'The Good Wizard' – Glen Cook


Just one more day to get through and it's the weekend. You can do it mate, you're almost there...

Ahem...

I had such a great time reading 'A Night at the Tarn House' that not only have I gone and ordered 'Songs of the Dying Earth' (which will be a nice little treat to come home to) but then I remembered that Glen Cook's 'The Good Wizard' can also be found in the 'Best of Glen Cook' collection. So instead of waiting for the delivery person to turn up with my book tomorrow, I went and read 'The Good Wizard' last night. I know it has only been a couple of days but just in case you were wondering, I still haven't been able to read any Jack Vance so I'm going back into the world of the Dying Earth having only read one story and that's by George R.R. Martin. Yeah, I know. I haven't made things easy for myself this week so why stop just because it's almost the weekend? ;o)

Now, let's talk about 'The Good Wizard'.

Alfaro Morag has discovered something that cannot possibly exist, just the merest mention of it has stirred up the magic community into a seething mass of greed at the possibility that it may well hold the treasure of the ages. Did Alfaro Morag discover it though, or was it waiting for him the whole time...? 

I've read almost all the 'Black Company' books (really need to finish 'Port of Shadows' one day) and a few of the Garrett P.I books as well; enough to know that Glen Cook has a very distinctive style that he is happy for you to either take or leave. He has told the story and that's the most important thing. It's a real surprise then to start reading 'The Good Wizard' and be faced with what can only be a complete departure from all that. I know that I haven't read any Vance but looking at 'The Good Wizard', it's very clear that Cook has and is bringing that experience to the table. 'The Good Wizard' is flowery with it's language, but not overly so, and isn't afraid to have a little fun with it at the same time, even to the point of cracking a few jokes here and there. Where is Glen Cook and what have you done with him...? ;o) The Dying Earth is a great place to loose yourself in and to see Glen Cook ham it up is a bit of a treat, it can't be denied.

Onto the story itself, once you get past the wizards and their little games (which are fun, to be fair), you're faced with a surprisingly thoughtful story that offers a little hope for the future, from The Good Wizard, but then promptly  takes it away again as you realise that some things are just inevitable really. And that is the whole point of this setting, at least from what I can see, so fair play to Cook for staying on topic. For me, ‘The Good Wizard’ served as a reminder that even in the face of something as monumental as the death of a sun, not only will people jockey for power until the last second but you can still approach the end of the world on your own terms, don’t let it define you. There’s something just a little bit inspiring about that and ultimately, that’s why I’m glad I picked up ‘The Good Wizard’ and gave it a go. There will be more ‘Dying Earth’ short stories featured here and I really need to bump the original work up the TBR pile, don’t I?

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