Fafhrd And The Gray Mouser

Leiber helped to pioneer the sword-and-sorcery genre and is widely hailed as one of the most influential fantasy writers ever. Unfortunately, he's never received the credit he deserves for such an influential work. Many people have heard of Conan, but of the Gray Mouser, no. The trappings of fantasy are present in the Gray Mouser stories, -- there are evil wizards, magicians, and barbarians -- but it’s all done in such a way that it’s not “the same old thing.” What’s really refreshing about this series is the strong characterization of the two heroes, who, at the start of the novel are more anti-hero than actually hero.  Leiber does a good job exploring the meaning of relationships as the tale progresses - complicated stuff for a “mere sword and sorcery” tale. True to the classic Sword and Sorcery form, the backdrop, world-building, and mythology of Leiber's world are thin; the focus is on the adventures of the two heroes and not so much the world which they live in. These are small novels (less than 300 pages), but there’s a lot of substance to them and no matter what type of fantasy you enjoy, there’s something for everybody in these great stories.