''Blood of Amber'' is a

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

novel by American writer Roger Zelazny, published in 1986. It is the second book in the second '' Chronicles of Amber'' series, and the seventh book overall in the Amber series.

Plot summary

Merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and le ...

escapes from the crystal cave, and decides to gain leverage over Luke by rescuing his mother from the Keep of the Four Worlds. He spars with the sorcerer who now controls the keep, and who seems to know him. He escapes with the petrified Jasra, and returns to Amber where an unusual Trump summoning imprisons him in the

Mad Hatter The Hatter is a fictional character in Lewis Carroll's 1865 book ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' and its 1871 sequel ''Through the Looking-Glass''. He is very often referred to as the Mad Hatter, though this term was never used by Car ...

's tea party.

Release details

The book was published simultaneously in a limited edition of 400 signed and numbered copies, by Underwood/Miller and also a trade edition, by Arbor House.

References to other works

When Merlin first spies the Keep of the Four Worlds, he describes it as "an amazingly huge and complex structure, which I immediately christened Gormenghast". "Gormenghast" is the name of the sprawling, crumbling fortress from

Mervyn Peake Mervyn Laurence Peake (9 July 1911 – 17 November 1968) was an English writer, artist, poet, and illustrator. He is best known for what are usually referred to as the '' Gormenghast'' books. The four works were part of what Peake conceived ...

's Gormenghast trilogy.

Reception

Dave Langford David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'', and holds the all-time record for most ...

reviewed ''Blood of Amber'' for ''

White Dwarf A white dwarf is a stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very dense: its mass is comparable to the Sun's, while its volume is comparable to the Earth's. A white dwarf's faint luminosity comes fro ...

'' #97, and stated that "despite a few good wisecracks and neat ideas, Corey's plethora of powers can't revitalise the over-familiar Amber gimmickry and revenge plot".

Reviews

*Review by Debbie Notkin (1986) in '' Locus'', #307 August 1986 *Review by Laurel Anderson Tryforos (1986) in '' Fantasy Review'', October 1986 *Review by Don D'Ammassa (1986) in '' Science Fiction Chronicle'', #85 October 1986 *Review by John Gregory Betancourt (1987) in ''

Fantasy Book Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fan ...

'', March 1987 *Review by Tom Easton (1987) in ''

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact ''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...

'', July 1987 *Review by Graham Andrews (1987) in ''Paperback Inferno'', #69

References

Sources

External links

Blood of Amber
at Worlds Without End The Chronicles of Amber books 1986 fantasy novels Arbor House books {{1980s-fantasy-novel-stub