fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures.
The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
novel by American writer
Roger Zelazny
Roger Joseph Zelazny (May 13, 1937 – June 14, 1995) was an American fantasy and science fiction writer known for his short stories and novels, best known for '' The Chronicles of Amber''. He won the Nebula Award three times (out of 14 nominatio ...
, the second book in the ''
Chronicles of Amber
''The Chronicles of Amber'' is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Roger Zelazny. The novel series, main series consists of two story arcs, each five novels in length. Additionally, there are a number of Amber short story, short stor ...
'' series. The book continues straight from the previous volume, ''
Nine Princes in Amber
''Nine Princes in Amber'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Roger Zelazny, the first in the ''Chronicles of Amber'' series. It was first published in 1970, and later spawned a computer game of the same name. The first (Doubleday hardcover) ...
'', although it includes a recapitulation.
Plot summary
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
Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...
is inert there. But Corwin has secret knowledge: in the shadow world of Avalon, where he once ruled, there exists a
jeweler's rouge
Iron(III) oxide or ferric oxide is the inorganic compound with the formula . It occurs in nature as the mineral hematite, which serves as the primary source of iron for the steel industry. It is also known as red iron oxide, especially when use ...
that will function in Amber as gunpowder should. Corwin plans to raise a legion of shadow soldiers and arm them with automatic
rifle
A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...
s 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. Eric is mortally wounded and passes the Jewel of Judgment to Corwin, making Corwin Regent. 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.
Reception
Avram Davidson
Avram Davidson (April 23, 1923 – May 8, 1993) was an American writer of fantasy fiction, science fiction, and crime fiction, as well as the author of many stories that do not fit into a genre niche. He won a Hugo Award and three World Fantasy ...
gave the novel a lukewarm review, complaining that he did not "feel for any of tscharacters the slightest empathy, sympathy, or even
osteopathy
Osteopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine that emphasizes physical manipulation of the body's muscle tissue and bones. In most countries, practitioners of osteopathy are not medically trained and are referred to as osteo ...
," and concluding that "there is nothing outrageously ''bad'' in /nowiki>this/nowiki> book of magic, intrigue, and warfare, but very little that is very good". '' Reactor'' reviewer Rajan Khanna, after a re-read, wrote that the book "establishes the overarching plotline of" ''
The Chronicles of Amber
''The Chronicles of Amber'' is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Roger Zelazny. The main series consists of two story arcs, each five novels in length. Additionally, there are a number of Amber short stories and other works. Whil ...
'' series.
Deleted scene
Roger Zelazny wrote an explicit sex scene (by 1970s American publishing standards) between Corwin and Dara, and was amused when the book's editor asked him to remove it so that sales to libraries would not be jeopardized. That deleted scene has never appeared with the novel but has been printed for the first time in ''The Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny, Volume 3: This Mortal Mountain''.
Adaptation
A three-part
comic book
A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
Terry Bisson
Terry Ballantine Bisson (February 12, 1942 – January 10, 2024) was an American science fiction and fantasy author. He was best known for his short stories, including " Bears Discover Fire", which won the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award, and " T ...
and drawn by Christopher Schenck and
Andrew Pepoy
Andrew Pepoy (born 1969) is an American comic book writer and artist.
Career
Pepoy began working as a professional artist while still in college at Loyola University Chicago.
He has worked on a large variety of comics, including ''Superman'', ' ...
in 1996, published by
DC Comics
DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
. (This followed the three-part comics adaptation of ''
Nine Princes in Amber
''Nine Princes in Amber'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Roger Zelazny, the first in the ''Chronicles of Amber'' series. It was first published in 1970, and later spawned a computer game of the same name. The first (Doubleday hardcover) ...