The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny

Book 5 of the Amber Chronicles

 

Rumors of the death of this blog have been highly exaggerated! It’s just that any attempt at a writing schedule far too much resembles the title of the Roger Zelazny Amber novel I read most recently. Unfortunately, “most recently” in this case means weeks ago, but I still remember the book well as a fine installment in this entertaining series.

Oberon, “Dad” to Corwin, our narrator, is back, but since one of his sons is madly bent on destroying Amber so he can re-create it as he wishes, it’s not exactly a properly celebrated homecoming. The Courts of Chaos, a realm in a precarious balance with Amber, is taking advantage of a breach in the barriers between itself and Amber. Complete and total destruction seems imminent.

Corwin, who has had as his only goals the restoration of his own position in Amber and an eventual takeover of the king’s crown itself, has changed, grown and had plenty of time to think about his motivations. He exerts everything he has within himself, which turns out to be quite a lot, trying to save Amber. His adventures are full of the surreal twistings of reality that are so common among the blood of amber, and his especial prowess has him coming out on top as we’ve come to expect. Corwin has become less self-serving, however, and his pursuits are for the restoration of the land he loves and not for his own glory.

This book is as much fun as the rest of the Amber Chronicles that I’ve read, and really, these first five books are one long(-ish) story.  The fact that Corwin as a person changes throughout his adventures lends a credible depth to the series. While the fantasy elements are creative and interesting, the development of a sound, solid, believable character gives these books even greater quality.

I hope to get back to the pages of The Distractible Reader more often in the weeks ahead. I recently finished On Literature, a collection of essays by Umberto Eco, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo. I feel like I’ve got a lot to say about both of these, so, with any luck, I’ll be able to organize those thoughts into readable sentences and paragraphs and post them here soon.

 

You might also like: Sign of the Unicorn and The Hand of Oberon by Roger Zelazny

 

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