First edition 1997.
Deluxe slipcased edition: Underwood Books, 2005. Illustrated by Stephen Fabian. Limited to 500 numbered copies signed by the author.
The Laughing Magician combines two of Vance's popular ”Dying Earth” novels: The Eyes of the Overworld and Cugel the Clever. Both are tales of a charming rascal named Cugel, who is forced on a quest across Earth in a time so remote that the sun itself has grown red and dim.
The series
The stories of the Dying Earth series are set in the distant future, at a point when the sun is almost exhausted and magic has reasserted itself as a dominant force. The various civilizations of Earth have collapsed for the most part into decadence. The Earth is mostly barren and cold, and has become infested with various predatory monsters (possibly created by a magician in a former age).
Read full series description
The Moon has disappeared and the Sun is in danger of burning out at any time. A certain fatalism characterizes many of the inhabitants as a consequence.
The series shows the influence of the picaresque tale, applied to a science fiction/fantasy setting.
#1 · 1950The Dying Earth 
#2 · 1966The Eyes of the Overworld 
#3 · 1983Cugel's Saga 
#4 · 1984Rhialto the Marvellous 
1974A Quest for Simbilis 
1979Morreion 
1979The Seventeen Virgins 
1979The Bagful of Dreams 
1999Tales of the Dying Earth 
2005The Laughing Magician: The Adventures of Cugel 
2009Songs of the Dying Earth 
2013The Guiding Nose of Ulfänt Banderoz Be the first reviewer
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