Baldemar is a street kid who grows up to become a thaumaturge’s henchman in Jack Vance’s world of the Dying Earth, a job in which he tangles with relics of the Demiurge that created the universe, his master’s rival wizards and the pettiness of his own thaumaturge as well. Fortunately he has good friends and teachers in Vunt and, later, Oldo, as well as the gratitude of demons and multi-planar magical beings, not to mention being granted a surfeit of luck - and he will need all of those attributes to survive…. “Baldemar” is essentially a gathering together of all the Baldemar stories previously published in F&SF, where Mr. Hughes’ work has long been very welcome, plus one story not previously published. I read and enjoyed all the earlier stories, as Baldemar is a thoroughly engaging character, and I’m very pleased to have them all collected in one place, at last! For those who love what might be termed gritty high fantasy, this collection (and Mr. Hughes’ Raffalon stories set in the same Dying Earth) is great fun; recommended! ( )