Nine Princes in Amber

The Chronicles of Amber, Book 1

By: Roger Zelazny

Narrated by: Alessandro Juliani

Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Nine Princes in Amber is the first of the 10 books that are The Chronicles of Amber; an epic fantasy series written by six-time Hugo Award winning and three-time Nebula Award winning author, Roger Zelazny.

The ten books that make up the series are told in two story arcs: The Corwin Cycle and the Merlin Cycle.

The Audible audio rendition of this classic sci-fi/fantasy series is kicked off by 2012 Audie Award nominee, Alessandro Juliani, who reads the first five books that make up the Corwin Cycle and whose narration vividly brings the world of Amber to life.

Amber is the one real world, of which all others including our own Earth are but Shadows. Amber burns in Corwin's blood. Exiled on Shadow Earth for centuries, the prince is about to return to Amber to make a mad and desperate rush upon the throne.

From Arden to the Pattern deep in Castle Amber which defines the very structure of Reality, Corwin must contend with the powers of his eight immortal brothers, all Princes of Amber. His savage path is blocked and guarded by eerie structures beyond imagining impossible realities forged by demonic assassins and staggering Forces that challenge the might of Corwin's superhuman fury.

©1970 Roger Zelazny (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Excellent novel, Jr High level narration

The first of Zelazny's famous Amber Chronicles, this is an excellent book, and a great read. Unfortunately, the lack luster narration is about what you might expect from a Junior high School play...except your kid isn't in this one, so why are you here?

Decent rendition of an old series I kinda remember

Where does Nine Princes in Amber rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very much in the middle. ..which means it was worth the credit! Not a favorite but then I read the written series "long long ago in a universe far away" when it was being written. I liked the Amber series then but it was never an auto buy qnd I never read every book as the series dragged on.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Don't believe I would change anything. I have pretty much forgotten the series and enjoyed rediscovering this story. It is a little medieval in an alternate universe. No complaints.

What about Alessandro Juliani’s performance did you like?

As I don't remember, it must have been okay but nothing to rave about. Since I gave him 4 stars immediately after listening to the book he is a good narrator but not the top (of which there are very few).

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not so much. Compared to my favorite authors which include Bujold, Eric Flint's 1632 series, David Eddings Belgarion and Mallorean series (not to mention the GREATS like Heinlein and Tolkien) this iw an interesting story and a series I will continue to follow when I need a new read and can't find one I REALLY want.

Any additional comments?

Good solid story and writing. If you like Game of Thrones or Christopher Stasheff's Wizard series you will likely enjoy this series. Beware. ..like the Ringworld books and other series I seem to remember that there's a lot of books in this series.

For me, it couldn't be better.

It's quite a trick to pull off the strange combination of 60's hip and high fantasy that Zelazny wrote in his heyday but Alessandro Juliani gets right to the heart of the matter. I really enjoyed his portrayal of the treacherous Amberites and their henchmen, his excellent characterization enhancing the sometimes preposterous Zelazny plot turns. Weird, silly and wonderful, a real pleasure for Zelazny fans.

All time Favorite

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

The Amber series is one of the seminal works of Fantasy and I always have it on a short list of stories to share with anyone.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Nine Princes in Amber?

One of my favorite moments is at the beginnning when Corwin has to bkuff his family because he has lost his memories. So classic and it gives a good look into the type of intrigue and family politics that will dominante the story.

Which character – as performed by Alessandro Juliani – was your favorite?

Corwin is hands down the favorite but Rnadom became a more nuanced charater with how he was read by Juliani.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This is an all time favorite that I will still re-read from time to time which is why I picked up the audible book so I good experience it again in a new format.

Pleasantly surprised

This is one of those books that I'd seen recommended a lot lately, though I don't remember why. I decided to listen to the audiobook, and it's been fun. Corwin was especially clever, and the book surprises me as not feeling all that dated at all. I don't plan on listening to others, but this was enjoyable.

Alessandro Juliani did an good audio performance, and I would listen to him narrate many more books. He is perhaps the go-to guy for older scifi finally getting an audiobook as I have his performance of Solaris as well.

Fantasy for mature minds that ponder the possible

There is something about how Zelanzy creates charecters... dialog is uniquely Zelanzy's. The charecters are oddly fun and believable. Plot lines are woven with an eye on people who think ahead but he plays with the genre's array of fun possibilities with magic, supernatural creatures, dynasties, bloof feuds and romance

good and unusual story

It's a very interesting story and what's good it's quite untypical for sci-fi. I guess took a lot of imagination.

1

Didn't like the preformance. Realy disliked the voices used to each caracter v v v

Alessandro does an amazing job narrating.

Alessandro does an amazing job narrating. He really brings the story alive in a way reading didn't.

Meh... run here run there

Run here run there armies dying run some more trapped in prison escapes from prison... no real human condition or revelations of any sort . can fast forward through 90 percent it has such little meaning