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The Chronicles of Amber
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The Chronicles of Amber
The Chronicles of Amber is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Roger Zelazny. The main series consists of two story arcs, each five novels in length. Additionally, there are a number of Amber short stories and other works. While Zelazny's will expressly forbade sequels by other authors, four posthumous prequels authorized by Zelazny's family were authored by John Gregory Betancourt.
In the prologue to the DC Comics adaptation of Nine Princes in Amber, Zelazny describes how the initial inspiration for the Amber series came from two abstract sources: the surreal, shifting sensation of an experience he had walking through Baltimore, and his longstanding fascination with decks of cards, particularly Tarot.
As he wandered Baltimore's unfamiliar streets, each turn seemed to reveal a different place, mood, or time — this experience became the seed of the concept of "walking through Shadow," a central mechanism in the Amber universe by which characters move through infinite alternate realities. At the same time, Zelazny had been intrigued by the symbolic and narrative possibilities of cards — an interest that evolved into the powerful, mystical Trump deck used by the royal family of Amber to communicate and travel across realms.
Zelazny likened the writing of the first novel to a Shadow walk itself: he discovered the world of Amber bit by bit, not inventing it wholesale but uncovering it as if it already existed, hidden just beyond the veil of ordinary perception.
The Amber stories take place in two contrasting "true" worlds, Amber and Chaos, and in shadow worlds (Shadows) that lie between the two. These shadows, including Earth, are parallel worlds that exist in — and were created from — the tension between the opposing magical forces of Amber and Chaos. The Courts of Chaos are situated at the very edge of an abyss. Members of the royal family of Amber, after walking in a Pattern that is central to Amber, can travel freely through the Shadows. While traveling (shifting) between Shadows, they can alter reality or create a new reality by choosing which elements of which Shadows to keep or add, and which to subtract, eventually arriving at their chosen destination. Nobles of the Courts of Chaos who have traversed the Logrus are similarly able to travel through Shadows. An alternate method of travel is via sets of cards, patterned after a Tarot deck. Known as Trumps, the Major Arcana are depictions of the royal family and they can contact, and travel to, another family member instantly if the other party is willing. Trumps can also depict specific places.
Ten Amber novels were written by Roger Zelazny. The series of books was published over the years from 1970 to 1991. Portions of the first novel, Nine Princes in Amber, had previously been published in Kallikanzaros (No. 1, June 1967, and No. 3, December 1967).[citation needed] The novels Sign of the Unicorn, The Hand of Oberon, and The Courts of Chaos first appeared in abridged, serialized versions in Galaxy Science Fiction. The Guns of Avalon and five later "Merlin Cycle" Amber novels were not serialized or excerpted.
Several Chronicles of Amber omnibus volumes have also been published, collecting the five novels of the original "Corwin Cycle" in one volume, the five novels of the "Merlin Cycle" in another volume, and later (in The Great Book of Amber) all ten novels in a single volume.
The first five novels are narrated in the first person by Corwin, a prince of Amber, as he describes his adventures and life upon re-encountering his family after a loss of memory and an absence of centuries.
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The Chronicles of Amber
The Chronicles of Amber is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Roger Zelazny. The main series consists of two story arcs, each five novels in length. Additionally, there are a number of Amber short stories and other works. While Zelazny's will expressly forbade sequels by other authors, four posthumous prequels authorized by Zelazny's family were authored by John Gregory Betancourt.
In the prologue to the DC Comics adaptation of Nine Princes in Amber, Zelazny describes how the initial inspiration for the Amber series came from two abstract sources: the surreal, shifting sensation of an experience he had walking through Baltimore, and his longstanding fascination with decks of cards, particularly Tarot.
As he wandered Baltimore's unfamiliar streets, each turn seemed to reveal a different place, mood, or time — this experience became the seed of the concept of "walking through Shadow," a central mechanism in the Amber universe by which characters move through infinite alternate realities. At the same time, Zelazny had been intrigued by the symbolic and narrative possibilities of cards — an interest that evolved into the powerful, mystical Trump deck used by the royal family of Amber to communicate and travel across realms.
Zelazny likened the writing of the first novel to a Shadow walk itself: he discovered the world of Amber bit by bit, not inventing it wholesale but uncovering it as if it already existed, hidden just beyond the veil of ordinary perception.
The Amber stories take place in two contrasting "true" worlds, Amber and Chaos, and in shadow worlds (Shadows) that lie between the two. These shadows, including Earth, are parallel worlds that exist in — and were created from — the tension between the opposing magical forces of Amber and Chaos. The Courts of Chaos are situated at the very edge of an abyss. Members of the royal family of Amber, after walking in a Pattern that is central to Amber, can travel freely through the Shadows. While traveling (shifting) between Shadows, they can alter reality or create a new reality by choosing which elements of which Shadows to keep or add, and which to subtract, eventually arriving at their chosen destination. Nobles of the Courts of Chaos who have traversed the Logrus are similarly able to travel through Shadows. An alternate method of travel is via sets of cards, patterned after a Tarot deck. Known as Trumps, the Major Arcana are depictions of the royal family and they can contact, and travel to, another family member instantly if the other party is willing. Trumps can also depict specific places.
Ten Amber novels were written by Roger Zelazny. The series of books was published over the years from 1970 to 1991. Portions of the first novel, Nine Princes in Amber, had previously been published in Kallikanzaros (No. 1, June 1967, and No. 3, December 1967).[citation needed] The novels Sign of the Unicorn, The Hand of Oberon, and The Courts of Chaos first appeared in abridged, serialized versions in Galaxy Science Fiction. The Guns of Avalon and five later "Merlin Cycle" Amber novels were not serialized or excerpted.
Several Chronicles of Amber omnibus volumes have also been published, collecting the five novels of the original "Corwin Cycle" in one volume, the five novels of the "Merlin Cycle" in another volume, and later (in The Great Book of Amber) all ten novels in a single volume.
The first five novels are narrated in the first person by Corwin, a prince of Amber, as he describes his adventures and life upon re-encountering his family after a loss of memory and an absence of centuries.