Robert (Lynn) Asprin was born in 1946. While he wrote some stand alone novels such as The Cold Cash War, Tambu, and The Bug Wars and also the Duncan & Mallory Illustrated stories, Bob is best known for his series fantasy, such as the Myth Adventures of Aahz and Skeeve, the Phule's Company novels, and the Time Scout novels written with Linda Evans. He also edited the groundbreaking Thieves' World anthology series with Lynn Abbey. Other collaborations include License Invoked (set in the French Quarter of New Orleans) and several Myth Adventures novels, all written with Jody Lynn Nye.
Bob's final solo work was a contemporary fantasy series called Dragons, again set in New Orleans.
Bob passed away suddenly on May 22, 2008. He is survived by his daughter and son, his mother and his sister.
This is a really well done adaptation of the Thieves' World milieu, and again Tim Sale's early artwork is something to behold. If you get the chance, check it out. Lynn Abbey's adaption does a great job shifting tone between darker and humorous fare, and the ability to interweave the stories rather than reading them in sequence makes the world feel more alive.
Sale's work isn't to the level that the facial expressions mean anything. This is problematic because the stories at play have no emotionality without good art. Stripped as bare as they are, the stories are just things that happen and there is no reason for anyone to care.
Still, I own six volumes of this and I may as well read them all.