The Mammoth Book of Comic Fantasy II

by Mike Ashley

Brand-new stories and comic classics fill the 500-plus pages of the sequel to the popular Mammoth Book of Comic Fantasy . Bungee-jumping demons, mad Magi, seafaring aliens, and a tricky wizard who leaks to the press populate this new collection of magic and mayhem from fantasy's funniest, wackiest writers, among them Harlan Ellison, Ambrose Bierce, Neil Gaiman, Craig Shaw Gardner, Harry Harrison, Tom Holt, and many more. Here are the madcap fantasies of "The Case of the Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds," "A Slow Day in Hell," "The Case of Jack the Clipper," "The Shoemaker and the Elvis," and other tales to delight, amuse, and, confuse fantasy fans.

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Humor, Anthologies, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Science Fiction

494 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Michael Raymond Donald Ashley is the author and editor of over sixty books that in total have sold over a million copies worldwide. He lives in Chatham, Kent.

Reviews

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Neander-Tale - 4/5 stars
Uncle Harry Passes - 5/5 stars
Dealing with Demons - 3/5 stars
The Case of Jack the Chipper - 4/5 stars
The Shoemaker and the Elvis - 4/5 stars
Dances with Elves - 4/5 stars
A Hedge Against Alchemy - 3.5/5 stars
A Slow Day in Hell - 4/5 stars
How I got Three Zip Codes - 2/5 stars
The Failure of Hope and Wandel - 1.5/5 stars
The Birthday Gift - 4.5/5 stars
Captain Honario Harplayer, R.N - 3/5 stars
The Aliens who knew, I mean, Everything - 5/5 stars
History Book - 4/5 stars
Elyah P. Jopp and the Dragon - 5/5 stars
The Dragon Doctor's Apprentice - 5/5 stars
Rules of Engagement - 5/5 stars
The Triumph of Vice - 4/5 stars
The Top 50 Things I'd do if I ever became an Evil Overlord - 6/5 stars
How to be fantastic - 5/5 stars
Hershey's Kisses - 5/5 stars
Escape from the Planet of the Bears - 4/5 stars
Quest - 3.5/5 stars
The Hills beyond Hollywood High - 4/5 stars
The Affliction of Baron Humpfelhimmel - 4/5 stars
The Case of the Four and Twenty Blackbirds - 5/5 stars
The Man who Hated Cadillacs - 5/5 stars
The Ultimate - 2/5 stars
The Star of the Farmyard - 3.5/5 stars
Diamonds, Black and White - 5/5 stars
Malocchio - 4.5/5 stars
The Metrognome - 4.5/5 stars
The Eye of Tandyla - 2.5/5 stars
The Outpost covered by Tourists - 4.5/5 stars

[Libby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this cheap at Halfprice Books - at full price I would have been disappointed but on sale this was a fun way to get copies of a few really good stories I would not have otherwise come across -

These made this compilation worthwhile -

Uncle Henry Passes by Esther Friesner

The Aliens Who Knew, I Mean, Everything by George Alec Effinger (5 stars to this story!)

The Case of Four and Twenty Blackbirds by Neil Gaiman

The Man Who Hated Cadillacs by E.K. Grant

The rest ranged from very poor to chuckle worthy. If you see this volume for $5 or less its worth picking up to add to your short story collection.

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comeuppances, unexpected plot twists, weird magical gifts, beleaguered magicians and spells gone awry are among some of the themes of these stories that look at the funny side of fantasy. There’s a lot to pick and choose here, from modern writers like Neil Gaiman to obscure ones like John Kendrick Bangs (he who wrote the oft-published “The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall”) and a plethora of other authors. Long-time science fiction fans may be surprised to find that their favorite writers had their amusing side while others will be eager to explore works they thought long out of print.

I admit that most of these stories garner chuckles rather than howls but that makes them no less appealing. From mysteries set among Mother Goose characters to helpful advice if you find yourself locked up in a dungeon (check to see if you’re a barbarian hero or a frail damsel in distress first) and threatened by Alan Rickman (!), you’re bound to find something that will tickle your funnybone.

[Carly Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

So there were 34 stories in this collection... and I only found myself laughing out loud on 2 of them. Some of the rest were mildly amusing and all were well written, but there were at least two that I couldn't even fathom what they were supposed to be about, much less did I find them funny. So I don't see myself keeping this book to reread just for the 2 stories I enjoyed out of all the rest. And those 2: The Top 50 Things I'd Do If I Ever Became an Evil Overlord by Peter Anspach and How to be Fantastic by Elizabeth Counihan aren't really stories - the first one is a hilarious list and the second one is what to do in case you wake up in a story.

[Shawn Dvorak · Rating 3 out of 5]

This compilation includes short stories from the usual suspects in comic fantasy: Neil Gaiman, Harry Harrison, Ambrose Bierce, and Alan Dean Foster, but there are also several stories from authors I didn't expect. Who knew William Schenk Sullivan (yes, Sullivan of Gilbert & Sullivan fame) wrote quite a lot of comic fantasy prose in between comic operas? I enjoyed all 35 stories in this collection, and many of them induced me to seek out other works by the authors.

[Karen Cohn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like many anthologies, the quality of the stories in this volume varies widely. While some stories rose to the 4 level, and one or two rose to a five, overall, I was simply not overly impressed with this volume.

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book more than the previous volume, as the selections were funnier.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some stories are good, but only some.

[Wreade1872 · Rating 3 out of 5]

see https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jasmiina F · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,3/5.
This is a collection of fantasy and science fiction stories. My favorite stories were A Slow Day in Hell (Julia S. Mandala), The Aliens Who Knew Everything (George Alec Effinger) and History Book (John Grant). Most of the stories were good, but there were some that I just didn’t like that much.

I think there were only two stories I didn’t like at all, The Ultimate from Seamus Cullen and Quest from Sue Anderson.

The only authors I was already familiar with were Neil Gaiman and Tom Holt. Four and Twenty Blackbirds isn’t one of Gaiman’s best stories, but I’d still be interested in reading a full crime novel from him. I didn’t like Tom Holt’s story but I don’t actually like his writing style much. The only book I’ve read from him was disappointing.

[Ondřej Puczok · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sbírka to není vyloženě špatná, ale obsahuje až příliš mnoho slabých kousků na to, aby převládl čistě pozitivní dojem. Já sám mám radši spíše sci-fi odvětví a dobré nápady, takže mě potěšil "metrognóm", "mimozemšťané, co všechno věděli" nebo "konvertor cadillaců". Množství šlechty, mečů a kouzel ale nevyvážila ani ona humornost v názvu. Té bylo totiž bohužel méně, než jsem čekal. A rozhodně ne mamutí dávka.

PS: Dívám se po přečtení na anglické recenze a očividně jde o trochu jiné vydání, než samotný originál. Bohužel tak v české verzi chybí Gaiman nebo Friesner, dobře hodnocení v originálním vydání. Zvláštní.

[Aleksandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Po pierwszym tomie Opowieści o Czarodziejach z radością zabrałam się za czytanie następnego zbioru opowiadań. Muszę przyznać, że trochę się zawiodłam, większość opowiadań była przeciętna jak nie po prostu słaba. Zdarzyły się "perełki", które owładnęły mną całkowicie, ale to nadal zbyt mało. Poprzedni tom o wiele lepszy.

[David Melbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was into to this type of story this particular month. This stuff is funny! After reading Pratchett, I was on this kick. . .

[Quirkyreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is cock a block of very funny stories.

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much better than the other one. Gaiman does a good job here.

[Russ Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun and funny read. I really enjoyed this book. It had been a while since I got into the world of Fantasy, and I was sure glad I found this book.