The Chronicles of Amber: Volume II (1979)

by Roger Zelazny

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	Omnibus, 434 pages Part of the Amber Omnibuses series. Also part of the Amber series. Editions published: 2 Won Awards: False Juvenile / YA: False External Links: ISFDB ISBN: None

Synopsis:

Sign of the Unicorn (1975) Main article: Sign of the Unicorn Eric is dead, and Corwin now rules Amber as Regent. But someone has murdered their brother Caine and framed Corwin. This leads to questions about other missing members of the royal family. Corwin's brother, Random, tells of his attempts to rescue their brother, Brand, and Corwin decides to find out what happened to the latter. After many intrafamily exchanges, Brand is rescued but is stabbed by one of the family in the attempt. In the midst of the ensuing intrigue, an assassination attempt is made on Corwin and he finds himself incapacitated on Earth. Before returning to Amber he hides the Jewel of Judgment on Earth. After Brand recovers, he tells Corwin of several incidents leading up to his capture. Corwin travels to Tir-na Nóg'th, the mysterious, moonlit Amber-in-the-sky where he hopes to gain insight into the situation, and upon his return finds himself at the Primal Pattern rather than Amber. The Hand of Oberon (1976) Main article: The Hand of Oberon Corwin finds the Primal Pattern damaged, with a dark stain obscuring parts of it. On further investigation it is found that the blood of one of the members of his family has created the stain. Corwin descends back to the dungeons and meets with Dworkin, who explains how the Pattern might be repaired. After being chased from the Pattern, Corwin eventually discovers that Brand is responsible for the damage and that he now has the Jewel of Judgment. Corwin must now prevent Brand from attuning himself to the jewel, or Brand's plot to destroy the Pattern will succeed. Corwin and his family band together to prevent this, eventually recover the jewel, and discover that their father Oberon, the true King of Amber, still lives. Roger Zelazny makes a brief cameo appearance in the book as a guard in a dungeon, smoking a pipe and working on a novel which may or may not be The Chronicles of Amber itself. The Courts of Chaos (1978) Main article: The Courts of Chaos Oberon, having resumed the throne, organizes an assault on the Courts of Chaos. Oberon plans to repair the Primal Pattern at the cost of his life, and offers the throne to Corwin with Dara as his Queen. Corwin refuses and is tasked to bring the Jewel of Judgment across the shadows to the battle that will ensue after the Pattern is redrawn. He sets off along the black road and is soon pursued by Brand and a great storm. Through the storm and across the multiverse he comes to doubt his father's success. As he approaches the Courts of Chaos he is assailed by fantastic beings who try to dissuade him, and he finally decides that his father must have failed. Corwin then creates a new Pattern and uses it to get to the Courts, but has not the strength to prevent Brand stealing the Jewel from him in the process. In a final confrontation with Brand, the Jewel of Judgment is stolen and lost. Brand is killed - by Caine, revealed to have faked his own death earlier by murdering a "shadow" version of himself and leaving the body to be found: shot through heart and throat, Brand falls off a precipice into the Abyss, taking Deirdre with him in the process. The Jewel is recovered by the unicorn who bestows it on Random, who is then accepted as the new King. The Trumps and multiverse are restored and Corwin relates the story of the first five novels to his son Merlin.

Titles contained in this book:

Each item can be rated independently of the book it is contained in. This book might also include short stories that aren't included here. See the ISFDB entry for a ful listing of the contents.

Sign of the Unicorn (1975) by Roger Zelazny Novel , 243 p. Part 3 of the Chronicles of Amber (Corwin) series. Wikipedia ISFDB

The Hand of Oberon (1976) by Roger Zelazny Novel , 245 p. Part 4 of the Chronicles of Amber (Corwin) series. Wikipedia ISFDB

The Courts of Chaos (1978) by Roger Zelazny Novel , 208 p. Part 5 of the Chronicles of Amber (Corwin) series. Wikipedia ISFDB