Rating: 
Summary: Read en re-read this book.
Review: I read this book some years ago and was very pleased to notice that it recently has been translated in dutch, so I could recommand it to friends. I read the mahjipoor chronicles too en hope to find the other books about mahjipoor.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastyc...
Review: I recently picked up "Lord Valentine's Castle" in a used book store, and was very pleasantly surprised. This book is at least as good as (although stylistically different from) the works of Robert Jordan, L.E. Modesitt, and the other leading lights of contemporary fantasy fiction. Author Robert Silverberg writes with a texture reminiscent of such diverse works as the Wizard of Oz books, Lovecraft's "Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath", Zelazny's "Lords of Light", and Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "Kubla Khan". Silverberg also pays homage to Robert Heinlein with the title character Lord Valentine, whose name (among other things) is an allusion to "Stranger in a Strange Land".If you like high fantasy, or any of the books or stories noted above, please give "Lord Valentine's Castle" a try. One sentence of caution: the protagonist begins this novel in an amnesic state of zen detachment, and his character and relationships build gradually. I put the book down after 10 pages on the first occasion I tried to read it (about a decade ago). Persevere -- it's well worth the effort. Besides, since "Lord Valentine's Castle" was written in 1979, there's already 20 years of sequels published and waiting for you!
Rating:
Summary: Fantastyc...
Review: I recently picked up "Lord Valentine's Castle" in a used book store, and was very pleasantly surprised. This book is at least as good as (although stylistically different from) the works of Robert Jordan, L.E. Modesitt, and the other leading lights of contemporary fantasy fiction. Author Robert Silverberg writes with a texture reminiscent of such diverse works as the Wizard of Oz books, Lovecraft's "Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath", Zelazny's "Lords of Light", and Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "Kubla Khan". Silverberg also pays homage to Robert Heinlein with the title character Lord Valentine, whose name (among other things) is an allusion to "Stranger in a Strange Land". If you like high fantasy, or any of the books or stories noted above, please give "Lord Valentine's Castle" a try. One sentence of caution: the protagonist begins this novel in an amnesic state of zen detachment, and his character and relationships build gradually. I put the book down after 10 pages on the first occasion I tried to read it (about a decade ago). Persevere -- it's well worth the effort. Besides, since "Lord Valentine's Castle" was written in 1979, there's already 20 years of sequels published and waiting for you!
Rating:
Summary: Grand Majipoor
Review: It's hard do agree if this is mostly a work of science fiction or fantasy. I think "Lord Valentine's castle" is more in the fantasy realm, but Silverberg accomplished, in this acclaimed book, a great blend of both. The story, the names, the characters, all have a big resemblance to Tolkien's work, but Majipoor is a world that stands on its own. The story is simple, a quest in fact: Valentine "wakes up" as a thirty-year-old man whose past is misty and pratically lost. In Majipoor, a giant planet, metal-poor, and home to more than 20 billion people of diverse races (humans and aliens), Valentine travels hundreds of thousands of miles, gathering interesting characters around him, trying to disclose who he was, and what has been stolen from him. Many other reviewers state that Valentine's quest has little and simple difficulties, and that's right. His group has many problems along the way, but every time they resolve it quickly and thoroughly. I think the main feature Silverberg accomplished in this work is to present Majipoor and its people. The governing system, the grandness of scale, the unusual situations and most of the characters are really interesting, and the reader can't help but like them, in one way or another. But sometimes, due to the number of characters existing on the story, some of them disappear for many pages, only to come back again, in minor passages, as if the author suddenly remembered about them. The only thing that doesn't fit is the lenght of the book. Suddenly, it's all over. Silverberg could have developed the last two chapters of the book in a more complete fashion, adding another couple of hundred pages, and the book wouldn't be too long. Anyway, this is one of the best ideas I've come along regarding fantasy/sci-fi. Great reading. Grade 9.0/10
Rating:
Summary: Hate Fantasy-fiction loved this book, must be good!!!
Review: Like me this may be the one fantasy fiction
book you enjoy reading, imaginative, original,
compelling, actually would make a great movie
Rating:
Summary: Fantasy and Sci-Fi
Review: Lord Valentine's Castle is one of my favorite Sci/Fi Fantasy novels I've read. It has its feet firmly planted in both genres and also dabbles in mystery. The book follows a young blond man, Valentine who shares the name of the Coronal but has very little of his memory save for his name. Valentine joins up with a circus, learns to juggle (and oh how I wanted to learn after reading this book) and ultimately discovers the truth of his past!
Rating:
Summary: Just fun.
Review: Lord's Valentine castle is not one of the best fantasy book, It is not including aspiring dogma`s or bright ideas, it's only target is to give great pleasure to the reader, and THATS what it does. I took great pleasure from reading this book, very recommended for fantasy reader, just don't expect to find nothing but a really good story.
Rating:
Summary: Carefully Developed and Well Thought Out
Review: Majipoor is a big place - a really, REALLY, big place; and Robert Silverberg has peopled it with a diverse and intriguing population of non-humans and humans. In this first novel set in that world (with a Science Fiction History but an essentially Fantasy present); Silverberg takes you on an exciting, fast-paced trek through its diverse environs. Although only Valentine is well-developed, the characters are certainly sympathetic and the storyline is quite engrossing. The sheer diversity of the planet, and the thoughtful way in which Silverberg has layed out the planet's history and social geography, make this a fun and thought-provoking read. If they are not there already, _Lord Valentine's Castle_ and the world of Majipoor are destined for "classic" status. It is deserved. They are both well worth the time that you will spend exploring them.
Rating: 
Summary: Well developed environment, poorly developed characters
Review: Majipoor, the world in which this story takes place, seems well thought out and has the potential to be an environment for a good sci-fi adventure. Unfortunately, there is too much time spent describing the vegetation and beauty of Majipoor, and very little time describing the characters. Some characters travel with the group through the whole book, and we don't know any more about them at the end than we did after the paragraph in which they were introduced. The juggling was also overdone a bit. Caught in a sticky situation, the group only has to whip out their juggling balls and knives and after a mesmorizing juggling performance the hostile enemies are suddenly overjoyed and ready to do whatever the group commands. If this only happened once in the book it would only seem a little hokey, but more than once and it became annoying. Only through great determination and will power(and since i can't leave something unfinished) was i able to drudge my way to the anticlimatic ending. My only hope is that others will read this and it may prevent someone else from wasting precious time suffering in Majipoor.
Rating:
Summary: Some of the best science fiction ever written
Review: No flowery superlatives can even come close to describing the majesty of this novel. The original and still the best, Silverberg has created not just a tale, but a memorable world. One can immerse themselves in Silverberg's masterful universe, and by the time the reader reaches the third novel, he is comfortable with it, and feels as if he is reuniting with an old friend. Silverberg is a genius.
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