The way of the wizard

Anthologist extraordinaire Adams (Federations) once again strikes gold with 33 original and reprinted tales of wizardry in a wide variety of settings, from the medieval (Mike Resnick's "Winter Solstice") to the modern (Jeremiah Tolbert's "One-Click Banishment"). George R.R. Martin effortlessly creates a convincing mythic world in "In the Lost Lands," wherein a knight tries to discourage his lady's interest in shape-shifting. Resnick's contribution movingly depicts Merlin suffering dementia-like effects from living backwards in time. A peasant endures numerous trials at the hands of a wizard king in Susanna Clarke's humorous "John Uskglass and the Cambrian Charcoal Burner," while Wendy N. Wagner's "The Secret of Calling Rabbits" is a melancholy and deeply affecting account of the last days of the last dwarf. Adams just keeps getting better and this anthology is no exception. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.