Short Story Quest: The Beginning of a Quest

A long standing tradition in the fantasy field is the quest story.  Often, it involves a hero or heroine who has lost something.  Either a loved one is taken from them, they are taken from their home, or their kingdom is lost to an enemy.  Many stories have been written with a variation of this theme.  One of my favorite authors, Roger Zelazny, has been known to explore these themes in many of his works.  Among my favorites are the Amber series (in which the hero looses his memory and kingdom), "Jack of Shadows", the Changling series, and too many others to list here.  This time, I will take a look at the beginning of another one of his quest stories, "Dilvish the Damned"...

The Man in the High Castle (Pilot Episode)

The Big Debate

Up until the time I left for college, I only had one friend who read science fiction and fantasy.  We drifted apart and do not stay in contact.  But in college I met, and eventually became a roommate with, my second science fiction and fantasy friend-Terry Kissinger.  We still talk and email on a regular basis.  Most years we meet up at conventions.   The first friend and I had similar tastes in authors.  We both liked Isaac Asimov.  To a lesser extent he also liked Roger Zelazny.  When I met Terry, in many ways I had found a kindred spirit.  In addition to those authors, his favorites were Frank Herbert and Philip K. Dick.  We spent many hours debating who was better.  We had similar debates in comic book authors.  I was a Marv Wolfman fan while he preferred Chris Claremont in the heyday of the X-Men and Teen Titans.  Our friendship is such that we both like all of the authors I named but we liked to debate which was the best.  During our debates, Terry introduced me to the work of PKD (Philip K. Dick).  In many respects, PKD is an amazing writer who seems more popular now than ever before.  Although I have read "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" three times and enjoyed it every time, I still have many of his novels to read.


A Short History

Despite having published 44 novels and roughly 121 short stories.  Unfortunately, for him, his stories did not start earning big money until after his death.  Since then 11 movies have appeared based on his work (Blade Runner, Total Recall, The Adjustment Bureau, Next, Paycheck, and others).  More are in the works included an Disney animated production of his short story "The King of the Elves", a live action adaptation of UBIK, and the television series I am getting around to discussing.


Through a Glass Darkly

Many moons ago, I remember being mesmerized by Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner".  It was a loose adaptation of "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?".  The stories were different but Scott gave us a great movie, in my opinion.  Skip ahead to 2010 when rumors came out that Ridley Scott was working on a BBC production of "The Man in the High Castle".  It ended up with Amazon's new production company as part of the 2015 Pilot Season.  The pilot debuted last week to very good reviews.

I watched it over the weekend and would love to see it become a series.  Scott is working with Frank (X-Files) Spotnitz.  Spotnitz wrote the pilot.  The basic idea of it being an alternate history where the Axis won World War II is still there.  Nazi Germany controls the eastern part of the United States, Japan the west coast, and a neutral zone is the buffer between them.  One of the main characters is given a copy of a news real film (the story takes place in the 60s).  The film shows our history.  Some in the story think it is a fantasy propaganda piece.  Others think differently and are willing to kill to get it.  

New York City in "The Man in the High Castle"

The pilot does a great job of establishing the characters while telling a compelling story that starts to reveal this world to us.  I recommend watching the pilot.  If, like me, you enjoy it you will be voting to continue the series.




Challenges

42 Challenge 2015

The 2015 Sci-Fi Experience

"The Game of Blood and Dust" by Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  Galaxy, April 1975

Cover Artist:  Jack Gaughan

 I remember reading this in Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine when it originally was published.  At that time, Zelazny was still writing the original “Amber” series (which was being serialized in Galaxy).  “The Game of Blood and Dust” shows what happens when two beings with god like powers use the Earth as their chessboard.  Changes to our history are the moves in the game.  As expected, I liked this story.  Zelazny poetic use of language always appeals to me.  In a very short story, he manages to cover the history of man.

Recommended.

A Dark Traveling

Author:  Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  April 1987

Publisher:  Walker&Co.

Source:  Used book store

Cover #1:  Pete Lyon
Cover #2:  Lebbeus Wood

Roger Zelazny is one of the masters of the science fantasy sub-genre.  In this, his only juvenile, he finds a way to use teleportation as science fiction and fantasy.  The teleportation occurs between various parallel worlds that tends to remind the reader of his Amber series.  In this story, a scientist disappears and his children (a werewolf and a witch) go on a quest to find him.  The parallel Earths are divided into four categories: 

1.        Lightbands (friendly, willing to have peaceful exchanges of people and information)

2.       Graybands (without transporters and ones with delicate political conditions)

3.       Deadbands (no people but with artifacts of previous civilizations)

4.       Darkbands (the bad guys, they live to exploit the lesser bands)


The children are assisted by a Golem and other sorceresses and werewolves.  The quest puts them into direct conflict with a powerful sorcerer from the Darkbands.

Based on the ending, it appeared that Zelazny set the stage so he could write more stories with these characters but never returned to them.

I enjoyed the mixture of fantasy and science fiction.  In many respects, it reminded me of a variation of the Amber series.  The father (Oberon, Tom Wiley)  is missing, the two opposing forces (Lightbands and Darkbands,Amber and Chaos), travel between alternate realities, sorcerous powers and a struggle to see who will control reality. 

Recommended for adults and younger readers alike. 

A Night in Lonesome October

Author:  Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  1993

Reissue:  October 2014

Publisher:  Chicago Review Press

Source:  Publisher in exchange for a honest review.

Read for the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril IX Challenge.


As readers of this blog know, Roger Zelazny is one of my favorite writers.  When the Chicago Review Press offered me a copy of one of his novels that I never read, I could not turn it down.  "A Night in Lonesome October" was the last novel he wrote.  Later a couple of collaborations appeared but this seems to be the last one he finished before his death.  He was revisiting a basic concept (a gate opening to another world) he used in "Madwand" but that is the end of the similarities.  Zelazny tells the story in the first-person which is one of his favorite methods.  "First person" might be the wrong phrase since the narrator is Snuff, the dog that appears on the cover.  This edition also contains 33 illustrations by Gahan Wilson.  

Roadmarks

Author:  Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  1979

Source:  Bookstore

Publisher:  Del Rey

Cover 1:  Darrell K. Sweet
Cover 2:  Tim White

Some time ago I announced that I was doing a “Roger Zelazny Reading Project”.  My plan is to read or re-read the novels and collections written by one of my favorite authors.  I drifted away from it but plan on getting back on track during the second half of this year.  “Roadmarks” is the seventh read for the project.  It is one that I never read before but it is now on my shelf of books I plan on re-reading someday.

 The Darrel Sweet cover alone caught my eye.  A beat up old truck driving down a road, the sign reads “Last Exit to Babylon”, and a dragon is flying overhead.  Immediately you can tell that this is a fantasy or science fiction book.

Like many of his works, Zelazny keeps alive the science fantasy genre.  In this one we have science fiction elements (i.e. robots) and fantasy elements (i.e. the dragons).  It is also similar to the Amber series in that the hero does not remember who he is and travels between different alternate worlds.  Zelazny develops this book along different lines so that he is not simply rehashing the Amber books.

Everyone seems to know that the Dragons built the road that connects the alternate worlds and times, but does not know why.  It is one of the mysteries that Zelazny does not reveal.  I am not sure if he planned on revisiting this universe someday.  In some of his works, he left mysteries unsolved.  It makes the stories more realistic.

The author’s love of other fictional characters comes alive in this book.  One that jumped out at me was his description of someone named John who is hired to kill Red (the protagonist).  John is described as dressing in a single color.  The more he described John the more it reminded me of John Sunlight.  Sunlight was the only villain to appear in more than one of the Doc Savage books.  In fact, later in “Roadmarks”, even Doc makes an appearance.  It was a bonus trying to figure out who the different characters represented.


“Roadmarks” has jumped to the top of my favorite reads of 2014 list.  Highly recommended.

Treasures from a Library Sale

Our local library has a room that is stocked with books they are selling.  As books are sold, more are added so you never know when or what you will find.

Last week I found 2 science fiction collections that were on my want list.

First up is a "best of" collection of the short fiction of James Tiptree, Jr. called "Her Smoke Rose Up Forever".  Tiptree, who was really Alice Sheldon, was one of the best short fiction writers of the seventies (my golden age of magazine fiction).  Among the classics I remember that appear in this collection are:

"Houston, Houston Do You Read"
"The Screwfly Solution"
"The Girl Who Was Plugged In"
"And I Awoke and Found Me on the Cold Hill's Side"
"We Who Stole the Dream"

I look forward to reading all of the stories in this book.  I am sure that I will find many more classic Tiptree stories.

The other book I picked up is "The Hugo Winners Vol. 4 1976-1979" edited by Isaac Asimov.  Many of these bring back fond memories and I am anxious to re-read many of the stories.

"Home is the Hangman" by Roger Zelazny
"The Borderland of Sol" by Larry Niven
"By Any Other Name" by Spider Robinson
"The Bicentennial Man" by Isaac Asimov
"Tricentennial" by Joe Haldeman
"The Persistence of Vision" by John Varley

And that is just a list of ones I read when they were first published.

The authors and time period make these part of my remembrance of Bob Sabella's Visions of Paradise blog.

Jack of Shadows by Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, (July and August issues) 1971

Cover Artists:  (1) Bob Pepper (2) Ron Walotsky (3) Segrelles

This Zelazny novel was named after his fellow science-fiction author Jack Vance.  He tried to capture some of the exotic locals that Vance filled his novels with.  He also wrote this novel in one draft.  It was bought and serialized in "The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction" in 1971.  Later that year it appeared in book form.  Fans liked it and nominated it for both the Hugo and Locus Awards for best novel of the year in 1972.  "Jack of Shadows" finished #4 in the Hugo voting.

It features many of the characteristics that I find enjoyable in Roger Zelazny's other works. Many of the themes from the Amber series appear in this novel.  The protagonist draws strength from shadows, he prefers the same personal colors as Corwin from the Amber series, he is an outcast, and his world is a combination of our world and a magical realm.  The difference is that it all occurs on one world.  In Jack's world, the Earth does not spin.  Our world is locked on the day side, the magical one is on the night side.

Zelazny walks a thin line by balancing the two worlds.  Jack is a tragic character in many ways.  Some reviewers, Lester Del Rey in particular, disliked the ambiguous ending.  Fans enjoyed the book, based on the award nominations and comments I have heard, but tried to talk Zelazny into continuing the adventures of Shadowjack.  He declined saying that the ambiguous ending was what he was aiming for with this novel.  

The nightside adventures were classic Zelazny fantasy stories.  Even though the reader gets a sense that Shadowjack will not get everything he wants, you are captured by the magic of Zelazny's writing.  Nobody is able to write as poetic sentences as this author.  And that is one of many reasons that he has been one of my two favorite authors since I became a fan of the field.

If you enjoyed Zelazny's Amber or Changling series, I would recommend reading this book.

Short Story Sunday: Revisiting the Pattern

Title:  Prolog to Trumps of Doom
Author:  Roger Zelazny

First Publication:  1985

Collections:  (1)Manna from Heaven, (2) The Road to Amber

Cover Artists:  (1) Bob Eggleton for "Manna from Heaven"  (2) Michael Whelan for "The Road to Amber"

Regular readers of this blog know of my love for the work of Roger Zelazny in general and the Amber series in particular.  In my opinion, no other author is able to break the rules of sentence structure and create a thing of poetic beauty like Zelazny.  He is the master of what would best be called science fantasy.  His Amber series reads like a fantasy epic but incorporates parallel worlds and other science fiction elements.  Even in his lesser works his sentences are magical.

The first storyline (beginning with "Nine Princes in Amber" and ending with "The Courts of Chaos") featured Corwin's return to Amber and the mystery of the Black Road.  At the time I thought he was done writing about this universe.  He would return to write five more books telling the story of Corwin's son Merlin.  Many fans and critics were not happy with the result.  Despite the let down from the original series, I still enjoyed the Merlin books.  I plan on reviewing them this year.  This was the lead in to the first Merlin book "Trumps of Doom".  When that book appeared, I almost devoured it in one sitting.  Any time Zelazny writes about Amber, I know I am in for a good read.  

If you read this story before starting "Trumps of Doom" the reader might be confused.  Zelazny tells the tale of someone walking the Pattern.  We are not sure who the person is.  Instead of taking a sword with them to get enchanted, the person takes what is described as a cord.  Walking the Pattern is still exciting and brought back memories of the first time when we read about Corwin following it.

I enjoyed this story and plan to follow up reading the other Amber short stories over the next few weeks.

I read this story as part of "Once Upon a Time VIII".

The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny

From Amazon:

In the climactic finale of The Corwin Saga of The Chronicles of Amber, the man clad in black with a silver rose at his throat takes it upon himself to draw a new pattern, so that there may yet be order in the universe, regardless of the outcome of the war between Chaos and Amber. In order to do this, he will have to travel with the Jewel of Judgment beyond the bounds of order and chaos, to a no man's land where the coming storm will not be able to harm him. But many forces are out to thwart his mission, including his brother, the traitorous sorcerer Brand.

My heart would always race when I received a new issue of Galaxy Science Fiction and the cover featured a new Amber story by Roger Zelazny.  The November 1977 issue showcased a cover by Wendy Pini.  Corwin is staring at the Jewel of Judgement.  In the background we see a storm rapidly approaching while in front of Corwin is a more pastoral land.  And the story never slows down after this point.

This one has it all.  People live, people die, worlds are born, all of reality is threatened with destruction, secrets are revealed.  Everything I wanted in a story was packed into this series.  Including the basis for the next five book arc.  Unfortunately, Zelazny was planning to write a third arc for the series when he died.  A few short stories appeared but we will never find out what he had planned for the rest of the series.  

The Chronicles of Amber receive my highest recommendation.  I know I will return for my fifth reading in a few years.

The Hand of Oberon by Roger Zelazny

Book four of The Chronicles of Amber features Corwin on a trip to the true Amber.  He discovers the source of the Black Road and finds out what it will take to repair it.  He also determines that his father (Oberon) is still a master strategist.  His hand is guiding the pieces into place for the final battle.  The final page had a big revelation that had me anxious to read the next book when I first read it.

Rick Sternbach supplied the cover to the May 1976 of Galaxy Science Fiction that featured part 1 (of 3) of the serial.  One of the many reasons I loved Jim Baen's time as editor of Galaxy was because he published "Sign of the Unicorn", "The Hand of Oberon", and "The Courts of Chaos".  This is not the kind of story you would expect Sternbach to draw the cover for but it is a fascinating different type of cover for him.

The first five books of the original Amber series remains one of my favorite series.  It is hard to discuss events from this book without revealing too much.

The author appears as "Roger" a pipe smoking guard in the dungeons of Amber.  The guard is writing "philosophical romance shot through with elements of horror and morbidity."  This is fitting since one of the main themes is the true nature of reality.

All I will say is that Zelazny plays fair with the big final revelation.  When re-reading the series you can see where he planted the clues to this one.  Like all good mystery writers, he gave the reader a chance to solve the puzzle.

Anyone who likes fantasy epics, parallel worlds, hard boiled main characters, and great mysteries will love this series.  I can not recommend the first five books too highly.  The second five are still good but are a step down from the original five.

Sign of the Unicorn by Roger Zelazny

Accepting the responsibilities as ruler to the world of Amber, Corwin finds himself the target of sibling treachery, and must seek guidance in a land of visions where a sinister prediction foretells his doom.

This is the book that made me a life long Zelazny fan.  I just started getting my first magazine subscription (Galaxy Science Fiction) when new editor Jim Baen introduced this as a new serial.  Fortunately, the summary at the beginning brought me up to speed since this is the third book in the series.  As soon as I finished reading the three parts of "Sign of the Unicorn" I immediately went in search of more by this amazing author.  Luckily, Avon had just issued reprints of the first two books in the series.  It did not take be long to devour them.  And when Zelazny released books four and five, I went back and re-read the previous books.  I have lost track of how many times I have read this series.  It is by far my favorite fantasy series.

The Return of Short Story Sunday

Welcome back to the return of Short Story Sunday.  I have missed reading short fiction so I will try to do at least 1 short story per week.


"The George Business" by Roger Zelazny
First publication was in Orson Scott Card's "Dragons of Light" anthology in 1980.


"The George Business" is an entertaining, very short, work by Zelazny.  A knight and a dragon enter into a mutually beneficial agreement.  To say anything else about the plot would ruin the story.  Zelazny has written many great short works but this is not what I would consider a classic.  Still it is a fun story to read and won't take the reader very long to finish it.  Recommended.

"The Birch Clump Cylinder" by Clifford D. Simak
Clifford D. Simak has written many great science fiction stories beginning in 1931 and continuing through the 1980s (he passed away in 1988).  I remember enjoying his "City" and "Way Station" in my younger days.  In the 1970s, Judy-Lynn del Rey started publishing the "Stellar" series of anthologies as a tribute to Fred Pohl's classic "Star" anthologies. I liked both Pohl's and del Rey's anthologies when I read them in the seventies.  This year I have re-collected the "Stellar" series and began re-reading it to see how it held up to the test of time.  
"The Birch Clump Cylinder" was the opening story in the first collection.  It is competently written but seems to be lacking the magic I found in Simak's earlier work.  It had the format of a classic SF story with a strange object appearing and a group trying to determine how it works.  Unfortunately Simak did not put much effort into developing the characters.  Hopefully the rest of the series holds up better.

The Beginnings of Amber (a Roger Zelazny Tale)

Once upon a time, Roger Zelazny came up with an idea for a new short story.  In it a being had the ability to create parallel worlds.  When he did this he could guide the process into making changes that suited him.  His race could travel between the worlds.  They are stronger than the beings they create.  At the start of the story, he would awaken on one of the worlds.  From there Zelazny weaves a story of betrayal and a quest for freedom. 

Fans of Zelazny’s work will recognize this as the basic plot behind the Chronicles of Amber (my reviews of the first two books can be read at Nine Princes in Amber and The Guns of Avalon).  But the Amber series was not Zelazny’s first attempt at writing this story.  The first one is called “Love is an Imaginary Number”.  Having read the Amber novels before I discovered this story, it seems like it is full of ideas that are never developed.  The short story form did not give Zelazny time to explore all of the concepts he introduces.  Fortunately for us, he went on to develop them in a series of novels. 

“Love is an Imaginary Number” is an interesting piece of history.  Fans of Roger Zelazny should invest the small amount of time it takes to find and read this story.  I look at it as an alternate universe version of Corwin.  Based on the principles of the Amber series, it could be a story of Corwin that fits into the Amber Chronicles.  Although the details do not match up with the novels, it is possible that the main character is not being completely truthful. 

Either way, I am glad I read this tale.  Any time I get the opportunity to read a new “Amber” story, I will take it. 

Recommended. 

The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny

The Guns of Avalon is the second book in the Amber Chronicles. My review of the first book, Nine Princes in Amber, can be found by clicking here.

Part two of the original Chronicles of Amber is a good continuation of the classic “Nine Princes in Amber”.  Corwin’s story follows his journey to Avalon, a shadow realm that he once ruled.  Many years have passed since he left and now he is remembered as a demon prince.  People do not named their children after this ruler from the past.  He pretends to be someone else.  He meets up with and befriends a soldier from his old army.  Another one of the main characters is Dara (the granddaughter of one of Corwin’s brothers).  Dara is a kindred spirit to Corwin.  He sees many of his traits in her.  All she wants to do is go to Amber, walk the Pattern, and gain the abilities that her family possesses.  

Guns cannot fire in Amber.  What Corwin’s family does not know is that a substance in Avalon can be used as gunpowder in Amber.  Corwin plans to build and arm a group of soldiers who will help him take out his brother Eric.  Corwin can then take the throne.

The problems this time around are presented by the Black Road.  It is a gateway that allows demons to enter Avalon.  

The Guns of Avalon was very good but it was a step down from the first story.  Part of that is due to the first book introducing many new ideas.  The second book in a series always suffers in comparison.  

Zelazny does plant some clues to the true identity of some of the characters.  I missed them the first time I read the series but, in retrospect, one of the clues is definitely in the book.  He draws on his love of Raymond Chandler’s mysteries with the clue about his missing father.  Zelazny continues to write this as a pulp noir type of story.  Corwin narrates “The Guns of Avalon” in a style that is reminiscent of Chandler.  He also uses similar pulp tools to keep the action moving to drive the story to it’s conclusion.

Another author who wrote a similar type fantasy series is Michael Moorcock with his Eternal Champion series.  It also features parallel worlds and a battle between order and chaos.  I am considering re-reading and reviewing at least some of the arcs in his series when I am done with the Amber books.  In the seventies, the Elric books were second only to the Amber books in my opinion.

Is this the end of Corwin’s tale?  No.  Three more books continue the quest to answer many of the questions left at the end of this book.  What happened to Oberon(Corwin’s father)?  Will Corwin be able to stop the demon creatures’ invasion?  What really happened to Brand?  Will Corwin be able to unite Amber and find a way to stop the forces of Chaos?  Books three through five address these questions.  Corwin’s son, Merlin, is the focus of books six through ten.  I also plan on reviewing the short stories that Zelazny wrote in this universe.

Next up on my Amber reading list will be “Sign of the Unicorn”.  This was my introduction to the writing of Roger Zelazny.  I originally read it as a serial in the Jim Baen edited Galaxy Magazine. 

"Devil Car" by Roger Zelazny

In 1965, Galaxy was under the editorship of Frederik Pohl.  Pohl would be remembered as one of the best magazine editors of all time.  At this time, Roger Zelazny did not get his name on the cover.  He was just starting to become a great writer.  Other Zelazny stories that appeared in 1965 were classics such as "The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth", "He Who Shapes", "And Call Me Conrad", and "The Furies".  This was the beginning of the best years of Zelazny's short fiction writing career.


"Devil Car" was the first in what ended up being a two story series.  Sam Murdock lives in a future America where true "smart" cars are common.  Unfortunately for the humans, some of the cars rebel and are fighting for their freedom.  Wild bands of cars raid fuel depots and attack defenseless cars on the roads.  Devil Car is the leader of a rebel group that lives in the desert.  It killed Sam's brother so he had a death car built to destroy it.  Now Sam and the death car (named Jenny) are on the hunt to track down Devil Car and take revenge on it.  But no one knows why cars go wild.  Will Devil Car be able to lure Jenny into joining his group?  Or will she stay loyal to Sam and kill Devil Car?


It is a touching story about a man and his car.  This is a theme that is one of Zelazny's favorites.  He would return to "man and vehicle" stories in the future.  One of the best know is his novel "Roadmarks".


Highly recommended.  "Devil Car" is part of the group of very good short stories by Zelazny.  While not as memorable as some of the others, it is very good.

"Auto-da-Fe" by Roger Zelazny

Auto-da-Fe by Roger Zelazny
    Dangerous Visions, 1967

From Wikipedia:  An auto-da-fe was the ritual of public penance of comdemned heretics by the Spanish Inquisition.  The most common form was burning at the stake.

Zelazny envisions a world where men challenge cars in a futuristic version of bullfighting.  The bullfighter comes back after dying twice to enter the ring for a third round of fights.  How did he return after dying two times?  The author never explains.  Based on the descriptions it sounds like some bionic parts might have been used to repair his body but that is strictly my thought on the subject.  I do not have proof that is what happened.

The ending is when "auto-da-fe" comes into play. 

I rate this as middle Zelazny.  It is not one of his best stories but is still very interesting.  I did not feel a connection with the main character.  I think it could have been helped with more pages to flesh him out.

An interesting read but not one of Zelazny's best short stories.  It appeared in Harlan Ellison's influential "Dangerous Visions" anthology but I do not consider it one of Zelazny's most influential stories. 

The Roger Zelazny Project

It is no secret that Roger Zelazny is one of my favorite writers.  "Nine Princes in Amber" is one of the most read books in my collection.  So I began an unofficial "Roger Zelazny Project".  My goal is to eventually read (and in most cases re-read) all of his novels and short fiction.  Coming up soon on this site will be reviews of "The Guns of Avalon" and a short story called "The George Business".

I am always on the lookout for Zelazny sites.  One that stood out to me is Zelazny & Amber. As part of my tribute to an author who has given me many hours of reading pleasure, I volunteered to help out on the site.  Starting today I will be writing summaries of his novels.  You can go to the novel page by clicking here.  My first summary is for "Nine Princes in Amber".  I will post a message here as I do more of the summaries.

One of my favorite parts of the site is the "Encounters".  Numerous people has left comments about their experiences with Zelazny.  If you had any interaction with him, please leave a note on the site.

Short Story Sunday - Feb.. 13, 2011

 With Valentine's Day being tomorrow, I thought I would devote today's short story reviews to ones dealing with love.

The two stories I am reviewing today are similar in many ways.  The authors are experts when it comes to crafting stories about love, loss, loneliness, death, and the thin line between science and fantasy.  Roger Zelazny and George R. R. Martin have written some of my all time favorite stories.  The two I am reviewing today are good examples of why I like both authors.

1.  "The Man Who Loved the Faoli" by Roger Zelazny

First Printing:  Galaxy, June 1967

It is the story of John Auden and the Faioli, and no one knows it better than I. Listen -- 

It happened on that evening, as he strolled (for there was no reason not to stroll) in his favorite places in the whole world, that he saw the Faioli near the Canyon of the Dead, seated on a rock, her wings of light flickering, flickering, flickering and then gone, until it appeared that a human girl was sitting there, dressed all in white and weeping, with long black tresses coiled about her waist. 

He approached her through the terrible light from the dying, half-dead sun, in which human eyes could not distinguish distances nor grasp perspectives properly (though his could), and he lay his right hand upon her shoulder and spoke a word of greeting and of comfort. 

It was as if he did not exist, however. She continued to weep, streaking with silver her cheeks the color of snow or a bone. Her almond eyes looked forward as though they saw through him, and her long fingernails dug into the flesh of her palms, though no blood was drawn. 

Then he knew that it was true, the things that are said of the Faioli -- that they see only the living and never the dead, and that they are formed into the loveliest women in the entire universe. Being dead himself, John Auden debated the consequences of becoming a living man once again, for a time. 

The Faioli were known to come to a man the month before his death -- those rare men who still died -- and to live with such a man for that final month of his existence, rendering to him every pleasure that it is possible for a human being to know, so that on the day when the kiss of death is delivered, which sucks the remaining life from his body, that man accepts it -- no, seeks it! -- with desire and with grace. For such is the power of the Faioli among all creatures that there is nothing more to be desired after such knowledge.

Once again, Zelazny proves to be a master story teller.  "The Man Who Loved the Faoli" is one of many examples why Galaxy was one of my favorite magazines.  The same issue also had stories by Poul Anderson, R. A. Lafferty, and Larry Niven.


Zelazny gives an answer to the question of what would a man give up for love and knowledge.  It seems like they would have different answers but read this story before you answer.


Now for another look at a similar theme...

2.  "The Lonely Songs of Laren Dorr" by George R. R. Martin
First Printing:  Fantastic, May 1976

 There is a girl who goes between worlds.

She is grey-eyed and pale of skin, or so the story goes, and her hair is a coal-black waterfall with half-seen hints of red.  She wears about her brow a circlet of burnished metal, a dark crown that holds her hair in place and sometimes puts shadows in her eyes.  Her name is Sharra:  she knows the gates.  

The beginning of her story is lost to us, with the memory of the world from which she sprang.  The end?  The end is not yet, and when it comes we shall not know it.

We have only the middle, or rather a piece of that middle, the smallest part of the legend, a mere fragment of the quest.  A small tale within the greater, of one world where Sharra paused, and of the lonely singer Laren Dorr and how they briefly touched.

Another classic Martin short story.  A guardian awaits Sharra at each of the worlds she travels to.  At each one they try to keep her from moving on.  This stop along the way is different in that she finds the minstrel-Laren Dorr.  This short story tells about their time together.

Once again, Martin deals with loneliness and loss set against the background of a castle.  Martin loves writing about ancient places.  Fortunately he is a master at creating mood and establishing an atmosphere with his style of writing.  


If you have not read this story, what are you waiting for?  Rush out and buy it.


Both stories get a high recommendation.

Short Story Sunday - Jan. 23, 2011

1.  "Phantom Sense" by Richard A. Lovett and Mark Niemann-Ross

First Printing:  Analog, November 2010

One of the best Analog stories of recent times.  "Phantom Sense" deals with the return of a special ops soldier.  The science fiction element deals with using the soldier's brain to control insects.  The insects can be used as advance scouts.  The problems arise when the soldiers try to reintegrate into society.  Then one of them kidnaps the daughter of another soldier.  The authors steadily increase the suspense as the story races to it's conclusion.

The team of Lovett and Niemann-Ross put themselves on my list of authors to watch.
 

2.  "Dark, Dark Were the Tunnels" by George R. R. Martin

First Printing:  Vertex, December 1973

A group of archaeologists from the moon travel to Earth to see the effects of a nuclear war 500 years earlier.  Humanity has gone underground and established a new civilization.  Unfortunately, the radiation has sped up their evolution.  Most of the remaining humans are blind.  Their cities are threatened by giant worms.  Gael (one of the mutated humans) and his partner Hissig are a team who hunts the worms.  Hissig is a mutated rat.  When the archaeologists spot the rat they assume that Hissig is a monster.  The violence that ensues ruins any chance of a peaceful coexistence.

 

Martin does a great job of making the underground civilization seem real.  The character work and atmosphere are excellent as always in a Martin story.  He makes you feel the fear and sense of unease the characters feel.

Another highly recommended George R. R. Martin story.  He is one of the masters of the short form.

3.  "The Engine at Heartspring's Center" by Roger Zelazny

First Printing:  Analog, July 1974

This Nebula nominated story is classic Zelazny.  The Bork is created by an accident.  His story is the tale of his interaction with a human woman.  He makes every effort to appear human.  Like Martin, Zelazny is a master at making you "feel" a story.  He takes you into the heart of the characters.  This is one that can be hard to describe but easy to recommend. 

Highly recommended.

4.  "Remembering Melody" by George R. R. Martin

First Printing:  Rod Serling's Twilight Zone Magazine, April 1981

"Remembering Melody" is a haunting tale that will stay with you for a long time.  Do not read it after dark.  Martin shows why he was the perfect writer to work on the Twilight Zone.  This story will make you think before making promises to friends.  You will never look at a woman named Melody without thinking of this story.  It is a perfect Halloween tale.   

Avoid the poor adaptation of this story on the television show "The Hitchhiker".  They did a poor job of capturing the mood of the short story.

Recommended.