Rick Cook

Rick Cook seems to enjoy the concept of alternate dimensions where magic and mythical creatures such as elves are real. That's okay, so do I.

To get the most out of his Wiz Zumwalt series, it helps to have a decent understanding of computer languages and programming. I found out about the series from my brother, who majored in computer science. I have only had a couple of programming classes, but I still got a huge kick out of them. The first two are out or print, but The Wiz Biz is a combined reprint of those two books . They're worth it if you enjoy computers and magic. One key to gaining the maximum enjoyment from this series: start at the beginning.

As for Mall Purchase Night, I loved it, too. The book was light hearted on the whole, but there was a darker side. It's about a security guard at a mall. The mall seems to be haunted or something.

Books I've Read by Rick

Wiz Zumwalt

1. The Wiz Biz (formerly Wizard's Bane and The Wizardry Compiled, which are both out of print)
   It all began when the wizards of the White League were under attack by their opponents of the Black League and one of their most powerful members cast a spell to bring forth a mighty wizard to aid their cause. What the spell delivers master hacker Walter "Wiz" Zumwalt. With the wizard who cast the spell dead, nobody can figure out what the shanghaied computer nerd is good for--because spells are not like computer programs. (from an Amazon.com review)
2. The Wizardry Cursed
   "I HAVE A WHAT ON MY SIX?" Once upon a time, Major Mick Gilligan, USAF, didn't believe in Magic. Nor, had he been told of it, would he have believed in the elf Lisella, or cared that she had cursed master programmer Wiz Zumwalt, late of Cupertino and now of an alternate world where magic works like a computer program. But that was before he took his F-15 out over the Bering Sea on a top-priority intercept, came out on the losing end of a dogfight with a dragon, and found himself caught in a climactic battle that pitted Wiz and his fellow Silicon Valley hackers against a couple of computer criminals in alliance with the forces of primal chaos. Before he was done, Major Mick Gilligan would join with an unlikely gang of programmers, wizards, elves, dragon cavalry, gremlins, demons and a stolen Russian super-computer in a desperate effort to save both the world of magic and his own. (from the back of the book)
3. The Wizardry Consulted
   After rescuing the world from the creatures of darkness and chaos by applying a few computer logistics, Programmer and Systems Analyst Extraordinaire Wiz Zumwalt finds himself in another fix when he is kidnapped by dragons. (from an Amazon.com review)
4. The Wizardry Quested
   Preparing to protect a twenty-foot dragon from the wrath of his own wife, Wiz joins forces with his eccentric companions in an adventure filled with Soviet ex-spies, a band of dwarves, zombie dragon riders, and a fluffy pink mechanical rabbit. (from an Amazon.com review)