Skip to main content

Book Review: Blood of Amber by Roger Zelazny

 Blood of Amber 

(The Chronicles of Amber #7)

(Amber : Merlin Cycle #2)

By Roger Zelazny 


Published Year: 1986

Page Count: 215 pages 

Medium Used: Kindle PW 

Genre: Action, Adventure, Shadows, Multiverse, Sorcery,Magic, High Fantasy, Amber Family, 2025-read. 

Rating : 4.5/5 



There is a lot going on in Merlin's world and his stream of consciousness is an endless flow of experiences, analysis and conclusions. This book is longer than the others in the series so far. There are many special incidents in the book that need memorization, in order to follow what might come next. 


Following from the 6th book in the series, Merlin is locked in the blue crystal cave by Luke/Rinaldo, his cousin. All ways and means of escape are barred him. He has been languishing within the cave and wishing for an escape when it comes in the form of Jasra, Rinaldo's mother. He beats her and escapes to Amber, into the security of his family palace. A group of hooligans attempt to kill him and one of them, possibly their leader, is seen wearing the blue stone on his finger. Before Merlin could procure the information about who sent them, the man dies. Then he encounters a shape shifting entity that has come in various forms in his past to warn him against Luke, his friend and also to keep him safe. He doesn't understand the motivation behind such benevolence from an unknown creature. While he is enjoying the hospitality of this creature, Luke asks him to bring him through his Trump card. And he does. He learns more about Luke/Rinaldo and his mother Jasra. Luke promises to give vital information to Merlin regarding the safety of Amber should he help him in getting his mother, Jasra, out of captivity of a mad king Shurul at the Keep of Four Worlds. Merlin not only promises, he takes it one step further by doing it solo. He accomplishes what he sets out for and then the story breaks off here with an end to this book. Someone is also planning to attack Amber and it is to right some wrong in the past. More and more family members of the Amber family are introduced to us. 


Merlin has designed and deployed a machine called Ghostwheel which the mother, son duo Jasra and Rinaldo want. Then there is Dalt, who might have been a son of Oberon and born out of wedlock to his prisoner mother, that wants revenge. The first five books in the series focus on the Amber princes fighting among themselves for the throne and also to ward off evil forces trying to take over. Since the sixth book, when Merlin starts, it is the cousins and the next generation of the princes of Amber who are trying to avenge the deaths of their fathers and also ward off evil thats coming their way.


I enjoyed it but like I mentioned, there is too much going on. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this thoroughly. Intriguing read!! 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Book Review : The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand

 The Perfect Couple  By Elin Hildebrand  (Nantucket #3) Published Year : 2018 Page Count: 347 pages  Medium Used: Kindle PW  Genre : Romance, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Drama, Crime, 2024-read.  Rating : 4/5  The ending is such an anticlimax and a let down for me - it almost feels like being cheated. I got so high and invested in the narrative..I lost sleep for most of last night and was reading all day since I got up this morning. The character development is ooof .. the characters are filled with life, credulity and fly off the page into the reader's mind space. I loved the layout of the narrative. I loved the writing.  I would have liked if the mother of the family was a bit on the negative side as well. I mean, really, having Nicole Kidman play the role and making it all cute, nice and kind, compassionate is like wasting enormous talent. I picked this book because I saw an ad that there is a limited series coming up on Netflix ...

Book Review: Gideon The Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

 Gideon the Ninth  By Tamsin Muir  Published Year: 2019 Page Count: 448 pages  Medium Used: Kindle PW  Genre : Action, Fantasy, Magic, Necromancers, Adventure, Murder Mystery, Suspense, Lesbian, 2024-read.  Rating : 4.75/5 πŸ™‚πŸ™‚πŸ™‚πŸ™‚πŸŒŸ Wow. The twists!! And wow wow wow .. the lies!! The deceptions ! Its exotic and steamy! Unputdownable. Highly Addictive. Been wanting to read this for a while now! The paperbacks being so expensive, I settled in for a Kindle experience. I am not disappointed. The lack of smut - which I expected/anticipated when I heard its lesbian fantasy - is such a relief. The tone of the narrator is serious throughout. I had some laugh out loud moments once or twice but that's it. One of the best fantasy book series ever!  I think it is the prose and writing style that I had to read this book real slow so as not to miss anything out. There is action in this book , necromancer magic, fantastic games and there are murders to solve and lyc...

Book Review : Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and his Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and his Years of Pilgrimage  By Haruki Murakami  Published Year: 2013 Page Count: 310 pages  Medium Used: Kindle PW  Genre : Contemporary Fiction, Coming of Age, Mental Trauma, Relationships, 2024-read.  Rating : 4.95/5 πŸ™‚ 😎 πŸ˜€ πŸ™‚ πŸ’« Murakami brilliantly portrays how shocking and traumatic experiences can get carried over, for many years afterward, if they are not resolved. These have a devastating impact on the relationships and expectations of the person who suffered. The writing is simple and flowing. The pace of the novel is medium and hooks the reader right from the start. I have come to care for each of the characters in the story and not just the protagonist, Tsukuru Tazaki. He also shows what can happen once the person confronts his trauma, talks it out with the perpetrators and realizes that he is better off because of this. Loved the book. Highly recommend.  Tsukuru Tazaki is an introverted, well balanced student who drea...