paracyclops's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Of all Michael Moorcock's 'Eternal Champion' books, this is probably the funniest. It has relatively few overt references to his grand framing narrative, although its protagonist, Jherek Carnelian, is very clearly an incarnation of the spirit that animates Elric, Corum, Hawkmoon, von Bek, and Jerry Cornelius—a recurring joke has other characters deciding to call him Jerry. The story is a multi-levelled satire, lampooning the values of the affluent post-war generation, those of the Victorian era that still loomed large for them, the popular science-fiction idea of a post-scarcity society, and even the liberated values of the 60s counterculture to which Moorcock was largely aligned. Carnelian, a native of the human race's final historical epoch, travels through time, and encounters time travellers in his own epoch, in both cases completely failing to understand the things they do and say, or their reasons for doing and saying them. Moorcock is able to sustain this irony for ludicrously extended sections of his narrative, layering it with daft slapstick buffoonery, until it accumulates an almost unbearable charge of hilarity—or at least it does for me. Humour is a notoriously subjective experience.
The tale is sometimes told in the usual manner of Moorcock's early career—a no-nonsense, pulpy simplicity, that advances the narrative with a minimum of messing about—and sometimes in a baroque accumulation of adjectives and adverbs, evoking the decadence of the End of Time through a parallel verbal plenitude. The action is fast moving and entertaining—except when the characters decide to discuss philosophy for pages at a time. It feels as though he'd reached a stage in his career when he realised his publishers would print whatever he wrote, and so he decided to throw all generic and commercial wisdom to the wind. The three novels collected in this omnibus don't have the more measured, literary tone of his 1980s work (like the von Bek book), but they're a far cry from the brashly psychedelic sword and sorcery romps that preceded them. This is some very clever, and extremely entertaining writing, and the febrile caprice wth which Moorcock imagines the whimsy of the ultimate fin-de-siècle is truly mindblowing.
The tale is sometimes told in the usual manner of Moorcock's early career—a no-nonsense, pulpy simplicity, that advances the narrative with a minimum of messing about—and sometimes in a baroque accumulation of adjectives and adverbs, evoking the decadence of the End of Time through a parallel verbal plenitude. The action is fast moving and entertaining—except when the characters decide to discuss philosophy for pages at a time. It feels as though he'd reached a stage in his career when he realised his publishers would print whatever he wrote, and so he decided to throw all generic and commercial wisdom to the wind. The three novels collected in this omnibus don't have the more measured, literary tone of his 1980s work (like the von Bek book), but they're a far cry from the brashly psychedelic sword and sorcery romps that preceded them. This is some very clever, and extremely entertaining writing, and the febrile caprice wth which Moorcock imagines the whimsy of the ultimate fin-de-siècle is truly mindblowing.
arthurbdd's review against another edition
5.0
Perhaps Moorcock's best fantasy series, compiled between two covers. These three novels represent the cream of Moorcock's End of Time material; though he would dip into it for Legends of the End of Time and The Transformation of Miss Mavis Ming (AKA A Messiah At the End of Time) and the Elric At the End of Time short story, none of these really measure up to the magnificence of these finely-crafted novels. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2012/06/24/the-soirees-of-infinity/
inthelunaseas's review against another edition
5.0
What a bizarre but wonderful novel. The whole premise is absolutely nuts, and the execution is just as insane. A woman from 1896 is flung millions of years into the future, where one of two naturally born people exist (the rest are creations or time travellers), falls in love with her and on it goes. Anything that can possibly be thought up exists, and people follow their whims, whether that involves having sex with one's parents, shooting an arrow through twenty palm trees and turning into a goat. Space travel is considered exceedingly dull, and time travel is a rare occurrence. When one can do anything they want to at a touch of a finger (or ring), why wouldn't it be that way?
This has all the makings of a book I should hate. The main character is horrendously naive, and there's a running theme of women-as-items, which may be par for course given the time Amelia's from and the time Moorcock lived in. It's also frighteningly bizarre, and it takes a couple of chapters to get the head around. It also droned on for periods and I got a touch bored towards the end. But [a:Michael Moorcock|16939|Michael Moorcock|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1222901251p2/16939.jpg]'s writing saves it. It's very touching and sweet. The romance between Jherek and Amelia is quaint, and the growth of both characters was realistic. I found Jherek's desperate attempts at wooing her to be cute.
I also enjoyed Mongrove's depression, and the Lat. I found Mr Underwood and the police to be a little grating towards the end, but I think they had played their part and simply had to be explained away. The last book could definitely have been shortened, at least, or even separated into two books.
But overall, this was very enjoyable for me, but not for everyone. It can be a hard read if one doesn't accept the fact it is going to be extremely abstract while going in.
This has all the makings of a book I should hate. The main character is horrendously naive, and there's a running theme of women-as-items, which may be par for course given the time Amelia's from and the time Moorcock lived in. It's also frighteningly bizarre, and it takes a couple of chapters to get the head around. It also droned on for periods and I got a touch bored towards the end. But [a:Michael Moorcock|16939|Michael Moorcock|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1222901251p2/16939.jpg]'s writing saves it. It's very touching and sweet. The romance between Jherek and Amelia is quaint, and the growth of both characters was realistic. I found Jherek's desperate attempts at wooing her to be cute.
I also enjoyed Mongrove's depression, and the Lat. I found Mr Underwood and the police to be a little grating towards the end, but I think they had played their part and simply had to be explained away. The last book could definitely have been shortened, at least, or even separated into two books.
But overall, this was very enjoyable for me, but not for everyone. It can be a hard read if one doesn't accept the fact it is going to be extremely abstract while going in.
nomiddlename's review against another edition
5.0
One of my favourite books. Reread it to get rid of the bad taste left by Moorcock's dodgy Dr Who book.
nwhyte's review against another edition
http://nhw.livejournal.com/391683.html[return][return]Edition uniting An Alien Heat, The Hollow Lands, and The End of All Songs. A bit of a one-joke book, this: hero from sexually liberated culture falls in love with woman from a much more repressed culture; this basic plot is the making of many stirring love stories, but here it is played for laughs, the repressed culture being late nineteenth-century London. The anarchic, pansexual, abundant society at the End of Time perhaps inspired Iain M. Banks a little, but Banks carries it off much better. Comic policemen and small furry (but vicious) aliens caper rather pointlessly through the timewarps, as do in-joke characters from Moorcock's other books and from elsewhere. The end of the universe happens but doesn't seem to make much difference.
iguana_mama's review against another edition
5.0
A delightful romp through the past and the future. If you like some romance and humor with your fantasy, quirky aliens, and a civilization of decadent and self-indulgent immortals, you will enjoy this wonderful and unusual story.
toby_s's review against another edition
4.0
An Alien Heat - 4/5
The Hollow Lands - 4/5
The End of All Songs - 3/5
The Hollow Lands - 4/5
The End of All Songs - 3/5
dustymantle's review against another edition
3.0
I learned the appeal of far-future dandies and incongruous Victoriana, as if that was ever in doubt, but didn't love it as such - it was an agreeable frolic, though, probably a 3.5.
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