By Glen Cook
Signet Books (1987)
Reviewed by Robert Thompson 2/8/90
Glen Cook, an accomplished writer of dramatic fantasy, also has a series of comedic fantasy. The titles are pure John D. McDonald, his hero is pure Raymond Chandler, and his world is somewhere between Baum's Land of OZ and Tolkien's Middle Earth.
Imagine, if you will, Sam Spade or Phillip Marlowe, with a typical Spade or Marlowe case. However, instead of Lauren Bacall or Gene Tierney as leading lady or femme fatale, you get a sexy female elf. The supporting characters are a motley assortment of every kind of creature from fable and fantasy that you can think of. The hero's "Partner" is no Miles Archer, but a still sentient corpse from some advanced species. It doesn't get around much, but it has a good brain.
The plot in this book (or the others in the series) does not really matter. They are nothing that hasn't been done a dozen times in Private Eye movies, books or TV programs; There is a problem. The streetwise gumshoe solves it, having some interesting occurrences along the way.
If you have a sense of humor and like the old private detective stories, you'll like this book. Fans of comedic fantasy will enjoy it, and if you are someone who likes both genre, it is great. A quick, funny, light read.