CHRONICLES OF AMBER PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

Roger Zelazny | 800 pages | 03 Apr 2008 | Orion Publishing Co | 9780575082694 | English | London, United Kingdom The Chronicles of Amber Series by Roger Zelazny

The Chronicles of Amber is a series of science fiction and fantasy novels written by Roger Zelazny. The series is divided into two arcs each of which constitutes five books. Amber and Chaos are magical places whose forces are in such opposition that the tension created in between them eventually gave birth to the shadow worlds of which contemporary earth is one. Members of the Royal Family of Amber have the power to walk through the shadow worlds. And as they traverse this plane, they can create new realities or alter pre-existing ones by adding and subtracting the shadows. Corwin has no ideas who he is when readers meet him, his amnesia emanating from the coma he suffered. When his memories begin to flood back, Corwin learns that he is a prince, a member of the royal family that rules the one true world. Corwin must get re-acquainted with this new paranormal existence. This involves re-discovering his family and learning to walk the infinite parallel worlds. The journey he undertakes is long and arduous and Corwin suffers many physical, mental, and emotional losses. Fortunately for the hero, he is made of stronger stuff than most. His regenerative abilities prove quite useful as he fights enemies from both Amber and Chaos. Corwin also finds that he can rely on a select few allies that include his brothers Bleys and Brand. Blood is shed and family ties are broken for the sake of the power that can be gained by those who emerge as King of Amber. The Corwin books are normally believed to be of superior quality to the Merlin novels which constitute the next five stories of the second arc of the Chronicles of Amber series. The Corwin cycle is reminiscent of Highlander because it has nigh immortal protagonists and antagonists at the center of its conflict. There are also elements of the hardboiled detective genre, probably because Roger Zelazny wrote the Corwin Cycle in the s and s, an era where the hardboiled detective was all the rage. At the start of the Merlin Cycle, Merlin has been studying computer science on earth. Merlin proceeds to create a sentient computer. His only intention is to locate his father. He does not foresee the disaster that will manifest as a result of his actions. The Merlin Cycle calls back a few well- known characters from the Corwin Cycle as well as their descendants. Shelve Knight of Shadows. Book Prince of Chaos by Roger Zelazny. Shelve Prince of Chaos. No ISBN for this first edition. Here, together for … More. The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. Amber is the one real world, casting infinite refl… More. Shelve The Chronicles of Amber. Alternate cover edition can be found here Roger Z… More. Shelve The Great Book of Amber. Hronike Ambera. Tom 2 by Roger Zelazny. Shelve Hronike Ambera. Tom 2. Amber Omnibus 2 by Roger Zelazny. Amber is een magisch koninkrijk, geregeerd door ee… More. Shelve Amber Omnibus 2. Hronike Ambera 2 by Roger Zelazny. Shelve Hronike Ambera 2. In all the universe, Amber is the only true world. Shelve The Second Chronicles of Amber. The Road to Amber by Roger Zelazny. Shelve The Road to Amber. Manna from Heaven by Roger Zelazny. This new collection includes all five previously u… More. The Prologue has Merlin bleeding and experiencing odd sensory inputs. Later we learn that walking the Logrus can leave one mentally unstable for a while afterwards, but this "usually" passes. The Logrus is also described as containing the skeletal remains of those who tried to walk it, but failed. In the Amber universe, the word "trump" is used as both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it properly refers to a specialized type of hand-drawn tarot card depicting a person or a place. As a verb, it refers to using such a card for teleportation. The original tarot decks used by Amberites had some or all of their major arcana cards replaced or possibly augmented with images of the royal family, and of at least one location, Castle Amber. These original decks were created by Dworkin, and a deck was given to each family member after they first walked the Pattern. Physically, these cards are cool to the touch. The decks may be used like normal tarots for divination, as Corwin does shortly after meeting one of his brothers. The Trumps have the magical attribute of facilitating a psychic link to the person or place depicted on the card, enabling instant communication, travel, and even attack. If the card depicts a location, the user is able to teleport to that location. If the card depicts a person, the user concentrates on the image and attempts to reach out to the person to initiate contact. The recipient of a Trump contact does not need to have a card in their possession. An attempted contact may be blocked or declined by the receiving party, by an act of concentration. A variety of other circumstances can also impede or prevent Trump contact from being made, including distance and time-flow differences across Shadows, as well as unconsciousness, amnesia, and magical characteristics of a particular location. If contact through a Trump is successful, both parties are able to talk to each other, and even see some of each other's surroundings. Either party may end a Trump communication, either by passing their hand over the card, or by an effort of will. During the contact, each person has the option of reaching through the link to make physical contact, generally for the purpose of pulling the other person voluntarily to their own physical location. This is sometimes called "trumping" a person to the other location. In some cases, one can also travel via Trump to the other person's location without the other's consent or assistance, as long as the contact remains open e. A Trump contact also creates a potential opening for an attack by either party on the other, either with a weapon, or by using the link in an attempt to dominate the other by sheer force of ego and will. This can result in immobilization or worse for the victim of the attack. To an observer who witnesses a person trumping to another location, the person becomes two-dimensional before disappearing, and there is a prismatic aftereffect. In Trumps of Doom , Merlin also mentions sensing a kind of electrical charge as Jasra trumps into a room where he waits. Further details about the nature of Trumps were revealed as the tale progressed; for example, Trumps are not limited to playing cards, but can be drawn on any surface. Corwin escaped from his dungeon cell after Dworkin materialized in it, by persuading Dworkin, who was mentally unbalanced at the time, to draw him a picture of the lighthouse at Cabra, a location on the edge of Amber. After Dworkin draws another picture to return to his hideout, Corwin uses the lighthouse picture to escape. In The Hand of Oberon Corwin returns to his cell and uses the other picture to follow Dworkin to his lair, finding that it is in located near the Primal Pattern that created Amber and all its Shadows. Dworkin taught several of his descendants to create Trumps, and other initiates of the Pattern or Logrus can be trained in that skill. If one looks "closely enough" at a Trump, one can see parts of the Pattern or Logrus within its design, which may provide a source of power. Anyone may use a Trump — the user does not need to be an Amberite, a Pattern initiate, or of royal blood. Provided the artist is sufficiently familiar with the subject, a Trump can be drawn for any person or place desired, unless the place is in constant motion and change such as portions of Chaos. Under certain circumstances and extreme conditions, the technique for creating a Trump can be used to make contact without drawing on any surface at all. Indeed, Corwin's brother Brand is described as becoming a "Living Trump", who can move through Shadow by will alone. A large red gem in a pendant, this is initially thought to be one of Oberon's tools that can be used to control the weather in Amber. In The Guns of Avalon , Eric uses it to summon storms against the dark forces attacking Amber, but is mortally injured. After Corwin's forces annihilate the attackers, Eric reveals that he became attuned to the Jewel by walking the Pattern in Amber and then projecting himself into its core. Corwin does this, and discovers other effects, such as a sapping of his energies and a tendency for time to slow down. The Jewel saves his life when he is stabbed in Amber, projecting him back to his old home on Earth where he lived as Carl Corey. Dworkin finally reveals that the Jewel contains within it the original Pattern from which he created Amber. Corwin, fearing that Amber has been destroyed in The Courts of Chaos , repeats this process in Shadow to create his own Pattern, using its power to project him to the Courts where he witnesses the final battle against Chaos and Brand, who took the Jewel while he was incapacitated after creating his Pattern. Apparently lost during the battle when Brand falls into the abyss, the Jewel is returned by the Unicorn and given to Random, making him the new King in Amber. In the fictional Amber multiverse a spikard is a type of magical object with hyperdimensional "lines of power" which connect it to sorcerous power caches in various universes. In the Amber novels and short stories two shapes of spikards are explicitly cited: rings and swords. Benedict's metal arm is never explicitly listed as a spikard, but it does share with Corwin's spikard sword Grayswandir the rare magical ability to bypass an existential barrier of intangibility. Corwin's sword, Grayswandir , contains a part of the Pattern like the Trumps. The sword appears first in The Guns of Avalon , in which Corwin, having escaped from his imprisonment, draws it from the trunk of a tree, noting that while it was previously in Amber, it was now with him, suggesting that it can be manifested wherever he needs it. Grayswandir has power against dark forces such as those besieging Lorraine in The Guns of Avalon. In the Merlin cycle, it is revealed that Grayswandir has a counterpart in Werewindle , formerly Brand's sword. Like Grayswandir, Werewindle also bears a portion of the Pattern upon its blade. In The Salesman's Tale it is revealed that the golden-colored spikard sword Werewindle possesses sentient intelligence. Corwin's brother Benedict is introduced in The Guns of Avalon as having lost his right arm in battle with the same dark forces menacing all of Shadow. The ghost is wearing a remarkable prosthetic metal arm that can reach through unreality and attack him, even as Grayswandir can reach Benedict's ghost. Corwin strikes the arm from the ghost and returns to Amber with it. Later it is given to Benedict by Random, who performs the surgery to attach it. In the next novel this proves invaluable as the arm can overcome Brand's magic, allowing Benedict to strangle him despite being paralyzed, forcing Brand to vanish leaving the Jewel of Judgement behind. In The Courts of Chaos the arm is returned whence it came in a ghostly re-enactment of Corwin's fight with Benedict's ghost, occurring in the halls of Amber itself. These events are suspected to be caused by Oberon himself. Similarities appear in the theme and in specific instances: some character names are common to both works, and they share the fantasy literary device of moving a present day, realistic character from the familiar world into a fantastical, alternate reality world, exposing the character to this shift as the reader experiences it. I returned to it time and time, reading it over and over again, drawn by its colorful, semi-mythic characters and strong action As for their specific influences—particularly on my Amber series—I never thought about it until Jane Lindskold started digging around and began pointing things out to me. Given Zelazny's academic interest in the Medieval European period, it is not a stretch to see a possible influence in Henry Adams ' work Mont Saint-Michel and Chartres , wherein he discusses the building of Chartres Cathedral, and the tidal-islet of Mont Saint-Michel , on the Normandy coast of France. However, these possible influences are not supported by Zelazny's own commentary about the origins of the Pattern. He indicated that he loosely based the Pattern in part on the Tree of Life or Sephiroth of Kaballah , and preferred to allow the reader to imagine what the actual Pattern looked like. Zelazny cited Jessie L. Weston's book From Ritual to Romance as a key influence: it examined the pagan and Christian roots of the legends of King Arthur, the Wasteland myths, and the Holy Grail. For example, the Celtic Wasteland myth ties the barrenness of a land to a curse that a hero must lift; Corwin's curse is in part responsible for the Black Road. Philosophical texts have influenced the series as well: many similarities exist between Amber and Plato's Republic see the Allegory of the cave and the classical problems of metaphysics , virtuality, solipsism , logic , possible worlds , probability , doubles and essences are also repeatedly reflected on. Sometimes the references made by Zelazny could be considered foreshadowing. For example, the name Ganelon was taken from the Matter of France , a body of classic French legends and literature that includes the Song of Roland. Throughout the Matter of France, Ganelon was often called "Ganelon the Traitor"; thus, for readers familiar with the original Ganelon, Zelazny's use of the name foreshadowed events in The Hand of Oberon where Ganelon purposefully loses a battle to spite Corwin. In the Song of Roland , Ganelon was also the stepfather of the protagonist Roland , which Zelazny may have used to foreshadow the relationship between Corwin and Ganelon at the conclusion of The Hand of Oberon. Throughout the Chronicles, Zelazny alludes extensively to plays by William Shakespeare. It is not stated in the series whether the characters who are usually well-read are merely paraphrasing the bard for their own amusement, or if Shakespeare himself was telling stories that are reflections of Amber's history and future. It is implied that both variants are true simultaneously. The allusions include:. In July , Skybound Entertainment announced that it was developing The Chronicles of Amber as a television project, with Walking Dead creator and producer Robert Kirkman as an executive producer. Getting to produce this project is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. In August , Kirkman and Skybound announced an agreement with Amazon to develop television projects to debut exclusively on Prime Video , without identifying any specific project as part of the deal. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Main article: Nine Princes in Amber. Main article: The Guns of Avalon. Main article: Sign of the Unicorn. Main article: The Hand of Oberon. Main article: The Courts of Chaos. Main article: Trumps of Doom. Main article: Blood of Amber. Main article: Sign of Chaos. Main article: Knight of Shadows. Main article: Prince of Chaos. Main article: List of characters in the Chronicles of Amber. New Worlds 2 ed. Infinity Plus. Archived from the original on December 15, Worlds Without End. Retrieved September 27, Boylston Buys Preiss Assets". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on October 14, Archived from the original on June 14, The death of ibooks' publisher has really hurt the company. Sorry for the bad news! Archived from the original on September 27, We had a pleasant meeting. But when I called his office and left a message for him, he never got back to me. And the paperback hasn't made its scheduled appearance, nor is it listed as forthcoming on Amazon. So — nothing happening. My assumption that the project is dead continues. December 15, Alberquerque Business First. Archived from the original on November 6, Roger Zelazny Page. Archived from the original on May 9, Retrieved April 2, List of The Chronicles of Amber characters - Wikipedia

In alliance with his brother Bleys , he attempts to conquer Amber, which is ruled by his elder brother Eric , who took power after the disappearance of their father, Oberon. Their attempt fails. Bleys falls from the side of the Kolvir mountain and Corwin is captured, blinded and imprisoned. Thanks to his genetic regenerative ability, his eyes regrow and he regains his vision. Dworkin Barimen , the mad sorcerer who created the Pattern, enters Corwin's prison through the walls of Corwin's prison cell, and eventually draws on the wall the door through which Corwin escapes. Corwin has escaped the dungeons of Amber, where he was imprisoned by his hated brother Eric, who had seized the throne of Amber. All of Corwin's siblings believe that guns cannot function in Amber, as gunpowder is inert there. But Corwin has secret knowledge: in the shadow world of Avalon, where he once ruled, there exists a jeweler's rouge that will function in Amber as gunpowder should. Corwin plans to raise a legion of shadow soldiers, and arm them with automatic rifles from the shadow world Earth. While gathering these forces Corwin discovers a more sinister problem growing among the shadows. He meets Dara, a woman claiming to be his great-grandniece, and later discovers a threat to Amber: a black road which runs across universes from the Courts of Chaos to Amber. With his newly trained army, Corwin marches on Castle Amber only to find it already under siege. The immediate danger passes, but Dara threatens greater peril after walking the Pattern and revealing herself to be a creature of the Courts of Chaos, intent on destroying both Amber and the Shadows. Eric is dead, and Corwin now rules Amber as Regent. But someone has murdered their brother Caine and framed Corwin. This leads to questions about other missing members of the royal family. Corwin's brother, Random, tells of his attempts to rescue their brother, Brand, and Corwin decides to find out what happened to the latter. After many intrafamily exchanges, Brand is rescued but is stabbed by one of the family in the attempt. In the midst of the ensuing intrigue, an assassination attempt is made on Corwin and he finds himself incapacitated on Earth. Before returning to Amber he hides the Jewel of Judgment on Earth. After Brand recovers, he tells Corwin of several incidents leading up to his capture. Corwin finds the Primal Pattern damaged, with a dark stain obscuring parts of it. On further investigation it is found that the blood of one of the members of his family has created the stain. Corwin descends back to the dungeons and meets with Dworkin, who explains how the Pattern might be repaired. After being chased from the Pattern, Corwin eventually discovers that Brand is responsible for the damage and that he now has the Jewel of Judgment. Corwin must now prevent Brand from attuning himself to the jewel, or Brand's plot to destroy the Pattern will succeed. Corwin and his family band together to prevent this, eventually recover the jewel, and discover that their father Oberon, the true King of Amber, still lives. Roger Zelazny makes a brief cameo appearance in the book as a guard in a dungeon, smoking a pipe and working on a novel which may or may not be The Chronicles of Amber itself. Oberon, having resumed the throne, organizes an assault on the Courts of Chaos. Oberon plans to repair the Primal Pattern at the cost of his life, and offers the throne to Corwin with Dara as his Queen. Corwin refuses and is tasked to bring the Jewel of Judgment across the shadows to the battle that will ensue after the Pattern is redrawn. He sets off along the black road and is soon pursued by Brand and a great storm. Through the storm and across the multiverse he comes to doubt his father's success. As he approaches the Courts of Chaos he is assailed by fantastic beings who try to dissuade him, and he finally decides that his father must have failed. Corwin then creates a new Pattern and uses it to get to the Courts, but has not the strength to prevent Brand stealing the Jewel from him in the process. In a final confrontation with Brand, the Jewel of Judgment is stolen and lost. Brand is killed - by Caine, revealed to have faked his own death earlier by murdering a "shadow" version of himself and leaving the body to be found: shot through heart and throat, Brand falls off a precipice into the Abyss, taking Deirdre with him in the process. The Jewel is recovered by the unicorn who bestows it on Random, who is then accepted as the new King. The Trumps and multiverse are restored and Corwin relates the story of the first five novels to his son Merlin. The next five novels focus on Merlin , Corwin's son. These stories are held by some fans to be less of a fantasy classic than the first five due to the difference in writing style, direction and setting. The series is a coming of age for Merlin with his heritage as a Prince of Chaos and Amber. Merlin has been studying computer science on Earth while constructing a secret project called Ghostwheel, a sentient computer based on the Trumps, which Merlin hopes will be able to locate Corwin, who vanished after visiting the Courts of Chaos in the previous novel. Merlin discovers the body of his ex-girlfriend Julia, apparently killed by beasts from another shadow, and subsequently finds himself in sorcerous combat with a lady named Jasra, who has a poisonous sting in her bite. More unnerving is that his best friend Luke apparently knows about both Ghostwheel and Merlin's connection to Amber. He eventually returns to Amber, which is in mourning: the news has just come that Caine has been murdered, and Bleys injured, by a mystery assassin with a rifle — an assassin who demonstrates with a thrown bomb at Caine's funeral, which misses any other family members that he has access to something with explosive properties in Amber which had previously been thought impossible. After the funeral, King Random orders Merlin to shut down Ghostwheel, but the artifact shows it is capable of self-defense, even against its creator, who is saved by the unexpected appearance of Luke — who thus proves, with the ability to traverse Shadow, that he too is no ordinary human. He soon finds that Luke is in fact Rinaldo, son of Brand of Amber, and has been responsible for yearly attempts on his life, on the anniversary of Luke's discovery of Brand's death. Luke imprisons Merlin in a cave of blue crystal which negates his magic abilities and from which he cannot escape. Merlin escapes from the blue crystal cave, meets and confronts Jasra, nearly taking her prisoner, but is forced to retreat when she calls in reinforcements using the Trumps. Further mystery ensues back on Earth when several people who apparently knew a lot more about Merlin than they should, turn out to have no memory of previous meetings. Merlin traces his way back to his first confrontation with Jasra, where he finds himself at a magical fort, the Keep of the Four Worlds, a nexus of magical energies which has recently fallen under the control of a mysterious blue-masked sorcerer calling himself "Mask", who seems to have a vendetta against Merlin. Merlin returns to Amber, ventures out into Amber City, escapes an assassination attempt, and is saved by Caine's mistress, Vinta Bayle — who, also, appears to know more than she ought about him. Merlin then finds himself having to rescue Luke from Dalt, the two having apparently come to blows. Luke reveals that Jasra has indeed lost power and is now a prisoner — and has the cheek to ask for Merlin's help. Luke ends up in the crystal cave himself — and Merlin, after yet another uncanny encounter with a shape- shifting werewolf which escapes, minus an ear and with severe burns and that appears to be backed by Mask. Merlin decides to gain leverage over Luke by "rescuing" Jasra without Luke's help, and then taking Jasra as a prisoner in Amber. He confronts Mask, escapes with the now-petrified Jasra, and returns to Amber, where an unusual Trump summoning imprisons him in the Mad Hatter's tea party from Wonderland. Merlin realises that Wonderland, where he and Luke are trapped, is an LSD -induced hallucination made real by Luke's powers over shadow. It is Luke who has dropped the acid — he, too, having been taken prisoner in an independent attempt to rescue Jasra, and having apparently been given it as an experiment. He is ambushed by a creature from Chaos, a Fire Angel, but defeats it with the help of a Jabberwock and a vorpal sword. He leaves Luke to sober up and seeks his stepbrother Mandor, who thinks that their half-brother Jurt may be at least one of the assassins trying to kill Merlin — right now, most likely, for headship of the House of Sawall once its current lord dies, since Mandor the eldest son has stepped aside, leaving that office to be disputed between Merlin and Jurt who was indeed the werewolf from earlier. They meet up with Fiona and discover that the Logrus is making an attempt to damage Corwin's Pattern. But Merlin refuses to help Mandor and Fiona learn more, and returns to Amber, only to be embroiled in diplomatic controversy: in order to avoid Luke's possible accession to the throne of the Shadow kingdom Kashfa, Random is playing politics to put his own candidate on the throne, and the neighbouring kingdom of Begma objects to that particular candidate's territorial ambitions. The Begman duke's elder daughter Coral and Luke's old friend Dalt the Mercenary are both revealed to be bastard Amberites, sired by Oberon out of wedlock: Coral walks the Pattern and disappears completely, apparently held prisoner by it. Dalt challenges Amber with an armed force, demanding Luke be surrendered to him as prisoner, but Luke has sworn off his vendetta and is under Queen Vialle's protection. Negotiations result in an arranged fistfight between Dalt and Luke, which Dalt wins and captures Luke. Coral's younger sister Nayda is revealed to be possessed by the mysterious body-possessing "t'yiga" demon which had previously been Vinta Bayle and, for a short while, several other people on Earth, in "Trumps of Doom" : but since the real Nayda actually died of a long-standing heart condition just as the t'yiga possessed her possession is normally harmless , it is now trapped in her form permanently. Merlin calls in Mandor to imprison the t'yiga, which turns out a to have been sent with orders to act as a bodyguard to Merlin, by an unknown sponsor, and b reveals that Jurt is in league with Mask, and is trying to gain power from the Keep of the Four Worlds in the same way that Brand did, and become a Living Trump. Mask is wounded by Merlin, but then it is revealed that "he" is in fact Merlin's ex-girlfriend Julia, whom he had thought dead. Jasra is left in charge of the Keep of the Four Worlds, where she had ruled before — as Julia's teacher, before Julia decided to outwit her and take over. She turns out to be exactly the right person to leave in charge there, as she does not wish for the power of the Fount of the Four Worlds herself, but is quite happy to prevent others using it, since gaining its power destroyed the last of Brand's humanity, and she appears to have genuinely loved him, and lost him to his power-lust. Merlin tries to use Trump magic to locate Coral — with the help of Mandor, Jasra and even his own creation Ghostwheel, with whom he is back on good terms — but is ambushed by various ghostly constructs of people that have walked the Pattern and Logrus, and even by Corwin's most recent Pattern-ghost from his own Pattern, not the Pattern of Amber , and finds himself drawn into a struggle between the Logrus , the fundamental power of chaos, and the Pattern, the fundamental power of order. It is revealed that the Pattern, and its chaotic counterpart the Logrus, are sentient, and wish Merlin to choose a side to tip the balance of the multiverse towards one or the other — with other Pattern- and Logrus-ghosts also taking part in the "trial" to influence him one way or the other. They try to make him choose between them using ghosts of family members who have traversed their two paths. He attempts to walk the route of neutrality to avoid choosing sides, but ends up being tricked into taking sides twice — firstly by having a Chaos dagger planted on him as he sleeps before attempting to take the middle path in a three-way choice between the extremes of Order and Chaos this is rather appropriate: he would rather aid neither side, but his chosen method is usually the magic of Chaos , and secondly he is coerced into aiding the Pattern to strengthen its position in Shadows, while rescuing Coral from her imprisonment. During the trial he somehow obtains possession of the Jewel of Judgement: the attempt to return it to Castle Amber provokes a confrontation between the Pattern and Logrus themselves, causing a mighty explosion in which Mandor suffers a broken arm and Coral loses an eye. The ty'iga demon in Nayda's body escapes and tries to return the Jewel to the Logrus, but is captured by Ghostwheel — which, after removing both Nayda and the Jewel, passes its own synthetic "consciousness" through the Jewel, thus traversing the Pattern. Coral's damaged eye is operated on by Dworkin, who replaces it with the Jewel of Judgement. Merlin investigates Brand's old quarters, and finds his old sword Werewindle, and a mysterious and powerful "spikard" ring, which he keeps. Random sends him to the kingdom of Kashfa as the Amberite representative at a coronation Since he has a fairly legitimate claim on the throne himself, is on better terms with his neighbours Begma, who objected to Duke Arkans , and has given up his vendetta on Amber, Random is letting things stand. Further complications ensue when it turns out that Coral — now Merlin's lover — is actually Luke's long-forgotten wife following a diplomatic arranged marriage in childhood although Luke seems willing enough to have it annulled in the future. Merlin goes to present Luke with Werewindle as a memento of his father, but they are ambushed by Jurt again. Jurt is defeated but steals Werewindle as he flees. Merlin returns to his birthplace in the Courts of Chaos in order to solve the existential riddle in which he is involved — to find that he is suddenly a lot closer to the throne of Chaos itself than he thought, King Swayvill having finally died of a long-standing illness aggravated, it is said, by the death curse of Eric of Amber , and many other candidates having either been assassinated or dropped out, which pushes his own house of Sawall unexpectedly to the forefront. Of course, besides there being two other candidates from rival houses, this pushes Jurt very close to the succession too. In a conversation with his mother Dara — mistress of Corwin once, and a descendant of Benedict, also from the royal house of Chaos — he finds that she was the one who sent the ty'iga demon which is now Coral's sister Nayda and appears to be developing something of an affection for Luke. Merlin realizes he is but a pawn in the hands of the powerful and cynical superpowers that rule the universe, that neither the Pattern nor the Logrus or their manifestations as Unicorn and Serpent care much about their "minions", and that someone or something wants him to rule Chaos — and that others will try to manipulate him when he is. Merlin — and a Pattern-ghost of Luke — are both adopted by Corwin's Pattern which has previously rejected Fiona , at the instance of a Pattern- ghost of Corwin himself, as it appears that his own Pattern is also sentient and resisting incursions from both the Logrus and Amber's Pattern — and taking a hand in the conflict between the two. It becomes apparent that the real Corwin is held prisoner by Dara herself — ironically, in a chapel devoted to Corwin chapels devoted to Amberites having apparently become a popular cult in Chaos after the Patternfall War: Jurt worshipped Brand, House Hendrake idolised Benedict, and Mandor's patron was Fiona. Jurt, frightened by the power politics, declares truce on Merlin, and calls off his own vendetta — suggesting that Dara and Mandor intend, themselves, to manipulate Merlin when becomes King, after first putting him on the throne. The assassination of the two remaining candidates throws things into confusion: Coral is kidnapped by agents of Chaos who want her because the Jewel of Judgement is her eye , and pursued by Merlin and Jurt, who call on the assistance of Luke, Dalt and Nayda: they find themselves having to fight agents of the Pattern as well as the Logrus to rescue her, and finally confront the Pattern itself and threaten to damage it by spilling their Amberite blood on it, if it does not back off from their conflict the four others are sent safely away while Luke remains: contact is lost just after he says "Shit, I spilled it! Merlin rescues his father, Corwin, and hides him in Jurt's quarters, and also discovers that the Spikard Ring he found in Brand's quarters was a trap, meant to bring him under Mandor and Dara's influence — except the plan was anticipated by Bleys who was thought to be in hiding, recovering from his injury four books ago , who replaced it with another identical spikard which Dara and Mandor did not control previously held by an estranged Amberite, a son of Oberon called Delwin. In the Courts of Chaos, Merlin uses Ghostwheel which has by now traversed the Logrus as well as the Pattern , his own Spikard, and all his magical powers in the final fight for survival: finally declaring — and forcing Dara and Mandor to accept — that although he did not want to rule, if forced to do so, it will not be as anyone's puppet. Thus both the Pattern and Logrus are forestalled for a time, in their attempts to escalate their conflict: while Corwin begins the journey back to Amber, Merlin — who wants peace with Amber — returns to Chaos to await his coronation. For the limited edition of Trumps of Doom , Zelazny wrote a prologue that details Merlin's passage through the Logrus. After completing the Merlin Cycle, Zelazny wrote five Amber short stories, in which he began to tease the threads of the story into a new configuration. Zelazny died shortly after completing the last of these short stories, which were collected in Manna from Heaven , along with the Trumps of Doom prologue and 16 non-Amber stories. A separate and unfinished sixth short story, "A Secret of Amber," was an informal collaboration, co-written in alternating sections by Zelazny and Ed Greenwood over a period of years. Although several orders for these stories have been proposed by fans, Zelazny himself commented that the correct order for the stories is the order in which they were written: [5] [6]. The latter five stories told a linked tale from several viewpoints. Zelazny had planned to write more, and to eventually publish a collection of Amber short stories. Several years after Zelazny's death, his estate authorized a new series of Amber novels, and John Gregory Betancourt was selected as the writer. Betancourt's Dawn of Amber series, which took its name from the title of the first volume, is a prequel to Zelazny's work, taking place centuries or millennia before Nine Princes in Amber. It is told from the point of view of Corwin's father Oberon, and like Zelazny's novels, the series was narrated in first person. Four novels, out of five that had been planned, were published by iBooks :. After ending the fourth book on a cliffhanger, Betancourt never wrote the planned and scheduled fifth volume, Sword of Chaos. The death of iBooks' owner Byron Preiss was followed by the publishing company's filing for bankruptcy , [7] and Betancourt announced in February that the series had been canceled. Betancourt stated that one of his primary motivations for agreeing to write the new books was to keep Zelazny's books and stories alive and in print, and to prevent them from fading into obscurity. He cited Robert E. Howard 's Conan , Edgar Rice Burroughs 's Tarzan , and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 's Sherlock Holmes as examples of how later authors had successfully continued and extended the stories of iconic characters long after their creators had died. The decision by Zelazny's literary executor to authorize a continuation of the Amber series was criticized by several acquaintances of Zelazny, including writers George R. They asserted that Zelazny had been quite averse to the idea of a "shared" Amber setting, and that he had clearly stated he did not want any others writing Amber stories. Well, I remember Roger talking to me and Steve Brust. Amber, the one real world, wherein all others, inc… More. Want to Read. Shelving menu. Shelve Nine Princes in Amber. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Rate it:. Book 2. The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny. Across the worlds of Shadow, Corwin, prince of blo… More. Shelve The Guns of Avalon. Book 3. Sign of the Unicorn by Roger Zelazny. He who rules Amber rules the one true world. He wh… More. Shelve Sign of the Unicorn. Book 4. The Hand of Oberon by Roger Zelazny. Across the mysterious Black Road, demons swarm int… More. Shelve The Hand of Oberon. Book 5. The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny. Amber, the one real world of which all others — in… More. Shelve The Courts of Chaos. Book 6. Trumps of Doom by Roger Zelazny. Shelve Trumps of Doom. He is the creator of the Primal Pattern and father of Oberon. The names of Florimel's and Random's mothers are not given in the novels; the names here are taken from the Visual Guide to Amber and the Complete Amber Sourcebook. The Visual Guide adds a younger daughter of Paulette, Mirelle , but she does not appear in any of the novels. Both statements could be true if Caine is, in fact, older than any of Clarissa's children, and the result of an illegitimate affair with Rilga but legally adopted into the line before Clarissa's children, just as Llewella was born illegitimate but legally adopted. Although Oberon did not actually marry Rilga till after finally divorcing Clarissa after the birth of Brand. The Visual Guide to Amber and the Complete Amber Sourcebook , though both are authorised works, contradict each other. It is also mentioned that, although Llewella definitely and possibly Caine, as mentioned above was legally adopted into the family after being born illegitimate, this did not happen to Eric, because Oberon needed to remain on good terms with Cymnea's family, and Eric was perpetually bitter about this. In Nine Princes in Amber Corwin mentions his fondness for Random as related to being full brothers instead of half-brothers. However, he is still suffering from brain damage at the time. The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny

I didn't really see the ending coming until it was too late. Zelazny really knows how to craft a tale. Sign of the Unicorn: Another of Corwin's family is murdered, Brand is rescued, and more of what actually happened to Corwin prior to the first book is revealed. The Amber books probably wouldn't work as well if Zelazny hadn't written them in the first person. The way they are, we learn things as Corwin does. The machinations of Corwin's family are the driving force of the story and we get to watch as Corwin peels away lair after lair. The Hand of Oberon: I'm officially past the point where I can give a synopsis and not give away too many plot points. Suffice to say, Zelazny is quite a story teller and I'm approaching the final novel in this volume with a sense of anticipation I haven't felt since the last volume of The Dark Tower wound up in my mailbox years ago. The Courts of Chaos: Who stabbed Corwin in the dark? Will Amber be destroyed by the forces of Chaos? Can the Pattern be repaired? Who will sit on the throne of Amber? All of these questions and more are answered in this, the final book of The First Chronicles of Amber. Zelazny took the aspects of Farmer's World of Tiers he liked the most, namely the immortal family endlessly conspiring against one another and the amnesiac hero, and ran with it. Amber isn't so much a fantasy story as a huge multi-layered mystery. I thought I knew how it would end but I was wrong. I'm officially ranking Amber up there with Moorcock's Elric series the first six or so and Stephen King's Dark Tower as my favorite fantasy stories of all time. View all 25 comments. I recently tried to read this book because it gets recommended all the time on the internet as a classic of the fantasy genre. I can't express my disappointment. It was dreadful, complete dross. It baffled me that this book gets praised so highly to the extent that I keep going back to read reviews to try to find out how people could possibly like this. For reference, I stopped at page after reading the first book. I wanted to like it so badly. The book actually begins well. The premise is co I recently tried to read this book because it gets recommended all the time on the internet as a classic of the fantasy genre. The premise is compelling. But once the opening is established and the protagonist goes on his quest, what's his motivation?? It's so stupid. He does it just because. No more explanation needed. The author seems to have a childish conception of what royalty means. As soon as the protagonist finds out he's royalty he immediately becomes dismissive of lesser beings and begins addressing others with the Queen's English. It's like the author felt that to be taken seriously Corwin has to be a condescending ass, completely dismissive of the lives of others. Secondly the tone and writing. I haven't come across such weak writing in years. The narrator sounds like a New Yorker who's gone back in time to medieval England. In one line the protagonist sounds like your average American, then two lines later you get "How fare you, brother? One character tells another that he has amazing "chutzpah". Corwin asks his brother how it's possible that Eric knows about their attack. His brother responds, "What do you think? Is he a cretin? Lord how I cringed when reading these. Here's a sample: "I tried a head-cut, which he parried; and I parried his riposte to my heart and cut at his wrist. He parried this and kicked a small stool between us. I set it aside, hopefully in the direction of his face, with my right toe, but it missed and he had at me again. I parried his attack, and he mine. Then I lunged, was parried, was attacked, and parried again myself I nicked him and the blood flowed. Every fight ever is apparently made up of nothing more than a series of parries and ripostes. What's more, the author seems outright lazy. He'll take you on a multi-page scene and then suddenly wrap it up with something like "let's be brief". My second year was pretty much like my first, with the same finale. Ditto for the third. But there was no one to surrender to, no one asking for a surrender. Eric couldn't even hear me if I cried out. He was out of the way, directing. So we fought on, and I was down to a hundred men. Let's be brief. They killed everyone but me. At me they threw nets and unleashed blunted arrows. The tone utterly changes from "I'd probably have surrendered" to "at me they threw nets". So what have I missed? How is this series so highly rated? View all 16 comments. Sep 22, Mike the Paladin rated it it was amazing Shelves: fantasy , epic-fantasy , favorites. I was actually introduced to this series in , but didn't track the rest down for a couple of years. I love these books and have read them over and over, so These are wonderful reads and have a personality all their own. This is a fantasy not to be missed. The first series is superior, but they are both good reads. Should I give any details? Can I without spoilers? These are great. The world building multi-verse building? That's saying something as it's one of the more "sweeping" creations in fantasy. The characters in this series are complete, true to themselves, and detailed without a lot of wordy description getting in the way of the story. I'd say that the books the story is plot driven, but I don't want to mislead. It in many ways is both character and plot driven. Very well done, at least in the first series. While the second series is the weaker of the two it to is enjoyable and worth reading. These are highly recommended and if you're a fantasy fan who hasn't discovered them I think you have something to look forward to. Feb 14, David Dalglish rated it it was amazing. I know people who say they like to read books because it takes them places. When you think of, say, Lord of the Rings, there's many awesome battles, but people also remember the sights themselves, from the quaint peaceful realms of Hobbiton, to the great city of Minas Tirith, to Sauron's tower rising out from a blackened land. Of course, it takes a lot of time to travel between them and plenty of people are fond of complaining about it, too. In Amber, characters travel between these majestic lo I know people who say they like to read books because it takes them places. In Amber, characters travel between these majestic locations like you and I might walk from one street block to the next. Zelazny is willing to show you -anything- he can dream up, and his imagination alone is worthy of deeming this collection a classic. Almost as important is his reach. He's not telling a story of a kingdom surviving the attack of an enemy. Oh no. That isn't big enough. Imagine a million alternate worlds, and then run a black road through them all, spreading destruction as it grows to encompass every world, every city, every creature imaginable. In the center of all these alternate worlds is Amber, sort of like the pillar holding everything together. Should it fall, so does all else. Tolkien wanted to show the battle for one single Middle Earth. Zelazny wants to show a war to save billions. The main narrator is Corwin yes, it is first person, but don't worry, the writing is a masterful combination of beauty and down-to-earth jokes and grumblings. He wakes up in a hospital, with no memory of who he is, what happened, but my isn't it peculiar how his broken legs are healed so quickly? From there he encounters his family person by person. They backstab, deal, threaten, switch sides a hundred times, and all can walk through shadows to whatever realm they wish. I loved every second of it. The series starts to bog down around the third book. The climactic fights, which sometimes feel like a boy grabbed various action figures and started slamming them together go, go, wolfman army, shoot down those pterodactyls! Oh no, knights in armor, fire fire fire! There is a LOT of talking, and while it is usually spaced out well, near the middle there is so much, trying to establish who is friends with who, what happened to what, etc. By the end of the book, I loved the narrator, adored the city of Amber, felt like I personally knew the various princes and princesses of the city, and sorely wished I had more. I checked the next five books, and was sad to see the narrator was not the same. Oh well. Farewell, Corwin. You gave me one heck of a ride. View 1 comment. Apr 16, Simon rated it it was amazing Shelves: fantasy-masterworks , fantasy. This edition collects what was originally a series of five books into a single volume. Looking at the other reviews of this book, I am surprised at how many people have reviewed each book separately. That really is a pointless exercise; in my opinion these books should be read as a whole or not at all. They do not stand alone and there is no point in reading any of them individually or out-of-order. It is one continuous story arc. I have also noticed that many reviewers have included details of th This edition collects what was originally a series of five books into a single volume. I have also noticed that many reviewers have included details of the actual story which I try to avoid at the best of times and this is one instance in which it is really much better if you know nothing about what it is about or going to happen. This is not one of those books in which you need to read several chapters before beginning to become engrossed. There is no period of scene setting in which the characters are established. The action and excitement begin right away and you as the reader are as in the dark as the protagonist is who begins by awakening in hospital with no memory of who he is or how he got there. You are drawn into the story as you discover things about the protagonist and his world through his eyes as he rediscovers them and gets his memory back. This is an excellent way to introduce the reader to the complexity of this fantastic world and the intrigue that might otherwise threaten to overwhelm if a more conventional introduction technique were employed. I normally like to break up a series by reading other books in between even when they are collected in a single volume but I found I just couldn't in this case. I was gripped and had to read on to the finish. An absolute classic that every fantasy reader should find time for. View all 6 comments. Review of Nine Princes in Amber This is a tough book to summarize. Corey wakes up with amnesia after a nasty car crash and sets out to recover his memory and then to take back what he sees as his. Starting this was a leap of faith. Once I got going with the story and started getting tantalizing pieces about the story behind the story, I was hooked. Even after finishing, I have some questions, but I know that this series has to be worth the ride. He has a unique voice and some of his descriptions were incredibly original. There was at least one time when a few sentences were repeated for no reason. It got really distracting. I might bump my rating up later. The Guns of Avalon I don't have too much more to add except that the typos were better in this section and I'm hugely surprised that one story arc wrapped up as quickly as it did. I'm glad we got to see a few more members of the family. I really didn't see the big twist coming. It's still three stars and I'll still keep on reading. View 2 comments. I put that away before the last two books. I don't understand how such a boring, dull, sluggish, extremely protracted novel could get such positive reviews!?!? The whole story could have been shrinked into pages but no, the whole Chronicles is like pages of boredom told in first person perspective which "per se" is boring! The characters are dull, there is no developement, and none of them became likeable. Hundreds of pages are about Corwin is thinking about something, well basically abo I put that away before the last two books. Hundreds of pages are about Corwin is thinking about something, well basically about nothing that matters! It's true, his thoughts doesn't even move the plot forward a bit, these pages would have been left out from the book. The world of Amber could have been nice and interesting but Zelazny instead of elaborating it and make the reader to be interested in it just wrote extremely boring and repetitive junk about shifting the shapes in Shadows, and aimless empty dialogues between Corwin and his siblings. Okay, many of the readers pointed out that it was written in the seventies, therefore this book is a bit slow and strange for a first time reader. Chronicles of Amber is a nice example of overrated US fantasy literature. It's a big book of nothing! A boring soap opera set in a fantasy universe. I'm terribly sorry but I'm very dissapointed. I tried to love this book but I couldn't. It was the worst fantasy novel I've ever read. If you want to read fantasy about "multiversums" stick to Moorcock's Corum and forget about Zelazny's Corwin. It is more than the sum of its parts. That description really fits with the first Amber Chronicles. Each book, on its own, was to me a four-star. They were all very enjoyable and addicting but they don't really stand on their own. But by the time you put all five together, you have one hell of a great story that deserves no less than 5 stars. I've heard great things about the Amber series for years, and I finally broke down and tried them. I sure am glad that I did. I can see that this will be It is more than the sum of its parts. I can see that this will be a series that I will need to read again someday, as its multiple layers will show things through a re-read that might have been overlooked the first time through. The other thing I can say for sure is that I will be looking to read the Second Chronicles soon. All roads lead to Amber I don't know. Aug 11, Alexandra Son rated it it was amazing. Let me just start by saying that I cannot remember how many times I have re-read these books. First I read it as a teenager on several occasions, then as a young adult and recently I have downloaded the audio books, and I am not bored yet. I actually remember being depressed for several days after I have finished the book for the first time because it was so good, I wished I could forget the plot to be able to read it as if for the first time… if that makes any sense. As the series have been publ Let me just start by saying that I cannot remember how many times I have re-read these books. As the series have been published for a while now I have come across countless plot descriptions and reviews many of which, in my opinion, do not even begin to cover the brilliance of the universe. And, of course, all of that happens in the alternative fantasy universe. While these are essentially true, to me it sounds like any other number of fantasy books and so I do not feel like this general description is the best selling pitch for the book. So I will write down what I believe should interest any fantasy lover out there. Let me start first with… our narrator himself, Corwin! He is still by far my most favourite male protagonist anywhere. Seriously, what is not to like about him? Of course, he is not all perfect and posses many negative qualities, pride and ambition being the main ones. However, overall he could be a perfect, yet quite realistic man unless you like those sentimental lovey-dovey types of male characters. Secondly, the Amber universe. If you like an idea of parallel or alternative worlds, you will love Amber series. In these books you can find anything: from something that is comfortable and familiar, i. The worlds are incredibly thought through: their politics, history, power players, travel, anything you could think off. Geek out as much as you want! Thirdly, the books go straight to the point. There are not longwinded conversations or side characters. The story evolves at a fast pace, full of action, yet it manages to clearly explain what is happening and why. Trust me, through Amber series, there is no time to get bored! Finally, there is THE family. All of them with their unique characters, sense of humour and skeletons in the closet. When you think have a character figured out, just turn the page and you will find out that you are so wrong, so very wrong! And it is impossible not to have favourites I always loved fiery Fiona, after Corwin, of course! So jealous of all of you about to read it for the first time! Feb 25, Wendy rated it really liked it Shelves: fantasy , feminist-rage , favourites. This book was fervently recommended by a friend, and, being an obsessive compulsive book shopper, I bought it almost immediately. Clearly I had missed out on something very important and my impulse shopping was not in vain. Amber is a realm that casts hundreds of shadows of itself, each one easi This book was fervently recommended by a friend, and, being an obsessive compulsive book shopper, I bought it almost immediately. Amber is a realm that casts hundreds of shadows of itself, each one easily manipulated by those of royal blood, including Corwin, whom we first meet as an amnesia patient in the hospital under questionable circumstances. Despite his memory loss, his wits slip him out of captivity and into the home of his sister, where he slowly tries to piece his history together. Corwin is soon joined by his brother Random who is fleeing mysterious and deadly assailants. Corwin is determined to usurp his brother's rule and sets about building an army. After the first book, which managed to go from memory loss, to walking the Pattern, to all out war in such a brief time, I quickly came to understand that nothing would be as I expected — including the motivations of each of the siblings and their companions. Zelazny fashions an unbelievably intense story of sibling rivalry, within a fantasy setting unlike any other. The transitions between worlds is so smooth and the language a perfect blend of contemporary and everything else. But the most striking thing for me was the way, as each book progressed, I felt like Zelazny was simply writing everything that spilled from his mind. Side note: The book focuses mainly on Corwin and his interactions with his male companions and brothers. Initially, his sisters and the other women who vaguely show up are considered little more than useless fools. Fortunately, Zelazny seemed to gain a bit more respect for females by book four and five and the women at least served a bit more purpose and earned the respect of the nice men in their lives, too. Sort of. I actually bought the The Great Book of Amber , which includes ten stories within this world. I have heard that the second half is not quite as good as the first. See more reviews at The BiblioSanctum View all 3 comments. Mar 04, Bbrown rated it liked it. On the plus side The Chronicles of Amber has an interesting universe and an epic scope, but on the other hand Zelazny's unimpressive writing and inability to breathe life into that universe means that the series becomes a slog. From there the book introduces its setting, one where there is a central universe and numerous others that are mere shadows cast by that one- our universe being On the plus side The Chronicles of Amber has an interesting universe and an epic scope, but on the other hand Zelazny's unimpressive writing and inability to breathe life into that universe means that the series becomes a slog. From there the book introduces its setting, one where there is a central universe and numerous others that are mere shadows cast by that one- our universe being one of those shadows. As a prince of amber Corwin has mastery over this multiverse far more so than others, but his abilities are not unique. Instead he has an extended family that shares his powers, some being allies and some enemies. While the extensive family opens up the possibility for manifold machinations and schemes, few of the characters feel developed in the slightest. Most can be defined by one or two traits. I would much rather have had the family be half the size but more developed, but instead we're left with various names that it's hard to care about. Random is crowned regent in the end- but because Random isn't a character with any depth I'm left not caring. Why is Random crowned and not another member of the family? Perhaps his name was picked out of a hat- there isn't any sufficient explanation in the first five volumes at least. Speaking of the first five volumes, I began the sixth as well, but I honestly just couldn't force myself to read any more of Zelazny's writing. It's mediocre, but not in an inoffensive way: read him for long enough and it becomes grating to the extreme. Corwin navigates many a strange universe, but 1 they're not as creative or inventive as they should be, 2 there is only a connection to Amber about half the time, with the other half being universes that Zelazny just thought would be cool, and 3 Zelazny's writing isn't strong enough to imbue this exploration with any sense of wonder or discovery. They are reduced to places that Corwin must go to do this thing that advances the plot. What fun. What should be a fun and creative series to read is instead overwhelmingly bland. Aug 25, Matt Williamson Williamson rated it it was amazing. This was the edition that unlocked my mind and utterly destroyed my sense of self. In the reading of these books I became Corwin and in many ways I never left Amber. Whatever the reason for picking up the book, I still remember the thrill I got from the first few chapters of Nine Princes in Amber, where the hero wakes up in a hospital with amnesia and gradually comes to discover who he really is: a Prince of Amber, the one true world, of which all other worlds including Earth are merely shadows. The idea has a long history in sci-fi as well. Somehow, though, Prince Corwin of Amber stands out. The setting of the Chronicles of Amber may be fantastical, but Corwin remains pragmatic and no-nonsense. A lot of the conventions of high fantasy make appearances: magical swords and lots of sword-fighting ; kings, princes and princesses; great battles featuring human and almost-human creatures; various mythological monsters; etc. Corwin stumbles along making the best decisions he can, sometimes thinking only of saving his own skin, sometimes acting out of anger, and every once in a while doing something admirable. As a Prince of Amber, Corwin has the power to create whole new worlds out of shadow, so he literally makes things up as he goes along. He is probably the very first existentialist fantasy hero. I highly recommend this series. Jan 17, Cass rated it really liked it Shelves: reviewed , speculative-and- fantastic. For me, this series started stronger than it finished. Zelazny set up quite a number of interesting conflicts, which then resolved much too suddenly. I wanted to spend more time with the other family members, see more of the inhabitants of the Courts of Chaos, know more about Dara and her motives. Also, where did Benedict go? I don't remember seeing him in the final conflict at all. I wanted a proper denouement for my favorite character. The dynamics in the scene when all the remaining siblings For me, this series started stronger than it finished. The dynamics in the scene when all the remaining siblings gather to banter and backstab heh sizzle and crack and sparkle. Why couldn't there have been more of that? I wanted more, and I also wanted less--less of the acid-trippy descriptions of Shadow which seemed to occupy the bulk of the page-space, and which, to be honest, I started skipping over after the first few. This series bogs down in places with painstaking detail, then hurtles ahead in spurts and bounds, hopping over entire months in a brief paragraph or two. The pace is so uneven as to create motion sickness. The Chronicles of Amber is a fantasy series written by Roger Zelazny chiefly in ten books published from to It features a great variety of characters from a myriad parallel universes including "our" Earth universe. All universes spiral out on a continuum, which are more closely related to one end, Amber and its history and functions , or slides on a scale closer and closer to Amber's opposite, the Courts of Chaos, at the other. Much information about the royal family is compiled only in the authorized companion book Roger Zelazny's Visual Guide to Castle Amber. Some personal colors and offspring are identified only there. The founder of the family is Dworkin Barimen , who first appears as a mad sorcerer. He is the creator of the Primal Pattern and father of Oberon. The names of Florimel's and Random's mothers are not given in the novels; the names here are taken from the Visual Guide to Amber and the Complete Amber Sourcebook. The Visual Guide adds a younger daughter of Paulette, Mirelle , but she does not appear in any of the novels. Both statements could be true if Caine is, in fact, older than any of Clarissa's children, and the result of an illegitimate affair with Rilga but legally adopted into the line before Clarissa's children, just as Llewella was born illegitimate but legally adopted. Although Oberon did not actually marry Rilga till after finally divorcing Clarissa after the birth of Brand. The Visual Guide to Amber and the Complete Amber Sourcebook , though both are authorised works, contradict each other. It is also mentioned that, although Llewella definitely and possibly Caine, as mentioned above was legally adopted into the family after being born illegitimate, this did not happen to Eric, because Oberon needed to remain on good terms with Cymnea's family, and Eric was perpetually bitter about this.

Chronicles Of Amber - Book Series In Order

The original tarot decks used by Amberites had some or all of their major arcana cards replaced or possibly augmented with images of the royal family, and of at least one location, Castle Amber. These original decks were created by Dworkin, and a deck was given to each family member after they first walked the Pattern. Physically, these cards are cool to the touch. The decks may be used like normal tarots for divination, as Corwin does shortly after meeting one of his brothers. The Trumps have the magical attribute of facilitating a psychic link to the person or place depicted on the card, enabling instant communication, travel, and even attack. If the card depicts a location, the user is able to teleport to that location. If the card depicts a person, the user concentrates on the image and attempts to reach out to the person to initiate contact. The recipient of a Trump contact does not need to have a card in their possession. An attempted contact may be blocked or declined by the receiving party, by an act of concentration. A variety of other circumstances can also impede or prevent Trump contact from being made, including distance and time-flow differences across Shadows, as well as unconsciousness, amnesia, and magical characteristics of a particular location. If contact through a Trump is successful, both parties are able to talk to each other, and even see some of each other's surroundings. Either party may end a Trump communication, either by passing their hand over the card, or by an effort of will. During the contact, each person has the option of reaching through the link to make physical contact, generally for the purpose of pulling the other person voluntarily to their own physical location. This is sometimes called "trumping" a person to the other location. In some cases, one can also travel via Trump to the other person's location without the other's consent or assistance, as long as the contact remains open e. A Trump contact also creates a potential opening for an attack by either party on the other, either with a weapon, or by using the link in an attempt to dominate the other by sheer force of ego and will. This can result in immobilization or worse for the victim of the attack. To an observer who witnesses a person trumping to another location, the person becomes two-dimensional before disappearing, and there is a prismatic aftereffect. In Trumps of Doom , Merlin also mentions sensing a kind of electrical charge as Jasra trumps into a room where he waits. Further details about the nature of Trumps were revealed as the tale progressed; for example, Trumps are not limited to playing cards, but can be drawn on any surface. Corwin escaped from his dungeon cell after Dworkin materialized in it, by persuading Dworkin, who was mentally unbalanced at the time, to draw him a picture of the lighthouse at Cabra, a location on the edge of Amber. After Dworkin draws another picture to return to his hideout, Corwin uses the lighthouse picture to escape. In The Hand of Oberon Corwin returns to his cell and uses the other picture to follow Dworkin to his lair, finding that it is in located near the Primal Pattern that created Amber and all its Shadows. Dworkin taught several of his descendants to create Trumps, and other initiates of the Pattern or Logrus can be trained in that skill. If one looks "closely enough" at a Trump, one can see parts of the Pattern or Logrus within its design, which may provide a source of power. Anyone may use a Trump — the user does not need to be an Amberite, a Pattern initiate, or of royal blood. Provided the artist is sufficiently familiar with the subject, a Trump can be drawn for any person or place desired, unless the place is in constant motion and change such as portions of Chaos. Under certain circumstances and extreme conditions, the technique for creating a Trump can be used to make contact without drawing on any surface at all. Indeed, Corwin's brother Brand is described as becoming a "Living Trump", who can move through Shadow by will alone. A large red gem in a pendant, this is initially thought to be one of Oberon's tools that can be used to control the weather in Amber. In The Guns of Avalon , Eric uses it to summon storms against the dark forces attacking Amber, but is mortally injured. After Corwin's forces annihilate the attackers, Eric reveals that he became attuned to the Jewel by walking the Pattern in Amber and then projecting himself into its core. Corwin does this, and discovers other effects, such as a sapping of his energies and a tendency for time to slow down. The Jewel saves his life when he is stabbed in Amber, projecting him back to his old home on Earth where he lived as Carl Corey. Dworkin finally reveals that the Jewel contains within it the original Pattern from which he created Amber. Corwin, fearing that Amber has been destroyed in The Courts of Chaos , repeats this process in Shadow to create his own Pattern, using its power to project him to the Courts where he witnesses the final battle against Chaos and Brand, who took the Jewel while he was incapacitated after creating his Pattern. Apparently lost during the battle when Brand falls into the abyss, the Jewel is returned by the Unicorn and given to Random, making him the new King in Amber. In the fictional Amber multiverse a spikard is a type of magical object with hyperdimensional "lines of power" which connect it to sorcerous power caches in various universes. In the Amber novels and short stories two shapes of spikards are explicitly cited: rings and swords. Benedict's metal arm is never explicitly listed as a spikard, but it does share with Corwin's spikard sword Grayswandir the rare magical ability to bypass an existential barrier of intangibility. Corwin's sword, Grayswandir , contains a part of the Pattern like the Trumps. The sword appears first in The Guns of Avalon , in which Corwin, having escaped from his imprisonment, draws it from the trunk of a tree, noting that while it was previously in Amber, it was now with him, suggesting that it can be manifested wherever he needs it. Grayswandir has power against dark forces such as those besieging Lorraine in The Guns of Avalon. In the Merlin cycle, it is revealed that Grayswandir has a counterpart in Werewindle , formerly Brand's sword. Like Grayswandir, Werewindle also bears a portion of the Pattern upon its blade. In The Salesman's Tale it is revealed that the golden-colored spikard sword Werewindle possesses sentient intelligence. Corwin's brother Benedict is introduced in The Guns of Avalon as having lost his right arm in battle with the same dark forces menacing all of Shadow. The ghost is wearing a remarkable prosthetic metal arm that can reach through unreality and attack him, even as Grayswandir can reach Benedict's ghost. Corwin strikes the arm from the ghost and returns to Amber with it. Later it is given to Benedict by Random, who performs the surgery to attach it. In the next novel this proves invaluable as the arm can overcome Brand's magic, allowing Benedict to strangle him despite being paralyzed, forcing Brand to vanish leaving the Jewel of Judgement behind. In The Courts of Chaos the arm is returned whence it came in a ghostly re-enactment of Corwin's fight with Benedict's ghost, occurring in the halls of Amber itself. These events are suspected to be caused by Oberon himself. Similarities appear in the theme and in specific instances: some character names are common to both works, and they share the fantasy literary device of moving a present day, realistic character from the familiar world into a fantastical, alternate reality world, exposing the character to this shift as the reader experiences it. I returned to it time and time, reading it over and over again, drawn by its colorful, semi-mythic characters and strong action As for their specific influences—particularly on my Amber series—I never thought about it until Jane Lindskold started digging around and began pointing things out to me. Given Zelazny's academic interest in the Medieval European period, it is not a stretch to see a possible influence in Henry Adams ' work Mont Saint-Michel and Chartres , wherein he discusses the building of Chartres Cathedral, and the tidal-islet of Mont Saint-Michel , on the Normandy coast of France. However, these possible influences are not supported by Zelazny's own commentary about the origins of the Pattern. He indicated that he loosely based the Pattern in part on the Tree of Life or Sephiroth of Kaballah , and preferred to allow the reader to imagine what the actual Pattern looked like. Zelazny cited Jessie L. Weston's book From Ritual to Romance as a key influence: it examined the pagan and Christian roots of the legends of King Arthur, the Wasteland myths, and the Holy Grail. For example, the Celtic Wasteland myth ties the barrenness of a land to a curse that a hero must lift; Corwin's curse is in part responsible for the Black Road. Philosophical texts have influenced the series as well: many similarities exist between Amber and Plato's Republic see the Allegory of the cave and the classical problems of metaphysics , virtuality, solipsism , logic , possible worlds , probability , doubles and essences are also repeatedly reflected on. Sometimes the references made by Zelazny could be considered foreshadowing. For example, the name Ganelon was taken from the Matter of France , a body of classic French legends and literature that includes the Song of Roland. Throughout the Matter of France, Ganelon was often called "Ganelon the Traitor"; thus, for readers familiar with the original Ganelon, Zelazny's use of the name foreshadowed events in The Hand of Oberon where Ganelon purposefully loses a battle to spite Corwin. In the Song of Roland , Ganelon was also the stepfather of the protagonist Roland , which Zelazny may have used to foreshadow the relationship between Corwin and Ganelon at the conclusion of The Hand of Oberon. Throughout the Chronicles, Zelazny alludes extensively to plays by William Shakespeare. It is not stated in the series whether the characters who are usually well-read are merely paraphrasing the bard for their own amusement, or if Shakespeare himself was telling stories that are reflections of Amber's history and future. It is implied that both variants are true simultaneously. The allusions include:. In July , Skybound Entertainment announced that it was developing The Chronicles of Amber as a television project, with Walking Dead creator and producer Robert Kirkman as an executive producer. Getting to produce this project is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. In August , Kirkman and Skybound announced an agreement with Amazon to develop television projects to debut exclusively on Prime Video , without identifying any specific project as part of the deal. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Main article: Nine Princes in Amber. Main article: The Guns of Avalon. Main article: Sign of the Unicorn. Main article: The Hand of Oberon. Main article: The Courts of Chaos. Main article: Trumps of Doom. Main article: Blood of Amber. Main article: Sign of Chaos. Main article: Knight of Shadows. Main article: Prince of Chaos. Main article: List of characters in the Chronicles of Amber. New Worlds 2 ed. Infinity Plus. Archived from the original on December 15, Worlds Without End. Retrieved September 27, Boylston Buys Preiss Assets". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on October 14, Archived from the original on June 14, The death of ibooks' publisher has really hurt the company. Sorry for the bad news! Archived from the original on September 27, We had a pleasant meeting. But when I called his office and left a message for him, he never got back to me. And the paperback hasn't made its scheduled appearance, nor is it listed as forthcoming on Amazon. So — nothing happening. My assumption that the project is dead continues. December 15, Alberquerque Business First. Archived from the original on November 6, Roger Zelazny Page. Archived from the original on May 9, Retrieved April 2, The Dark World downloadable text from ManyBooks. Archived from the original on November 3, Retrieved October 10, Tor Books. July 20, Archived from the original on October 12, The series is divided into two arcs each of which constitutes five books. Amber and Chaos are magical places whose forces are in such opposition that the tension created in between them eventually gave birth to the shadow worlds of which contemporary earth is one. Members of the Royal Family of Amber have the power to walk through the shadow worlds. And as they traverse this plane, they can create new realities or alter pre-existing ones by adding and subtracting the shadows. Corwin has no ideas who he is when readers meet him, his amnesia emanating from the coma he suffered. When his memories begin to flood back, Corwin learns that he is a prince, a member of the royal family that rules the one true world. Corwin must get re-acquainted with this new paranormal existence. This involves re-discovering his family and learning to walk the infinite parallel worlds. The journey he undertakes is long and arduous and Corwin suffers many physical, mental, and emotional losses. Fortunately for the hero, he is made of stronger stuff than most. His regenerative abilities prove quite useful as he fights enemies from both Amber and Chaos. Corwin also finds that he can rely on a select few allies that include his brothers Bleys and Brand. Blood is shed and family ties are broken for the sake of the power that can be gained by those who emerge as King of Amber. The Corwin books are normally believed to be of superior quality to the Merlin novels which constitute the next five stories of the second arc of the Chronicles of Amber series. The Corwin cycle is reminiscent of Highlander because it has nigh immortal protagonists and antagonists at the center of its conflict. There are also elements of the hardboiled detective genre, probably because Roger Zelazny wrote the Corwin Cycle in the s and s, an era where the hardboiled detective was all the rage. At the start of the Merlin Cycle, Merlin has been studying computer science on earth. Merlin proceeds to create a sentient computer. His only intention is to locate his father. He does not foresee the disaster that will manifest as a result of his actions. The Merlin Cycle calls back a few well-known characters from the Corwin Cycle as well as their descendants. While the book closed a lot of threads from its own series as well as the Corwin saga, enough doors were left open for readers to speculate about a potential third cycle. I'm glad we got to see a few more members of the family. I really didn't see the big twist coming. It's still three stars and I'll still keep on reading. View 2 comments. I put that away before the last two books. I don't understand how such a boring, dull, sluggish, extremely protracted novel could get such positive reviews!?!? The whole story could have been shrinked into pages but no, the whole Chronicles is like pages of boredom told in first person perspective which "per se" is boring! The characters are dull, there is no developement, and none of them became likeable. Hundreds of pages are about Corwin is thinking about something, well basically abo I put that away before the last two books. Hundreds of pages are about Corwin is thinking about something, well basically about nothing that matters! It's true, his thoughts doesn't even move the plot forward a bit, these pages would have been left out from the book. The world of Amber could have been nice and interesting but Zelazny instead of elaborating it and make the reader to be interested in it just wrote extremely boring and repetitive junk about shifting the shapes in Shadows, and aimless empty dialogues between Corwin and his siblings. Okay, many of the readers pointed out that it was written in the seventies, therefore this book is a bit slow and strange for a first time reader. Chronicles of Amber is a nice example of overrated US fantasy literature. It's a big book of nothing! A boring soap opera set in a fantasy universe. I'm terribly sorry but I'm very dissapointed. I tried to love this book but I couldn't. It was the worst fantasy novel I've ever read. If you want to read fantasy about "multiversums" stick to Moorcock's Corum and forget about Zelazny's Corwin. It is more than the sum of its parts. That description really fits with the first Amber Chronicles. Each book, on its own, was to me a four-star. They were all very enjoyable and addicting but they don't really stand on their own. But by the time you put all five together, you have one hell of a great story that deserves no less than 5 stars. I've heard great things about the Amber series for years, and I finally broke down and tried them. I sure am glad that I did. I can see that this will be It is more than the sum of its parts. I can see that this will be a series that I will need to read again someday, as its multiple layers will show things through a re-read that might have been overlooked the first time through. The other thing I can say for sure is that I will be looking to read the Second Chronicles soon. All roads lead to Amber I don't know. Aug 11, Alexandra Son rated it it was amazing. Let me just start by saying that I cannot remember how many times I have re-read these books. First I read it as a teenager on several occasions, then as a young adult and recently I have downloaded the audio books, and I am not bored yet. I actually remember being depressed for several days after I have finished the book for the first time because it was so good, I wished I could forget the plot to be able to read it as if for the first time… if that makes any sense. As the series have been publ Let me just start by saying that I cannot remember how many times I have re-read these books. As the series have been published for a while now I have come across countless plot descriptions and reviews many of which, in my opinion, do not even begin to cover the brilliance of the universe. And, of course, all of that happens in the alternative fantasy universe. While these are essentially true, to me it sounds like any other number of fantasy books and so I do not feel like this general description is the best selling pitch for the book. So I will write down what I believe should interest any fantasy lover out there. Let me start first with… our narrator himself, Corwin! He is still by far my most favourite male protagonist anywhere. Seriously, what is not to like about him? Of course, he is not all perfect and posses many negative qualities, pride and ambition being the main ones. However, overall he could be a perfect, yet quite realistic man unless you like those sentimental lovey-dovey types of male characters. Secondly, the Amber universe. If you like an idea of parallel or alternative worlds, you will love Amber series. In these books you can find anything: from something that is comfortable and familiar, i. The worlds are incredibly thought through: their politics, history, power players, travel, anything you could think off. Geek out as much as you want! Thirdly, the books go straight to the point. There are not longwinded conversations or side characters. The story evolves at a fast pace, full of action, yet it manages to clearly explain what is happening and why. Trust me, through Amber series, there is no time to get bored! Finally, there is THE family. All of them with their unique characters, sense of humour and skeletons in the closet. When you think have a character figured out, just turn the page and you will find out that you are so wrong, so very wrong! And it is impossible not to have favourites I always loved fiery Fiona, after Corwin, of course! So jealous of all of you about to read it for the first time! Feb 25, Wendy rated it really liked it Shelves: fantasy , feminist-rage , favourites. This book was fervently recommended by a friend, and, being an obsessive compulsive book shopper, I bought it almost immediately. Clearly I had missed out on something very important and my impulse shopping was not in vain. Amber is a realm that casts hundreds of shadows of itself, each one easi This book was fervently recommended by a friend, and, being an obsessive compulsive book shopper, I bought it almost immediately. Amber is a realm that casts hundreds of shadows of itself, each one easily manipulated by those of royal blood, including Corwin, whom we first meet as an amnesia patient in the hospital under questionable circumstances. Despite his memory loss, his wits slip him out of captivity and into the home of his sister, where he slowly tries to piece his history together. Corwin is soon joined by his brother Random who is fleeing mysterious and deadly assailants. Corwin is determined to usurp his brother's rule and sets about building an army. After the first book, which managed to go from memory loss, to walking the Pattern, to all out war in such a brief time, I quickly came to understand that nothing would be as I expected — including the motivations of each of the siblings and their companions. Zelazny fashions an unbelievably intense story of sibling rivalry, within a fantasy setting unlike any other. The transitions between worlds is so smooth and the language a perfect blend of contemporary and everything else. But the most striking thing for me was the way, as each book progressed, I felt like Zelazny was simply writing everything that spilled from his mind. Side note: The book focuses mainly on Corwin and his interactions with his male companions and brothers. Initially, his sisters and the other women who vaguely show up are considered little more than useless fools. Fortunately, Zelazny seemed to gain a bit more respect for females by book four and five and the women at least served a bit more purpose and earned the respect of the nice men in their lives, too. Sort of. I actually bought the The Great Book of Amber , which includes ten stories within this world. I have heard that the second half is not quite as good as the first. See more reviews at The BiblioSanctum View all 3 comments. Mar 04, Bbrown rated it liked it. On the plus side The Chronicles of Amber has an interesting universe and an epic scope, but on the other hand Zelazny's unimpressive writing and inability to breathe life into that universe means that the series becomes a slog. From there the book introduces its setting, one where there is a central universe and numerous others that are mere shadows cast by that one- our universe being On the plus side The Chronicles of Amber has an interesting universe and an epic scope, but on the other hand Zelazny's unimpressive writing and inability to breathe life into that universe means that the series becomes a slog. From there the book introduces its setting, one where there is a central universe and numerous others that are mere shadows cast by that one- our universe being one of those shadows. As a prince of amber Corwin has mastery over this multiverse far more so than others, but his abilities are not unique. Instead he has an extended family that shares his powers, some being allies and some enemies. While the extensive family opens up the possibility for manifold machinations and schemes, few of the characters feel developed in the slightest. Most can be defined by one or two traits. I would much rather have had the family be half the size but more developed, but instead we're left with various names that it's hard to care about. Random is crowned regent in the end- but because Random isn't a character with any depth I'm left not caring. Why is Random crowned and not another member of the family? Perhaps his name was picked out of a hat- there isn't any sufficient explanation in the first five volumes at least. Speaking of the first five volumes, I began the sixth as well, but I honestly just couldn't force myself to read any more of Zelazny's writing. It's mediocre, but not in an inoffensive way: read him for long enough and it becomes grating to the extreme. Corwin navigates many a strange universe, but 1 they're not as creative or inventive as they should be, 2 there is only a connection to Amber about half the time, with the other half being universes that Zelazny just thought would be cool, and 3 Zelazny's writing isn't strong enough to imbue this exploration with any sense of wonder or discovery. They are reduced to places that Corwin must go to do this thing that advances the plot. What fun. What should be a fun and creative series to read is instead overwhelmingly bland. Aug 25, Matt Williamson Williamson rated it it was amazing. This was the edition that unlocked my mind and utterly destroyed my sense of self. In the reading of these books I became Corwin and in many ways I never left Amber. Whatever the reason for picking up the book, I still remember the thrill I got from the first few chapters of Nine Princes in Amber, where the hero wakes up in a hospital with amnesia and gradually comes to discover who he really is: a Prince of Amber, the one true world, of which all other worlds including Earth are merely shadows. The idea has a long history in sci-fi as well. Somehow, though, Prince Corwin of Amber stands out. The setting of the Chronicles of Amber may be fantastical, but Corwin remains pragmatic and no-nonsense. A lot of the conventions of high fantasy make appearances: magical swords and lots of sword-fighting ; kings, princes and princesses; great battles featuring human and almost-human creatures; various mythological monsters; etc. Corwin stumbles along making the best decisions he can, sometimes thinking only of saving his own skin, sometimes acting out of anger, and every once in a while doing something admirable. As a Prince of Amber, Corwin has the power to create whole new worlds out of shadow, so he literally makes things up as he goes along. He is probably the very first existentialist fantasy hero. I highly recommend this series. Jan 17, Cass rated it really liked it Shelves: reviewed , speculative- and-fantastic. For me, this series started stronger than it finished. Zelazny set up quite a number of interesting conflicts, which then resolved much too suddenly. I wanted to spend more time with the other family members, see more of the inhabitants of the Courts of Chaos, know more about Dara and her motives. Also, where did Benedict go? I don't remember seeing him in the final conflict at all. I wanted a proper denouement for my favorite character. The dynamics in the scene when all the remaining siblings For me, this series started stronger than it finished. The dynamics in the scene when all the remaining siblings gather to banter and backstab heh sizzle and crack and sparkle. Why couldn't there have been more of that? I wanted more, and I also wanted less--less of the acid-trippy descriptions of Shadow which seemed to occupy the bulk of the page-space, and which, to be honest, I started skipping over after the first few. This series bogs down in places with painstaking detail, then hurtles ahead in spurts and bounds, hopping over entire months in a brief paragraph or two. The pace is so uneven as to create motion sickness. But then Zelazny seems to hit a groove again, and we get these delightful, cracking moments. For expample, Dara's first introduction: she corners the bemused hero and insists he fence with her before treating him to a picnic lunch, and weasles a crash course on all things Amber out of him. Likewise with the conversation between Corwin and Ganelan at Corwin's tomb. Despite the issues I have with the pacing, lack of character development or perhaps I should say character exposition; all the characters change, but in some cases we are told, not shown , and unsatisfying conclusion, this is worth reading, if only for a break from your typical fantasy fare. Four stars for the quirkiness of the prose, the spectacular banter, the hysterical literary references, and sheer cussed inventiveness. Conjure with it and I will eat your heart and liver. I can't even pronounce it, and my cirrhosis would give you indigestion. I am the soul of honor, kindness, mercy and goodness. Trust me in all things. How are things in the nether world? Nothing much else astir. I work on those parts down here. Nov 30, Mark rated it it was amazing Shelves: finished. Read anything by Zelazny! His ability to craft a story that immediately draws the reader in is remarkable. He is one of the few authors who can not only get away with writing in the first person, but who excel at befriending the reader while doing so. It is a gripping mystery, and a contemporary fiction and fantasy novel all in one, and done very well. From the outset, the reader is pulled into action and intrigue. The original Read anything by Zelazny! The original series spanned five books. These five are sufficient to complete the Chronicles of Amber, but if you enjoyed them, you may as well enjoy the latter five books however, my personal favorites are the original five of the series. My favorite book of the series, without a doubt, is The Guns of Avalon. Have fun! Sep 11, Aless rated it liked it Shelves: dnf. Page abandoned So I read parts 1 and 2, and I'm around halfway, but I don't want to do it anymore. I found the first book kind of slow, but it started to get more interesting near the end, so I thought it was just a slow start to set up the whole story. Part 2 went back to slow again and dragged most of the way through. I'm thinking either I'm not compatible with old fantasy, or compared to modern fantasy it's not very good. I did really like a few elements of this book, the writing style was Page abandoned So I read parts 1 and 2, and I'm around halfway, but I don't want to do it anymore. I did really like a few elements of this book, the writing style was strange but the language used was interesting with a lot of words I've never heard of. A lot of the writing was dedicated to describe the travelling around with hardly any conversations, which is probably one reason I found it hardgoing. Initially the relationships of the royal family were interesting, but they weren't being expanded on much. The infinite shadow worlds idea was fairly unique, but we're told how absolutely amazing Amber is and I wasn't feeling it. Corwin and the other characters were believable in personality but I cared about none of them. I would have been happy to find out more about the other siblings, especially the sisters as they are barely mentioned, only really in a derogatory way. The women are seen as inferior and minor which was quite annoying. I really tried, but my eyes have just been falling off the pages. This is more of a middle-of-the-road 2. This, after Leiber's Nehwon series, is another fantasy classic which I just can't appreciate nor recommend. I think the biggest problem with these books is that Zelazny decided to tell the story from the perspective of a single character. Corwin isn't a bad protagonist, but the problem is that his initial amnesia not a big spoiler, so keep those pitchforks away forces at least a third of the entire span of these books to be exposition. Instead of getting to actually know the different characters, the dialogues serve as exposition dumps. But why Y? I didn't know about that. And so it goes. It's really quite tiresome and takes away any fun out of the overarching scheming that is basically the entire plot of the books. Everything else falls into two categories: either pointless filler, or symbolic gibberish which doesn't feel remotely important. For over pages of text, there's really not all that much that happens - or more precisely, that length is wasted when pivotal events are described in short bursts while the boring, sluggish "action" drags itself across the plot. I might be a little bit too critical of these books, but color me unimpressed. Apart from some decent ideas here and there, this is an extremely mediocre series. I've heard from different sources that the other part of the series concerning Corwin's son are even weaker I'm going to try and go through them, but if they're less interesting than this, I don't think I'm going to finish. https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/010cd396-3cc0-4968-bb48-c616d3b9222f/blanko-comic-buch-ueber-100-seiten-mit-leeren-comic- rastern-zum-selberzeichnen-geschenk-zum-kreat-619.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9588734/UploadedFiles/B093CEC3-BC59-4675-326E-E44398D26771.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9586837/UploadedFiles/8950CA5D-BE70-CFCF-631A-40D81D5FA636.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9591495/UploadedFiles/B71D13A6-34B2-F7E7-E796-385C95928C23.pdf