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Liked It “Michael Moorcock is not a good author. He writes entire books that would qualify as sketchy first drafts for other authors. You never have to think, because Moorcock always tells you the meaning of everything happening. All you have to do is go along for the ride and enjoy the effortless joy...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “This book and I . . . disagreed. I tend to dislike fantasy books whose language is flowery, whose characters are coarse and papery, and whose plots are obviously constructions of the authors to be used with appropriately puppet-like characters. But my friend liked this story, so I said I'd read...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“A queer story. Much like a series of unfortunate events...but with an albino sorcerer prince. ”
Jessica M wrote this review Thursday, November 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Michael Moorcock is not a good author. He writes entire books that would qualify as sketchy first drafts for other authors. You never have to think, because Moorcock always tells you the meaning of everything happening. All you have to do is go along for the ride and enjoy the effortless joy of reading shallow, bad fantasy.
Nesredna Divad wrote this review Friday, June 26 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Elric is truly a tragic character. In his ham-fisted and campy manner, Moorcock's character was the first anti-hero I ever read. I remember scouring used bookstores for anything by Michael Moorcock to help complete my collection. The Eternal Champion series, of which Elric is the most famous character, must be comprised of over 50 books. So, if Moorcock is not a gifted author, he certainly is prolific.
But I love Moorcock's work. Call it a guilty pleasure - like eating a candy bar - no substance, but it tastes so good going down. Or maybe it is nostalgia. Anyway, I plan to read the entire Elric series again - at least the six books. Many more have been written since the time I devoured these exquisite examples of bad fantasy, and I just don't think the since of pleasure will transfer forward into the uncharted territories of his 21st century works. ”
“The background story and world created by the author have potential, but to me the plot is a bit weak.I'm about 3/4 thru the book and wondering what the point of all this wandering around on "ships" between worlds is for. Elric wanted to visit the "young kingdoms", but has spent most of the book in dreams and other realities doing tasks that have no apparent connection or explanation. Still the writing is reasonably engaging although it can get a bit long winded for me. ”
Beren wrote this review Sunday, June 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“What can you say about a truly seminal work that has not been said before, An albino prince with a demon blade and a tortured road to travel that ends in death, sorrow and ultimatly the end of creation... though you must follow this fayd prince through many books to that end.”
GatherDarkness wrote this review Sunday, May 17 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A masterpiece by an author who is trying to oppose Lewis and Tolkein's views on literature and Truth. He tries to show that their approach to literature is flawed (Lewis and Tolkien thought that the trends always evident in literature pointed intrinsically to Christ) but he actually ends up showing us that by reversing the paradigms of a story the result is a melancholy experience that is fulfilling in a different way.
Adam D. Jones wrote this review Tuesday, March 24 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Philosophy aside, a great story.”“This book and I . . . disagreed. I tend to dislike fantasy books whose language is flowery, whose characters are coarse and papery, and whose plots are obviously constructions of the authors to be used with appropriately puppet-like characters. But my friend liked this story, so I said I'd read it. :) I don't understand how this stuff got popular. Not at all. I read some of it out loud to a discerning friend of mine, sometimes in disbelief and unable to stop from laughing, and to this day we make fun of some of the phrases. For example, you have this scene where Elric is drowning and a vision "came unbidden to his dying mind." Later, when describing the vision, Elric announced, "It came unbidden to my dying mind." Waiiiiit, did the character read the narration of his near-death? Michael, seriously, your characters can't have read your book! How about when the word "white" was used about fifty times when describing the scary torture artist? Enough already.”
swankivy wrote this review Thursday, January 22 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome awesome AWESOME!
FekketCantenel wrote this review Friday, December 12 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
My only complaint is that the narrative leaned away from show and toward tell, and that a few bits were kind of overdramatic. On the whole, though, Moorcock (heh) lays out an incredible story full of an interesting characters (Elric and, to a lesser extent, Yyrkoon) and a few other cardboard cutouts to flesh things out. I can't wait to start on the next volume.”
“Michael Moorcock was way ahead of his time. Talk about Goth...yes I read them all. The song "Black Blade" by Blue Oyster Cult is about this book.”
værna wrote this review Wednesday, June 18 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Probally the best know of the Eternal Champion incarnations. Elric is a tragic figure, enough to make an ancinet greek weep with joy. Great fantasy epic. Not your Tolkien style story. Very good plots and characters. Highly recommended.”
Little Timmy B wrote this review Tuesday, February 12 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
