Merlin's Bones [Mass Market Paperback]

Fred Saberhagen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 1996

In post-Arthurian England, ten-year old Amby and the troupe of traveling players he belongs to are on the run from a conqueror.  He has been gifted with second-sight, and when the troupe stumbles upon an unoccupied castle he is the only one in the group who senses the power that lies within the stone building. In the near future, the Fisher King, Mordred and Morgan le Fay seek to gain control of Dr. Elaine Brusen’s hypostater, a machine capable of altering fundamental reality. 

Both Amby and Elaine are unwittingly drawn into a power struggle that spans centuries and spills into the realm of fairy and beyond.  Saberhagen reworks Arthurian legend and puts Arthur’s survival, the succession of New Camelot and Merlin’s bones on the line with an exciting blend of romance, danger and adventure.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Proving that there's still abundant life in the oft-told Arthurian legends, Saberhagen's (The Book of Swords) reworking weaves together distant past, near future and fairy realm into a compelling and intriguing whole. In the past, a troupe of travelling players is being pursued by a rampaging conqueror. Amby, the youngest of the novel's several narrators, uses his powers of second sight to his advantage as he and his fellow travelers enter the fortress protecting the bones of the recently deceased sorcerer, Merlin. In the near future, Dr. Elaine Brusen is confronted with the Fisher King, Morgan Le Fay and Mordred, all of whom want control of her hypostator machine, a device capable of altering fundamental reality. Elaine must follow her own twisting road, through the realm of fairy and beyond, if she is to remain safe and find true love. The ensuing battles for Arthur's survival, Merlin's bones, the succession of New Camelot and Elaine's heart prove both suspenseful and delightful. Saberhagen's narrative juggling is dazzling and imbues the novel's many paradoxes with an elusive grace. (The Tennyson lines on Elaine's computer terminal add a particularly lyrical touch.)
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Dr. Elaine Brusen's research into the nature of time and space opens a gateway connecting the 21st century with England's post-Arthurian Dark Ages. This creates a nexus of magical energy that centers on the resting place of one of legendary history's most powerful individuals. Veteran sf and fantasy author Saberhagen (Seance for a Vampire, LJ 5/15/94) juxtaposes the perils of a wandering troupe of medieval actors, a Viking warrior's holy quest, the legend of the Fisher King, and a modern scientist's search for the ultimate truth to create an intoxicating blend of romance, adventure, danger, and time-travel. Most libraries should acquire this title.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Tor Fantasy; First Edition edition (May 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812533496
• ISBN-13: 978-0812533491
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,189,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Jumbled Mess, June 13, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Merlin's Bones (Mass Market Paperback)

I have had this one on my bookshelf for a while, and I now regret pulling it down. As I was reading the last 100 pages of the 350 in the book, I wondered how Mr. Saberhagen was going to resolve so much with the remaining space. This created the fear that there would be the requirement for a sequel. Worse than that, though, was the reality that the author attempted to resolve certain things with a sentence or paragraph. The overall feeling I was left with was that Mr. Saberhagen produced an outline for an arc, got in the middle of it and decided it was something that he didn't want to do. Thus, we get the one book abridged version. The most interesting character, the Fisher King, who is huge in the first 100 pages is nowhere to be found in the last sections. Argh.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Solid but not magical, December 13, 2001

By 

Michael E. Brown (Durham, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Merlin's Bones (Hardcover)

I agree with the reviewer who praised Saberhagen's ability to juggle plots and multiple storylines but criticized the author's ability to end his books satisfactorily. That's the case here. FS sets the stage and introduces the characters quite skillfully (though he has a medieval character referring to a 'sandwich') and stage-manages the action with aplomb.

But but but. FS really loves time-warps and time-bends, having characters disappear and reappear in other guises, and this story is lousy with them. To the point that he seems to be indulging himself with unhknotting these little puzzles he's created. As with his Dracula books, when Merlin's not around, you find yourself waiting for him to arrive.

The triple-climax in the last 50 pages kind of goes all over the place and the Northman who narrates part of the story in the book's latter half disappears completely--did he die? Wha' happened?

Sturdily constructed but not magical.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant, but jumbled Arthur/Merlin tale, September 7, 1998

By 

John Riedl (Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Merlin's Bones (Mass Market Paperback)

Saberhagen produces a brilliant, exciting version of the Arthurian legend, with technology, magic, and time-travel mixed together fantastically. The book feels unfinished, with the many rough edges making the incredible twists and turns of the plot even harder to follow. However, it is an incredibly creative version of the story, and some of the plot twists are very satisfying.