Munn, H. Warner(1903–1981)
Harold Warner Munn began writing fantasy and
horror stories in 1925 with “The Werewolf of
Ponkert,” still one of his best-known works, later
published in book form in 1958 along with a se-
quel, “The Werewolf’s Daughter” (1928), ostensi-
bly as a novel. The story is told from the point of
view of a 15th-century shape-changer and is still
considered one of the best werewolf stories. Addi-
tional stories followed, appearing in book form
much later as In the Tomb of the Bishop(1979) and
The Master Goes Home(1979), but none of these
matched the quality of the first two.
Munn’s first true novel was King of the World’s
Edge,published in magazine form in 1939 but not as
a book until 1967. Refugees from the fall of Camelot
travel to the west across the ocean and eventually
encounter the Aztecs, but in a world where magic
actually works. Following the much-belated book
publication, Munn revealed the existence of an un-
published sequel, The Ship from Atlantis(1967), a
very effective story about a ship that ventures into
the Sargasso Sea and encounters others stranded
there, including one that set sail from legendary At-
lantis. The two novels were later published together
as Merlin’s Godson(1976). Late in his career Munn
wrote a third in the series, longer than the previous
two combined. Merlin’s Ring(1980) mixes Arthurian
and Atlantean legends and chronicles their sup-
posed influence throughout human history.
The Lost Legion(1980) is another historical
fantasy but less successfully done. He also wrote
several short stories late in his career, both horror
and fantasy, including some noteworthy ones in-
cluding “The Black Captain” (1975) and “The
Well” (1976). Munn was inactive for many years
and left behind only a comparatively small body of
work, but it was of sufficiently high quality to en-
sure his lasting reputation.
Myth Series Robert Lynn Asprin(1978– )
Humorous fantasy enjoyed only a brief period of
broad popularity in the United States during the
1980s, but after the early 1990s it became obvious
that there was room only for Terry PRATCHETT,
Piers ANTHONY, and occasional isolated novels by
other writers. American readers were more inter-
ested in large-scale, sweeping epics involving wars,
dark sorcery, and court intrigues. Robert Lynn As-
prin had started his Myth series in 1978 with An-
other Fine Myth,but it looked as though the series
might stop when the 10th volume appeared in- After a lapse of several years, Asprin re-
sumed the series in 2001, adding three more vol-
umes so far, and the earlier titles have been
reprinted as well.
The two major characters in the series, which is
set in a farcical alternate world, are Skeeve and
Aahz. Skeeve is initially a wizard-in-training whose
spells have unforeseeable results, much to the dis-
may of Aahz, his master, who also happens to be a
demon. Their initial adventure is very episodic, pit-
ting them against dragons, an angry mob, and a
demon hunter, but they persevere after a series of
pun-riddled, slapstick adventures. The second title,
Myth Conceptions(1980), is more unified. Skeeve
accepts a job as court magician, unfortunately in a
small kingdom that is about to be invaded. Myth Di-
rections(1982) spoofs traditional quest stories. Hit or
Myth(1983) is less original, reprising the story from
the second book, although Skeeve’s comic matrimo-
nial escapades are particularly amusing.
Aahz disappears in the last book, so Skeeve
goes on an interdimensional search to find him in
Myth-ing Persons(1985), unwisely crosses a group
of professional gamblers in Little Myth Marker
(1985), and deals with a vampire in M.Y.T.H. Inc.
Link(1986). The next several titles, Myth-Nomers
and Im-Pervections(1987), M.Y.T.H.Inc in Action
(1990), and Sweet Myth-Tery of Life(1994), often
feel forced and formulaic, and the jokes are consid-
erably less original.
Asprin revived the series with Myth-Ion Improb-
able(2001), one of the better titles in the series, and
continued it with Something M.Y.T.H. Inc(2003),
which includes some biting satire about governments
and how they function. The most recent addition is
Myth Alliances(2003), written in collaboration with
Jody Lynn Nye. Asprin has written occasional fan-
tasy outside this series as well, of which the best is E
Godz(2003), written with Esther FRIESNER.
Myth Series 251