Customer Reviews

Guns of Avalon (Corgi science fiction)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have read very few books whose climax is towards the beginning but I'm thinking that it has to do with the series as a whole and I don't believe you should read them as individuals.

What a mess our hero was in at the end of book one. All I can say is that the series only gets better. I just finished Guns of Avalon and I could not stop! I had to start Sign of the Unicorn right away. The intrigue thickens as the relatives start to show their motives.

I have to go finish the third book now. If you like any kinds of Robert Jordan-esque fantasy or you have read all of Tolkien and are looking for another great series look no further.

Guns of Avalon is a truly worthy sequel to the Nine Princes of Amber. What makes this book so fun is Zelazny tells his tale in a completely different tenor and tone then the first book. In the first book we had no idea what was going on. We were as lost as the main character is through out the book. In this novel the main Character, Corwin, is more aware of events and so we are allowed, as the reader, to be more aware of events.

I think it is a remarkable coincidence that I had just picked up "The Fabric of Reality" by David Deutsch just prior to reading this novel and it is remarkable how well Deutshe's theory of Multiverses fits into the Amber Chronicles. Don't get me wrong. I am not one of those people who wish to make their favorite fantasy into reality, but thinking scientifically while reading a classic fantasy yarn was very enjoyable.

A worthy sequel to Nine Princes of Amber. This, and most of Zelazny's novels, are usually out of print. It would be worthwhile to attempt to get a copy of this book either through Amazon's out print book search or your local used books store. Good luck.

Roger Zelazny is a wizard of words if nothing else. In this book the familiar meets the exotic as Zelazny adds the Authurian tales to his already popular fantasy world, Amber. Zelazny gives just right amount of the original story to keep the reader in touch and smiling while adding enough of a twist to keep the reader guessing and dreaming. Here Prince Corwin of Amber revisits the fabled land of Avalon in preparation for the ultimate war to claim the throne in the true world, Amber. Like a true master, Zelazny answers many questions that left the reader on the edge of his seat, but also raises new ones. More plots and hidden schemes arise as new characters jump into the story and some old characters reappear. For those that have read the previous novel, this book will not let you down, for those that have not, you will. A perfect score all the way

Book two of Rodger Zelazny's first series of Amber novels follows Corwin, prince of Amber on his path to unseat his usurper brother Eric from the throne of Amber. After having his eyes burnt out with hot irons and five years of imprisonment, Corwin has grown new eyes and escaped.
I found this novel to be one of the more interesting of the original Amber novels. You get more of a feel for Corwin than you did in the first book of the series. The characteristics of a scion of Amber that makes them such interesting characters are all there, the scheming, the majesty, the style, even the pettiness.
Having discovered a compound that will work as gunpowder in the mystical realm of order he sets out to move once more in his quest to take the throne for himself. The characters are interesting and the style is enchanting. The only thing I would have liked to have seen elaborated on was the nature of pattern magic. As it was none of those details were really dealt with at all until the beginning of the second series (With Trumps of Doom).
If you have not read this series before get Nine Princes in Amber and treat yourself to one of the great science fiction/fantasy series of all time.

The adventures of Corwin continue in "Guns of Avalon," the second book of the sprawling Amber series. Zelazny's story is a bit fractured this time around, but he builds up some important new characters and developments, as exiled prince Corwin tries to get back the throne of Amber.

Corwin has escaped the clutches of his usurping brother Eric, and comes to the land of Lorraine (I'm not making this name up). One of his old enemies, Ganelon, is the head honcho of that place, so Corwin has to watch his step. Lorraine is being menaced by an army of evil shadow creatures, lead by a goat-headed being that threatens everyone and everything in that land.

Then he travels to Avalon with Ganelon, to meet his brother Benedict, who has no ambition but lots of military skill. Corwin is after "jeweler's rouge," which can be used like gunpowder, and Avalon is the place to get it. While he's there, he encounters Benedict's great-granddaughter Dara, and slips into an affair with her -- except that Dara is not what she seems, and the threat to Amber is more than just Eric.

Don't even try reading "Guns of Avalon" unless you've already read "Nine Princes in Amber" -- the Amber series is like a pair of novels, and each story is divided into five novel-chapters. While the two stories in "Guns" don't seem to have much in common, they are both vital parts of the ongoing Amber story. But it's a little weird to read them at first, since they seem so disconnected.

With new worlds to explore, Zelazny expands his writing -- everything is more detailed and wild in this story, from the unpronounceable demon to the talking cats. But he keeps that spare, sardonic edge to his writing. No matter how much detail he includes, it always feels carefully stripped down. Even the dialogue is simple and to the point.

Corwin is a little less engaging in this book, since he's sneaking around rather than openly attacking. Well, the guy was trapped in a dungeon for five years -- it's to be expected. But by the climax, he's back in fighting form. And the supporting characters (from the devious Dara to straightforward Benedict) are impossible to grasp. Good guys turn out to be bad, and vice versa -- everyone has ulterior motives, and is secretly plotting.

The Amber series picks up steam in "Guns of Avalon." While the two-story plotting is a little disconcerting, the scheming characters and brilliant worldbuilding make this a worthy sequel.

I enjoy the Amber books, but they've been car fodder for me for years due to the audio editions that were put out and recently reissued. Zelazny reads his own work, which is a mixed bag, although you quickly adjust to his idiosyncratic delivery. It might jar initially, however. This edition is abridged, which is unfortunate, but it's a decent abridgement. The actual writing is good. Zelazny leaves some holes in his plotting, but it's a classic adventure story with a truly original world concept at its center. And it's perfect for listening to while driving, because it's not a particularly complicated tale. One of my favorite audio books.

With The Guns of Avalon, Roger Zelazny creates his second installment in his fantasy series, The Amber Chronicles. The main character, Corwin is still a tobacco-smoking muscled sumbitch, but I'll be darned if the guy isn't growing on me by inches. He doesn't say "dig" anymore, which I didn't dig. This helps.

Corwin lived and ruled in Avalon, a shadow world, until a duel with his brother Eric left him incapacitated. Centuries later, the battle with Eric continues. At the moment of his supposed destruction, he unleashes a curse on Amber. Corwin has been imprisoned for five years in the dungeons of Amber. He escapes and plots his revenge, only to discover his own curse horrifyingly present in the world.

Zelazny's work borrows from Arthurian tradition, and from the medieval French chansons de geste as he develops his characters. Those introduced to the Chronicles include his brother the warmaster Benedict (who is now the Protector of shadow-Avalon); and his exiled former councilor named Ganelon, now much older, and much changed. Two love interests, Lorraine the prophetess, and the mysterious Dara, provide romantic distraction and not a little confusion for Corwin.

The concept of the shadow world of the Platonic forms still provides the force of Zelazny's theory of magic behind The Chronicles. It is a fascinating thought: if a person could manipulate the shadows, isn't that what we mere mortals would consider "magic"? Ganelon refers to Corwin as a sorcerer and a devil, and a god, probably for good reason. The Amberites (the name given Corwin and his siblings) still communicate, and occasionally move through the universe, using a deck of Tarot cards, presumably drawn by an insane old man called Dworkin.

The writing is solid, with a few descriptive passages that stand out as truly excellent. The book is not embarrassing, as I found moments of his Nine Princes in Amber; still, it is a boilerplate fantasy novel with stock characters, and doesn't rise exceptionally above the genre in any way. I keep hoping for that moment of transcendence in Zelazny's writing. Guns of Avalon has me curious enough about the story read more, but still hoping for greater character development. I will continue to the third novel of the Chronicles, Sign of the Unicorn just for kicks, and let you know what I think.

Having failed in his first attempt to capture the crown of Amber from his brother, the usurper Eric, and languished eyeless in a dungeon for four years, Corwin has regained his sight, escaped, and is on the road to recovery - and vengeance. He makes his way to the country of Lorraine - sharp-eyed readers should be cognizant by this point if not well before that Zelazny is an aficionado of medieval and renaissance literature and history - and meets a wounded knight, Lancelot. Lance interestingly enough doesn't go on to figure in the story too much (one of those cute tricks RZ likes to pull), but his lord Ganelon does. Corwin you see had once left Ganelon in what was then a godforsaken place, but Ganelon is nearly as resourceful as an Amberite and has made it his own.

But he's in a spot of trouble. There's a black circle growing and breeding foul things, monsters that nobody before Corwin has been able to stop - and Corwin soon finds that the black patch spreads not just over ground, but through shadow. By the time he reaches his destination, Avalon - now accompanied by Ganelon who once lived there - he knows that it is his own handiwork, the product of a curse he bestowed when blinded. But despite the evil that it spawns, he still dreams only of overthrowing his brother - even if he has to lie to and betray Benedict, one of his few decent siblings, to do it. While staying with this brother and plotting his revenge through the use of a gunpowder that will ignite in Amber (normal firearms and explosives don't work there) he becomes enamored of Dara, who claims to be a distant descendant of his brother - a little incest doesn't stop these godlike men - and another level of intrigue is created, as it soon becomes clear that Dara is...what? Who?

More brothers, more battles, more court intrigue, a growing danger that may actually threaten to unite a notoriously fractious family; this is where the Chronicles of Amber really starts to take shape for what it is, a massive single story of an unhealthy and all-powerful family of immortals, all vying with each other for the power at the head of the family and in fact the whole universe - with some apparently willing to risk complete destruction to lord it over all. Zelazny melds the intrigues of Shakespeare and the powers and aspects of Celtic, Teutonic and occasional Greek mythologies expertly, and lightly. There are depths if you want to find them, but the book works just as well on a shallower, purely entertainment level. Mostly it's action and suspense with a magical backdrop, and for me at least, it's hard to step away from once I've started it again.

As I noted in my comments on Nine Princes in Amber , the Amber quintet is really one large novel, with each part ending on something like a cliffhanger. This one and the next between them finish introducing nearly all the characters and give one a good idea of where the plot is going, but none of them (apart from the first) should be read singly. If you happen on old paperbacks (I love the old Avons from the late 70s with the black covers and the sort of Deco-inspired art) rather than getting one of the compendium volumes, make sure you go through them in order!

I liked this one even more than the first. The ending was certainly a cliffhanger!! As the family ties become more convoluted, I am even more fascinated. The magic of Amber is clearer now, but still absolutely unique. I am quite intrigued as this one did not end at all as I had predicted.

Guns of Avalon is a truly worthy sequel to the Nine Princes of Amber. What makes this book so fun is Zelazny tells his tale in a completely different tenor and tone then the first book. In the first book we had no idea what was going on. We were as lost as the main character is through out the book. In this novel the main Character, Corwin, is more aware of events and so we are allowed, as the reader, to be more aware of events.

I think it is a remarkable coincidence that I had just picked up "The Fabric of Reality" by David Deutsch just prior to reading this novel and it is remarkable how well Deutshe's theory of Multiverses fits into the Amber Chronicles. Don't get me wrong. I am not one of those people who wish to make their favorite fantasy into reality, but thinking scientifically while reading a classic fantasy yarn was very enjoyable.

A worthy sequel to Nine Princes of Amber. Please make sure you read Nine Princes of Amber first. It will make this novel much more approachable. This, and most of Zelazny's novels, are usually out of print. It would be worthwhile to attempt to get a copy of this book either through Amazon's out print book search or your local used books store. Good luck.