The Exotic Enchanter
Encyclopedia
The Exotic Enchanter is an anthology of four fantasy
short stories edited by science fiction
and fantasy
authors L. Sprague de Camp
and Christopher Stasheff
. "The Exotic Enchanter" is the second volume in the continuation of the classic Harold Shea series by de Camp and Fletcher Pratt
. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books
in 1995. All the pieces are original to the anthology.
De Camp and Pratt's original Harold Shea stories are parallel world
tales in which universes where magic works coexist with our own, and in which those based on the mythologies, legends, and literary fantasies of our world and can be reached by aligning one's mind to them by a system of symbolic logic. In these stories psychologist Harold Shea and his colleagues Reed Chalmers, Walter Bayard, and Vaclav Polacek (Votsy), travel to a number of such worlds. In the course of their travels other characters are added to the main cast, including Belphebe and Florimel, who become the wives of Shea and Chalmers, and Pete Brodsky, a policeman who is accidentally swept up into the chaos. The Exotic Enchanter continues the new format of the series introduced in de Camp and Stasheff's previous volume, The Enchanter Reborn
(1992), in which it was 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, this volume includes contributions by Roland J. Green
and Frieda A. Murray
(in collaboration) and Tom Wham
. Green and Murray may have worked from an outline provided by the editors as in the previous volume, though this is not stated. Wham's contribution is a distillation into concrete story form of his earlier authorized Harold Shea gamebook
, Prospero's Isle, originally published by Tor Books
in October 1987.
The action in the first two stories concludes the quest by Shea and Chalmers to rescue Florimel that began in the previous volume, where she was kidnapped by the malevolent enchanter Malambroso. Their mission takes them into the worlds of the old Russia
n Tale of Igor's Campaign
in "Enchanter Kiev," and that of Bhavabhuti
's Baital Pachisi
(or "Vikram and the Vampire"), a proto-Arabian Nights
collection of India
n tales, in "Sir Harold and the Hindu King." After Florimel is finally recovered Shea and Belphebe must undertake a similar mission to Edgar Rice Burroughs
's fictional version of Mars
in "Sir Harold of Zodanga," this time to recover their daughter Voglinda, likewise seized by the unrepentant Malambroso. "Harold Shakespeare," the final tale, sends Shea and Belephebe on an unrelated adventure precipitated by the foolishness of Shea's colleague Polacek, into William Shakespeare
's The Tempest.
, which revisits the world of Kubla Khan
first encountered (briefly) in de Camp and Pratt's The Castle of Iron
. In this final tale a minor character from Xanadu is transported therefrom to the world of The Arabian Nights
by the agency of an unnamed magician, who appears to be intended to represent L. Sprague de Camp
himself. "Return to Xanadu" was published in The Enchanter Completed: A Tribute Anthology for L. Sprague de Camp
, edited by Harry Turtledove
and published by Baen Books
in 2005.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
short stories edited by science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
authors L. Sprague de Camp
L. Sprague de Camp
Lyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...
and Christopher Stasheff
Christopher Stasheff
Christopher Stasheff is an American science fiction author and fantasy author whose novels include The Warlock in Spite of Himself and Her Majesty's Wizard . He has a PhD. in Theatre and also teaches radio and television at Eastern New Mexico University in New Mexico...
. "The Exotic Enchanter" is the second volume in the continuation of the classic Harold Shea series by de Camp and Fletcher Pratt
Fletcher Pratt
Murray Fletcher Pratt was an American writer of science fiction, fantasy and history, particularly noted for his works on naval history and on the American Civil War.- Life and work :...
. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books
Baen Books
Baen Books is an American publishing company established in 1983 by long time science fiction publisher and editor Jim Baen. It is a science fiction and fantasy publishing house that emphasizes space opera, hard science fiction, military science fiction, and fantasy...
in 1995. All the pieces are original to the anthology.
De Camp and Pratt's original Harold Shea stories are parallel world
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
tales in which universes where magic works coexist with our own, and in which those based on the mythologies, legends, and literary fantasies of our world and can be reached by aligning one's mind to them by a system of symbolic logic. In these stories psychologist Harold Shea and his colleagues Reed Chalmers, Walter Bayard, and Vaclav Polacek (Votsy), travel to a number of such worlds. In the course of their travels other characters are added to the main cast, including Belphebe and Florimel, who become the wives of Shea and Chalmers, and Pete Brodsky, a policeman who is accidentally swept up into the chaos. The Exotic Enchanter continues the new format of the series introduced in de Camp and Stasheff's previous volume, The Enchanter Reborn
The Enchanter Reborn
The Enchanter Reborn is an anthology of five fantasy short stories edited by science fiction and fantasy authors L. Sprague de Camp and Christopher Stasheff, the first volume in their continuation of the classic Harold Shea series by de Camp and Fletcher Pratt. It was first published in paperback...
(1992), in which it was 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, this volume includes contributions by Roland J. Green
Roland J. Green
Roland James Green is an American science fiction and fantasy writer and editor. He has written as Roland Green and Roland J. Green; and had 28 books in the Richard Blade series published as Jeffrey Lord .- Early life and personal matters :Green was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, in 1944...
and Frieda A. Murray
Frieda A. Murray
Frieda A. Murray is a fantasy writer whose works are generally written in collaboration with Roland J. Green, whom she married in 1975 . She was born in Waco, Texas and moved to Chicago, Illinois from Washington, D.C in 1966; she still lives there.-Short stories:*"A Devil Unknown" with Roland J...
(in collaboration) and Tom Wham
Tom Wham
Tom Wham is a designer of board games who has also produced artwork, including that for his own games.Wham worked a variety of odd jobs during his early adult life. After serving four years in the U.S. Navy, he worked for the Guidon Games hobby shop in Maine where he got his first game, a variant...
. Green and Murray may have worked from an outline provided by the editors as in the previous volume, though this is not stated. Wham's contribution is a distillation into concrete story form of his earlier authorized Harold Shea gamebook
Gamebook
A gamebook is a work of fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making effective choices. The narrative branches along various paths through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages...
, Prospero's Isle, originally published by Tor Books
Tor Books
Tor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
in October 1987.
The action in the first two stories concludes the quest by Shea and Chalmers to rescue Florimel that began in the previous volume, where she was kidnapped by the malevolent enchanter Malambroso. Their mission takes them into the worlds of the old Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Tale of Igor's Campaign
The Tale of Igor's Campaign
The Tale of Igor's Campaign is an anonymous epic poem written in the Old East Slavic language.The title is occasionally translated as The Song of Igor's Campaign, The Lay of Igor's Campaign, and The Lay of...
in "Enchanter Kiev," and that of Bhavabhuti
Bhavabhuti
Bhavabhuti was an 8th century scholar of India noted for his plays and poetry, written in Sanskrit. His plays are considered equivalent to the works of Kalidasa...
's Baital Pachisi
Baital Pachisi
Baital Pachisi or Vetala Panchavimshati , is a collection of tales and legends within a frame story, from India. It was originally written in Sanskrit....
(or "Vikram and the Vampire"), a proto-Arabian Nights
The Book of One Thousand and One Nights
One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age...
collection of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n tales, in "Sir Harold and the Hindu King." After Florimel is finally recovered Shea and Belphebe must undertake a similar mission to Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...
's fictional version of Mars
Barsoom
Barsoom is a fictional representation of the planet Mars created by American pulp fiction author Edgar Rice Burroughs, who wrote close to 100 action adventure stories in various genres in the first half of the 20th century, and is now best known as the creator of the character Tarzan...
in "Sir Harold of Zodanga," this time to recover their daughter Voglinda, likewise seized by the unrepentant Malambroso. "Harold Shakespeare," the final tale, sends Shea and Belephebe on an unrelated adventure precipitated by the foolishness of Shea's colleague Polacek, into William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's The Tempest.
Contents
- "Enchanter Kiev" (Roland J. GreenRoland J. GreenRoland James Green is an American science fiction and fantasy writer and editor. He has written as Roland Green and Roland J. Green; and had 28 books in the Richard Blade series published as Jeffrey Lord .- Early life and personal matters :Green was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, in 1944...
and Frieda A. MurrayFrieda A. MurrayFrieda A. Murray is a fantasy writer whose works are generally written in collaboration with Roland J. Green, whom she married in 1975 . She was born in Waco, Texas and moved to Chicago, Illinois from Washington, D.C in 1966; she still lives there.-Short stories:*"A Devil Unknown" with Roland J...
) - "Sir Harold and the Hindu King" (Christopher StasheffChristopher StasheffChristopher Stasheff is an American science fiction author and fantasy author whose novels include The Warlock in Spite of Himself and Her Majesty's Wizard . He has a PhD. in Theatre and also teaches radio and television at Eastern New Mexico University in New Mexico...
) - "Sir Harold of ZodangaSir Harold of ZodangaSir Harold of Zodanga is a fantasy novella written by science fiction and fantasy author L. Sprague de Camp as part of the Harold Shea series he originated in collaboration with Fletcher Pratt and later continued with Christopher Stasheff. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in de...
" (L. Sprague de CampL. Sprague de CampLyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...
) - "Harold Shakespeare" (Tom WhamTom WhamTom Wham is a designer of board games who has also produced artwork, including that for his own games.Wham worked a variety of odd jobs during his early adult life. After serving four years in the U.S. Navy, he worked for the Guidon Games hobby shop in Maine where he got his first game, a variant...
)
Sequel
While no more Harold Shea volumes were produced by de Camp and Stasheff, one additional contribution to the series was published later; "Return to Xanadu" by Lawrence Watt-EvansLawrence Watt-Evans
Lawrence Watt-Evans is one of the pseudonyms of American science fiction and fantasy author Lawrence Watt Evans...
, which revisits the world of Kubla Khan
Kubla Khan
Kubla Khan is a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, completed in 1797 and published in Christabel, Kubla Khan, and the Pains of Sleep in 1816...
first encountered (briefly) in de Camp and Pratt's The Castle of Iron
The Castle of Iron
The Castle of Iron is the title of a fantasy novella by science fiction and fantasy authors L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt, and to the novel into which it was later expanded by the same authors. It was the third story in their Harold Shea series...
. In this final tale a minor character from Xanadu is transported therefrom to the world of The Arabian Nights
The Book of One Thousand and One Nights
One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age...
by the agency of an unnamed magician, who appears to be intended to represent L. Sprague de Camp
L. Sprague de Camp
Lyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...
himself. "Return to Xanadu" was published in The Enchanter Completed: A Tribute Anthology for L. Sprague de Camp
The Enchanter Completed: A Tribute Anthology for L. Sprague de Camp
The Enchanter Completed: A Tribute Anthology for L. Sprague de Camp is a 2005 gedenkschrift honoring science fiction and fantasy author L. Sprague de Camp, in the form of an anthology of short stories edited by Harry Turtledove. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books...
, edited by Harry Turtledove
Harry Turtledove
Harry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.- Life :...
and published by Baen Books
Baen Books
Baen Books is an American publishing company established in 1983 by long time science fiction publisher and editor Jim Baen. It is a science fiction and fantasy publishing house that emphasizes space opera, hard science fiction, military science fiction, and fantasy...
in 2005.