I broke down and ordered a new Jack Vance collection today. Well, there are no new stories, but its possible they’ve gone through the Vance Integral Edition process and emerged somewhat different from the stories in my Underwood-Miller collections. The book does contain a preface by Vance, which by itself might be worth the $38, though I am sure Vance will be terse as usual. Years ago I collected all the editions of the Underwood-Miller books, over forty hardcovers, many limited and signed. Many of these I bought well below retail cost, other at collectors prices. They are, perhaps, my most treasured tangible possessions. In all I own 54 U-M books (combined and under separate imprints). That makes me a qualified Vance fanatic, I suppose. When the Vance Integral Edition was announced, I signed up as a volunteer and as a customer, but I backed out of both due to time constraints, and also a strange loyalty to the U-M books. I can’t say I was happy when the VIE combined some books within the same cover. And, yes, the steep price deterred me from completing the purchase. That act qualifies my fanaticism. There are handful of Vance books I don’t have in hard cover, and at this point I doubt that will change, unless some other publisher comes out with dust cover editions of those five or so books. But, if you’re a stranger to the fiction of Vance, this collection from Subterranean Press will open your world to perhaps the greatest craftsman of science fiction and fantasy of the 20th century. Jack Vance truly is nonpareil.