The Wiz Biz II: Cursed & Consulted [Hardcover]

Rick Cook (Author)

Book Description

Series: Wiz Biz | Publication Date: October 30, 2001

Key Selling Points- This series has enjoyed extremely high sellthroughs and strong reorders and is a cult favorite in computer circles.- In addition to fantasy fans and computer buffs, and anyone who enjoys a fast-moving humorous adventure, Wiz Biz II will attract science fiction readers who normally don't go for fantasy.- Rick Cook is a free-lance technical writer with over 200 articles on computers and related topics under his belt. He is a frequent contributor (both fiction and non-fiction) to Analog magazine, and is a consultant to several computer information services.- In addition to the highly popular Wiz series, he also wrote the comic fantasy adventure Mall Purchase Night for Baen.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It's a neat, clever, funny idea. . . . Light, unpretentious fun!" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 608 pages
• Publisher: Baen; 1St Edition edition (October 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671318594
• ISBN-13: 978-0671318598
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #852,781 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating breath of fresh air, November 4, 2003

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Wiz Biz II : Cursed and Consulted (Mass Market Paperback)

This wonderful book is actually two books for the price of one: The Wizardry Cursed and The Wizardry Consulted! These novels tell the continuing story of Walter Irving "Wiz" Zumwalt, a computer programmer and magician extraordinaire. Hijacked from Earth to a world where magic works and technology doesn't, Wiz realized that magic could be worked liked programming, and turned the world upside down. First, Wiz must control how the "new" magic is used, so as to avoid a war between humans and the powerful beings that have run the world up to this point. But, this proves to not be the hardest job facing Wiz, when a couple of malicious hackers from Earth make their own journey to the other side.

This is a great book, one that I have enjoyed reading several times. The system of magic that Rick Cook used was a fascinating breath of fresh air, and I must say that I enjoyed the stories and characters immensely! I highly recommend this light-hearted swords-and-sorcery fantasy to you.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as the first!, July 8, 2005

By 

Anitra Smith (Worcester, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Wiz Biz II : Cursed and Consulted (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a great sequel to first "Wiz Biz" volume. Now that we've met William Irving "Wiz" Zumwalt and learned about his World and his magic compiler, the fun really begins!

In the first half, "The Wizardry Cursed", an interesting set of circumstances brings two computer criminals to the cusp of the World where magic works. They are trying to take over both Wiz's World and our own, and it will take all the magic of the Council, the inventiveness of the programmers, and a lot of luck to stop them.

In the second half, "The Wizardry Consulted", Wiz is thrown out of his element once again, this time to a small town with a bit of a dragon problem. He needs to dust off all his knowledge of how consultants work, in order to keep the city council busy so he can get his job done. In this book, the usual programmer quotes that begin many chapters have been replaced by quotes from the "consultant's handbook", telling how to B.S. and get away with it.

Although there are plenty of bad puns, and the jokes may be a bit too technical for most people, overall this book is a great read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fun read, March 12, 2007

By 

A. Ver Steeg-Anderson (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wiz Biz II: Cursed & Consulted (Hardcover)

Not perhaps as good as The Wiz Biz I but it still makes a good companion book. Light, fun, fairly clever read that pokes fun at computer programers and does not settle for the obvious.