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13th out of 52 books
—
75 voters
The Hand of Oberon (The Chronicles of Amber #4)
Across the mysterious Black Road, demons swarm into Shadow. The ancient, secret source of the royal family's power is revealed, & an unholy pact between a prince of the realm & the forces of Chaos threaten all the known worlds with absolute obliteration. The hour of battle is at hand. Now Corwin & the remaining princes of Amber must call upon all their superhum...more
Mass Market Paperback, 188 pages
Published
June 1977
by Avon Books (NYC)
(first published 1976)
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...And on into the fourth book of The Chronicles of Amber. It's been a pleasant journey, as the series keeps getting better. (I started out not particularly liking the first book.) This is fun, escapist fare, chock full of melodrama, scheming, betrayal, and cliffhangers. What more could you want from this kind of read? There are some dry patches during which characters explicate at length -- too much telling, too little showing, as I used to hear in creative writing class. But then things pick u...more
Not much to say at this point in the series. It has maintained the previous volume's quality (but is still light and fun fare).
by Roger Zelazny, published in 1976.
As I pass through shadow once again, rereading The Chronicles of Amber, I begin to realize the genius of Zelazny even more. Not only does he write an enjoyable and original fantasy romp in “The Hand of Oberon”, but he manages to do it with an economy of pages, though some would argue that the first five novels are really just one big one.
This, The Hand of Oberon, is the fourth novel in the Amber novels and much is revealed about what is going on. The unicorn h...more
As I pass through shadow once again, rereading The Chronicles of Amber, I begin to realize the genius of Zelazny even more. Not only does he write an enjoyable and original fantasy romp in “The Hand of Oberon”, but he manages to do it with an economy of pages, though some would argue that the first five novels are really just one big one.
This, The Hand of Oberon, is the fourth novel in the Amber novels and much is revealed about what is going on. The unicorn h...more
so, this is a sort of cumulative review of the first four books of the series, not just this title.
they were ok, but i pretty much lost interest halfway through this 4th book.
the books are all about the plotting--not the story plotting, the plotting among the characters for who gets to sit on the throne. we start off with nine princes in the first book and are down a few by the fourth.
the stories themselves are well plotted, decently if not thrillingly written, and do diligence on characterizat...more
they were ok, but i pretty much lost interest halfway through this 4th book.
the books are all about the plotting--not the story plotting, the plotting among the characters for who gets to sit on the throne. we start off with nine princes in the first book and are down a few by the fourth.
the stories themselves are well plotted, decently if not thrillingly written, and do diligence on characterizat...more
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Book Review: 3 Treasure Boxes
The First Chronicles of Amber, includes books 1 - 5
An interesting and compelling concept for a fantasy book and a very different kind of fantasy. Some elements of the story take place in modern times and some elements take place in medieval times. I found the writing to be imaginative and quite deep.
Amber is the only real place upon the real Earth. It is the substance from which all other realities are but a shadow, including the world that we now live in and there a...more
The First Chronicles of Amber, includes books 1 - 5
An interesting and compelling concept for a fantasy book and a very different kind of fantasy. Some elements of the story take place in modern times and some elements take place in medieval times. I found the writing to be imaginative and quite deep.
Amber is the only real place upon the real Earth. It is the substance from which all other realities are but a shadow, including the world that we now live in and there a...more
Although I read the first three books in the series within "The Great Book of Amber", I happened to discover some audiobooks that must have been recorder back on tape a long time ago. Thing is, they are narrated by the author! Roger Zelazny himself reads them and he does an exceptional job. In fact, listening to the a lot read, I might dare say this is the definitive version of the books. The inflections, pauses and flavor he puts into the narration and especially the dialogue added whole new...more
At this point I'm pretty much done with this series. For the sake of closure I'm going to finish Book 5, but really I don't understand why this is seen as such a Fantasy classic. The narrative mainly consists of various fairly interchangeable characters explaining the plot to each other, followed by a dull description of yet another 'hellride' between parallel worlds. It isn't clear what anyone's motivations are or what precisely is at stake (I suspect probably because the author himself doesn't...more
The way Zelazny writes is incredible~! All of his novels, that I've read so far are like a narrative, as seen in the eyes of Corwin, one of the nine princes of Amber. If you are a fan of fantasy novels, I highly highly recommend checking this author out! I'd also recommend purchasing the Chronicles of Amber, since all 10 books are in there, and it's a great value AND you can go from book to book just by turning the page!
German edition - German review:
Auch im vierten Teil, der sich nahtlos an seinen Vorgänger anschließt, geht das Ränkespiel der Prinzen von Amber weiter. Die Allianzen verschieben sich als überraschend Oberon zurückkehrt und Brand vom Opfer zum Täter wird. Der Kampf um Amber weitet sich aus, denn nun geht es nicht mehr nur um den Thron, sondern um die Existenz der gesamten Welt von Amber und seiner Schattenwelten, die von den Höfen des Chaos verschlungen zu werden drohen, wenn das Muster nicht wie...more
To be honest, I read all of the first Amber Series novels in rapid succession so to me it's all one continuous story. I rate them all pretty-much the same, with the exception of the first one, which got the series off to an awesome start so I gave it 5 stars. I loved all the books and couldn't put any of them down.
Lots of twists and turns here as assumptions that have been made since the first book are challenged. What is the point of the twist right at the end? I guess I'm stuck reading the next volume.
I don't dislike it, but I am 480 pages into the omnibus and still not really wowed either. The opening of book 4 here contains one of the most tedious narrative recaps I can remember, with a character literally spending several pages telling the plot to another character. The other chunk of narrative that...more
I don't dislike it, but I am 480 pages into the omnibus and still not really wowed either. The opening of book 4 here contains one of the most tedious narrative recaps I can remember, with a character literally spending several pages telling the plot to another character. The other chunk of narrative that...more
Amber is fantasy like no other fantasy... no quests, no forces of good and evil (at least not in the traditional sense), just an immortal group of princes whose thoughts shape the reality we know which is just a shadow of the true reality that is Amber. It's kind of like the Iliad from, say, Ares point of view. In this volume the internal politics and back-stabbing heat up with a few literal back-stabbings, plus unicorns, metaphysical sky-cities, hell-rides, crackling action scenes, and nifty pl...more
The Amber Chronicles become more engaging with each installment. I said this about book three and the same goes for book four. Part of the reason for this is that they continue where the last one left off. Typically, sequels will have their own plot and structure in addition to some elements in the previous books, but so far the Amber Chronicles have relied heavily on past events in previous books.This gives the author an opportunity to delve much deeper into the the previous plot lines and add...more
One of the Chronicles of Amber series I believe had the most brilliant opening sequence of any book I've read. I need to re-read to capture it - any time I pick it up I find myself unable to put it down.
As opposed to the third book, Hand of Oberon carries more of the clean writing and plot weaving of the second book. The story moves quickly, builds up a foundation of half lies which all partially resolve plot points and drops a last minute twist post-climax that made me grin wildly. It's refreshing to have an author drop a fast one on me, a twist that fit perfectly, worked so well and was completely hinted at but not at all what I had been expecting.
This is a piece of writing that reminds me wh...more
This is a piece of writing that reminds me wh...more
Hands down the best book in the series so far. Intrigue and back-stabbing continue, sinister plots unwind, and our hero tries to save his world. My only real complain with this one is one that fits earlier books too--hellrides are some of the most boring, wasted pages of a book I've ever seen. Sentence fragments that describe brief flashes of rapidly-changing scenery. While yes, it does (I assume) a reasonable job of showing what the character is seeing, it could easily be condensed to a short p...more
The Chronicles of Amber is a series that has its ups and downs. Some parts have a lot of extraneous dialogue or just drag on for too long. Particularly in Merlin's cycle, it was hard to keep my attention at some parts.
However, The Hand of Oberon, is probably one of the stronger books in the series. It's full of action, adventure, drama and betrayal. This continues the soap opera between the brothers as one of them, Brand, tries to create the Pattern in his own image.
While Zelazny can seem tediou...more
However, The Hand of Oberon, is probably one of the stronger books in the series. It's full of action, adventure, drama and betrayal. This continues the soap opera between the brothers as one of them, Brand, tries to create the Pattern in his own image.
While Zelazny can seem tediou...more
This book starts directly where the third book leaves off, which may be an issue depending on the time the reader spends between them. There is eventually a little bit of summary, but for flow it's probably better if there's not a gap. I chose to listen to the last chapter of the previous book before I went on. I am still very much enjoying the narrator.
My main issue with this one is that I love to be surprised, and the twist in this one is like a big, flashing red sign, like, "Hmm, that's reall...more
My main issue with this one is that I love to be surprised, and the twist in this one is like a big, flashing red sign, like, "Hmm, that's reall...more
Either the Amber series just got really good, or it's me who's finally starting to get it. I found the previous books interesting but flawed, especially in pacing. That problem is gone in The Hand of Oberon: the book gripped me from the first page, and never let go.
After three books, Zelazny has successfully positioned all his major players, and he's introduced all the rules he needs for his world. All that remains is the fantastic specificity of Amber: the deadly court intrigue, the colorful ch...more
After three books, Zelazny has successfully positioned all his major players, and he's introduced all the rules he needs for his world. All that remains is the fantastic specificity of Amber: the deadly court intrigue, the colorful ch...more
For me, The Amber Chronicles started getting really good with the third novel, Sign of the Unicorn. The Hand of Oberon was easily just as good.
The story to this point has been full of deception and misdirection, but that didn't become apparent until the previous book. Now, with more (but definitely not all) of the cards on the table, it's interesting to see how Corwin handles an ever degrading situation in Amber, especially when he doesn't know who he can trust.
I think one of the things that rea...more
The story to this point has been full of deception and misdirection, but that didn't become apparent until the previous book. Now, with more (but definitely not all) of the cards on the table, it's interesting to see how Corwin handles an ever degrading situation in Amber, especially when he doesn't know who he can trust.
I think one of the things that rea...more
Vote: 4,00
Class: L-A3 (FP)
(Four out of five books of The Chronicles of Amber - the Corwin Cycle: the story goes on, but... it'll be finished, I hope, in the next book)
The fourth book is even better than the previous: this is really a great fantasy work, maybe one of the greatest (it yet depends on how it's going to end in the next book). Soon I'm going to give my final judgment, but I'm almost sure it will be four star.
- the world (4,00) and its magical system (one real world, Amber, and many Sh...more
Class: L-A3 (FP)
(Four out of five books of The Chronicles of Amber - the Corwin Cycle: the story goes on, but... it'll be finished, I hope, in the next book)
The fourth book is even better than the previous: this is really a great fantasy work, maybe one of the greatest (it yet depends on how it's going to end in the next book). Soon I'm going to give my final judgment, but I'm almost sure it will be four star.
- the world (4,00) and its magical system (one real world, Amber, and many Sh...more
Audio re-read
3.5 stars
Originally posted at FanLit. http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
The Hand of Oberon, the fourth book in Roger Zelazny’s CHRONICLES OF AMBER, continues exactly where the previous book, Sign of the Unicorn, left off. The story was originally serialized in Galaxy Science Fiction and later printed in approximately 180-page installments. Each, therefore, is short and ends at some dramatic moment. These days, we’d probably be annoyed with an author who did this (why buy 10 bo...more
3.5 stars
Originally posted at FanLit. http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
The Hand of Oberon, the fourth book in Roger Zelazny’s CHRONICLES OF AMBER, continues exactly where the previous book, Sign of the Unicorn, left off. The story was originally serialized in Galaxy Science Fiction and later printed in approximately 180-page installments. Each, therefore, is short and ends at some dramatic moment. These days, we’d probably be annoyed with an author who did this (why buy 10 bo...more
A fantastic 4th book in the first part of the Amber series. It's the current read for the Zelazny group:
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2...
The first few books rocked, but the last, Sign of the Unicorn, ended on a real cliff hanger. This one ties a lot up. There's a bit too much summation in some parts, more than I recall Zelazny ever doing in another book, but it serves a purpose & does tie the story together tighter.
Still one more book to go in the first 5 books AKA The Corwin Cycle &...more
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2...
The first few books rocked, but the last, Sign of the Unicorn, ended on a real cliff hanger. This one ties a lot up. There's a bit too much summation in some parts, more than I recall Zelazny ever doing in another book, but it serves a purpose & does tie the story together tighter.
Still one more book to go in the first 5 books AKA The Corwin Cycle &...more
El rescate de Brand realizado en el anterior libro es solo un paso más en el camino para descubrir todos los secretos de Ámbar. Corwin consigue muchas de las respuestas que esta buscando pero a su vez estas le descubren nuevas intrigas que tiene que resolver.
Hasta ahora el mejor libro de la saga, las caracteres, motivaciones y deseos de cada uno de nuestros protagonistas se nos muestran plenamente en este libro y en cierto sentido conseguimos por fin un cuadro completo de todos los actos que ha...more
Hasta ahora el mejor libro de la saga, las caracteres, motivaciones y deseos de cada uno de nuestros protagonistas se nos muestran plenamente en este libro y en cierto sentido conseguimos por fin un cuadro completo de todos los actos que ha...more
Jul 14, 2012
sologdin
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
ruling-class-protagonist,
speculative
Intrigue becomes labyrinthine in this volume. At one point, the narrator acknowledges that we've had by now "layers and layers of explanation" (149). Agreed. It's cool, though, that he likewise understands "the city of facts I was slowly erecting on the grave of my other self," and that "each wave of interpretation that broke upon me shifted the position of one or more things" (id.). These may well be the key passages of the entire serial.
All that said, it's kinda tedious, with a barely predicta...more
All that said, it's kinda tedious, with a barely predicta...more
Minor plotholes(/leaps of faith insomuch as logic is concerned) for the sake of, well, plotting towards the end, and heaps of exposition, but still a riveting read. It's a wonder that Zelazny was able to cram so much into less than 200 pages, but that goes for the previous novels as well. Keeping in mind that this book was originally serialized helps forgive any stumbles in narrative and the lengthy pages of exposition.
Well, I like the idea of growth and change in the main characters, although I'd prefer to be shown rather than told. I see shadows (heh) of this in all kinds of things, from Piers Anthony's Mode books to the Wheel of Time. I can see how and why it was influential. But it's crude, you know? Crude and flawed but, I guess, probably original. I'll give it grudging props for that. Yeah.
This one was the best so far. It had a lot of twists to it. I'm really starting to appreciate Zelazny's style, and I love his characters, his world, his fantasy/sci-fi elements, and his wit. Plus, these books are all short and can be read in a couple of days. I seriously wonder how the fantasy genre could have declined so much during the 80's when this was one of its predecessors.
There's something about this series that keeps me reading. Its as if the world possesses just the right amount of charm. This volume felt like more of a bridge between novels than anything else, but it keeps moving, and its enjoyable enough. Having read quite a bit of Zelazny's short fiction, i can easily say the Amber series is not his strongest work, but the personality and character that he brings to the writing is still evident.
While the revelation of an evil villain is a little too simple and below a series like this, the rest of this book is aces. I was very impressed after the first chapter, when Zelazny provides a recap in the entire series in chapter 2, just when I had felt I was kind of losing my way. This man knows what he's doing and is a great writer. A great entry in this grand adventure.
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Roger Zelazny made his name with a group of novellas which demonstrated just how intense an emotional charge could be generated by the stock imagery of sf; the most famous of these is 'A Rose for Ecclesiastes' in which a poet struggles to convince dying and sterile Martians that life is worth continuing. Zelazny continued to write excellent short stories throughout his career, which share the inve...more
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“Good evening, Lord Corwin,' said the lean, cadaverous figure who rested against a storage rack, smoking his pipe, grinning around it.
Good evening, Roger. How are things in the nether world?'
A rat, a bat, a spider. Nothing much else astir. Peaceful.'
You enjoy this duty?'
He nodded.
I am writing a philosophical romance shot through with elements of horror and morbidity. I work on those parts down here.”
—
9 people liked it
Good evening, Roger. How are things in the nether world?'
A rat, a bat, a spider. Nothing much else astir. Peaceful.'
You enjoy this duty?'
He nodded.
I am writing a philosophical romance shot through with elements of horror and morbidity. I work on those parts down here.”
“Добре. Още един ден и ние продължаваме да сме живи. Може дори мъничко бяхме помъдрели. Достатъчно, за да осъзнаем, че все още съществуват много неща, които трябва да научим. Да не губим надежда. Това е то.”
—
3 people liked it
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