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The World Fantasy Awards, Volume Two
The is the second volume in a series. This one covers the second and third World Fantasy Conventions and contains all of the winners and many of the runner-up stories.
There is a preface by Stuart Schiff and an introduction by Fritz Leiber. Some of the stories include Stephen King's "Jerusalem's Lot" which would later become the novel "Salem's Lot", Harlan Ellison's "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs", Ray Bradbury's "The October Game" and two by Fritz Leiber: "Smoke Ghost" and "Belsen Express".
There is also work by Manly Wade Wellman, Frank Belknap Long, Dennis Etchison, Karl Edward Wagner and others. Also included is a section of black and white illustrations by Tim Kirk and Stephen Fabian.
There is a preface by Stuart Schiff and an introduction by Fritz Leiber. Some of the stories include Stephen King's "Jerusalem's Lot" which would later become the novel "Salem's Lot", Harlan Ellison's "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs", Ray Bradbury's "The October Game" and two by Fritz Leiber: "Smoke Ghost" and "Belsen Express".
There is also work by Manly Wade Wellman, Frank Belknap Long, Dennis Etchison, Karl Edward Wagner and others. Also included is a section of black and white illustrations by Tim Kirk and Stephen Fabian.
- GenresFantasy
224 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 8, 2021
This anthology is a celebration of the second and third World Fantasy Award presentations. Most of the stories appeared in the mid-1970s, though some appeared earlier and are included to represent collections or lifetime achievement honorees. There are also some nice illustrations from Stephen Fabian and Tim, as well as a nifty Roger Dean cover. The book includes good short stories from Stephen King, Fritz Leiber, Ray Bradbury, Frank Belknap Long, Manly Wade Wellman, Ramsey Campbell, David Drake, etc. My favorites were The Whimper of Whipped Dogs (what a title!) by Harlan Ellison, and Two Suns Setting by Karl Edward Wagner.
April 11, 2026
Funny how most of these are straight horror, granted I think short form mainstream fantasy as a whole died out after pulp sword and sorcery and weird fiction faded so you get what you get.
Some really good stories in here from Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, Dennis Etchison, Ramsey Campbell and Karl Edward Wagner. Two decent stories by Frank Belknap Long and David Drake, and one that was fine but not really my thing by Manly Wade Wellman.
Two surprising duds from Fritz Leiber, Smoke Ghost and Belsen Express have promising atmospheres but both end with total whimpers, and I have never really loved Salem’s Lot so King’s offering didn’t land for me. Didn’t care for Davidson or Kirk’s stories at all.
That said, pulling 5 real winners from an anthology of 13 and only 2 i outright didnt care for is rare with genre anthologies, pretty sure all of the works in this can be found in other collections so this isn’t really a necessary book to own but a really solid used bookstore find at the very least.
Some really good stories in here from Harlan Ellison, Ray Bradbury, Dennis Etchison, Ramsey Campbell and Karl Edward Wagner. Two decent stories by Frank Belknap Long and David Drake, and one that was fine but not really my thing by Manly Wade Wellman.
Two surprising duds from Fritz Leiber, Smoke Ghost and Belsen Express have promising atmospheres but both end with total whimpers, and I have never really loved Salem’s Lot so King’s offering didn’t land for me. Didn’t care for Davidson or Kirk’s stories at all.
That said, pulling 5 real winners from an anthology of 13 and only 2 i outright didnt care for is rare with genre anthologies, pretty sure all of the works in this can be found in other collections so this isn’t really a necessary book to own but a really solid used bookstore find at the very least.
March 5, 2009
A better title would have been WORLD HORROR AWARDS, since only a few items in this book have a real fantasy theme, and all the others seem geared for a horror audience.
I had never heard of most of these stories before, except for Jerusalem's Lot by Stephen King, and The October Game by Ray Bradbury Some surprisingly good ones include: The Ghastly Priest Doth Rein by Manly Wade Wellman, about a man who kills a 'priest of Diana' and then is seemingly required to take his place; The Barrow Troll by David Drake; It Only Comes Out at Night by Dennis Etchinson, which is a more modern, road-trip-gone-wrong story, and Two Suns Setting by Karl Edward Wagner. This last actually is a fantasy story, and deals with giants, men, and a treasure that should have stayed buried.
The star of the show, though is definitely The Companion by Ramsey Campbell, where a man explores an amusement park. I believe that the main character dies at some point in the story, although it's actually difficult to tell since the plot continues smoothly past the point where the poor guy clutches his chest suggestively. There is one thing that I am certain of, and that is that the characters second ride on The Ghost Train is going to be a lot more unpleasant than his first one.
So, not a bad book, in my opinion. If nothing else, you might want to seek out the Ramsey Campbell short story elsewhere.
I had never heard of most of these stories before, except for Jerusalem's Lot by Stephen King, and The October Game by Ray Bradbury Some surprisingly good ones include: The Ghastly Priest Doth Rein by Manly Wade Wellman, about a man who kills a 'priest of Diana' and then is seemingly required to take his place; The Barrow Troll by David Drake; It Only Comes Out at Night by Dennis Etchinson, which is a more modern, road-trip-gone-wrong story, and Two Suns Setting by Karl Edward Wagner. This last actually is a fantasy story, and deals with giants, men, and a treasure that should have stayed buried.
The star of the show, though is definitely The Companion by Ramsey Campbell, where a man explores an amusement park. I believe that the main character dies at some point in the story, although it's actually difficult to tell since the plot continues smoothly past the point where the poor guy clutches his chest suggestively. There is one thing that I am certain of, and that is that the characters second ride on The Ghost Train is going to be a lot more unpleasant than his first one.
So, not a bad book, in my opinion. If nothing else, you might want to seek out the Ramsey Campbell short story elsewhere.
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June 30, 201810/4/09: "The October Game" (1948) by Ray Bradbury
10/4/09: "A Visitor from Egypt" (1930) by Frank Belknap Long
10/6/09: "Smoke Ghost" (1941) by Fritz Leiber
10/7/09: "The Ghastly Priest Doth Reign" (1975) by Manly Wade Wellman
10/10/09: "Terror, Mystery, Wonder" by Fritz Leiber
12/10/12: "There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding" by Russell Kirk
10/4/09: "A Visitor from Egypt" (1930) by Frank Belknap Long
10/6/09: "Smoke Ghost" (1941) by Fritz Leiber
10/7/09: "The Ghastly Priest Doth Reign" (1975) by Manly Wade Wellman
10/10/09: "Terror, Mystery, Wonder" by Fritz Leiber
12/10/12: "There's a Long, Long Trail A-Winding" by Russell Kirk
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews