The first Thraxas novel won the World Fantasy Award. So far there are eight books in the series.

Thraxas is a private investigator in the city of Turai. He has some sorcerous powers but mainly he just drinks a lot of beer. Consequently he's always broke and has to live in the poor part of the city. Thraxas is overweight, bad tempered, and a keen gambler at the chariot races. He doesn't make for a pretty sight, which is why the picture on the left is of his friend Makri. (Original artwork by Julian Gibson, adapted for my website by Simon Fraser.) Makri is a budding intellectual who divides her time between her studies and hacking up opponents.