Fiction group. Fafhrd & the Gray Mouser are certainly 2 of the most entertaining of all sword & sorcery heroes. Their faults are legion, but their hearts are usually in the right place, unless of course there's money or sex to be had. Then they make horrendous mistakes, scramble frantically to extricate themselves from their current mess & swagger off, chalking it all up to experience. Of course, they promptly get into another mess shortly after that, but they're skillful, lucky & obviously watched over closely by the gods of chance & luck.Leiber's writing is wonderful. He turns a phrase & description in a wonderfully entertaining manner. He's built a fun, odd world full of magic & barbaric deception. He show more has wonderfully decadent cities & rulers, too. His magic users are unfathomable & horrors abound through out. That many of his situations & creatures are exaggerated, sometimes to the point of comedy, is all to the good. His stories are not the grim, blood soaked sagas of Howard or Wagner, but lighter & a lot more fun. show less

Best of the series so far.
Good fun, despite being very predictable as to how it was going to resolve itself and generally ridiculous in many parts.
I really enjoyed the fact that Fafhrd and the Mouser were separated and had differing storylines for the majority of this book. It definitely helped it get away from the "sameness" that most of their short story adventures have.

The only Fafhrd and Mouser novel, and quite competent in that genre. the light hearted swashbuckling seems a little forced at times, but the whole thing works well. Lankhmar is besieged, and only a forlorn hope of heroes can save it. Failing that, employ the Grey Mouser and his Nordic companion. A serious amount of undercover work is involved. Set side an evening, and enjoy it.