The Enchanter Reborn
OCLC 26468405 | | |
Preceded by | Wall of Serpents | |
---|---|---|
Followed by | The Exotic Enchanter |
The Enchanter Reborn is an anthology of five fantasy short stories edited by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Christopher Stasheff, the first volume in their continuation of the Harold Shea series by de Camp and Fletcher Pratt. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in 1992;[1] an ebook edition followed from the same publisher in May 2013. The book has also been translated into Italian.[2] All but one of the pieces are original to the anthology; the exception, de Camp's "Sir Harold and the Gnome King", first appeared in the World Fantasy Convention program book in 1990 and was then published as a separate chapbook in 1991.[3]
The series
De Camp and Pratt's original Harold Shea stories are
The book
In The Enchanter Reborn the series is opened up into a shared world to which other authors were invited to contribute. In addition to stories by de Camp and Stasheff, who collectively oversaw the project, it includes contributions by Holly Lisle and John Maddox Roberts, both of whom worked from outlines provided by the editors. The initial impulse for the continuation may have been the successful adaptation of the characters into a gamebook adventure (Prospero's Isle, by Tom Wham, published by Tor Books in October 1987), to which de Camp had contributed an admiring introduction. This may have encouraged him to wrap up long-unresolved loose ends from the original series, such as the stranding of Walter Bayard in the world of Irish mythology, and to resolve the unaddressed complication introduced by L. Ron Hubbard's "borrowing" of Harold Shea for use in his novel The Case of the Friendly Corpse. Both of these goals he accomplished in "Sir Harold and the Gnome King" (1990 chapbook). When the decision was made to continue the series further this story was revised slightly to reconcile it with the other new stories, though the fit is somewhat awkward.
Summary
Once the loose ends are resolved, most of the action in the second sequence involves Shea and Chalmers' quest across several universes to rescue Florimel, who has been kidnapped by the malevolent enchanter Malambroso. Milieus encountered in the stories of The Enchanter Reborn include the worlds of Irish myth and of
Contents
- "Professor Harold and the Trustees" (1992) (Christopher Stasheff)
- "Sir Harold and the Gnome King" (1990) (L. Sprague de Camp)
- "Sir Harold and the Monkey King" (1992) (Christopher Stasheff)
- "Knight and the Enemy" (1992) (Holly Lisle, from an outline by de Camp and Stasheff)
- "Arms and the Enchanter" (1992) (John Maddox Roberts, from an outline by de Camp and Stasheff)
Sequel
The Enchanter Reborn was followed up by a sequel anthology, The Exotic Enchanter (1995), which featured more stories by de Camp and Stasheff, together with additional new authors.
Notes
- ^ The Enchanter Reborn title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- ^ L'incantatore Rinato title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- ^ Sir Harold and the Gnome King title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database