[Rob B]

Zelazny is considered by many to be one of THE GREATS of Speculative/Imaginative Fiction.

He's won a number of awards including the Hugo and Nebula award.

I am currently reading Amber for the first time and I am enjoying it immensly. I plan on picking more of his books as his work, at least in Amber is excellent and he's got such a stellar reputation.

So, what are YOUR thoughts about this Pillar of the SFF Genre?

[Warewolf]

I've never read anything by him. Maybe one of these days...the Amber omnibus looks tempting http://www.sffworld.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Lady Fox]

I picked up The Great Book of Amber about a year ago. It's an omnibus edition of all the Amber stories. I got it on a whim...couldn't find anything else at the bookstore that looked interesting and I had always wanted to see what this series was about. I got about halfway through the first book and thought WOW! I should have got this a long time ago. I think Amber is fantastic. Granted, the last couple of books in the series don't flow as well as the first ones, IMO, but they are still really good fantasy. I think Amber is a must read classic for all fantasy enthusiasts.

[Lani]

I've read him. I've enjoyed him. I love his writing. This says it all.

[Llama]

Glad you're enjoying it, but you're far from reading his best stuff if you're reading AMBER.

[ikonetic]

Great stuff,and probably one of the major stepping stones between Tolkien and Martin or Jordan.You should also check out Changeling or Madwand by Zelazny.Not quite in the same league but still a great read.

[Corwwyn]

Well I have to half-disagre/half-agree with Llama.

I thought Amber was outstanding and his best stuff.

Of course that's a reason he is so highly regarded in general though.

Even if Amber is not to your taste, he has written books which vary a lot in character, and appeal to different audiences.

Some examples include: This Immortal, Lord of Light, The Doors of his Face, the Lamps of his Mouth, The Changing Land, Bring me the head of Prince Charming, Damnation Alley, Today We Choose Faces.

Even Amber (whether it is to a given reader's taste or not) possesses a novel approach to normal fantasy fare that is very difficult to find similarities to in contemporary works by other authors.

[Mithfânion]

I've only read both his Amber chronicles and although they have a certain quirky charm, these books are shining examples of highly overrated books.

[This message has been edited by Mithfânion (edited February 16, 2002).]

[SusF]

Amber is good. His other writings are much better. This is not to say Amber is lesser, just that the other stuff is more.

Susan

[Limor]

Zelazny has always been one of my personal favorites. I absolutely loved every book I read by him.

As for the Amber books, I thought they were fantastic, I actually read them twice, once as a kid at 12/13 than again while I was studying theology in University.

To my surprise I realized at that point that Zelazny him self must have quite an extensive knowlege in Jewish/Christian theology and you can actually see those concepts throughout the books.