Tales Of The Dying Earth

Tale of the Dying Earth truly stands as one of the greatest works ever penned. Everything that's good and bad about the human condition is eloquently expressed within this tale. You get the full range of heroics, adventure, drama, atmosphere and excitement all wrapped by Vance's dry sense of humor and terse yet flowery  prose.Dying Earth is more science fiction than fantasy, but it certainly does have many fantasy elements as told through several characters within the story (most notable Cugel the Clever).The characters are often over-the-top characterizations by intention and are used by Vance as sharp instruments to perceptively express the full extremes of the human condition -- both the best and the worst of it.This is literary fantasy of the highest form, written by a man who's had wide ranging influence on the genre. Many of the best modern fantasy authors cite Vance as a huge influence on their work.Beautifully and cleverly written prose that jabs and pokes at the human condition in such a way that all the foibles, follies, and glories are laid bare to the reader.Fans of Lionesses,  Books of the New Sun, and Ghormenghast will die for joy with this series.