Book Review: Swords and Deviltry by Fritz Leiber

Swords and Deviltry by Fritz Leiber

Fritz Leiber introduces his famous sword and sorcery duo, Fafhrd and the Gray (Grey? The book cover and the text inside disagree) Mouser. Fafhrd is the sword-wielding barbarian, Mouser is the rapier-armed magician. The book gives their separate back stories before bringing them together in the city of Lankhmar. 

Fafhrd is from the north of Nehwon, the name of their mythical world. His tribe, the Snow Clan, lives on the frozen lands and trades with the southerns a few times a year. Once a year, a troupe of entertainers comes for a couple of days of festivities. The women of the Snow Clan oppose the entertainment because they are excluded from the show for its lewdness. More annoying is the skinny strumpets from the south who get a lot of amorous attention from the men of the Snow Clan. The women weave magic spells to keep the men in line. They also throw a mean snowball (as in, frozen and/or rocky snowballs), the bane of any lone man or entertainer. Fafhrd is eighteen years old and yearning for a life outside of the frozen lands. He's forbidden to go to the show by his mother. He goes anyway and gets involved in the entertainers' lives when he saves Vlana, a female entertainer who is a victim of vicious snowballs and becomes a paramour for Fafhrd. She may also be his escape route to the the southern lands.

The Mouser studies with a kindly old forest wizard, though as his story starts Mouser discovers the wizard's home burnt to the ground by the local duke, who hates magic. The smoking corpse of the wizard is there too. The duke's daughter Ivrian also studied with the wizard and she was tortured to get the location. Mouser is disappointed in her but mostly blames the duke. Mouser turns to darker magic in order to avenge the wizard on the duke. Ivrian is much more mouse-like, fearing both her father and the corruption of Mouser. The conflict results in both of them fleeing the dukedom.

Both couples fee to Lankhmar, one of the great cities of the land, if not the greatest. Vlana has a vengeance grudge against the Thieves Guild. She has sworn to kill the leader and Fafhrd, being a good boyfriend, has also committed to the cause. Fafhrd and Mouser run into each other when they fight some thieves returning from their latest caper. The duo team up and become friends, with Mouser bringing Fafhrd and Vlana to his romantic hideaway for refuge from the vile street life. The men go on a scouting mission while the ladies stay behind. Action and tragedy ensue.

The stories are exciting and colorful. The places and people have a rich history and promise more to come. The action is occasionally grim and graphic. Leiber does not spare on those details too, making it less kid-friendly than one might guess. For adults, it's an interesting adventure.

Recommended.