You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
More Elric...and I sadly don't have much else to say. If my previous reviews were of any indication, my experience with Elric has been one of hits and misses. This one was a miss. The most uninspired miss so far.
I think I now understand my issues with some of the former volumes: reading one or two Elric tales is fine, deciding to read many of them, one after the other, reveals many of their flaws. You get tired of... everything. I wasn't attracted by any element of this volume and unlike the previous, more action-packed installment, this one bores me. Even at its time it must have been uncreative and mediocre. Elric at its best feels mythical and makes it all seem like an old tale being recited by a bard in some inn, something that draws you in and feels real despite that not being the case, which is what fantasy should be about in the first place. Elric at its worst is poorly aged penny dreadful sort of fiction, but written by someone with talent. Which makes you wonder why the hell would he waste it like that. Elric is not something you should read, but read about. Or read with low expectations. Stormbringer better be fucking good because I can't believe how disappointing this journey has been.
Also what's up with the female characters? Dude, have you ever been with women in real life? Why does EVERY female character want to fuck Elric so hard seconds only after meeting him? I keep imagining them all looking the same, same cloths and all, and it just hit me that maybe Moorcock didn't put any effort. Like, those swan... eagle creatures from the previous volumes seemed to have more effort, what's going on man?
I think I now understand my issues with some of the former volumes: reading one or two Elric tales is fine, deciding to read many of them, one after the other, reveals many of their flaws. You get tired of... everything. I wasn't attracted by any element of this volume and unlike the previous, more action-packed installment, this one bores me. Even at its time it must have been uncreative and mediocre. Elric at its best feels mythical and makes it all seem like an old tale being recited by a bard in some inn, something that draws you in and feels real despite that not being the case, which is what fantasy should be about in the first place. Elric at its worst is poorly aged penny dreadful sort of fiction, but written by someone with talent. Which makes you wonder why the hell would he waste it like that. Elric is not something you should read, but read about. Or read with low expectations. Stormbringer better be fucking good because I can't believe how disappointing this journey has been.
Also what's up with the female characters? Dude, have you ever been with women in real life? Why does EVERY female character want to fuck Elric so hard seconds only after meeting him? I keep imagining them all looking the same, same cloths and all, and it just hit me that maybe Moorcock didn't put any effort. Like, those swan... eagle creatures from the previous volumes seemed to have more effort, what's going on man?
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed all of the four short stories, but the two in the middle were 5/5 and the first was just below that. I didn't really care for the Red Archer story so it drags it down a little. This is probably my favorite Elric book I've read since Fortress of the Pearl.
adventurous
fast-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:
Yes
Three of Elric's adventures, with an epilogue featuring Rackhir the Red Archer.
The first story, The Stealer of Souls, is the strongest in the set, wherein Elric, alongside a band of fellow Melniboneans, storm a castle. There are some really fun moments, along with treachery and tragedy.
In Kings in Darkness, Elric and friends become caught in an undead prophecy-mystery.
The Flame Bringers tells of Elric's endeavor to halt a marauding, eastern warlord. There are some grim moments, but it's also just too silly to hold any gravity.
Rackhir's story in the epilogue is just bizarre, and I'm really unsure why it's here. Tanelorn is under attack by a rabble of beggars, so Rackhir jumps through inter-dimensional gates in search of aid. The 'evil poor people' troupe is really silly and terrible, and this story just does not offer anything to make itself worth reading.
The first story, The Stealer of Souls, is the strongest in the set, wherein Elric, alongside a band of fellow Melniboneans, storm a castle. There are some really fun moments, along with treachery and tragedy.
In Kings in Darkness, Elric and friends become caught in an undead prophecy-mystery.
The Flame Bringers tells of Elric's endeavor to halt a marauding, eastern warlord. There are some grim moments, but it's also just too silly to hold any gravity.
Rackhir's story in the epilogue is just bizarre, and I'm really unsure why it's here. Tanelorn is under attack by a rabble of beggars, so Rackhir jumps through inter-dimensional gates in search of aid. The 'evil poor people' troupe is really silly and terrible, and this story just does not offer anything to make itself worth reading.
Mid. Fair bit of Men Writing Women, otherwise unremarkable prose which is disappointing for Moorcock since his language is so evocative and creative in other works. Elric’s character felt diminished with less internal conflict. Was excited to see Rackhir in the epilogue. New theory is that the quality of Elric stories (even if Elric himself is not in them) is directly correlated to the amount of time spent sailing/interacting with the sea. This one, unfortunately, was very landlocked.
Compiles several novellas from the original run, though there's better-value collections which bring more of them together and the three novellas here suffer a little from middle-episode syndrome - they aren't as startling a departure as Elric's debut, and don't have the apocalyptic tenor of Stormbringer. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/a-cure-for-conan/
Finally, a book that lives up to the promise of the first book of the Elric series.
This one starts out in the familiar way - broken up into a series of short stories. The first one shows us ELric dealing with the leftover troubles from the last book - this time our good friend the Sorcerer Theleb finally gets the death he richly deserves. This particular story was one of my favorites, where Elric teams up with his old friend the Dragon-Keeper from Melnibone and his band of surviving warriors - together they trick their way into an impregnable fortress and bring some justice to the evil Sorceror.
The second story was a real game changer - Elric rescues a princess from a jungle of horrors, but this time he actually sticks around and seems to fall in love with this princess. He even promises to give up his sword!
The third story is the "repercussion" story. Elric has settled down to married bliss, and stormbringer sits unused in the attic! But his new home is threatened by an oncoming horde, and Elric and Moonglum once again carry out a crazy plan to stop the horde. This time with the aid of the ancient dragons of Melnibone!
The last story is odd in that it doesn't actually feature Elric, but features a few characters from previous stories - crossing realms to find allies to rescue the fabled city of Tanelorn.
All in all a great read. Makes me sad that the series is coming to an end. Can Moorcock keep his quality to this level in the last book? Lets find out!
This one starts out in the familiar way - broken up into a series of short stories. The first one shows us ELric dealing with the leftover troubles from the last book - this time our good friend the Sorcerer Theleb finally gets the death he richly deserves. This particular story was one of my favorites, where Elric teams up with his old friend the Dragon-Keeper from Melnibone and his band of surviving warriors - together they trick their way into an impregnable fortress and bring some justice to the evil Sorceror.
The second story was a real game changer - Elric rescues a princess from a jungle of horrors, but this time he actually sticks around and seems to fall in love with this princess. He even promises to give up his sword!
The third story is the "repercussion" story. Elric has settled down to married bliss, and stormbringer sits unused in the attic! But his new home is threatened by an oncoming horde, and Elric and Moonglum once again carry out a crazy plan to stop the horde. This time with the aid of the ancient dragons of Melnibone!
The last story is odd in that it doesn't actually feature Elric, but features a few characters from previous stories - crossing realms to find allies to rescue the fabled city of Tanelorn.
All in all a great read. Makes me sad that the series is coming to an end. Can Moorcock keep his quality to this level in the last book? Lets find out!