Creatures of Light and Darkness [Mass Market Paperback]

Roger Zelazny (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1970

Two gods, two houses, one quest, and the eternal war between life and death

To save his kingdom, Anubis, Lord of the Dead, sends forth his servant on a mission of vengeance. At the same time, from The House of Life, Osiris sends forth his son, Horus, on the same mission to destroy utterly and forever The Prince Who Was a Thousand.

But neither of these superhuman warriors is prepared for the strange and harrowing world of mortal life, and The Thing That Cries in the Night may well destroy not only their worlds, but all mankind.

As Zelazny did with the Hindu pantheon in the legendary, groundbreaking classic Lord of Light, the master storyteller here breathes new life into the Egyptian gods with another dazzling tale of mythology and imagination.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“He was a poet, first, last, always. His words sang. He was a storyteller without peer. He created worlds as colorful and exotic and memorable as any our genre has ever seen.” (George R. R. Martin ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Roger Zelazny burst onto the SF scene in the early 1960s with a series of dazzling and groundbreaking short stories. He won his first of six Hugo Awards for Lord of Light, and soon after produced the first book of his enormously popular Amber series, Nine Princes in Amber. In addition to his Hugos, he went on to win three Nebula Awards over the course of a long and distinguished career. He died on June 14, 1995.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 190 pages
• Publisher: Avon Books (August 1970)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380011220
• ISBN-13: 978-0380011223
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,313,984 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely original and unique, December 17, 2005

By 

John Gossman (Seattle, wa USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creatures of Light and Darkness (Mass Market Paperback)

Zelazny's classic "Lord of Light" told of a technological future world where humans had set themselves up as the Hindu gods. It is a tour de force, highly original work that takes science fiction so far it becomes fantasy and mythology.

"Creatures of Light and Darkness" takes all of this two steps further. The result is highly non-linear, sometimes hard to follow, with characters that are almost abstract rather than human. And it is all, incredibly, indescribably brilliant...so far beyond the general run of the mill science-fiction and fantasy writing to be outside the genre.

I can only imagine people either hating or loving this book. I happen to love it...

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As creative as they get, November 7, 2007

By 

Gerald Ford "pho_kin" (The Jack n' the Box at the corner) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creatures of Light and Darkness (Mass Market Paperback)

Of all the Zelazny books I have read, this book definitely gets an A+ for creativity. The book kind of reads like a short story that's been stretched out somewhat, but it's really more of an epic poem written in the far future. The characters that Zelazny weaves are just so creative: Madrak the "non-theistic, non-sectarian" priest and his non-commital prayers, Vramin the poet with this green hair and beard, The Prince Who Was A Thousand and his ability to teleport anywhere in the Universe.

I think this and Lord of Light present Zelazny at his best: he's creative, very witty and not afraid to bend reality as we know it.

It's a short book but a great read. Take my advice: if you don't fully understand it the first time, read it again and you'll get so much more out of it.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even better than Lord of Light; deserves to be in print., December 7, 1997

By 

sunman42 "sunman42" (Seabrook MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creatures of Light and Darkness (Mass Market Paperback)

The Egyptian pantheon, the lands of the dead and living, a Steel General, some very old shoes, prayers that apologize for disturbing a deity which may or may nor exist.... Only Zelazny could combine them all, and only Zelazny could bring it all off so brilliantly. What a loss that he is no longer with us, and what a tragedy that this book is no longer in print.