This Immortal - one of my favourite books from one of my favourite authors! Every time I re-read it I get more from it. I knew very little classic mythology when I first read it, this is kind of the reason I got into Greek mythology and history at all. Great review!
This book is making me want to learn about Greek mythology too. I love books that make me curious about topics that I'm usually not that interested in.
@@sfwordsofwonder I will be honest, with Greek mythology, I actually enjoyed it more at second hand, through authors like Zelazny and Gaiman. Byzantium and Norse mythology fully grabbed my interest though.
I think my love of Zelazny and Bradbury storytelling styles is because of their more sentimental/emotive approach to speculative fiction writing. There is vision, mystery, and complicated characters that are often lacking in "harder" SF. Big thumbs up on This Immoral!
Taking into consideration how life around Chernobyl has adapted and thrived, Zelazny is in good company of authors who look into the future past ‘apocalyptic’ events to more interesting outcomes than devastation. Character relationships in Immortal, animal and human, elevate the storytelling to into myth status. One of Zelazny's best.
I found your channel by searching this book after I finished it. I saw your video on The High Crusade but won't watch it until I read the book, I think I'm going to read that one next month. Really like your channel, cheers.
Same as you, I was intrigued that this won the Hugo in the same year as Dune, so I bought it and read it about 2 years ago and don't remember much of the book. Nobody heard of it because it's not a memorable book. I bet you will forget about it too.. time will tell :) You can go with Lord of Light next. That was a great book. It has a lot of Hindu mythology, so that might be hard to understand, but Zelazny is such a great writer and will make you wanna goggle about it and learn more!
I'm predicting that I won't remember all the plot details but what has stuck with me so far is Conrad, the premise and the tone of the book. We'll see, but you are probably right, it might not be as memorable as Dune.
I just read the synopsis for Damnation Alley and it sounds right up my... uh... alley, I guess, haha. Thanks for the recommendation, I'll be on the lookout for a copy of that one.
I went out this morning to a few (used) book stores near me and couldn't find This Immortal, Way Station (Simak) or Hothouse (Aldiss). I may just break down and order them online. Tanith Lee is another author I never come across.
I feel your pain. If you're like me you will find an affordable, clean copy of the expensive, beat up book you just ordered online. But I hope you have better luck than me, haha.
SFWOW, this post, as do all your posts, points out an interesting piece of info that I had never been aware of, one of the reasons I really enjoy your channel and am one of your subscribers, this bit of info being; "This Immortal" was co-winner of the 1966 hugo award next to Herbert's "Dune". These are the kinds of details we SF enthusiasts love, and you have provided no shortage of them in your many episodes. Yours is one of only a handful of SF, SFF and Fiction-themed channels that I subscribe to. Thanks for doing this expose', I never read this one but I am a Zelazny fan, and gosh, he's a bonafide American SF writer to boot! What's not to like? I've read his "The Dream Master", "The Changeling" and, "Damnation Alley". All great reads. Cheers.
These types of comments are what keep me motivated to do these videos. I always try to be genuine and honest and those bits of info really interest me, so I feel obligated to share. It's really cool when someone on the other end finds value in those types of things. Win win, cheers.
Great review, Ira! You definitely made me want to re-read this classic from one of my all-time favorite authors. Lord of Light is another great book, and Doorways in the Sands was also good. Once you get passed all the books you already know about, I recommend Jack of Shadows and Eye of Cat, as well as the fix-up My Name is Legion. These are lesser known, but still wonderful and very memorable. Thanks for posting your reviews!
Thanks for the recommendations Rick, I just got a copy of Jack of Shadows. I already have My Name is Legion, I bought it for the robot cover but good to know its a good read as well. Cheers.
I need to read Zelazny; this seems like a perfect place to start. I have Lord of Light on my tbr, but my knowledge of the Hindu pantheon of gods is limited and so I’m hesitant.
![Doomsday Book Connie Willis [Spoiler Free Review][Oxford Time Travel #1][Masterpieces of SF Ep. 36]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/qR2LATWQeDQ/mqdefault.jpg)
This Immortal - one of my favourite books from one of my favourite authors! Every time I re-read it I get more from it. I knew very little classic mythology when I first read it, this is kind of the reason I got into Greek mythology and history at all. Great review!
This book is making me want to learn about Greek mythology too. I love books that make me curious about topics that I'm usually not that interested in.
@@sfwordsofwonder I will be honest, with Greek mythology, I actually enjoyed it more at second hand, through authors like Zelazny and Gaiman. Byzantium and Norse mythology fully grabbed my interest though.
I think my love of Zelazny and Bradbury storytelling styles is because of their more sentimental/emotive approach to speculative fiction writing. There is vision, mystery, and complicated characters that are often lacking in "harder" SF. Big thumbs up on This Immoral!
I pretty much like the entirety of the SF genre but my favorite are these stories that deal with the human element in unique ways. Cheers.
I also keep a spreadsheet of my reading! Glad I'm not the only one.
Haha, I have many, many recreational spreadsheets.
Taking into consideration how life around Chernobyl has adapted and thrived, Zelazny is in good company of authors who look into the future past ‘apocalyptic’ events to more interesting outcomes than devastation. Character relationships in Immortal, animal and human, elevate the storytelling to into myth status. One of Zelazny's best.
This is one of my favorite books by Zelazny. I love Dune but I really wish This Immortal was as well known.
I found your channel by searching this book after I finished it. I saw your video on The High Crusade but won't watch it until I read the book, I think I'm going to read that one next month. Really like your channel, cheers.
Same as you, I was intrigued that this won the Hugo in the same year as Dune, so I bought it and read it about 2 years ago and don't remember much of the book. Nobody heard of it because it's not a memorable book. I bet you will forget about it too.. time will tell :)
You can go with Lord of Light next. That was a great book. It has a lot of Hindu mythology, so that might be hard to understand, but Zelazny is such a great writer and will make you wanna goggle about it and learn more!
I'm predicting that I won't remember all the plot details but what has stuck with me so far is Conrad, the premise and the tone of the book. We'll see, but you are probably right, it might not be as memorable as Dune.
The first book I read by zelazny was damnation alley and then lord of light . But this immortal may be my favourite!
I just read the synopsis for Damnation Alley and it sounds right up my... uh... alley, I guess, haha. Thanks for the recommendation, I'll be on the lookout for a copy of that one.
I went out this morning to a few (used) book stores near me and couldn't find This Immortal, Way Station (Simak) or Hothouse (Aldiss). I may just break down and order them online. Tanith Lee is another author I never come across.
I feel your pain. If you're like me you will find an affordable, clean copy of the expensive, beat up book you just ordered online. But I hope you have better luck than me, haha.
SFWOW, this post, as do all your posts, points out an interesting piece of info that I had never been aware of, one of the reasons I really enjoy your channel and am one of your subscribers, this bit of info being; "This Immortal" was co-winner of the 1966 hugo award next to Herbert's "Dune". These are the kinds of details we SF enthusiasts love, and you have provided no shortage of them in your many episodes. Yours is one of only a handful of SF, SFF and Fiction-themed channels that I subscribe to. Thanks for doing this expose', I never read this one but I am a Zelazny fan, and gosh, he's a bonafide American SF writer to boot! What's not to like? I've read his "The Dream Master", "The Changeling" and, "Damnation Alley". All great reads. Cheers.
These types of comments are what keep me motivated to do these videos. I always try to be genuine and honest and those bits of info really interest me, so I feel obligated to share. It's really cool when someone on the other end finds value in those types of things. Win win, cheers.
Great review, Ira! You definitely made me want to re-read this classic from one of my all-time favorite authors. Lord of Light is another great book, and Doorways in the Sands was also good. Once you get passed all the books you already know about, I recommend Jack of Shadows and Eye of Cat, as well as the fix-up My Name is Legion. These are lesser known, but still wonderful and very memorable. Thanks for posting your reviews!
Thanks for the recommendations Rick, I just got a copy of Jack of Shadows. I already have My Name is Legion, I bought it for the robot cover but good to know its a good read as well. Cheers.
I need to read Zelazny; this seems like a perfect place to start. I have Lord of Light on my tbr, but my knowledge of the Hindu pantheon of gods is limited and so I’m hesitant.
I think it's a great place to start. Can't wait to read more from him.
Lord of Light has a lot of mythology in it as well. It’s also a bit disorienting but interesting.
Good to know, I'll make sure I'm in the right mood for that one.
Zelazny's first novel was The Dream Master.... This Immortal was released earlier, that's where the misconception comes from.
So... This Immortal was his first released novel.
@@sfwordsofwonder correct. 👌
Zeus, Apollo, Athena, Hera...how hard can it be to pronounce these names?
Haha, I have no problem with those. I was talking about the character names; Conrad Nomikos, Cort Myshtigo, Mahasamatman, ect.