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dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
Merlin continues to search for his father, Corwin, and Mask, the mysterious usurper of the Keep of Four Worlds who is someone from Merlin's past, and Coral, Oberon's illegitimate child who dissappeared after walking the Pattern in the previous book. Along the way, he learns of the way of the Broken Pattern, nabs the Jewel of Judgement, and encounters Pattern Ghosts. Just what do mysterious forces have in store for Merlin?
As I said in my review of the previous volume, the second Chronicles of Amber suffer from sequel-itis more than anything else. While Merlin's quest is interesting, I'd like it a lot more if I didn't have Corwin's tale to compare it to. All of the Broken Patterns and Pattern Ghosts are over-explaining the Pattern and destroying some of its mystery. And when is Merlin going to walk the Pattern Corwin wove at the end of the last Amber saga?
So many questions and I have a feeling not all of them will be answered in book ten. Oh well, time to boat this bass. On to the thrilling conclusion!
As I said in my review of the previous volume, the second Chronicles of Amber suffer from sequel-itis more than anything else. While Merlin's quest is interesting, I'd like it a lot more if I didn't have Corwin's tale to compare it to. All of the Broken Patterns and Pattern Ghosts are over-explaining the Pattern and destroying some of its mystery. And when is Merlin going to walk the Pattern Corwin wove at the end of the last Amber saga?
So many questions and I have a feeling not all of them will be answered in book ten. Oh well, time to boat this bass. On to the thrilling conclusion!
bkoser's review against another edition
3.0
I was less interested in this (4th out of 5 in the second Amber series). My thoughts on the series will depend largely on the last book, I think.
koshpeli's review against another edition
3.0
Slower and more confusing
This one dragged a lot. I didn’t like that just about the time a lot of the mysteries of the previous books were being sewn up, he introduced some more questions. Then before answering those questions, he throws in a totally different and weird subplot. I guess it may be setting things up for the last book, but I found my self putting the book down and avoiding picking it back up. I finally muscled through. The last quarter gets back to the main plots and more action, but again in weird ways.
Sometimes it feels like Zelazny just didn’t know how to keep suspense going so he just throws in a weird unrelated event. I’m also totally perplexed by Marion’s relationship to Luke. It’s painfully obvious that Luke has been manipulating events but Melon doesn’t seem to care. In fact, I think if Luke cut Merlin’s head off and killed his whole family, Merlin would be like “Dude, that’s so you. Anyway, I brought you a rare vintage of wine to celebrate your mass murder. I wish I could figure out why you killed me but now that I’m dead, here’s a nuclear bomb so you can destroy the universe!”
This one dragged a lot. I didn’t like that just about the time a lot of the mysteries of the previous books were being sewn up, he introduced some more questions. Then before answering those questions, he throws in a totally different and weird subplot. I guess it may be setting things up for the last book, but I found my self putting the book down and avoiding picking it back up. I finally muscled through. The last quarter gets back to the main plots and more action, but again in weird ways.
Sometimes it feels like Zelazny just didn’t know how to keep suspense going so he just throws in a weird unrelated event. I’m also totally perplexed by Marion’s relationship to Luke. It’s painfully obvious that Luke has been manipulating events but Melon doesn’t seem to care. In fact, I think if Luke cut Merlin’s head off and killed his whole family, Merlin would be like “Dude, that’s so you. Anyway, I brought you a rare vintage of wine to celebrate your mass murder. I wish I could figure out why you killed me but now that I’m dead, here’s a nuclear bomb so you can destroy the universe!”
peapod_boston's review against another edition
3.0
Penultimate of the Merlin books and one of the weaker entries. Large portions of it are taken up by an admittedly allegorical contest that, while sparking some interesting imagery, largely consists of Merlin running on a set of rails. The one really bright spark is a confrontation in the halls of Amber that does some serious damage to the local architecture. Adequate for what it is, but not Zelazny's best effort.
dretnanich's review
adventurous
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Good, classic, escapist reading. I read this series in 80s and 90s and still enjoyed them while now noticing the writing style of the era.
anaximand's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
nithou's review
5.0
Un tome génial qui commence à clôturer la saga en beauté et laisse sur un cliffhanger extrêmement intriguant.