The Maze of the Enchanter
Edited by Scott Connors and Ron Hilger. Introduction by Gahan Wilson. Cover art by Jason Van Hollander.
The Maze of the Enchanter is the fourth volume of the five volume Collected Fantasies series. Editors Scott Connors and Ron Hilger have compared original manuscripts, various typescripts, published editions, and Smith's notes and letters, in order to prepare a definitive set of texts.
This series presents Smith's fiction chronologically, based on composition rather than publication. The editorial decision to present these finely crafted tales chronologically, as opposed to thematically, was made in order to present Smith's fiction as part of a continuum – Smith's style evolved as he grew older, and gained access to the commercial markets. The ebb and flow of his prose over the course of his lifetime can be charted via the five volumes of this series.
The Maze of the Enchanter includes, in chronological order, all of his stories from "The Mandrakes" (February, 1933) to "The Flower-Women" (May, 1935). This volume also features an introduction, and extensive notes on each story.
Contents:
- Introduction by Gahan Wilson
- A Note on the Texts
- The Mandrakes
- The Beast of Averoigne
- A Star-Change
- The Disinterment of Venus
- The White Sybil
- The Ice-Demon
- The Isle of the Torturers
- The Dimension of Chance
- The Dweller in the Gulf
- The Maze of the Enchanter
- The Third Episode of Vathek
- Genius Loci
- The Secret of the Cairn
- The Charnel God
- The Dark Eidolon
- The Voyage of King Euvoran
- Vulthoom
- The Weaver in the Vaults
- The Flower-Women
Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith (1893–1961) was a poet, sculptor, painter and author of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories. It is for these stories, and his literary friendship with H. P. Lovecraft from 1922 until Lovecraft's death in 1937, that he is mostly remembered today. With Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard, also a friend and correspondent, Smith remains one of the most famous contributors to the pulp magazine Weird Tales.
The Collected Fantasies
The Collected Fantasies is also known as The Collected Fantasies of Clark Ashton Smith.
The Collected Fantasies consists of five books. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.