COOK, Glen (Charles)

(1944-)

   US writer who began his sf career with orthodox stories like his first, "Song from a Forgotten Hill", in Clarion (anth 1971), and with the sf novel The Heirs of Babylon (1972), in which an authoritarian religious government takes over after the HOLOCAUST. However, he soon became best known for his high FANTASY, especially the Dread Empire series, which was notable for its concerted military set-pieces, moderately complex plotting, violence, and a sense of undue haste - he has been exceedingly prolific. The series includes: A Shadow of All Night Falling (1979); October's Baby (1980); All Darkness Met (1980); "Soldier of an Empire Unacquainted with Defeat" (1980); a 2-vol subsequence made up of The Fire in his Hands (1984) and With Mercy Toward None (1985); Reap the East Wind (1987); An Ill Fate Marshalling; (1988). A further, similar series, the Chronicles of the Black Company, perhaps stands out; the first 3 vols - The Black Company (1984), Shadows Linger (1984) and The White Rose (1985) - were assembled as Annals of the Black Company (omni 1986), and were followed by a second sequence, the Book of the South, comprising Shadow Games (1989) and Dreams of Steel (1990); The Silver Spike (1989) is set in the same world. A series of humorous fantasies, starring a Chandleresque private eye named Garrett, provides a somewhat relentless light relief, with titles derivative of John D. MACDONALD: Sweet Silver Blues (1987), Bitter Gold Hearts (1988), Cold Copper Tears (1988) - all three assembled as The Garrett Files (omni 1988) - Old Tin Sorrows (1989), Dread Brass Shadows (1990), Red Iron Nights (1991) and Deadly Quicksilver Lies (1994). Of his singletons, A Matter of Time (1985), a TIME-TRAVEL tale starring detective figures, and The Tower of Fear (1989), a strongly plotted fantasy, are the most notable. GC is a writer of considerable energy but little patience.

   JC

   Other works: The Swap Academy (1970) as by Greg Stevens, GC's first novel, a non-genre erotica title; The Swordbearer (1982); the Starfishers sequence, comprising Shadowline (1982), Starfishers (1982) and Stars' End (1982), which is related to Passage at Arms (1985); the Darkwar trilogy: Doomstalker (1985), Warlock (1985) and Ceremony (1986); The Dragon Never Sleeps (1988), a SPACE OPERA; Sung in Blood (1990), a fantasy.

   About the author: A Glen Cook Bibliography (1983 chap) by Cook and Roger C. SCHLOBIN.