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Myth-Told Tales | Rating | |
| B | |||
| Robert Asprin | |||
| Series | Related Books | ||
| MythAdventures | Another Fine Myth, Myth Conceptions, Myth Directions, Hit or Myth, Myth-ing Persons, Little Myth Marker, M.Y.T.H. Inc. Link, Myth-Nomers and Im-Pervections, M.Y.T.H. Inc. In Action, Sweet Myth-tery of Life, Myth-Ion Improbable, Something M.Y.T.H. Inc., Myth-Told Tales, Myth Alliances, Myth-Taken Identity, Class Dis-Mythed, Myth-Gotten Gains | ||
Skeeve has had plenty of big adventures. But he's had some small ones as well. And here you can read about some of them in one collection. Like most anthologies, the stories within its covers vary somewhat in quality. At its worst, the story reads like something from Piers Anthony's Xanth series, its humor all based on bad puns and wordplay. I was very glad that was only a short story and not a complete novel. I don't know how I could have stood that.
But, at its best, the stories are just as light, quick, and enjoyable as most of the rest of the series. The authors never recapture the wonderful interplay from the first book or two, but that's all right. The stories hold up just fine with a less vaudville tone to them.
I was rather surprised to find that Asprin and Nye didn't always use Skeeve and Aahz as their viewpoint characters. This isn't a M.Y.T.H. Inc. title, after all. He's not even in every story. But there's still plenty that centers on him, so Skeeve fans shouldn't be found wanting. And neither will those who like Aahz, Tananda, Gleep, and the rest. It made for a pleasant variety. As did the stories, themselves. They had a wide range of subject matter, from a rather odd reality show to protecting the bazaar at Deva from extortionists. There's even a story starring Pookie and her sidekick out on an adventure of their own.
Myth-Told Tales never achieves greatness, but it does relieve my mind. After an eight-year hiatus, not to mention the last few books, I was seriously worries about the downward trend of the series' quality. While this doesn't nail the coffin shut on such concerns, it certainly was a welcome relief. Most of the stories were fun, even funny, and of course they were short enough to read over a lunch break. This one finally gets the series back to its roots, for which I am very glad.
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