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Summary: Best Vacation I Ever Had...
Review: was in Amber. Yes, I skip the shadow walks, and actually my crush is on Dara, Benedict's daughter with the Hellmaid. This is how immersive these books are! Every couple of years I take a vacation to Amber... good friends, I end up liking Julian at the end, I wish I was as cool as Corwin ( no one is, ya know!)... get these books now! Now! NOW!
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Summary: My Review
Review: I read the first Amber series when I was 14, thinking it would be a simple sword and sorcery tale. By the time I had finished it, I was literally in tears...I couldn't believe my adventure with Corwin was over. Now I am 31 and rereading the first series from this volume and looking forward to the second. The most wonderful thing is how deep you become immersed over time. The potential for emotional involvement on the part of the reader is extremely high for a work of fantasy. The first book, Nine Princes in Amber, is a fun introduction, but you are soon given entry into a much more complicated situation than you were expecting. The changes and new information are always intriguing. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking a involved and unique fantasy adventure.
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Summary: A classic series from one of the masters
Review: Even though I have all of the books, I still had to order this one (to lend to my impoverished friends). I agree that the ending left a lot of holes and could have been better (maybe he was planning for more, we'll never know). And yes, I also skipped most of the shadowwalks. There is a rumor there might be a movie which is a bit of a worry (especially in the casting). Maybe a miniseries would do more justice or too much would be cut. It doesn't matter how many times you read the books, you'll always find something new. Oh, and Fiona is popular as she has the most character development (or cos she's a redhead)
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Summary: Great fiction, rotten editing
Review: My one complaint with this edition is the large number of mistakes - mis-spelled words, entire words that are wrong, etc. It really messes up the suspension-of-disbelief when you have to puzzle out what a word is supposed to be.
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Summary: First five books are classics -don't read them, worship them
Review: I went though an obsessive Amber phase a couple of years ago having devoured the first five books of this series. It got so bad that friends (who hadn't yet read the series) complained of harrassment - with some justification - I did everything but hold a gun to their heads. And I only refrained from doing that because guns are illegal over here. However, their reaction once initiated proves the old adage that there's no greater zealot than the converted. The superlatives, however, relate to the first series. I was intensely disappointed with the second series - not because it was all that bad (it was actually quite a lot better than most fantasy I've read recently), but because it didn't reach up to the standards of the first (difficult, I know). The fault probably lies with the simple fact that Merlin is a much less interesting character than Corwin is - and that's an understatement. He's one of those cardboard fantasy characters who become too powerful to be interesting. A lot of the attraction of the first five books lies in Corwin's complexity - neither a complete hero nor villain - and the fact that he is far from the most powerful, or even the most devious character around (although he's pretty damn good). Also, the ending to the second series has a tacked on feel, so much so that I wasn't completely sure that it was the end, and the plot is less coherent. That said, even the second five books are still well worth reading for a welcome return to Amber. And it would be very difficult to top Corwin - as any straight, red-blooded female would agree... P.S. Question: This will probably reflect really badly on me as a discerning reader - but does anyone else skip the travelling through shadow bits because they're too impatient to get back to the story? Also, why is it that so many blokes have crushes on Fiona (not that I can talk, having a soft spot for Mander)?
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Summary: Together at last
Review: It's great that the Amber series is finally all in one volume. The only better fantasy series is the Lord of the Rings, and the Amber books are an easier and more involving read. The books are about the royal families of the universes which underlie all other realities. Family plotting, escapades, wars, and love interests involving play out smoothly, revealing layer after layer of detail over time. Plots, counterplots are everywhere; motivations both base and lofty keep the characters complex and involving. The central characters (Corwin, a prince of Amber, and his sorcerer son, Merlin, a prince of Chaos) have powers far above human, yet they and their families' foibles are all too human and easy to sympathize with. This is an examination of power and influence far removed from the human world, although our modern (and sometimes historical) Earth figures prominently in the tales. As is typical with Zelazny, deep, intelligent characters, smart dialog, brilliant and innovative use of language, and unmatched flights of imagination abound. Amber is a true original, quite different from any of its predecessors, and is the perfect example of epic fantasy with a modern twist. Its enormous plot, scope, and characters simply are as good as fantasy gets.
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Summary: Fantastic Story......Is it over yet?
Review: I read the first five books many, many years ago, and I loved them. The story just grabbed you from the very beginning and I was enthralled. I finally was able to read all 10 last year, and I loved every single minute of it....until the last 30 pages of Book 10. It seemed like the author had finally bored himself with this fantastic series and just wanted a quick ending, without answering a lot of the mysteries and questions that surrounded this unique story. The ending was very hollow and I felt unsatisfied after having read the whole series. Every time I would go to the book store, I would search for an 11th book, because I couldn't believe that Zelazney would end the series with that half-hearted attempt. However, with all that said, the story is truly worth reading - it is amazing and takes you places you could only dream of. The treachery among the siblings just adds to the rich story telling of this series - don't be discouraged with the ending - the rest of the book is amazing.
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Summary: Great Book of Amber really is!
Review: This book was recommended to me by a friend, and I would continue that recommendation to anyone. This is a great book, one that will keep you busy for a good while, even if you're a fast reader. The author does a good job of keeping your interest alive, and keeping you guessing as to what's really going on. Even though this is a fantasy book, not a mystery, it has enough twists and turns and surprises to satisfy anywone.
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Summary: All this greatness in just one place!
Review: Zelazny's Amber books are rich, well thought out character studies under fantastic situations. From the first page, your sucked in, not understanding whats going on, nothing is spoonfed to the reader, you get to discover the world along with Corwin (later Merlin) it's a very engrossing style that used to really irk me when I finished a book and had to wait for the next one to be published, now, just turn the page... not even a need to go to the shelf.... how grand! Now I can keep my old paperbacks out of fondness but without the need to abuse them with my reading in bed and whatnot.... Without a doubt, my favorite series of books... Theres a lot of life lessons about loyalty, friendship, trust and distrust to make this a great book to give someone you know who is in the proper frame of mind, In fact, i know a 13 year old who just discovered Ray Bradbury... so i think I'm gonna slip him this anthology, and later a little early Harlan Ellison.
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Summary: A walk in the Shadows
Review: This book is your passport to the real world, of which all others are reality-warped Shadows. From the moment strong, handsome Corwin awakens in a hospital, amnesic and possessed of strange powers, the plot kicks into high gear. On pure instinct and bluff he bulls his way into a wild hell-ride towards the ultimate reality, regaining his name and pride along the way. In Amber, the capitol of the real world, Corwin's brother Eric reigns uneasily, wondering when Corwin will return for revenge. Corwin falls easily into his brothers' eternal and unchanging round of wars and plots, but with a difference: years on the Shadow called Earth have taught him humility and humanity, and tempered his pride with wisdom. After centuries of youth he is becoming a man at last and fit to rule, but can anyone without the lost secrets of King Oberon or his wizard Dworkin keep the throne against the dark forces of Chaos? Corwin must unite his kingdom and conquer his own internal chaos in order to survive, and possibly to save the universe. The second series follows Corwin's son Merlin, whose approach to magic is completely different from Corwin's due to his upbringing in the Courts of Chaos. Merlin must find his father and understand what lies beneath reality in order to save Amber and Chaos alike. The books are filled with strange beauty and eerie magic, as playing cards talk and prisoners escape into pictures, and with amazing ideas and places, cities in the sky and undersea. This is vintage Zelazny, and some of the best; almost impossible to describe. Anyone who's never read these books is in for a treat, and for those who have it's a great chance to get them all together and read them again. It's a long hellride to the brink of Chaos. Better get started soon.
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