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Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals

Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals

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  • Create Date：2021-04-18 11:57:03
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Tom Holt
  • ISBN：1841490253
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Summary

FLYING DUTCH - It's amazing the problems drinking can get you into。 One little swig from the wrong bottle and you go from being an ordinary Dutch sea-captain to an unhappy immortal， drifting around the world with your similarly immortal crew。 Little does Cornelius Vanderdecker， the Flying Dutchman， suspect that a chance encounter in an English pub might just lead to the end of his cursed life。

FAUST AMONG EQUALS - The management buy-out of Hell wasn't going quite as planned。 For a start， there had been that nasty business with the perjurers， and then came the news that the Most Wanted Man in History had escaped。 But Kurt 'Mad Dog' Lundqvist， the foremost bounty hunter of all time， is on the case， and he can usually be relied on to get his man - even when that man is Lucky George Faustus 。。。Exuberant comedy from Tom Holt at his inventive best。

This omnibus contains two of Tom Holt's best-loved stories。 In Flying Dutch， we learn of the amazing problems drinking can get you into。 One little swig from the wrong bottle， and you go from being an ordinary Dutch sea captain to an unhappy immortal， drifting around the world with your similarly immortal crew， suffering from peculiarly whiffy side effects。 Little does Cornelius Vanderdecker， the Flying Dutchman， suspect that a chance encounter in an English pub might just lead to the end of his cursed life， one way or another。 In Faust Among Equals， the management buy-out of Hell wasn't going quite as planned。 For a start， there had been that nasty business with the perjurers， and then came the news that the Most Wanted Man in History had escaped， and all just as the plans for the new theme park， Eurobosch， were underway。 But Kurt 'Mad Dog' Lundqvist， the foremost bounty hunter of all time， is on the case， and he can usually be relied on to get his man - even when that man is Lucky George Faustus。。。

Exuberant comedy from Tom Holt at his inventive best。

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Reviews

Rpaul Tho ，

Always love a good Tom Holt book and in this case a two for one。 I enjoyed Flying Dutchman much more than Faust Among Equals。 But both had the typical Holt style。

Jim Stennett ，

Three stars is the average of the two stories。 In my humble opinion the first tale “Flying Dutch” is a four while “Faust Among Equals” is a two。 The second tale really drags and feels like Holt just kept adding on to it to reach a required number of pages。 Both tales are humorous but directed at a VERY niche market of readers。 If you don’t get irony and absurdity， don’t try these。 A passing knowledge of the operas will help you out， as well。

Nynke ，

While i thouroughly enjoyed Flying Dutch， i could not get into Faust， which made that， thpugh funny in places， a somewhat tedious read。 More details at individual books' pages。 While i thouroughly enjoyed Flying Dutch， i could not get into Faust， which made that， thpugh funny in places， a somewhat tedious read。 More details at individual books' pages。 。。。more

Carole B ，

Read Flying Dutch a while ago， and just read Faust Among Equals a few days ago。 So good that I went back and read Flying Dutch again for good measure。

J。 Milius ，

An entertaining pair of stories， perhaps a bit too aware of their own cleverness。 Originally published in the 90s， the outdated technology and （what I assume are） British anachronisms don't entirely hold up， but it'll certainly tide you over until you can get your hands on some Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams。 An entertaining pair of stories， perhaps a bit too aware of their own cleverness。 Originally published in the 90s， the outdated technology and （what I assume are） British anachronisms don't entirely hold up， but it'll certainly tide you over until you can get your hands on some Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams。 。。。more

Annie ，

Dead Funny contains two full novels， Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals。 Flying Dutch takes the story of the Flying Dutchman， adds nuclear power， alchemy， insurance， and accounting and creates a delightfully weird book。 Faust Among Equals is， if you can believe it， even weirder。 Basically， Faust escapes from Hell， hooks back up with Helen of Troy， wreaks hilariously warped revenge on his captors。 And it all comes to a close in a themepark in Hell designed by Hieronymous Bosch。。。Read the rest of Dead Funny contains two full novels， Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals。 Flying Dutch takes the story of the Flying Dutchman， adds nuclear power， alchemy， insurance， and accounting and creates a delightfully weird book。 Faust Among Equals is， if you can believe it， even weirder。 Basically， Faust escapes from Hell， hooks back up with Helen of Troy， wreaks hilariously warped revenge on his captors。 And it all comes to a close in a themepark in Hell designed by Hieronymous Bosch。。。Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type。 。。。more

Mark Baines ，

2 books under one cover， both worth a read。The Flying Dutchman is a great twist on an old mystery， has a wry humour and in places is funny。 A good tale， imaginative and well written。Faust among equals is even more wry and probably a better story。If you want original， clever without being smart， inventive， well written humourous then check these books out。 Oh and there is a minor thread in the as well as a quiet aside of social comment！

Jorge Huft ，

Very funny but 。。。 I could only read the first story。 I couldn't face the second one。 It's all very intelligent and witty。 But it doesn't go anywhere。 Let's say it is good old British nonsense， which is fine 。。。 but you need to be in an easy state of mind。 For these reasons I have decided not to rate it。 It's either five stars or none！ I am not in a state of mind to rate this book。 Sorry！ Very funny but 。。。 I could only read the first story。 I couldn't face the second one。 It's all very intelligent and witty。 But it doesn't go anywhere。 Let's say it is good old British nonsense， which is fine 。。。 but you need to be in an easy state of mind。 For these reasons I have decided not to rate it。 It's either five stars or none！ I am not in a state of mind to rate this book。 Sorry！ 。。。more

Georgene ，

A full novel， "The Dutch" and a novella， "Faust Among Equals"。 Both were pretty good。 I enjoyed both of them。 A full novel， "The Dutch" and a novella， "Faust Among Equals"。 Both were pretty good。 I enjoyed both of them。 。。。more

Raye ，

I sometimes love compilations， and this is no exception。 A series of amusing tales from Holt's pen。 I sometimes love compilations， and this is no exception。 A series of amusing tales from Holt's pen。 。。。more

Konain ，

2。5 stars actually。 3 for the first one and 2 for the second。

David ，

I preferred the flying Dutch because the characters are more interesting。 How would you cope with immortality and the stench by product？ A bunch of grumpy sailors forced to spend an eternity together。 I recommend it。

René ，

First book （Dead Funny: Flying Dutch） was really funny and a joy to read， the second （Faust Among Equals） not so good and a struggle to get through。

Jer ，

This rating really should be 3。5 rather than 3， because Dead Funny is made up of two books， one I like quite a bit more than the other。The first is Flying Dutch （4 stars） - the story of the immortal sailors of the Flying Dutchman。 How they accidentally achieved immortality， the real reason they only come to port roughly once a decade， and how they go about trying to fix their condition in the 20th century。 Overall this book was a lot of fun - it's well written， tightly paced， and has quite a lot This rating really should be 3。5 rather than 3， because Dead Funny is made up of two books， one I like quite a bit more than the other。The first is Flying Dutch （4 stars） - the story of the immortal sailors of the Flying Dutchman。 How they accidentally achieved immortality， the real reason they only come to port roughly once a decade， and how they go about trying to fix their condition in the 20th century。 Overall this book was a lot of fun - it's well written， tightly paced， and has quite a lot of humor in it。The second is Faust Among Equals （3 stars）。 George Faust （"Lucky George"） sold his soul to the powers of Hell long ago but escapes captivity in the 20th century when Hell is undergoing a corporate restructuring。 As the Board of Directors of Hell is trying to figure out how to make it profitable， they have to recover Lucky George's soul before the auditors show up and force them to "pay penalties"。 I had problems with this book similar to the ones I had with Ye Gods - the book is full of ideas but the ideas overwhelm the story in a few places。 The book meanders through a lot of episodes and the final episode feels less like a culmination of the events that came before and rather like the author just decided "welp， here's where we end it。" It probably doesn't help that the end of the book is （view spoiler）[literally a Deus ex Machina - God himself shows up and he's the universe's handyman。 He builds a machine that solves George's problem for him （on George's advice） （hide spoiler）]。 So funny， but a bit all over the place and not the first Tom Holt book I would recommend to someone interested in checking him out。 。。。more

Margery ，

Excellent book but mine has a better cover， minimalist， hangman （like the game you play with guessing letters）。 Great reading， Flying Dutch made me laugh most of the time and Faust Among Equals was pretty much the same。 Just laughed and shook my head。

✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ （former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans） ，

Flying Dutch:This book is clever clever clever and extremely funny！ As usual， Tom Holt creates wacky characters and hilarious situations。 Contrary to popular belief， it turns out that Captain Vanderdecker， the Flying Dutchman， did not make a deal with the Devil which left him cast away for centuries。 The truth is indeed very different。 Who would have thought that he and his crew were forced to roam the seas because。。。 of the awful smell caused by their immortally？ Also unveiled in this book is t Flying Dutch:This book is clever clever clever and extremely funny！ As usual， Tom Holt creates wacky characters and hilarious situations。 Contrary to popular belief， it turns out that Captain Vanderdecker， the Flying Dutchman， did not make a deal with the Devil which left him cast away for centuries。 The truth is indeed very different。 Who would have thought that he and his crew were forced to roam the seas because。。。 of the awful smell caused by their immortally？ Also unveiled in this book is the origin of insurance and what the world economy really depends upon in order not to collapse。 Throw in a bored accountant， a few environmental activists， a tv reporter and a nuclear power station and you're in for a crazy ride！Faust Among Equals:Who but Tom Holt could make the following characters interact in one single book: Faust， Helen of Troy， Hamlet， Leonardo Da Vinci， The Flying Dutchman， Martin Luther， Nick Machiavelli， Don Quijote， Hieronymus （Ronnie） Bosch and Chris Columbus。。。 The various cameos by these supporting characters are definitely one of this book's strengths！ Even though the book is pretty funny and holds the usual "Holtian wackines"， I didn't enjoy it quite as much as previous Holt books I read。 Still， the originality and absolute lack of sense are there， that's why I like Tom Holt so much:） And now the question remains: "How much trouble can one get in if he's already condemned to everlasting damnation？" 。。。more

Kriegslok ，

Had this sitting around for a long time and only just got around to reading it。 Dating from the early/mid 90's it draws on what was contemporay so looses a little today especially if you weren't around then to be able to appreciate the references。 While there are some great bits in both books （and I found Flying Dutch the better of the two） they do drag and would have benefitted from some tighter editing。 Having said that I persisted and read them both end to end and don't regret it。 Had this sitting around for a long time and only just got around to reading it。 Dating from the early/mid 90's it draws on what was contemporay so looses a little today especially if you weren't around then to be able to appreciate the references。 While there are some great bits in both books （and I found Flying Dutch the better of the two） they do drag and would have benefitted from some tighter editing。 Having said that I persisted and read them both end to end and don't regret it。 。。。more

Branco ，

Couldn't finish Faust， cause Flying Dutch was too brilliant。 Couldn't finish Faust， cause Flying Dutch was too brilliant。 。。。more

Jesper Lie ，

Learn the truth of the flying Dutchman :P

Henrik Andersson ，

As I've previously mostly only read Holt's newer books， going back to these 1991/1994 stories gives me a pretty clear picture of his evolution as a writer。"Flying Dutch" is very inventive， clever and funny， while mostly keeping to his usual story structure （awkward male meets forward female and end up uncharacteristically saving the world because of his random involvement in something large）。"Faust Among Equals" is clearly the lesser story， obsessing with vaguely amusing descriptions of hell try As I've previously mostly only read Holt's newer books， going back to these 1991/1994 stories gives me a pretty clear picture of his evolution as a writer。"Flying Dutch" is very inventive， clever and funny， while mostly keeping to his usual story structure （awkward male meets forward female and end up uncharacteristically saving the world because of his random involvement in something large）。"Faust Among Equals" is clearly the lesser story， obsessing with vaguely amusing descriptions of hell trying to reinvent itself as a fairground， with very little reason for it at all。 The two main characters， Lucky George and Kurt Lundqvist， move through various situations with very little to connect it all to a whole - I didn't even understand the ending， reading it thrice。 Inventive， yes - but in the same way sowing random pieces of upholstery together doesn't create a very good full image。 Read "Flying Dutch"， pass on "Faust"。 。。。more

Chris Callaway ，

The "Dead Funny" edition has much better cover art。 But what I saw as I thumbed through it was a similarity to Terry Pratchett。 The "Dead Funny" edition has much better cover art。 But what I saw as I thumbed through it was a similarity to Terry Pratchett。 。。。more

Kevin ，

I wasn't really a fan of this book。 It is a collection of two comedies published in the UK in the late 80's， erly 90's。 This is， I think the core of my dissatisfaction with the text。 He is clearly drawing on elements of UK life and culture， like class issues， that are much less prevelent on this side of the Atlantic。 An issue that bugged me in particular is that all of the minor characters sound exactly the same， like a slightly thick working class man circa 1985。Anyway， I didn't like it but you I wasn't really a fan of this book。 It is a collection of two comedies published in the UK in the late 80's， erly 90's。 This is， I think the core of my dissatisfaction with the text。 He is clearly drawing on elements of UK life and culture， like class issues， that are much less prevelent on this side of the Atlantic。 An issue that bugged me in particular is that all of the minor characters sound exactly the same， like a slightly thick working class man circa 1985。Anyway， I didn't like it but your milage may vary depending on your cultural background。 。。。more

Bjørn ，

Both books are definitely readable with a good style of narrative， which probably is best compared to Pratchett， Adams and Gaiman， but only reaching the quality at some passages。Both books would have received a star more if I didn't thought the endings have a rushed feeling to them， where the style of the stories change style to something more serious / less humoristic。 Pratchett is able to manage that in some of his books （not always with great success）， but the stories in the Dutchman and Faus Both books are definitely readable with a good style of narrative， which probably is best compared to Pratchett， Adams and Gaiman， but only reaching the quality at some passages。Both books would have received a star more if I didn't thought the endings have a rushed feeling to them， where the style of the stories change style to something more serious / less humoristic。 Pratchett is able to manage that in some of his books （not always with great success）， but the stories in the Dutchman and Faust can't maintain their momentum when the humour is toned down。 。。。more

Meghan H。 ，

Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals are both fantastic and each has it's high points。 I definitely recommend them both equally！ Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals are both fantastic and each has it's high points。 I definitely recommend them both equally！ 。。。more

Lyric Agent ，

Flying Dutch took me a little to get into the voice but it was a great introduction for me to this amazingly talented author。 Faust Among Us， though， that I was hooked into from the first page。 I laughed myself silly while reading this one （and often， on the train， with other passengers looking at me rather oddly） Really， how do you argue with Faust escaping from the new Corporate Hell featuring a theme park by one H。 Bosche （or "Ronnie" to his friends）。 Flying Dutch took me a little to get into the voice but it was a great introduction for me to this amazingly talented author。 Faust Among Us， though， that I was hooked into from the first page。 I laughed myself silly while reading this one （and often， on the train， with other passengers looking at me rather oddly） Really， how do you argue with Faust escaping from the new Corporate Hell featuring a theme park by one H。 Bosche （or "Ronnie" to his friends）。 。。。more

Ryan ，

The Flying Dutchman was the better story。 In true Holt style it kept me looking for more。 Faust on the other hand， was a little lacking。 I'm happy to move onto something else。 The Flying Dutchman I'll read again at some stage。 ;o） The Flying Dutchman was the better story。 In true Holt style it kept me looking for more。 Faust on the other hand， was a little lacking。 I'm happy to move onto something else。 The Flying Dutchman I'll read again at some stage。 ;o） 。。。more

Steve Coughlan ，

Technically， it wasn't this edition。。。 it was the "Dead Funny" edition。。。 same content， different cover。 I call this the Terry Pratchett school of British humor， but I never know if it's called something else， and Pratchett is just the author I know best in the genre。 You know the type。。。 improbably premise （the Flying Dutchman tries to solve his problem， which oddly enough isn't immortality， but a side-effect of the cause of his immortality; Hell wants George Faust back， please）， modern day set Technically， it wasn't this edition。。。 it was the "Dead Funny" edition。。。 same content， different cover。 I call this the Terry Pratchett school of British humor， but I never know if it's called something else， and Pratchett is just the author I know best in the genre。 You know the type。。。 improbably premise （the Flying Dutchman tries to solve his problem， which oddly enough isn't immortality， but a side-effect of the cause of his immortality; Hell wants George Faust back， please）， modern day setting， even more improbable supporting cast （more so with Faust's classmates from his University days than with the Dutchman）， and an infinite supply of wry observations about modern life as the plot unfolds。In this case， one would have been enough。。。 two in quick succession get old。 Perhaps if I had the wit and control to read one， put it aside for a year or two， then remember how good the first one was and then take up the second。。。 oops， 20-20 hindsight。 Your mileage may vary。 。。。more

Catherine Hirst ，

Most of these two books was pretty mediocre。 But it really did like a passage near the end of Faust Amoung Equals about time and I will be keeping the book just for that passage I enjoyed it so much

Christine ，

funny， but I imagine he can do better

Taylor ，

Flying Dutch: Finally， a book with a female lead with no sense of smell。。。something I can identify with。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0