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Amber - Roger Zelazny's Amber

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From: Mich...@xenite.org (Michael Martinez)
Subject: WorldFAQ: Roger Zelazny's Amber
Date: 1998/12/24
Message-ID: 
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Organization: The Xenite.Org Domain -- Worlds of Imagination on the Web
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Followup-To: alt.fan.created-worlds,alt.books.roger-zelazny
Newsgroups: alt.fan.created-worlds,alt.fantasy,alt.books.roger-zelazny,rec.arts.books


                            WorldFAQ:
                      Roger Zelazny's Amber

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1].  Quick Reference

     Amber is the "true" Earth, a world of which our is but a
     shadow.  The rulers of Amber are a large family of immortal
     multi-dimensional warlocks and sorcerors who engage in
     endless feuds and intrigues.  Much of the action takes place
     in various shadow worlds.  Primary sources include NINE
     PRINCES IN AMBER, THE GUNS OF AVALON, SIGN OF THE UNICORN,
     THE HAND OF OBERON, THE COURTS OF CHAOS, TRUMPS OF DOOM,
     BLOOD OF AMBER, SIGN OF CHAOS, KNIGHT OF SHADOWS, and
     PRINCE OF CHAOS.
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2].  Printed Sources Bibliography

There are actually two Amber series.  The first series
focuses on Corwin's struggle to achieve control over
Amber and then the conflicts arising from his discovery
of his father's survival.  Eventually, the intrigues lead
to a new regime and a new beginning for Corwin, Amber,
and a third nexus (the Logrus of the Courts of Chaos
and the Pattern of Amber being the first two nexi).

I have the first five books in a two-volume set from
the Doubleday Book Club published as THE CHRONICLES OF
AMBER, Volumes I and II.  The other books I purchased
as they came out in hardback or paperback.


THE CHRONICLES OF AMBER:
-----------------------
NINE PRINCES IN AMBER, 1970, Doubleday & Company.

THE GUNS OF AVALON, 1972, Doubleday & Company.

SIGN OF THE UNICORN, 1975.  Originally published in
serialized form in the January, February, and March
1975 issues of Galaxy magazine.

THE HAND OF OBERON, 1976, Doubleday & Company.

THE COURTS OF CHAOS, 1978.  Originally published in
serialized form in the November, 1977 to February,
1978 issues of Galaxy magazine.


The second series focuses on Merlin, Corwin's son,
introduced in THE COURTS OF CHAOS.

TRUMPS OF DOOM, 1985, Arbor House.

BLOOD OF AMBER, 1986, Arbor House.

SIGN OF CHAOS, 1987, Arbor House.

KNIGHT OF SHADOWS, 1989, William Morrow & Company,
ISBN 0-688-08726-4.

PRINCE OF CHAOS, 1991, William Morrow & Company.
Avon paperback published in 1992, ISBN
0-3809-75502-5.

PRINCE OF CHAOS was, as far as I know, the last of the Amber books,
but the story was not really fully told.

Several short stories were published concerning the Amber world
as well.
"The Salesman's Tale", Amberzine #6, February 1994.
"Coming To A Cord", Pirate Writings #7, Winter 1995, and
Amberzine #10, October 1997.
"The Shroudling and the Guisel", Amberzine #8, November 1995.
"Blue Horse, Dancing Mountains", WHEEL OF FORTUNE, Edited
by Roger Zelazny, 1995, Avon, ISBN 0-380-77423-2.
"Hall of Mirrors", Castle Fantastic, Edited by John DeChancie
and Martin H. Greenberg, 1996, Daw, ISBN 0-88677-686-4.
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3].  Visual Sources Bibliography

DC Comics adapted NINE PRINCES IN AMBER and THE GUNS OF AVALON
in 1996.  Terry Bisson wrote the adaptations.
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4].  Related Materials Bibliography

ROGER ZELAZNY'S VISUAL GUIDE TO CASTLE AMBER with Neil Randall,
Avon.

THE ILLUSTRATED ROGER ZELAZNY, 1979, Byron Press, ISBN 0441365256.

Amberzine, published by Phage Press.  PO Box 519, Detroit MI
48231-0519. Edited by Erick Wujcik

Pirate Writings, published by Pirate Writings Publishing,
PO Box 329, Brightwaters, NY 11718.

THE COMPLETE AMBER SOURCEBOOK, Theodore Krulik, 1996, Avon,
ISBN 0-380-75409-6.
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5].  Online References

It appears there are far more resources devoted to Roger Zelazny
than this WorldFAQ is able to list.  I've found few resources
devoted explicitly to Amber, but will apprecicate it if someone
can point me to a comprehensive list or resource that may not
be mentioned below.

     A)   News Groups

          alt.books.roger-zelazny.  His works can also be discussed
          in alt.fantasy, rec.arts.sf.written, alt.books,
          rec.arts.books, alt.books, alt.fan.created-worlds.

     B)   Mailing/Discussion Lists

          Amber List
          Send email to majord...@logrus.org with "Subscribe amber"
          (no quotes) in the body of the message.

          Courts of Chaos List
          Send e-mail to chaos-requ...@byte-me.org
          with "subscribe Chaos" (no quotes) in the body of the message.

          AmberFiction List
          Send email to majord...@io.com, put "subscribe amberfic"
          (no quotes) followed by your email address in the body
          of the message.

     C)   Web sites

          Amber Links
          http://www.a-ztech.com/mabarry/amber/amblink.html
          Appears to be a well-researched and definitive
          starting point.

          Chris Bickford -- Roger Zelazny -- Bibliography
          http://www.mcs.net/~cbickfor/homepage/amber/general/zelazny.htm

          Zelazny and Amber
          http://www.ghgcorp.com/it/scott/zelazny/

          Roger Zelazny, une page non officielle...
          http://sf.emse.fr/AUTHORS/RZELAZNY/rz.html
          (This site is in French, Francais)

          Roger Zelazny on the Web
          http://www.enol.com/~ferenczy/rogerz.html

          Fun People Archive - 16 Jun -- Roger Zelazny
          http://www.empire.net/~psl/Fun_People/1995/1995AWT.html
          Obituary for Roger Zelazny

          Roger Zelazny Page
          http://wsrv.clas.virginia.edu/~npt4g/zelazny/zelazny.html
          Contains info and links about MUSHes. 
          The Amber Elders Project
          http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Corridor/8252/index.html

          Magazine Appearances By Roger Zelazny
          http://www.itmm.com/scott/zelazny/zelazny_date.shtml

          FAQ for Courts of Chaos Mailing List
          http://a-ztech.com/mabarry/chaos/index.html

     D)   Online services

          Amber MUSH (see "Roger Zelazny Page" above).

          Patternfall MUSH (see "Roger Zelazny Page" above).

          AmberList FTP site is located at:
          ftp://ftp.visi.com/users/kbremer/amber/

     E)   IRC

          The #AmberIRC page provides full info at:
          http://students.cec.wustl.edu/~ms9/Amber/irc.html

     F)   Comprehensive lists of resources

          None.
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6].  Description

     Amber is the "true" Earth, of which ours is just a shadow,
     a sort of variant that departs from the original design
     through variations in the possibilities of reality.

     The rulers of Amber are a family of immortals who originated
     in the Courts of Chaos, an alternative reality that is
     older than Amber and its shadow worlds.  There is conflict
     between Amber -- founded on the Pattern -- and the Courts
     of Chaos -- founded on the Logrus.  There are also
     conflicts and intrigues between the royal Amberites
     themselves, and they draw upon the resources of many
     worlds to advance their causes.

     Amber itself is a city, the capitol of the True Earth,
     and it is the center of much activity.  But the Amberites
     have the ability to Shadowalk -- to pass from world to
     world, or to use Trumps -- special cards of magical
     nature which allow them to communicate or to join each
     other across great distances.

     In addition to the Pattern and the Logrus, other
     things or sources are created at later times, and they
     are mentioned or developed in the books.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
7].  Maintainer Information

FAQ owner: Michael Martinez 
Last Updated:  December 24, 1998

All errors of fact or fiction are my own.

Some corrections and/or information were supplied by:

Meera Barry 
Michael Schwartz 
Anthony Stanford 
Norris Thomlinson 
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