A Multitude Of Monsters

The Ebenezum Trilogy #2

by Craig Shaw Gardner

"A fun romp. The field needs more humorists of this caliber." (Robert Asprin)

While seeking a cure for his malady of magicks, the suffering sorcerer Ebenezum and his hapless apprentice are rudely interrupted by militant monsters with a cause.

Genres: Fantasy, Humor, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Comedy, Magic, Ebooks

158 pages, ebook

First published September 1, 1986

About the author

Craig Shaw Gardner was born in Rochester, New York and lived there until 1967, when he moved to Boston, MA to attend Boston University. He graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Broadcasting and Film. He has continued to reside in Boston since that time.

He published his first story in 1977 while he held a number of jobs: shipper/receiver for a men's suit manufacturer, working in hospital public relations, running a stat camera, and also managed of a couple of bookstores: The Million Year Picnic and Science Fantasy Bookstore.

As of 1987 he became a full time writer, and since then he has published more than 30 novels and more than 50 short stories.

He also published under these pseudonyms:

Peter Garrison

Reviews

[Slorglord · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and lighthearted read. It feels like a wacky D&D campaign or RPG party dialogue. I didn't read the first one and probably won't read the next, but other than ending on a bit of a cliffhanger I enjoyed my time in this world and feel mostly satisfied. It especially makes a great palate cleanser after reading something more intense.

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

The second book of the series is a bit better than the first, but only slightly. We get a some new characters but nothing has really changed for our old characters. Every once in a while there's a good line. Enough so to get me to read the third book but not enough to really give a recommendation to others.

[Gary Sundell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had forgotten about the cliffhanger ending of this book. Time to find my paperback copy of the next book or buy the E-book version for my Nook.

[Nathan Dehoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second book in the Ebenezum Trilogy sees the wizard and his apprentice Wuntvor continuing the travel to Vushta to find a cure for Ebenezum’s allergy to magic and stop the demons of the Netherhells from invading the surface world. They meet up with a group of monsters demanding equal treatment, including griffins, hippogriffs, rocs, satyrs, and centaurs, as well as a Bog Wombler. We never quite find out what one of those actually is, but there’s a picture of the cover (it’s the gray thing with one eye), and wombling turns out to be quite powerful. It also introduces Tap the Brownie, an annoyingly cheerful little guy with a desire to prove how formidable his shoe-based magic is. As with the other Gardner books I’ve read, not all of the jokes land, but enough do to make it an amusing light read.

[Kay Iscah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I *finally* managed to find the whole series. This one is pretty on par with my review of the first part. It's a silly story, more inspiring of occasional chuckles than breathless laughter. The main character is a bit of a cad still, but I appreciate that he's making more of an effort to be faithful to one girl, so growth in a way.

There is some humor in this series that I've seen echoed more successfully in later series, so I wonder if it's one of those sources of inspirations that suffers from comparison with later works inspired by it. It is a fun story with some quirky character, so I'm glad to get a chance to read the whole thing.

I'm on 2 of 6 books following Wuntvor. So we'll see how or if he grows on me. I left the date alone from the first time I read book one, but I did reread it right before continuing on to this one.

[Nino · Rating 3 out of 5]

I approached the trilogy because i was told it was kinda like Terry Pratchett books, and after 2 books i must say you don't get the funny diskworld humor; i think Gardner tried to be funny but the result wasn't quite successful . The plot and the characters are silly but are both enjoyable, so is the way Gardner narrate the whole story. it's definitively a series you can read while waiting for the publishing of your favorite author's last book.

[Joshua Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

another solid funny fantasy. Not a deep story but patently absurd and amusing. I enjoyed it.

[Chuck Zeitvogel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Humorous Adventure

Great fun for skylines loves fantasy and humor. I can't wait to read book 3.I also look forward to the author's other series.

[K. Trujillo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A funny fantasy.

[Martin Willoughby · Rating 3 out of 5]

As entertaining as the first.

[Mark Coram]

I liked it.

[Vader · Rating 4 out of 5]

5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

It actually achieved something near impossible - better than the first book!

I picked up some good quotes "Yoouuu dooo nnott eeeatt youuurrr uunnionn brrotherrs!" and "Where's the gold?!?!"

[Lady Entropy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A continuação de Malady Of Magicks, e o que disse para o primeiro, aplica-se ao segundo. Não tem história, é só uma desculpa para escrever piadas, que agora já se tornam aborrecidas.

[Glenn Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just gets better with every book.

[James Oden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its silly story about silly things in very silly situations. It will certainly give you a laugh or two. Some of the humor may be lost on non-fantasy readers.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it was better than the first one! But still, meh.

[David Cozens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wuntvor and Ebenezum's adventures as they travel to Vushta.

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, equally inventive but not as amusing as the first one.

[Andy]

1ST UK PULICATION. 2ND IN EBENEZUM TRILOGY. COVER BY JOSH KIRBY.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

lehce slabší než první díl, ale pořád skvělá sranda. A taťka gryf je skvělý :)

[Dave Peticolas · Rating 3 out of 5]