tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.comments2024-03-05T11:41:13.533-05:00Where there had been darkness...Jugularjoshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03768939120752611597noreply@blogger.comBlogger2007125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-32873721849712699552024-03-04T19:09:38.751-05:002024-03-04T19:09:38.751-05:00Chris, thanks for the clarification. I must have m...Chris, thanks for the clarification. I must have misread that letter.Raymund Eichhttps://raymundeich.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-42645600368979739422024-02-04T07:58:12.034-05:002024-02-04T07:58:12.034-05:00Re the setting, I have the opposite reaction—it is...Re the setting, I have the opposite reaction—it is what caused me to read the story recently. I don’t think it’s really Burroughs’ Mars—it’s not sword-and-planet—but instead an example of the sort of pulp Mars that Leigh Brackett used to such good effect in her stories, and still was using about the time that “Rose” was published (her “Road to Sinharat” appeared in 1963, the same year as “Rose”). Granted, harder SF had been moving away from that picture for a decade or more before this, as in Miller’s “Crucifixus Etiam” or Tubb’s stories of a dead and dreary planet. But I can’t fault Zelazny for wanting to try his hand at a version of that pulp Mars, just as he did a great ‘Old Venus’ story not long after. This may all be my personal preference, though; I long ago lost interest in realistic depictions of Mars as we now know it to be.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-23665332045402840112024-02-02T18:16:33.886-05:002024-02-02T18:16:33.886-05:00Zelazny like the main character died in the middle...Zelazny like the main character died in the middle of the book. Lindskold took over after this point. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-60779977273022829982023-11-12T02:19:11.178-05:002023-11-12T02:19:11.178-05:00Read "doorways in the sand"Read "doorways in the sand" Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-69556772738308485122023-10-30T14:08:06.654-04:002023-10-30T14:08:06.654-04:00The comment about borrowing from his agent to pay ...The comment about borrowing from his agent to pay tuition is untrue! I helped edit this book and so I know what's in it. Zelazny mentions the typical trials and tribulations of being a writer whose payments come in fits and spurts, often late because publishers were slow to pay. And so several times in the letters he mentions that tuition bills have come in unexpectedly and he's had to request an extension until the next payments come in from the publishers. He mentions in one instance that with the help of Kirby he got payment, and what he means is that his agent (Kirby) exacted pressure on the slow paying publisher to cough up the overdue funds.Chris Kovacsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-20060263639419325612023-10-23T20:35:59.913-04:002023-10-23T20:35:59.913-04:00Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath, and Cats of Ulthar ...Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath, and Cats of Ulthar are my to favorite of all of Lovecraft's work both on their own and as a callback to Lord Dunsany's stories of the lands beyond the ken of waking men.<br />So while a little long it eas also a lyric delight. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-10535298841466128532023-10-23T20:23:39.729-04:002023-10-23T20:23:39.729-04:00I agree a very insightful take. I agree a very insightful take. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-50796102217136198032023-10-23T20:22:56.536-04:002023-10-23T20:22:56.536-04:00Greymalk's history is fascinating in that it g...Greymalk's history is fascinating in that it gives a hint in why one could be an Opener and not a mad cultist or evil.<br /><br />A very good chapter. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-7136438738743288792023-10-23T17:00:34.236-04:002023-10-23T17:00:34.236-04:00In regards to postures, I looked at it like an Ame...In regards to postures, I looked at it like an American trying to remember what they know of Japanese polite behavior based on anime and ine James Bond movie -with the same level of ham-handednessehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-14814894151999082512023-10-23T16:58:19.652-04:002023-10-23T16:58:19.652-04:00I think Snuff was something dog/hound/beast like f...I think Snuff was something dog/hound/beast like from mythology or Dreanlands, who was summoned into mortal dog form.<br /><br />Excellent work on investigation into Irish Wolf Hounds. Great catch!<br /><br />Conrad is both - Zelazny loves ambiguity. <br /><br />ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-64001322207977565902023-10-23T16:51:25.096-04:002023-10-23T16:51:25.096-04:00Absolutely! This is maybe my favorite. It captures...Absolutely! This is maybe my favorite. It captures what I adore most about Halloween the mix of silly scary safe dangerous morbid humorous mischievous genial. <br /><br />I had always assumed the aristocratic voice was the good doctor - "Frank-ahn-STEEN" you illiterate peasants! ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-23302585568000008232023-10-23T16:37:28.031-04:002023-10-23T16:37:28.031-04:00All I can think of is that it is a reference to th...All I can think of is that it is a reference to the Bosom Serpent folk story archetype, but in that story it is usually not symbiotic, but body horror, refutation of science, value of folk healing. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-53710786839319979782023-10-23T15:46:15.160-04:002023-10-23T15:46:15.160-04:00"the corpse in a copse" - oh how I love ..."the corpse in a copse" - oh how I love Zelazny's word play. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-63443136398450393162023-10-23T15:45:07.118-04:002023-10-23T15:45:07.118-04:00I also thought Elder Sign, first few reads, but Ra...I also thought Elder Sign, first few reads, but Rastov/Rasputin suggests Eastern Orthodox, which has a very specific tradition of mystical Icons as part of their hagiography traditions. It might actually be a mystic picture of the mad Arab, or something he saw .. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-45460931702125243552023-10-23T15:39:55.814-04:002023-10-23T15:39:55.814-04:00AGAIN I also looked up the facial hair! I just don...AGAIN I also looked up the facial hair! I just don't bother for most books but in this one I'm always looking for the hidden easter egg. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-77631993283963377722023-10-23T15:37:18.094-04:002023-10-23T15:37:18.094-04:00I loved the juxtaposition of horrors from the pape...I loved the juxtaposition of horrors from the paper and peaceful domesticity - it's like a cop watch law and order on their day off. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-15141718604817852222023-10-23T15:34:25.883-04:002023-10-23T15:34:25.883-04:00I think the talking to the plant is both a) a red ...I think the talking to the plant is both a) a red herring for companion, b) a more interesting way to establish that Larry's story is expanded with horticulture c) to highlight that once you are looking at events through the lens of a genre, that even mundane things like puttering with your plants when you think nobody is watching suddenly can cast a different shadow as you look for genre consistent material. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-33129955637476069672023-10-23T15:27:47.487-04:002023-10-23T15:27:47.487-04:00The passage made me look up Wax Vespas!
I also ...The passage made me look up Wax Vespas! <br /><br />I also felt I should look up if there was a historical or fictional reference about what happened in India.<br /><br />BTW? How did you place the year for the story? Based off full moon on Halloween and Jack's window of activity in London? ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-18591711309341715422023-10-23T15:17:39.647-04:002023-10-23T15:17:39.647-04:00"I roared" I never noticed this before. ..."I roared" I never noticed this before. Dogs make lots of noises, but don't roar I wonder if this is a clue or a break in character? Also slashing... not sure if it means moved his body, or attacked... but a dog would snap or claw... I wonder if he is not shaped like a dog in this moment? ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-58401236628914801792023-10-23T15:10:47.356-04:002023-10-23T15:10:47.356-04:00I had assumed midnight was Snuff and Jacks thing, ...I had assumed midnight was Snuff and Jacks thing, but later there is a suggestion of talking to a plant... ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-41530088581908850622023-10-23T15:07:40.703-04:002023-10-23T15:07:40.703-04:00I was inspired to look up the Yellow Emperor too!
...I was inspired to look up the Yellow Emperor too!<br /><br />Zelazny and Bradbury had it in common - both were poets who just happened to love to disguise it as fantasy stories and seduce people who would never willingly pick up a book of poems. ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-56748438196780308782023-10-23T14:54:54.613-04:002023-10-23T14:54:54.613-04:00Summoned and better than old job puts me in the no...Summoned and better than old job puts me in the not-just-a-dog camp. But it's Zelazny and he visits the Dreanlands so He might be an "other" but outside the heaven - hell continuum... His name is Snuff, so maybe in service with s desth entity like Anubis, or a psychopomp... Or perhaps Ammit, though it is considered female? ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-58545568228845452712023-10-23T14:43:52.926-04:002023-10-23T14:43:52.926-04:00I was re-reading this yet again, and only this tim...I was re-reading this yet again, and only this time did I realize it was not just Quicklime getting the bat drunk for information - it was very specially a snake tempting an "innocent" into eating of fruit they probably shouldn't.<br /> <br /><br />That description of the count - yes.<br /><br /><br />I think very early on Snuff suggests he was something Very different:<br />”I like being a watchdog better than what I was before he summoned me and gave me this job."<br /><br />Maybe it's just because of the Horse from Dilvish, but this always made me think Snuff was a hell hound or other" bad" creature that was associated with something unpleasant, like " snuffing" lives, that made this job preferable. Maybe he was summoned into the body of a mortal dig though, since the body shows wear and tear . ehlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14358981434091732397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-12259980533803447612023-10-14T01:05:25.304-04:002023-10-14T01:05:25.304-04:00Btw, I assume you've read Kevin Knight's T...Btw, I assume you've read Kevin Knight's The Dying of Ember, and i was kind of surprised not to see a post about it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6504598332261057441.post-50454544027281625702023-10-06T19:08:37.697-04:002023-10-06T19:08:37.697-04:00I recently read Immer, Zlaz, a collection of Zelaz...I recently read Immer, Zlaz, a collection of Zelazny’s letters to his lifelong friend Carl Yoke. By the late ‘80s, when the last Merlin books were written, Zelazny had to borrow money from his agent to pay his kids’ school tuitions. I can understand why these last books feel phoned in.Raymund Eichhttps://raymundeich.comnoreply@blogger.com