Rating: 
Summary: An outstanding read.
Review: This book is a must read for any true fantasy Fan. This is one of the best books I have read in years (and I read alot.) I wish it hadn't taken me so many years to discover Micheal Moorcock, I feel as if I have been missing what true Fantasy is all about.
Rating: 
Summary: Seminal Ideas Written With Modest Skill
Review: This book is the first in a new and ongoing omnibus publication of Michael Moorcook's fantasy fiction, centering around his seminal presentation of the "Eternal Champion" and the alternating realities of the "Multiverse." These concepts have continued to influence fantasy writers to the present, including, most recently, Robert Jordan's adoption of a comparitive framework for his "Wheel of Time" series. A major figure in the 60's and 70's, especially in the UK, Moorcook is noted for his innovative exploration and incorporation of metaphysics as well as ideas more commonly associated with science fiction than fantasy. The stories contained herein were all originally published between 1962 and 1970, and while some have since undergone revision, the quality of writing typifies much of the work produced during that period, both in fantasy and in science fiction. Conceptually pregnant, the narrative devotes much of its energy to the expression and exploration of ideas, or the description of imaginary landscapes and populations that could be accused as flights of fancy for invention's sake. The work is weak when in comes to characterization, sense of place, or providing background for the development of the narrative. The style of writing seems almost undeveloped and dated when compared to the narrative and descriptive powers present in some of the better contemporary work available. Or perhaps it is simply that Moorcock is more interested in the expression of the abstract than in the grounding of his notions in good storytelling. I am somewhat unclear as to the inclusion of "The Sundered Worlds" in this volume. Not only is it the weakest story by far of the four, with a plot that is disjointed and moves from one event to the next with little supporting logic, but it is clearly a tale of science fiction set in the future amid more traditional tales of sword and sworcery, and only tenously linked to the latter by reference to the multiverse. Further, it indulges in some of the worst excesses of science fiction fancy, replete with creatures that could inhabit the worst of Harryhausen's B-movie efforts. By itself this confused adrift in space rates only a single star. The three other tales - "The Eternal Champion," "Phoenix in Obsidian," and "To Rescue Tanelorn" - are all traditional sword and sorcery fare notable for their exploration of the notions of an often reluctant hero doomed to repeat his life forever in various incarnations within the alternate realities of Moorcock's multiverse. And though he wears the mantle of a champion, the causes he fights for are not always of his choosing. All three tales - the last a short story - in varying degrees exhibit the lack of strong narrative skills noted above, but remain, nonetheless, intriguing in their conceptual content. The strength of these ideas ameliorates somewhat the lack of prose skills in their rendering. I would have to say, as far as this book, that for historical interest it is worth a look. However, in terms of narrative power the stories are never fully realised and remain, unfortunately for all the promise of their ideas, largely stillborn.
Rating:
Summary: You might want to ask questions about yourself
Review: This book might put you in a philosophical mood and make your question your value. The story itself is great, but its presentation could be better. I've read the book without putting it down. Several realms are presented with a common line through all of them. This is a big story with multiple storylines, and they all make sense in the later works by Michael. I think you'll enjoy it.
Rating: 
Summary: Imaginative, but not very immersive
Review: This is the first book I've read by Moorcock, so I don't know much about him, but as a fantasy author he ranks up with some of my favorites. I'll continue into the series if only to delve deeper into his imagination; Moorcock's character development is seriously lacking, IMO, and at times it moves far too quickly for my taste. I never really felt any of the characters fleshed out, even the main character. Moorcock weaves a lot of philosophies and opinions into his books (this one, and I've heard others), and new ideas that I find thought-provoking, but that is probably my main reason for reading. The book itself doesn't draw me in as other fantasy authors have managed to do.
Rating:
Summary: Great read.
Review: This review is for only the story "The Eternal Champion" Moorcock wrote this story in less than a week when he was seventeen and it is the only one by him written in first person (at least that I know of). The story is simple: A man called to champion the human race in a war against ?the evil Eldrin? finds that the Eldrin are not evil at all; that the evil is all a projection of humanity?s own shortcomings. The hero then betrays humankind and champions the Eldrin. In the Eldrin he finds kindness, dignity, restraint, spirituality, and beauty (all the things seventeen year old men want, but lack in adolescence). In the end the very qualities of humanity he detests (anger, revenge, myopia, self interest) overtake him and he launches a genocide against mankind. The story is told in broad strokes, and the writing is inconsistent; weak at times, strong at others. But the magic of this story is seeing how Moorcock?s young mind is trying to come to grips with really powerful ideas. Most of the struggles in our life are actually quite simple: who am I; what do I believe; to whom am I loyal and why; how do I reconcile what I want be with who I actually am; what does my choice of enemies say about me; how well do I really understand my enemies; etc... In the end the hero is not Eldrin (whom he admires), he is human (what he detests),and so he ends up all alone in the middle (again an adolescent fantasy: I refuse to be like the world, but I fail to be what I want, and therefore I am nowhere and all alone...). This may all sound simple, but compared to much of the sci-fi/fantasy claptrap out there this is Dostoyevsky by comparison. And Moorcock is brilliant at filling in a fantasy world, and keeping the narration at high speed. This is a sparse tale; not a lot of wasted words here. What is left unsaid is equally important as what is said. This book is not a complex masterpiece. It is a simple, yet competent work by a young brilliant author just realizing his skill in story telling and thought. In the end the simplicity is betrayed by an honest existential sadness. I first read this book in sixth grade twenty years ago and have read it several times since. Each time I like this tale more. Great short read. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorites.... A good read.
Review: Very well done. I have read many of the Moorcock compilation books and liked this one very much. While I liked the Elric saga, I think that Erekose is a more tragic hero. A very good read.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible concepts!
Review: What isn't so obvious about The Sundered Worlds, which is admittedly a bit rough, is how many things it actually predicted which are now at the leading edge of scientific exploration. Moorcock predicted BLACK HOLES in this book, long before the scientists identified them. Rough and ready Quantum Mechanics! He predicted the physical idea of the MULTIVERSE, which is currently being examined and described in magazines like Scientific American and Nature and which has been used as a convenient plot device by sf writers, script writers and comix writers ever since! The Eternal Champion and The Sundered Worlds are almost the crude templates from which an enormous amount of imaginative fiction -- and scientific ideas -- have developed! These days, Moorcock is taken for granted, but anyone who writes fantasy or science fiction is likely to be using an idea which he first proposed. I'm an old academic technophile who years ago picked The Sundered Worlds up in a garish pulp format, thought the writing was a little crude, but was astonished at the intellect revealed. These ideas preceded most scientific speculation, let alone the scientific realities! It is maybe ironic that those 'New Wave' writers like Ellison, Ballard and Disch, for instance, have actually made far more accurate predictions than the vaunted technical sf writers like Clarke, Heinlein and Asimov. You need more than an engineering degree to get a real instinct for the world of tomorrow! Metaphysics, astrophysics and advanced physics move closer and closer together. Like Clarke, Moorcock has an almost Biblical sense of Creation (and a Creator, even) and shares Oppenheimer's almost mystical grasp of physics -- but it is a pretty good grasp of physics and his rapid absorption of Chaos math has made his speculative work increasingly coherent and constantly stimulating. Why he sits so awkwardly across the genres is that even in his fantasy stories Moorcock is advancing real ideas, examining real problems, considering real possibilities. This is a book anyone interested in the growth of the fantasy and science fiction genres should make essential reading.
Rating:
Summary: MOORCOCK ROCKS
Review: While I feel his writing has improved much since he wrote this book, The Eternal Champion is a great introduction to the themes and concepts of Michael Moorcocks rich and multi-layered Multiverse. He is perhaps the most metaphysical fantasy writer of our time, proposing ideas that, if nothing else, make you examine your own perspective on good and evil and the mechanics of time and space.
Rating: 
Summary: Read only if you are a fan
Review: While Phoenix in Obsidian is a nice stand-alone that has next to nothing to do with the rest of the book, it doesn't do enough to save the book from the large price tag. The other three stories are important stories in the Eternal Champion series. The Eternal Champion is the first novel written when Moorcock was 18. Besides a nice plot twist, it's not much more than a standard Sword and Sorcery fantasy indistinguishable from hundreds of others. The Sundered Lands has a little more depth to it, but that only means that you can't give it the benefit of the doubt that you can give to The Eternal Champion. It has too many elements of other Moorcock books so you recognize every part from a better book. And To Rescue Tanelorn is a slight story indeed, only there to introduce the reader to Tanelorn which shows up in many other Moorcock books. All in all, this is a great book to familiarize yourself with teh concept of The Eternal Champion, Tanelorn and even the black blade, but it's definitely not the first Moorcock book you should buy. Unless you are already a fan, you will not be impressed. Read Elric or Corum or Hawkmoon if you want a good introductory Moorcock book.
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