This review originally appeared on Goodreads on October 29, 2017.

The Guiding Nose of Ulfant Banderoz

By Dan Simmons – Subterranean Press – June 30, 2013

Review by Robin Marx

With the death of archmagician Ulfant Banderoz, the Dying Earth seems closer to destruction than ever. Shrue the diabolist decides to make the dangerous journey to Banderoz’s Ultimate Library and Final Compendium of Thaumaturgical Lore and acquire the mystic knowledge housed within.

This charming novella evokes the color and vibrancy of Jack Vance’s classic Dying Earth cycle without attempting the fool’s errand of parroting the style of Vance himself. The end result is a story that feels at home in the setting (pelgranes, deodands, and the Excellent Prismatic Spray are all present and accounted for), but with a milder dose of Vance’s world-weary cynicism. There’s even some optimism mixed in here. That seems like a strange choice for a Dying Earth story, but somehow it works. An absolute gem of a story.

★★★★☆

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