Thieves' World & Other series that should be out as ebooks

snipenekkid · 02-22-2011, 05:40 PM

I read Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn back around 1980/81 I don't recall for sure but I know it was my first exposure to the whole Thieves' World series, well it was officially the 2nd book. My roommate and I immediately went out and bought the first Thieves' World book and gobbled up new novels as fast as we could find them.

I am not a fan of modern day fantasy stories, I stopped somewhere around the 3rd or 4th Shannara book. I never could get into the LOTR/Hobbit stories either so it's the whole SF Fantasy type stories are just not for me. I would not even read the Harry Potter novels if there were not audiobook editions. Sadly the movies have almost all left me quite flat compared to the audiobooks.

However there was something about the Thieves' World series was just fun, maybe because the writing was very accessible compared to The Hobbit, my roommate and I were both in science related majors and, well, I think we just wanted our SF light on the vocabulary overhead as it was a nice escape from the pressures of 3-5 labs a week along with the classroom time compared to your "business" majors and their 3-papers a semester "workload".

But even today I am just not excited by fantasy titles even though I loved this series, Gor was fun for the first 10-12 books, I really enjoyed The Dragon and the George by Gordon R. Dickson as well as The Shadow of the Torturer (twisted but fun) then later on the Sword of Shannara, like I mentioned, for the first three for sure and maybe it was the 4th where it was just enough.

For some reason I am really wanting to reread a number of my old favorites like the original Thieves' World series but none are out as ebooks. Yeah there are newer works by Lynn Aspirin (for those who don't know she and her hubby of that time, Robert Aspirin sort of co-wrote the original series where she did most of the editing but I am sure there was more co-writing that the writer-editor relationship.)

So it's been while to see a thread about series you loved from way back when but would love to re-visit as ebooks. I know I can buy used PB copies but that is just not anything I want to look into as my whole point of going with readers is to not buy anymore books.

I guess I want more older authors or their estates to get on board with the writers getting their back catalogs published in ebook form. Just feeling selfish in that I want what I want and I want it NOW dang it!!

adv_dp_fan · 02-22-2011, 07:03 PM

Actually Thieves' World: First Blood is out in ebook format and is actually a reprint of all the stories from the first two books in the series.

outlander78 · 02-23-2011, 09:38 AM

Thanks - I just found it on kobo. I hope more (all) of the books get back into print.

jkeene · 02-23-2011, 12:02 PM

Thanks! I too read those way back in the early '80s. I remember that at least three quarters of the stories were quite good, though I've forgotten enough details that re-reading would be fun. Roommates made off with some of my volumes, so I'm adding these to my wish list.

snipenekkid · 02-23-2011, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adv_dp_fan

Actually Thieves' World: First Blood is out in ebook format and is actually a reprint of all the stories from the first two books in the series.

oh, nice!! I had not noticed it was a collection of the first few books. So that is a nice start. Nice to wake up and see good news!

snipenekkid · 02-23-2011, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by outlander78

Thanks - I just found it on kobo. I hope more (all) of the books get back into print.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkeene

Thanks! I too read those way back in the early '80s. I remember that at least three quarters of the stories were quite good, though I've forgotten enough details that re-reading would be fun. Roommates made off with some of my volumes, so I'm adding these to my wish list.

That's one part of getting old that could be cool, if I don't remember it, then heck, it's new to me!!

I was lucky because my roommate and me just shared our books then we would trade for books with other friends after we were sure each of us had read a given book. And about once every other year we just emptied the shelves giving the books to the school library or most of the time to one of the "Bookmobile" programs since we figured we had paid the school enough money every year to begin with.

queentess · 02-23-2011, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snipenekkid

I am not a fan of modern day fantasy stories, I stopped somewhere around the 3rd or 4th Shannara book. I never could get into the LOTR/Hobbit stories either so it's the whole SF Fantasy type stories are just not for me. I would not even read the Harry Potter novels if there were not audiobook editions. Sadly the movies have almost all left me quite flat compared to the audiobooks.

I had the same problem... turns out I just wasn't reading the right type of fantasy. I consider myself a fantasy fan now, but I've also never been able to get into LOTR (I vaguely remember not hating The Hobbit) and hate pretty much anything I've ever tried by Terry Brooks. I really enjoyed HP, but I like YA books and can't get into audiobooks, so we differ there.

I really really highly recommend trying out the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson (first book: The Last Empire). And as much as some people love to hate on Robert Jordan, I LOVE the first Wheel of Time book (The Eye of the World). I'm still reading the series, and can't say I recommend the entire series, but the first one was incredible.

ctol · 02-23-2011, 10:16 PM

If you like the Thieves World books, I heartily suggest the Books Of Swords books by Fritz Leiber. Most of them are out as ebook and are very well written. Info on Leiber and the books can be found in this wikipedia article:

http://inkmesh.com/search/?qs=fritz+...nE=Find+Ebooks

And the ebooks can be found and ordered at this inkmesh link:

http://inkmesh.com/search/?qs=fritz+...nE=Find+Ebooks

Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series1.Swords and Deviltry (1970). Collection of 3 short stories.
2.Swords Against Death (1970). Collection of 10 short stories.
3.Swords in the Mist (1968). Collection of 6 short stories.
4.Swords Against Wizardry (1968). Collection of 4 short stories.
5.The Swords of Lankhmar (1968) (expanded from "Scylla's Daughter" in Fantastic, 1963)
6.Swords and Ice Magic (1977). Collection of 8 short stories. (Though see Rime Isle below.)
7.The Knight and Knave of Swords (1988) Retitled Farewell to Lankhmar (2000, UK)

adv_dp_fan · 02-23-2011, 11:29 PM

The Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series is pretty good and Baen has a nice bundle on their site of all 7 for $35 DRM free.

snipenekkid · 02-24-2011, 12:37 AM

you know, I forgot I even bought those last year sometime. I have to admit something...I have a problem, I buy everything I might even like if it's from Webscription/Baen. Maybe it's a good thing they are MilSF heavy these days as that is one sub-genre I rarely enjoy when it runs toward weapon or battle porn. Kinda like my eyes glaze over when people talk about recreating The Battle of Wholethehellcares from the Civil War (stolen from Bill Maher on HBO but I was only watching in private and I washed my hands and ironed my ears and eyes afterward...I still laughed though!!

)

jkeene · 02-24-2011, 07:38 AM

Seconded on the recommendation for the Fahfrd and the Grey Mouser books. I've read both those and the Thieves World books and liking one is a good predictor for liking the other. Interestingly, I can remember more of the plots from Fritz Leiber's stories than I can from Thieves World.

Darqref · 02-25-2011, 02:04 AM

I've read on other forums that it is difficult to reprint ebooks of stuff like thieves world. The problem is that each story carries it's own copyright, and once the original pb goes out of print, it's difficult to get all the rights back again. If the paper version is still in print, then it is easier to reprint, and try for an ebook edition, but once the rights have dispersed it's a pain to re-assemble the anthology. The original Wild Cards stories are similar, and there were other shared-world-anthology that all have the same problem, with less fame and exposure.

Back in the 80s, I heard authors at SF Cons say that their story in Tales of the Vulgar Unicorn got them more royalties than most of their full length novels. But they only hang together in a set - when some of them were reprinted separately (by author), they didn't do as well.

Yet another argument for a real rights-clearing mechanism.

02-22-2011, 05:40 PM	#1
snipenekkid Banned Posts: 760 Karma: 51034 Join Date: Feb 2009	Thieves' World & Other series that should be out as ebooks I read Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn back around 1980/81 I don't recall for sure but I know it was my first exposure to the whole Thieves' World series, well it was officially the 2nd book. My roommate and I immediately went out and bought the first Thieves' World book and gobbled up new novels as fast as we could find them. I am not a fan of modern day fantasy stories, I stopped somewhere around the 3rd or 4th Shannara book. I never could get into the LOTR/Hobbit stories either so it's the whole SF Fantasy type stories are just not for me. I would not even read the Harry Potter novels if there were not audiobook editions. Sadly the movies have almost all left me quite flat compared to the audiobooks. However there was something about the Thieves' World series was just fun, maybe because the writing was very accessible compared to The Hobbit, my roommate and I were both in science related majors and, well, I think we just wanted our SF light on the vocabulary overhead as it was a nice escape from the pressures of 3-5 labs a week along with the classroom time compared to your "business" majors and their 3-papers a semester "workload". But even today I am just not excited by fantasy titles even though I loved this series, Gor was fun for the first 10-12 books, I really enjoyed The Dragon and the George by Gordon R. Dickson as well as The Shadow of the Torturer (twisted but fun) then later on the Sword of Shannara, like I mentioned, for the first three for sure and maybe it was the 4th where it was just enough. For some reason I am really wanting to reread a number of my old favorites like the original Thieves' World series but none are out as ebooks. Yeah there are newer works by Lynn Aspirin (for those who don't know she and her hubby of that time, Robert Aspirin sort of co-wrote the original series where she did most of the editing but I am sure there was more co-writing that the writer-editor relationship.) So it's been while to see a thread about series you loved from way back when but would love to re-visit as ebooks. I know I can buy used PB copies but that is just not anything I want to look into as my whole point of going with readers is to not buy anymore books. I guess I want more older authors or their estates to get on board with the writers getting their back catalogs published in ebook form. Just feeling selfish in that I want what I want and I want it NOW dang it!!

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02-22-2011, 07:03 PM	#2
adv_dp_fan Zealot Posts: 103 Karma: 57138 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Sony 505, iPad 1 & 3, Galaxy Note 8.1	Actually Thieves' World: First Blood is out in ebook format and is actually a reprint of all the stories from the first two books in the series.

02-23-2011, 09:38 AM	#3
outlander78 Zealot Posts: 104 Karma: 263218 Join Date: Jan 2011 Device: Sony PRS-T1, Kobo Touch, Kobo Arc 7	Thanks - I just found it on kobo. I hope more (all) of the books get back into print.

02-23-2011, 12:02 PM	#4
jkeene Connoisseur Posts: 83 Karma: 85586 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kindle 3	Thanks! I too read those way back in the early '80s. I remember that at least three quarters of the stories were quite good, though I've forgotten enough details that re-reading would be fun. Roommates made off with some of my volumes, so I'm adding these to my wish list.

02-23-2011, 10:16 PM	#8
ctol Groupie Posts: 152 Karma: 303523 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Arizona Device: Nook, Fire Tablet, Windows RT Tablet Windows Phone	If you like the Thieves World books, I heartily suggest the Books Of Swords books by Fritz Leiber. Most of them are out as ebook and are very well written. Info on Leiber and the books can be found in this wikipedia article: http://inkmesh.com/search/?qs=fritz+...nE=Find+Ebooks And the ebooks can be found and ordered at this inkmesh link: http://inkmesh.com/search/?qs=fritz+...nE=Find+Ebooks Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series1.Swords and Deviltry (1970). Collection of 3 short stories. 2.Swords Against Death (1970). Collection of 10 short stories. 3.Swords in the Mist (1968). Collection of 6 short stories. 4.Swords Against Wizardry (1968). Collection of 4 short stories. 5.The Swords of Lankhmar (1968) (expanded from "Scylla's Daughter" in Fantastic, 1963) 6.Swords and Ice Magic (1977). Collection of 8 short stories. (Though see Rime Isle below.) 7.The Knight and Knave of Swords (1988) Retitled Farewell to Lankhmar (2000, UK)

02-23-2011, 11:29 PM	#9
adv_dp_fan Zealot Posts: 103 Karma: 57138 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Sony 505, iPad 1 & 3, Galaxy Note 8.1	The Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series is pretty good and Baen has a nice bundle on their site of all 7 for $35 DRM free.

02-24-2011, 12:37 AM	#10
snipenekkid Banned Posts: 760 Karma: 51034 Join Date: Feb 2009	you know, I forgot I even bought those last year sometime. I have to admit something...I have a problem, I buy everything I might even like if it's from Webscription/Baen. Maybe it's a good thing they are MilSF heavy these days as that is one sub-genre I rarely enjoy when it runs toward weapon or battle porn. Kinda like my eyes glaze over when people talk about recreating The Battle of Wholethehellcares from the Civil War (stolen from Bill Maher on HBO but I was only watching in private and I washed my hands and ironed my ears and eyes afterward...I still laughed though!! )

02-24-2011, 07:38 AM	#11
jkeene Connoisseur Posts: 83 Karma: 85586 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kindle 3	Seconded on the recommendation for the Fahfrd and the Grey Mouser books. I've read both those and the Thieves World books and liking one is a good predictor for liking the other. Interestingly, I can remember more of the plots from Fritz Leiber's stories than I can from Thieves World.

02-25-2011, 02:04 AM	#12
Darqref space cadet Posts: 334 Karma: 2999999 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Seattle area Device: Rocket PRO, gen3, Pocketbook360	I've read on other forums that it is difficult to reprint ebooks of stuff like thieves world. The problem is that each story carries it's own copyright, and once the original pb goes out of print, it's difficult to get all the rights back again. If the paper version is still in print, then it is easier to reprint, and try for an ebook edition, but once the rights have dispersed it's a pain to re-assemble the anthology. The original Wild Cards stories are similar, and there were other shared-world-anthology that all have the same problem, with less fame and exposure. Back in the 80s, I heard authors at SF Cons say that their story in Tales of the Vulgar Unicorn got them more royalties than most of their full length novels. But they only hang together in a set - when some of them were reprinted separately (by author), they didn't do as well. Yet another argument for a real rights-clearing mechanism.

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