Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories

The Michael Moorcock Collection

by Michael Moorcock, Alan Moore (foreword)

Here are the first tales of the albino sorcerer-prince Elric: lord of the Dreaming City, last Emperor of Melniboné, traitor, kinslayer. Doomed to wander the multiverse, battered by the whims of Law and Chaos, in thrall to his soul-eating sword, Stormbringer, Elric lies at the heart of Michael Moorcock's extraordinary mythology of the Eternal Champion.

If you know his story already, then this definitive edition will finally let you read the entire saga in the author's preferred order. If you've never experienced the chronicles of the albino with the soul-sucking sword, then this is the perfect place to start.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Sword and Sorcery, Dark Fantasy, Classics, Novels, Short Stories

384 pages, Paperback

First published May 23, 2013

About the author

Michael John Moorcock is an English writer primarily of science fiction and fantasy who has also published a number of literary novels.

Moorcock has mentioned The Gods of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Apple Cart by George Bernard Shaw and The Constable of St. Nicholas by Edward Lester Arnold as the first three books which captured his imagination. He became editor of Tarzan Adventures in 1956, at the age of sixteen, and later moved on to edit Sexton Blake Library. As editor of the controversial British science fiction magazine New Worlds, from May 1964 until March 1971 and then again from 1976 to 1996, Moorcock fostered the development of the science fiction "New Wave" in the UK and indirectly in the United States. His serialization of Norman Spinrad's Bug Jack Barron was notorious for causing British MPs to condemn in Parliament the Arts Council's funding of the magazine.

During this time, he occasionally wrote under the pseudonym of "James Colvin," a "house pseudonym" used by other critics on New Worlds. A spoof obituary of Colvin appeared in New Worlds #197 (January 1970), written by "William Barclay" (another Moorcock pseudonym). Moorcock, indeed, makes much use of the initials "JC", and not entirely coincidentally these are also the initials of Jesus Christ, the subject of his 1967 Nebula award-winning novella Behold the Man, which tells the story of Karl Glogauer, a time-traveller who takes on the role of Christ. They are also the initials of various "Eternal Champion" Moorcock characters such as Jerry Cornelius, Jerry Cornell and Jherek Carnelian. In more recent years, Moorcock has taken to using "Warwick Colvin, Jr." as yet another pseudonym, particularly in his Second Ether fiction.

Reviews

[Elena · Rating 2 out of 5]

This isn't a review of Elric of Melniboné (here on Goodreads alone you'll find plenty of them by much more knowledgeable fans of the saga than me) but of the Gateway collection Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories, which purports to be "the author’s definitive editions of the saga of Elric", something the author himself worked on putting together.

Before we get into the review proper, a little disclaimer: I'm new to Elric and to Moorcock's work in general, and when I decided to pick up this collection I expected to read the novel "Elric of Melniboné" and a few short stories connected to the character, kinda like the title implied I was going to, and I was hoping for a little guide into a saga that, for various reason, is pretty hard to navigate.

Right then, moving on.

Just to be clear, you won't find "other stories" in here, besides the super short Master of Chaos, a story about Earl Aubec, AKA the late owner of Elric's lame sword nobody really cares about because it isn't Stormbringer, and And So the Great Emperor Received His Education…, which reveals how Elric cheated by napping on his dream couch and dreaming about the stuff he wanted to learn rather than sitting his ass down and opening a book.

What you'll find instead is a confused and confusing patchwork of disparate pieces of writing:
❶ Introduction to The Michael Moorcock Collection by John Clute: I'm not even sure what Mr. Clute was talking about here, this is clearly directed at people who have already read every piece of paper Micheal Moorcock ever produced in his life. I gather that there's a whole multiverse the albino sorcerer is supposed to be part of, but the folks at Gateway must feel it's beneath themselves to give people approaching Moorcock's work any sort of indication regarding a reading order - such a bourgeois notion! - and this piece reads like Clute took the chance to name-drop titles and show us how knowledgeable of a Moorcock fan he is. Good for you, man! As for me, by this point, I'm starting to get the feeling that life just won't be giving me the chance to become a fan myself any time soon: the task of tracking down Moorcock's books is monumental and those already in the clique clearly aren't interested in lending us newbie heathens a hand.
❷ Introduction to The Michael Moorcock Collection by Micheal Moorcock: yup, another introduction! Wait, maybe this time I'll finally get, you know, introduced to the many mysteries of Moorcock's bibliography! Aaand... nope. This is the author talking about his life-long love for the craft of storytelling. A pleasant read, but I'm still confused, now also about what exactly the meaning of this editorial work could be. Who is it for? And why am I starting to feel like a creep spying on someone having fun from outside their window?! I just want to know a little more about Elric's series, whynobodywouldtellmeanything! *insert crying emoji here*
❸ Map of Elric in the Young Kingdom. Cool, cool. I'll need this, if I ever get to the bottom of this bizarro journey.
❹ Dedication: fair enough.
❺ The Return of the Thin White Duke: A Foreword by Alan Moore: I love Moore. I love him even though I usually understand approximately 34% of what he's talking about. Except for this one time. This time I understood what he was saying loud and clear. But it's my fault I suppose, I got all complacent and let my guard down, believing myself safe from spoilers since what I was reading is in fact the introduction (one of three, but still) to the first of a six-volumes long collection of stories, of which now I'm lucky enough to know the ending beforehand. Well... they say that the journey is more important than the destination or something, right?
❻ At the Beginning by Michael Moorcock: a scrap of paper that appears to be part of a conversation about the genre ongoing in the '60s, and that the author decided to include here "because, with my ‘Aspects of Fantasy’ essays, it immediately precedes the Elric stories and gives some idea of the atmosphere in which they were first published". Right, but it's still literally a one Kindle-page long, so don't expect anything particularly eye-opening.
❼ Putting a Tag on It by Micheal Moorcock: now, here's finally something even I can understand. Moorcock muses about the genre - where it came from, where it could go, what the various sub-genres should be called and why - with some brilliant insights that ultimately make the "At the Beginning" presence in the collection really quite redundant.
❽ Master of Chaos
❾ Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer: I took a peek at some of the other reviews before writing mine just to make sure it wasn't my appalling ignorance of all-things Elric making me miss some nuances here, because I really can't see what this graphic novel script (and only the script, mind you), which describes life in Immryr when Sadric, Elric's father, was still alive, has to add to the main story. It basically reads like an Elric of Melniboné for Dummies.
❿ And So the Great Emperor Received His Education…
⓫ Elric of Melniboné
⓬ Aspects of Fantasy (I): the first part of Moorcock's essay about fantasy. The author's knowledge of literature at large and narratology is impressive and his thesis about the various incarnations of fantasy, its deeper meaning and endless potential is a truly compelling read. I'm still in the dark about Elric and the multiverse he's part of but, hey! I'll take what I can get. As I mentioned though, only part of the essay is included here and - I'm taking a wild guess here - I imagine I'll have to buy volume #2 in the collection to read the rest. As soon as I figure out which of the remaining six volumes comes next, that is.
⓭ Introduction (to Elric of Melniboné, graphic adaptation, 1986): while I find it interesting to know how big of a role illustrations played in Moorcock's writing process, without any of the actual art the author is referring to, this piece falls pretty flat, heh?
⓮ El Cid and Elric: Under the Influence! a great insight into Moorcock's cultural journey as a young boy, focusing on his love for El Cid, who later became a big part of his inspiration in writing Elric - a perfect follow-up for the previous essay and a nice way to close the collection.
⓯ But wait, there's another map! Of the same place: in case we lose the first one? Mmmkay.

Gateway's Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories proved to be a perplexing editorial work: I'm not sure who it could be intended for - it's full of spoilers for the series and mentions that will feel obscure to anyone not having previous knowledge of Moorcock's body of work, so not to new readers, that much is clear. A last word of advice to my fellow Elric newbies: I'd suggest you read the novel first, and then work your way back to the essays - keep in mind that over at Gateway they must find it inconceivable that someone might not be already familiar with Elric's story, so there will be spoilers for the rest of the series.

Recommended for: I honestly couldn't say, and I'm not even trying to be shady here. Hard-die Moorcock fans who are missing At the Beginning from their collection? Courageous Elric newbies? Or really desperate ones?

[Love of Hopeless Causes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Someone deserves thirty spanks with a mushy paperback. I want to see, Moorcock, Davey, and whatever Gollancz toady approved this, in my office.

This edition is, in a word, awkward. Choice of cover color? Awkward Brand (TM) Burnt Orange. Who's idea was the fake weathering and edge burn? This foible is causing the plastic overlay to peel, bestowing a snowy effect, which, if ripped off like a Band-Aid, could only improve matters. It might be forgivable if it succeeded in looking burnt. Instead, it looks like someone used it to wipe off a dirty countertop. So thanks for making this edition look like garbage in advance. What font was chosen for the cover? You guessed it: Awkwordius.

The art takes away more than it adds, even though Moorcock drones on about how important illustrations are to him. He apparently has bad taste, if this is the standard. Who turns down Ralph Bakshi at the height of his powers? The previous edition's white covers feature far more successful cover art.

Perhaps worst of all, this book carries on as if we already know Elric and Associates, though it is volume one of the definitive authorial edition. Sure wish I could get this on Kindle, but no, I have to have it shipped here from the Dragon Isle via Royal Mail, which seems to take a perverse delight in trashing these and my Robin Hobb books. Surely there is one reputable English Bookseller, you ask? No, because they all use Royal Fail Mail. Do I want to continue the series? Yes. Do I want my copy rolled up like a royal burrito? Nay!

So how does it read? Depends on the entry. Could have lived without twenty-seven pages of introductions. At this point, I had zero confidence in the author, so telling me of his failed marriages and other ups and downs, only increased my odds of abandoning the book. I should have skipped the third introduction by the, "Beard Who Walks as a Man," and his mysterious hallucinatory dissection of London. Perhaps ironically, the entire volume considered together comes off as a random access dream.

"Master of Chaos," was a highly successful short, but this being the chronological telling, it sets the bar too high. The writing is superior to that in the main tale, "Elric of Melnibone," probably because it was written at a later date. Which would have been nice to know, Senor Editor. You give all the metadata a new reader cares not for, yet none of the data that might keep him reading.

There's some junk in the middle that caused me to abandon the book for two years. Instead of reprinting a comic book, they give you the script, presumably so Moorcock can keep all the publishing dough.

If you are perusing this in store, start with Elric, because if you don't like that, the rest of the book is moot. That story leaves much to be desired. The plot ruining chapter headers and character motivations are just. . . whatever Moorcock fancied in his internal psychological landscape. You can either applaud him for sticking to the initial cartoon vision, or you can scrunch up your face every few pages and think, "That's convenient." Use the dragons? Why M'lord they are all sleeping, clearly tired from their last excursion. Towards the end, he brags about writing these books in a few days to a week. Well, it shows, Maestro. That said, I think Mike's strength is in the ideas.

Once I finished the book, I posed myself this question: if this was a gaming campaign would I quit? The answer is no. So let's hope Royal Mail is flying sober this season.

[Nicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

My problem with Moorcock’s work has always been how interlinked it is. It doesn’t matter how much anyone tells me that x or y book doesn’t require knowing the rest of Moorcock’s canon, I’m compulsive that way and I want to know everything. From the start. So I’m glad to see these definitive Gollancz editions are author approved and fairly exhaustive in what they cover. I don’t think anything in here was covered by the omnibus I had before (and have read), which was nonetheless marked I. That drives me crackers.

And… I know it was a long time ago I made that attempt on Elric, but I think I liked this better. It establishes Melniboné beautifully, it shows us Elric’s first encounters with Stormbringer, his rule of Melniboné, his enemies and allies, his first pacts with Chaos. It’s a little awkward reading the comic book script, but fun, too — you get much franker comments about how Moorcock wanted Elric to look, and you can get an idea about the layout of pages, etc. It’s like reading a hybrid form.

I love the language Moorcock uses, the decadence and ruin and rot and dark beauties he lays bare. The magical world he creates. I’m looking forward to reading more of Elric. Also, his commentary on the genre which is included is excellent and worth reading.

Originally posted here.

[Roxana Chirilă · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the worst book I've read all year, and it's not even (entirely) Elric of Melniboné's fault.

I bought this particular edition because it was much cheaper than buying a volume containing only the story of "Elric of Melniboné" - and I'm starting to see how adding content can reduce the value of a book. I've never seen a volume so undecided about what it wants to be and stumbling over its own feet.

This volume contains:
- an introduction by John Clute
- an introduction by Michael Moorcock
- a foreword by Alan Moore
- an introduction to something about the fantasy genre (maybe?) by Michael Moorcock
- musings about the fantasy genre by Michael Moorcock

At this point, I was about to quit. There is such a thing as too much meta - and Alan Moore decided to be more cryptic and weird than usual, which is saying something. I wanted to get to the actual fiction, especially since everyone in the introduction was going on and on about how great it is. Moorcock himself names a million high brow writers he was inspired by over the years.

Imagine, then, my relief when I ran into:
- Master of Chaos

...a short story about a dude who walks towards a mysterious castle and fights illusions only to get to the beautiful lady of the castle, who wants to sleep with him for no reason. Alas, he's uninterested, but he allows himself to be persuaded to walk into the chaos at the end of the world and turn it into order.

I guess there's some sort of metaphor about writing here, but you can feel the "horny writer" trope of the '60s and '70s here, running interference.

Anyway, it was short, and it seemed to be a (fictional) introduction to the universe. (Ha, ha! Tricked again into reading one of those!)

What follows it is:
- Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer

...a comic book script. I swear to god. I was reading and wondering *why*. The dialogue is full of thees and thous. The descriptions are... hard to illustrate, I guess. I wondered if it was ever published as an actual comic book, but there's no info about that.

I got increasingly frustrated. After so many intros, this shit was too much. Reader, I skipped it after Elric talked to the water elemental - my patience had run dry. I had to switch books so I could give the actual prose Elric story a chance, because now I was in a mood to rip it to pieces.

So, a few days later, substantially cooled off, I got to:
- Elric of Melniboné

Ah, the main event! But, alas, the praise and hype in the many intros served only as a sad contrast to the work itself. Elric is severely dated in style. It has endless descriptions with little of the subtlety of more recent authors; I've seen cheesy romances less flowery in their description of garments than Elric is in the description of people's looks and armors.

While the ideas themselves are pretty decent (an albino emperor of a ruthless kingdom of magic is trying to come to grips with his own morality, while facing a more beloved kinsman who wishes to usurp him), the plot itself feels somewhat loose. It took me a while to get into it, and I'm not sure I'm that impressed. It's probably better remembered than read.

The details of the world are cartoonish, especially when it comes to Melnibonean cruelty: they have slaves used for music, who learn a single note that they scream when they're whipped; when in need of ship speed, put the slaves on super-steroid drugs that kill them eventually; abominations attack in battle screaming their own names, while Elric screams his.

I don't know. Not my thing, and while I can usually appreciate reading things for reasons other than pure entertainment (such as seeing what a historically relevant work is like), this volume has made sure to stomp any pleasure out and grate my nerves at every opportunity.

...Oh, shit, I nearly forgot! After "Elric of Melniboné", there are three more texts:
- Aspects of Fantasy, a(nother) text about fantasy
- Introduction to the graphic adaptation of Elric of Melniboné
- A text about El Cid and Elric

Why start and end this volume with introductions?! AAAAAAARGH!

[Cynnamon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite what I expected, but interesting enough as a start into the Elric universe

I was gifted Elric: The Sailor on the Seas of Fate and because I wanted to read the series from the start I bought the present book. As it turned out this might not have been the very best decision, because this is an anthology with only the Elric novella being of interest to me. Besides this novella the book contains a short story from the time before Elric, the script of a graphic novel (with the pictures being described in text), which I didn’t know what to do with(I also found it very boring) and a couple of essays about Michael Moorcock’s life and work.

In my rating and review I will ignore everything but the Elric novella.
I am aware of Moorcock’s reputation and importance. I did like the plot and I found the protagonist interesting. Elric starts out very much as an anti-hero. He was born a sickly child and grew up under permanent medication to survive and more drugs to induce visions and dreams to strengthen his skills as a sorcerer. He starts out at the beginning of the story basically as a frail junkie. Interesting were all the moral deliberations and the decisions he finally takes that lead him to the way of being a true hero.
But due to the brevity of the novella the plot could not show much complexity and the characters were lacking a deeper character development. Also the writing style did not really speak to me. I found it really old-fashioned, if not outdated (the similar trouble I have with Tolkien).

Nevertheless I liked the story well enough to follow up with the second book and rate this book with 3 stars.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Behold ladies and gentlemen! The book that inspired/created George R.R. Martin's Valyria down to the last detail. Upsetting I know, I thought it was original too.

Melniboné is an ancient city/kingdom whose people are sophisticated, educated and superior than those of what is referred to as the "Young Kingdoms". They have ancient knowledge, dragons whom only they can speak with and the strongest of them can call upon magical deities like lords of Chaos, nature and more.

The members of the royal family need to acquire this ancient knowledge and so before adulthood through the process of dream quests they experience a mind blowing duality between sleep and conciousness and are transported back in time to play their part and prove their worth in old battles and former kingdoms. Those who survive wake with the experience and knowledge of thousands of years, ready to rule, fight, defend and persevere.

The other kingdoms think them evil, of old magic that are to be feared and avoided.

Insest is very much a thing here but unnecessary violence is not. They are incredibly civilized in that manner and respect and honor their enemies as much as themselves.

The main character, Elric, often referred to as the albino prince is by nature weak and needs drugs to sustain himself. His hair is white, his eyes red, his power amazing. Not yet sure if he belongs to the half part of royals who become mad from the dream quests he is cunning, nightly and deadly. - (already the ideas stolen for Valyria are all over the place)

At times I thought the line between his arrogance and wisdom would get seriously blurred but had to remind myself he has accumulated some thousands of years of experience already and its not that simple a matter.

The writing is old school fantasy, almost ancient fairytale like, with Victorian pronouns and knightly honor and an ancient code of conduct and it was amazing. Immediately it created its own atmosphere and changed your expectations of everyone's behavior.

Even more impressive for me was the economy of words needed in order to convey the authors point. With a very small yet on point choice of words the writer managed to perfectly explain what he needed me to understand in terms of setting, mood, personalities, everything!

I admit at times Elric was more romantic than I thought him able to be and am not Cymoril's biggest fan at this point but it all fit together quite beautifully.

Definitely the strangest fantasy book I have ever read. Will absolutely continue with the second.

[Rickard Dahlgren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mästerligt berättat och rikligt illustrerade detaljer med ett imponerande världsbygge som jag aldrig tidigare skådat.

[Pavlo Tverdokhlib · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a weird book. There's a collection of essays that puts the whole "Elric" phenomenon in its historical and cultural perspective. Which is cool, albeit a bit lost on me since I'm no English major.

Then there's "Master of Chaos", which is a very short story featuring Earl Aubec (yet another Eternal Champion incarnation) that's kind of, sort of the prequel for the setting.

Then there's the "Elric: Making of a Sorcerer" "graphic novel". Which is more like "a script for a graphic novel". Reading it was this really weird experience--like reading a play in high school English class, only with more asides about art direction and description of the setting. Basically, the novel is the "origin story"--It introduces Elric and other characters in Melniboné, back when Elric was still a prince in his father's court and had to prove himself worthy of being the next Emperor. Since it turns out that Melniboné itself is heavily influenced by Native American themes, Elric earns his right by surviving "dreams"--basically vision quests where he replays an earlier part of Melniboné history. Whatever knowledge he gains he then retains on a sub-conscious level.

This works really well as an exposition device since the "Elric" novel that follows skimps on description (it wasn't apparently the first Elric book to be written), so reading "Making of a Sorcerer" first gives a really good idea of the context. It also has interesting tidbits about the Black Sword(s), and general world-building.

The actual novel "Elric of Melniboné" is a fairly standard heroic fantasy read by modern standards. The characterization's solid, but the plotting can be weak. Also, the theme of "destiny" is handled a bit heavy-handedly for most of the book, only to be downplayed at the end- I found that inconsistency jarring, give earlier Elric does several rather dumb things "because he's supposed to be a tragic hero". I suppose that since "Elric" was pretty much supposed to be Moorcock's reconstruction of the archetypical "hero" it HAS to be overplayed. But taken at face value, Elric just isn't a very smart hero.

I know that some of the later Elric stuff gets much better, (and I particularly want to see just where his life's gone all wrong), but this entry, it's not great. It works, mostly, but it's not spectacular.

[Bea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find this a little hard to rate, mainly because of the selection of stories in this book.
The first longer part is a graphic novel...without pictures. And it does not read nicely, it's very jumpy, aprupt and not immersive at all! The story itself was ok but I think including it in this format is questionable as it might put readers off from continuing.
I'm also not sure if the inclusion of several introductions and essays at the end was necessary. Unless you're already familiar with the Elric-verse and well read inclassic fantasy and interested in literary analysis, they do not, in my opinion, add much to the book.

The story "Elric of Melnibone" was a lot more to my liking! Even though this is an older fantasy, it's not your classic "shining hero versus bad guy" story. It features some very intriguing parts of worldbuilding, even though at this state I feel like I don't have enough of a grasp on it to really judge it properly.
I did like the main character Elric but I wished the side characters would have had a bit more personality (maybe that was intentional, though, because they're Melniboneans).

Anyway, I'm intrigued enough to continue.

[Pól · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential for fantasy readers....but not for those who enjoy the lighter side of this genre. Dark, engaging and bringing a grittier edge, Moorcock spins out a multiverse that is at once as imaginative and expansive as the most ambitious writer before or after him but also unlike any other's.

Intrinsic to this saga is the hero, Elric whose tale is equal parts tragic and resplendent, a morose philosopher warrior whose actions are at odds with the Melnibonéan tradition. Eschewing the traditional heroic quest template for epic science fantasy, Moorcock's account of Elric is (50 years on) as immediate and fresh as the day it was written.

The first book of this saga went by in a flash, quicker than a rune-sword! Looking forward to getting my hands on the second instalment.

[Saul the Heir of Isauldur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: My review will be broken into two parts. The first gives an overview of my thoughts and opinions on the book, and the second will go into spoilers and full detail.

Part One: Overview

Well, I finally did it. For the past four months or so, I've been wanting to read Elric's adventures in the Young Kingdoms, but the closest I came was reading the first Corum trilogy, with has a short, for lack of a better word, "cameo" of Elric. Now, I've read the first (chronological) book in the Elric series and, I will say, I enjoyed it. From what I know, Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories is in fact a prequel that details how Elric came to obtain his magical sword, Stormbringer. And, in a way, it reads precisely like that. While this is my very first venture into the Elric universe, I could sometimes tell that Moorcock was holding back, almost as if not wanting to reveal everything in the prequel, leaving something for the books that came after (and before). In many respects, it read like a superhero origin story, with the very basic (by which I mean, seminal or original) motivations laid out, a villain that may or may not be a recurring one, and the way how he got his powers, namely, Stormbringer. The novel is structured almost in the format of an action film, with each "Book" corresponding to one act. Book One tells of Elric and his life, in Book Two the "plot thickens" and in Book Three, we have the almost cinematic "third-act finale." This, I suppose, made ELric an easy and fun read, and if there is ever a film based on this series, at least the first chronological book is already on a silver platter.

I tend to judge books, and how much I like them, by the likelihood of my re-reading them at some point in the future, and I will say that, subjectively, I loved this story. I already want to get back into this world, to read the second book in the series, Elric: The Fortress of the Pearl. But, as a pretend-critic, I do have some problems with the book which, admittedly, did not affect very much my enjoyment, but that I feel should be put in the open, because I could imagine some people finding issue with them.

Having read Corum, I find many similarities between the elf-like Prince in the Scarlet Robe and our Albino Emperor. Some may be ascribed to the fact that Elric and Corum are supposed to be different incarnations of essentially the same character, the Eternal Champion. It would make much sense that some qualities remain constant throughout. But I noticed that their quest starters are more or less the same: for a woman. Corum goes and battles Arioch in Corum - The Knight of Swords: The Eternal Champion because he wants to free the queen he loves from some evil god-like sorcerer. Likewise, Elric goes on his quest to save Cymoril from the hands of his would-be usurper cousin Yyrkoon. Again, I had no personal qualm with this, but some people might. The scale of this novel is not particularly grand, for it focuses, more than anything, on the rivalry between Yyrkoon and Elric, and how both are competing for the throne. One thinks the other is too weak, while the opposite is true, as proven at the end.

There's not much more to say about this book beyond drawing the usual comparisons between the early 1900s pulp stories and Elric of Melniboné. The primary example that comes to mind
is the Barsoom series, by Edgar Rice Burroughs. There are alien settings, fantastical beings and creatures and an awareness for the audience that helps keep the story moving along and entertaining. I enjoyed the first Elric tale, and am eager for more.

Part Two: In-Depth Discussion and SPOILERS

There's not much to talk about in this section, except for a couple of things. Firstly, I thought it was interesting to see a main character who didn't have superior abilities and was, in fact, incapacitated. While Corum did lose a hand and an eye in The Knight of the Swords, he eventually got better versions in the Hand of Kwll and the Eye of Rhynn. Something similar happens to Elric. He's born with some type of deficiency that makes him physically weak if he strains himself even a little, and he's constantly relying on drugs to help his condition. This is something I have't seen before in fantasy. Almost everywhere else, the characters are epic and virtual experts in whatever they're trying to do (take Legolas the Archer and Kvothe the Perfect). And while this certainly isn't a bad thing (far from it, since it makes it all the more dramatic when they fail, since they're facing a foe that can defeat even them), I didn't like how Moorcock backtracked at the end by taking away this interesting character trait using the magic sword Stormbringer. It appears that the blade, which is sentient to some degree, grants Elric power, and, as such, he no longer needs drugs and medicines to be well. There are clear possibilities to this: Elric could end up depending on the sword and forgetting his malady or lose control of the blade and have it turn on him. Perhaps the other books explore this, but, speaking as someone who's only read one, I feel like it eliminated something unique about Elric.

It is interesting that he's an albino, because that makes him distinctive and easy to identify. His red eyes and white everything else make him almost iconic. Many fantasy characters lack this distinction, from Conan (who is just a strongman) to Simon (from Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, who is another growing-up hero), and it's neat to see a hero who is clearly and physically different without relying on the "last of his/her kind" trope.

In all, this is a short review, but it was a fairly short book as well. What praise I gave Mr. Moorcock after reading his first Corum trilogy can also be applied here. The characters, I would say, are not as developed as they could have been, but I suppose that, given the almost episodic nature of Elric's stories, we have the other books to work with. I had fun, I enjoyed it and, if anyone in Hollywood is reading this, I would love to see Elric on the big screen. In this age of flawed protagonists and anti-heroes, Elric would fit right in.

[Mark Redman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elric of Melniboné is Michael Moorcock’s interpretation of the sword and sorcery tales. Having read Howard’s Conan, Kull and Bran Mak Morn, and Leiber’s Fafhrd and Grey Mouser. It seemed inevitable that I would cross paths with Elric at some point, it only took me 30 years.

As ever, starting a new series can at times be problematic. Firstly to the uninitiated reader (Me) just where is the best place to start the vastness that is Elric. Do I read them in publication order (DAW editions) or chronological order (Gollancz editions)? Well, it seems Gollancz have an Elric fan, who decided it was a good idea to collect the first Elric stories together. This decision was made much easier, so I purchased the first Gollancz collection. This collection contains a selection of short stories, some essays, a graphic novel script (don’t ask) and the first original Elric novel, bonus, and the price was cheap!

Despite this decision, I had to spend 30 minutes online to find this information out, not exactly winning any new fans at this point! The second point to make is the Gollancz edition was a chronological collection of stories, jackpot!

In terms of the first bunch of essays too pretentious for me. The first short story ‘Master of Chaos’ featuring Earl Aubec, was very good, but where's Elric! Then we move on to the graphic novel script ‘Elric: Making of a Sorcerer.’ This is a prequel graphic novel script without the actual graphics, bonus! In this scripted version, young Elric must undergo a series of Lovecraftian dream quests where he inhabits the lives of various ancestors to prove his worthiness for the throne. During these trials he learns how his people came to power. The story itself has a lot of exposition detailing the rise of the Melnibonéan Empire with Elric conveniently thrust into it. Very standard fantasy tropes that didn't impress me at all. As you read this script it just didn't work for me, too jarring as the scene descriptions were intended for the artist not the reader. This is most definitely not the best place to be introduced to Elric!

The second short story ‘And So the Great Emperor Received His Education,’ was good if a little short.

Finally, on to the novel proper ‘Elric of Melniboné.’ On a surface level, it's a straightforward sword & sorcery tale.
The characters are simplistic, in fairness, it was written in (1972). The plot is all about magic swords and Elric fighting monsters, wielding forbidden sorcery, travelling through nightmarish dimensional portals, plenty of backstabbing family members and loads of revenge. It was great stuff! The sheer simplicity of the story and the prose made it easy to like Elric. You can tell it's influenced by what came before in the classic 1920s to 1930s sword and sorcery genre. As I mentioned above, Lovecraft, Howard and Leiber. I like how Moorcock pays homage to these greats but makes Elric just a bit more fleshed out and interesting. What I also liked about the story was Moorcock’s brevity of words whilst still conveying plenty of story. Moorcock was able to paint a vivid picture without spending pages describing one scene after another. He explores themes far beyond his predecessors, the doomed hero, Faustian pacts. A confident hero who does not worry about the use of evil as long as it helps maintain a balance between order and good. In the end, Elric is a man who loses everything, yet is ready to continue with his future uncertain.

I can see how in the 1970s Moorcock cemented his reputation with Elric. Based on this one story, it made me want to read the rest of the series. Regarding this collection, I'm full of admiration for what Gollancz have tried to do, collecting all the Elric stories chronological together. If like me, you enjoy a series, I want to read everything. However, some of the material in this collection just didn't work- especially for the uninitiated in the world of Elric. I suppose this would appeal to super fans. That said, it hasn't stopped me from purchasing the next collection ‘Elric: The Fortress of The Pearl.’

Superb stuff and a recommended read.

[David Halada · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just to clarify, the two-star review is meant for the book Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories, not the Elric of Melniboné story. That story is an absolute banger. This is a nitpick, but to my mind, the book should be called Essays and Elric of Melniboné, as the titular story makes up only 43% of the whole book. Like I said, a nitpick, but it feels appropriate. Now for the review itself.

The book is an editorial mess. From its subtitle (Elric chronological order #1), one might guess that this has all of the relevant stories to start and enjoy the lore, the character of Elric and his journey through the world. Instead, for the first 40 pages or so we are greeted by essays, prefaces, some of them spoiler-y, which is mind-boggling to me. These essays are aimed at someone who has read at least some of the other Moorcock stories. Talks of the Eternal Champion, Stormbringer, Melniboné, Chaos, and so on. The essays themselves are fine. They are not terrible, I really enjoyed those about the nature of fantasy or about how we should criticise fantasy, but I really did not find them in any way necessary to enjoy the story.

And then finally a real story, traditional story telling, pure fantasy. And it’s not about Elric??? The first “real” story in the book is about Earl Aubec of Malador. Who is that you might ask? No idea. How does his story tie to that of Elric? No idea. The only possible explanation why this particular short story is in the book, is because Elric uses his sword. The sword is not magical (or at least is not described as such), it’s just a basic sword, one which has no significance to the story of Elric of Melniboné. Okay, although not really relevant, I enjoyed the story. Now for the next one, the one where we finally meet the albino emperor. Well… It’s a script for a graphic novel from 2007. As I was reading this, I had no idea how to feel about it. Yeah, I admit, it’s cool seeing a script for a graphic novel. On the other hand, I have not read the comic. I don’t understand why I should care about it. The story at least ties a bit to the story following it, but man, really? A script?

Then finally, the good stuff. There is a short summary of how Elric rose to power as an emperor, some background info about Melniboné, overall good exposition. And then, Elric of Melniboné. The story is really good. We follow Elric, emperor commanding one of the strongest nations in the world. But this nation is decaying, has been, in fact, for five hundred years. Elric is weak, his blood is defective, and he needs potions and drugs to sustain his life. He is also different in other ways. He is the most powerful sorcerer in all the lands. Thanks to his deficient blood, he used to stay indoors and read. This changed him as he read about morality, conscience, and other typically human emotions and feelings. Ordinary Melnibonéans don’t bother themselves with such useless concepts, they live for pleasure - whatever suits them best, they will do. This is the reason why most of them hate Elric, for he is too alien, too different and he threatens the status quo. Traditions are a big part of Melniboné’s culture. And so they prefer another candidate upon the throne, Elric’s cousin Yyrkoon. And so Elric has to deal with himself, with his cousin, with Chaos, and demons. Great to end on a high note.

Weeell, not so much. The story is followed by another two essays, once again talking about fantasy, its development and, after that, an essay about what historical figure inspired Elric’s conception. I also consider this essay as spoiler-y, but it’s whatever.

So overall, I would say read some other edition, like this one https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... - which seems to contain only Elric’s stories and stories that are relevant to him.

[Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good but somewhat disjointed book, this is my first ever taste of Elric, despite hearing many friends at school talk about him over the years. Here Moorcook has collected what he considers the first three tales of Elric in chronological order, along with several essays he's written before and after these works.

The writing here is really great: direct and easy to read and yet ducking or twisting fantasy clichés, and containing many inventive notions: dragons are hugely powerful but tire soon and then must sleep for years...which feels very true to reptiles, who can go long periods after a feed. The gods and elementals come through as great and different characters and they vie with each other in surprising ways. Elric himself is a complex character, trying to do the right thing but forever thwarted by fate and circumstance. This is not exactly grimdark, we do not lose sight of hope, we do not dwell on the horrible even though it has to be described, and I really appreciated that.

The first tale is "The Dream of Earl Aubec" which Wikipedia claims has 9th in internal chronology but notes that 'some collections place this first'. When the author does so in a collection I can't help but feel that's fairly definitive, but here we are. It's a short little story and doesn't feature Elric at all but is a great piece. Later on we find that Elric wields Aubec's broadsword until he takes possession of Stormbringer.

The second story is actually the script Moorcock wrote for a DC comic prequel series published about 20 years ago. Despite lacking any artwork, the descriptions for the artist are good enough and for us to visualise everything and power the story along. And every now and again there's a fun comment directly to the artist, often referencing contemporary things.

When we finally get to "Elric of Melniboné", the original novel which follows directly from the prequel comic in a way that is entirely seamless and impressive, given the 30 years between the two. This story tells us how Elric goes from a new emperor, keen to rule better and be better, to one who carries the evil blade Stormbringer and counts the Lord of Chaos as his patron. It's lean and fast-paced, full of great set pieces and strange lands that leap off the page.

Worth a read, particularly if this will be your first taste of Elric.

[Richard Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a kid, I tried to read the Elric novels, but I just couldn’t get into them. I���m not sure why.

It may have had something to do with my brother. He was a big Moorcock fan, and since he and I didn’t really get along, I wasn’t predisposed to like the things he liked.

I was also turned off by Moorcock’s serious, high-minded, plot-driven prose. The books seemed to take themselves way too seriously—they were brimming with testosterone and arrogance, like a lot of the sports jocks at my high school. As a gay kid who relied on (my limited) wits to get by, I preferred my fantasy wry and full of double-entendres. Piers Anthony fit the bill perfectly.

Several decades later, it’s clear which author has held up. I find Anthony’s work—at least the Xanth series—painful to read, but Elric of Melnibone and Other Stories is a freaking joy.

My reaction to this book might have something to do with the fact that I read it immediately after rereading the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Jumping from Tolkien’s beautiful but very descriptive prose to Moorcock—who’s much stingier with the adjectives—was jarring, but in a great way. Moorcock’s style reminds me of Cormac McCarthy, particularly in The Road: the plot gallops along, and you don’t really stop to wonder what color the horse is.

Of course, for that kind of writing to work, you have to have a strong plot, and Moorcock doesn’t disappoint. Elric of Melnibone, the novel/novella at the core of the collection, tells a great, engaging story that unfolds with a clear logic. Unlike authors who focus more heavily on character, Moorcock never seems to write himself into a corner. When he uses deus ex machina moments, there’s a reason for them.

And as an added bonus, this book contains the full text of the graphic novel Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer. It’s a bit weird reading it without the illustrations, but the accompanying notes that Moorcock wrote to his collaborator and illustrator, Walter Simonson, give a fascinating glimpse into the author’s thought process.

It’s unfortunate that the Elric books are so hard to find—most authors of Moorcock’s caliber would be printed and reprinted in hard copy and ebook. Hopefully that will change before long.

[Ryan Sean O'Reilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elric the morose albino sorcerer of Melniboné must bear his reluctant crown to protect those few things he treasures against the fading bright of his might-ridden empire, which continually pits his aspirations toward a greater moral clarity against compromises of ill circumstance. The conflicts come fast and the words faster as forces of supernatural and family alike threaten Elric’s tenuous personal health as well as his cumbersome grip on power. Meet the Eternal Champion and squeeze through the many planes of existence as he tumbles through the Multiverse.

[Dom Abbott · Rating 5 out of 5]

The collection is organised very oddly, but was unfortunately the only edition I could acquire at short notice, and I was keen to read it. I’ll need to get a different edition, which contains less fluff and more story, and in the correct order!

As for the actual tales, I adored them. Classic sword as sorcery - as classic as one can get! One can tell that a lot of the elements were stolen by The Witcher and House of the Dragon/ASOIAF, and I can see why. Fast paced action, love, questioned and questionable morality - totally incredible, and very fun to read!

[Andrew Philipson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A difficult series and author to get into. After hearing what a big influence Moorcock has been on aspects of other popular fantasy and Warhammer / 40Ks ‘Chaos’ gods in particular I was eager to take the plunge.

I had to read multiple guides with differing opinions on where to start before comparing, contrasting and finally having to make my own call.

I was not disappointed. Elric is certainly the original tortured ‘emo’ hero who reluctantly defends his kingdom from the machinations of his evil brother. Very different and highly recommended.

[Marian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid 4.5, but rounded up for GR. Some pieces are harder to read since they're scripts for a visual story. And Moorcock's technical writing leaves something to be desired. But the ideas are here, sound, and mostly present in A Song if Ice and Fire (GEORGE, you never get to whine about fanfic again).

[Edward Gwynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a strange setup for an opening to the Elric sagas. Lots of introductions, essays, even a graphic novel script and then... finally... we meet Elric in the beginning.

[Ivan Lanìa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Premetto che ho iniziato Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories a Novembre 2017, l'ho interrotto a metà e l'ho ricominciato da capo oggi, 28 Agosto 2018 – e me lo sono finito tutto d'un fiato. Ho dovuto fruirlo così perché Moorcock e il personale della Gollancz si sono chiaramente fatti di acidi e hanno usato questo volume come discarica in cui stampare tutti i saggi miscellanei che avevano in archivio: fra prefazioni e postfazioni ci ritroviamo a leggere una dopo l'altra introduzioni multiple alla vita e all'opera di Moorcock, introduzioni allo sword & sorcery in generale e alla saga di Elric in particolare, saggi di critica letteraria scritti da Moorcock, la prefazione a una specifica edizione di uno specifico testo, persino quello che sembra essere il trascritto di una conferenza, e infine un saggio lungo che è stato diviso in più parti per spalmarlo su tutti i sei volumi dedicati a Elric (mossa francamene deplorevole). Il risultato è un paratesto ipertrofico e soffocante che sarà pure ben fatto in alcuni singoli contributi, ma non porta avanti alcuna riflessione storica sulla saga di Elric che contestualizzi i testi primari in un percorso di produzione artistica – peccato che il paratesto dell'edizione definitiva di una saga letteraria dovrebbe fare esattamente quello, e infatti è così che procedono gli apparati dell'edizione Ballantine di Robert E. Howard (volume 1: The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian) e di quella Nigh Shade Books di Clark Ashton Smith (volume 1: The End of the Story). A fronte di questi lavori eccellenti della concorrenza, Gollancz lascia ampiamente a desiderare.

Passando ai testi narrativi che dovrebbero costituire il cuore del volume, si inizia con una novella autoconclusiva di classica esplorazione del castello incantato, Master of Chaos, ambientata nel mondo di Elric prima delle avventure di questi, abbastanza godibile. A seguire, c'è l'anello debole della catena: la sceneggiatura del romanzo grafico Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer (proprio così, non il fumetto stesso, solo la sua sceneggiatura), un resoconto della giovinezza di Elric pieno di riferimenti e mythology gags rivolti ai fan affezionati della serie, ma che a un neo-lettore fanno l'effetto di un "tour guidato a Fantasilandia". Questo "effetto spiegone" mi ha pure rovinato la prima lettura del testo successivo, il romanzo Elric of Melniboné, rispetto al quale la sceneggiatura è un prequel diretto: essermi letto subito prima una guida turistica a Melniboné aveva tolto ogni fascino al graduale worldbuilding compiuto nel romanzo, visto che ogni elemento fantastico e sorprendente mi era già stato sbattuto in faccia nella sceneggiatura stessa.
Ho dovuto lasciar passare nove mesi per togliermi dalla testa l'effetto spiegone e riprendere in mano Elric of Melniboné a mente libera... e ne è valsa la pena. Il romanzo è del '72 e funge a sua volta da prequel ai racconti degli anni Sessanta in cui Elric era esordito, mostrandoci le sue origini come antieroe, dal primo scontro con la sua nemesi personale al recupero della sua iconica spada Tempestosa. Il testo è tuttora fresco e appassionante, complice la capacità di Moorcock di passare senza soluzione di continuità da una voce narrante onniscente all'uso del punto di vista di Elric – una tecnica non banale che gli permette di inserire più facilmente descrizioni favolose e commenti sardonici, senza spezzare affatto il ritmo. In più l'opera ha palesemente un grosso valore storico per lo sviluppo del fantasy anglofono, visto che è stata la saga di Elric a codificare (se non a inventare in toto) gli archetipi dell'impero ancestrale di stregoni domadraghi (George Martin, sto guardando alla tua Valyria) e dell'Equilibrio cosmico fra Legge e Caos, imitato a piene mani (e spesso puerilizzato) nei giochi di società della TSR e della Games Workshop.

Riassumendo, questo Elric of Melniboné and Other Stories è una miscellanea abbastanza sgraziata con materiali di qualità difforme, ma limitarsi solo alla novella e al romanzo (evitando invece la sceneggiatura) e leggere i saggi come testi autonomi (non come il commento puntuale che non sono) la rende un gradevole primo incontro con il Duca Bianco; per quanto mi riguarda, mi ha convinto a continuare con la saga.

[Donald Kirch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forever and ALWAYS...a classic!

[ik.ben.henri · Rating 3 out of 5]

People should be aware that a huge bulk of this book are uninteresting forewords.

Followed by some short stories and a script for a graphic novel.

But they are storywise, chronologically, the first elric stories.

The best part of the book is the elric of melnibone short story. Which is also the main reason why you would want to get to read this book. The story begins a little weak and as a very "blant" fantasy story you have read a dozen times before. But towards the end it becomes darker and darker. Elric is a good anti Hero by then and that makes it interesting. The writing itself isn't anything special.

The graphic novel script is pretty weak.

I would suggest to buy this book because it's cheaper than the other versions of the story. Consider all the forewords and afterwords, the scrips as optional bonus material, which is only interesting for die hard fans...

[Samuel · Rating 1 out of 5]

To clarify:
Elric of Melniboné is a solid 3 stars read.
This book, however...

I see that GR is listing it as the 1st of the Elric Chronological Order, but this is the worst book to get started on with this series and protagonist. The first 24 pages are a bunch forewords and articles (two of which are from the man himself) meant to convince you just how amazingly creative and dedicated to the fantasy genre Moorcock is. Personally I find no need for that. If I pick up a book, I've either already done my research into it and the writer, or I'd much rather draw the conclusion myself, thank you.

The short story that follows, Master of Chaos, is a nice way set the tone and whatnot, but once you're done with it, you're plunged head first into what is basically a script for a comic book about Elric's early days. Everything about it is confusing, from the format, to the dumbed-down storytelling and language, and right when you're about to get used with it, you come across passages like these, which completely ruin your immersion:

The other is a rider who is almost too big for his mount, armoured in spikes and scales, like a lizard. Try for a Vin Diesel look.

or

And while you should do your best, Walter, to make him look as different from the guy in The Matrix as possible, it's not my fault that I thought Sepiriz up looking like this in 1963 or whenever it was.

I get it, they're notes for the graphic artist in charge of the comic, but I don't need to know this. It completely ruins the magic of the story, like finding out that Judy Garland basically lived off cocaine and cigarettes while also inhaling copious amounts of asbestos when filming The Wizard of Oz.

And then there's the story, the characters, and the language itself. For all of Moorcok's diatribe regarding Tolkien, I much prefer the latter's approach to fantasy denominators. They have a meaning and continuity in the context of the races and cultures they're part of, as opposed to Moorcock's concoctions, like Syrix'x, Myyrrhn or Vashntni, that sound like he just angrily hit a Scrabble board and wrote down what came up. Some of the tropes used also became boring very fast: We have this fleet of venomous dragons, but they're out of batteries and need to sleep for another year, so there's no way we can use them. Also, we have these powerful allies, but they can't help us because the Evil Guy is keeping their generic female relative prisoner, and will kill her if they attack. Also, everyone says 'thee' and lust over their cousin/sister, because these are ye olde times, but not in the Alternate Space-Time Continuum way, but EPIC FANTASY style, which this book totally is.

The actual Elric of Melniboné story is decent and engaging, and I'm sure it was innovative back in its day, but it became a bit dated, and it's worth reading if you're interested in learning about fantasy back in Tolkien's time.

The book ends with 3 more essays, including one that explains at great length the parallels between Elric and El Cid. Like the opening essays, I fail to see their point. In a way, they reminded me of my days in high-school, when I was collecting articles and interviews with my favourite bands from magazines and keeping them in a special folder that was meant to prove that my tastes were both educated and valid. If the publishers were determined to go to such lengths to gather examples of Moorcock's greatness, why didn't they go the extra mile and include Epic Pooh in the book? It is by far his most famous essay (the one where he accuses Tolkien and his Tory cronies of writing fantasy for rabbits), it was published in 1978, and if they had access to the graphic novel script, then surely they had access to this as well.

I'll be honest: the main reason I picked up Moorcock is because him and his buddy China Miéville are renowned for being Tolkien separatists, and I wanted to know if Moorcock's works can walk the walk as well as talk the talk. Sadly, this book ruined him for me. I might pick up some other Elric stories, although it will be at a distant point in the future, and with considerable less enthusiasm.

[Filip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published over at Booknest.eu

Genre: Fantasy
Subgenre: Sword & sorcery, dark fantasy, classic fantasy
Format: Paperback
Length: 384 pages

This is a review of the first of the Gollancz editions that came out earlier this decade. Gollancz apparently wanted to publish the definitive Michael Moorcock collection. Now, the argument can be made that Gollancz did not entirely succeed because, now that I’m done with Elric of Melnibone, I’m not entirely sure which Elric collection to pick up next. Oh, well, nothing a Google search won’t resolve. Elric of Melniboné collects several essays penned by Moorcock, an Introduction by Alan Moore, a prequel short story, telling of an earlier incarnation of the Eternal Champion, the script of the comic book that tells of the origins of Elric’s sorcerous power and his first back-and-forth with his duplicitous, power-hungry cousin, Yyrkoon.

It’s a weird editorial choice, putting “Master of Chaos” before the actual stories that involve Elric. Yes, I get it, Aubec of Malador chronologically precedes everything else (does it, Moorcock fans?), and Aubec was the Eternal Champion (an Eternal Champion? Reincarnation is all very confusing, you know…) but I really was looking forward to meeting THE Eternal-est of Champions before I met an older model. So there, that was a bit of a shock. The story itself? It’s your run-of-the-mill sword&sorcery (except not really) during which our protagonist Aubec faces off against all sorts of daunting creatures and challenges, finding out in the end that it was all within him. Interesting enough but I still suspect I might’ve gotten more if I was more familiar with Moorcock’s Eternal Champion universe.

How about Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer? That was an interesting experience, I don’t think I’ve ever read this long a script at once. It’s a lengthy read, about 130 pages and I found it highly educational as someone who likes to scratch comic book ideas on napkins in the middle of the night. I enjoyed the dialogue. Some of the notes Moorcock put in there were downright hilarious and obviously there for the artist’s benefit:

And while you should do your best, Walter, to make him look as different from the guy in The Matrix as possible, it’s not my fault that I thought Sepiriz up looking like this in 1963 or whenever it was. OK. Give him long hair. He was bald in the original…

Funny how these things happen, isn’t it? The dialogue induced a few chuckles, as well:

ELRIC: ‘I thank you for your aid, sir. I fear that weapon. It seems alive…’
Arioch stoops and picks up the sword.
ARIOCH: ‘I must admit, it has its sentient moments.’ *This is where Michael Moorcock did a drum roll, I suspect.*

To wrap this up, The Making of a Sorcerer wasn’t necessarily the most engaging piece of fiction I’ve ever read but I’m not what you’d call an expert on script-writing or script-reading. I give this script a 539/859 script cookie points, which is what I guess professional script people in Hollywood use to score scripts before throwing them in their gigantic Hollywood incinerators and writing an ‘add more explosions’ memo to that nice Michael Bay fella.

The Making of a Sorcerer did feel…aged, on a serious note and that's the last I'll say about it.

Finally we get to Elric of Melniboné! You know, I quite enjoyed my time with the 170 or so pages of this story. It finally does what I was pining for when I got this here novel – it gives me some actual prose about Elric of Melniboné! Shocker, I know. The verdict?

It’s good, it’s interesting, it’s uh, uh, uh, okay, are we talking about proper prose now, I can do this, I remember how to deconstruct prose. Elric of Melniboné deconstructs the sword&sorcery genre in a single sentence. See, sounds good, doesn’t it? Let’s take a look at the sentence: “The paradox was that Elric tolerated Yyrkoon’s treachery because he was strong, because he had the power to destroy Yyrkoon whenever he cared.” This is the sentence that shows Elric’s character in full – he is distinguished as much by his restraint as by his albino skin. In a genre full of characters who know nothing of restraint, Elric is the exception.

His cousin Yyrkoon, meanwhile, is an excellent example of your average sword&sorcery character with his unflinching militarism, the ‘might is right’ mindset that we all know and…love? Yyrkoon has his own defining sentence, following hot on the heels of that first one: “And Yyrkoon’s own character was such that he must constantly be testing that strength of Elric’s, for he knew instinctively that if Elric did weaken and order him slain, then he would have won.” And just like that, these two characters are diametrical opposites of one another. Reading about the conflict between them was fascinating. The way the two of them develop from beginning to end has a real consequence on the wider world, and that’s what fantasy, according to Moorcock is about:

The hero ranges the lands of his own psyche, encountering the various aspects of himself. When we read a good fantasy we are being admitted into the subterranean world of our own souls. … [fantasy] rarely produces a comforting end. Whether the hero wins through or not, the reader is left with the suspicion or knowledge that all is not quiet on the supernatural front. For supernatural also read subconscious and you’re still with me. (345)

I don’t think that spoilers are all that inexcusable when it comes to books that have been around for nearly half a decade so I hope you won’t mind me saying that by the end of Elric of Melniboné, things are looking bleak indeed for the albino ruler of Imryr. Although he has defeated one crisis, the future is murky and all is far from quiet.

Elric of Melniboné is, as Alan Moore calls it, a “delirious romance,” (3) its prose heavy. It’s got weight behind it, a sense of foreboding coming off of every sentence. So, too, with the worldbuilding. The days of Melniboné, of the Dream City of Imryr, are numbered, and Moorcock isn’t afraid of reminding us just how bad those last days might be. This world of Elric’s is storied and filled with tragedy and the heyday of the elves of Melniboné has long since passed.

Having finished the last line of this novel, I was greeted by a final trio of essays, one of which I quoted above, Aspects of Fantasy. The second essay was an Introduction to the graphic adaptation of the same novel I spoke about at length, and the third speaks about the influences El Cid had on Moorcock. All informative and in the case of the first and the third, deeply thought-provoking as well. My favourite and at the same time most despised essay in the collection was that of Alan Moore, The Return of the Thin White Duke, a Foreword that spoiled more than I would have liked…but then again, I do suppose I was just complaining about spoilers a few minutes ago so I, as anyone should, am getting my just desserts.

I’ve decided to score this anthology with a 4/5 on Goodreads. The main reason behind this score is the questionable placement of that short story and the addition of the script, which while interesting to read wasn’t what I had in mind for my first Elric story. But the essays and the actual novel – those are well worth top marks.

You might want to read this if:

· You’re interested in learning more about one of fantasy’s most storied characters;
· Your interests in fantasy inch towards the gothic and darkly romantic, the elegance and degeneracy of a whole society;
· You like big-name authors waxing lyrical about fantasy in-between your short stories, comic book scripts and actual fantasy novels;
· You have a thing for moody albinos – no shaming if you do! – and drug addicts;
· And More! Prob’ly.

[Rudyard L. · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was unreadable. This surprised me. Rather than the normal route of starting Michael Moorcock with reading this and then moving to his other works, I started with the Corum series. Corum was one of my favorite fantasy series was ever and so I was really excited to read this. Let me break that down why I didn’t like this.

1)The writing style
This book reads like a Grateful Dead concert. I feel like if you smoked weed while reading it, it would feel so profound, but for sober me, it just felt pretentious. The deep themes it pretends to just aren’t there. Everything has an overly edgy feel to it for little reason. I read this book was written to be anti Conan the Barbarian or Tolkien. I definitely feel that in doing that, Michael Moorcock boxed himself in and was less imaginative than he could have been. I just kept on thinking “for the love of God, show don’t tell”. This story is over explained. There’s no fun in hearing a story explained, I want to have it shown to me. Elric is completely unsympathetic, whiny, and pretentious. None of the other characters are even close to three dimensional. All of the character traits are told to you rather than shown.

2)The edition
This edition is terrible. This book is meant to be the intro into Elric world. There’s a 35 pages intro that means nothing to you if you aren’t already a fan. Similarly they’re’s then a 150 page script for a comic book without pictures in which Michael Moorcock leaves notes and jokes for his editors. Again, for a reader new to the franchise, you don’t really know what’s going on. This story is again really repetitive, with 4 minor stories very similar to each-other nested in the broader narrative. By the time the reader gets to the actual main story, they’re already worn out, not properly introduced and confused.

[Rob Heineman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was my first introduction to the Moorcock's work, and my first direct introduction to the character and world of Elric. The stories therein were everything I anticipated - punchy, pulpy, filled with a grim air I little expected from 60's and 70's-era fantasy fiction. I enjoyed them very much.

I did not, however, enjoy that a full half of the book was comprised of what seem to be Moorcock's notes for a graphic novel adaptation of Elric's earliest adventures. Not that the story was bad - it wasn't - but it read much like reading a screenplay directly, with none of the artful language of Moorcock's actual prose. Not realizing that this was the bulk of this particular collection is as much my fault as any, but it hindered my enjoyment thereof.

Plus, Elric deciding that Yrkoon had totally reformed and would now be a fitting temporary emperor in his absence at the end of the final tale is one of the most mind-bogglingly stupid decisions I've seen any character make. Seriously, naive or not, that simply stresses the bounds of believably well past what I can stomach.

Having said all of that, I still intend to read on. The stories are pulpy and fun, the world still unique amongst an endless field of writers shamelessly aping Tolkein's setting and calling it a day. I just hope that the next collection(s) omit the non-novel/novella bits, and that perhaps Elric is a bit less of a moron after a bit more time passes.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

What did I just read?!

Somehow, I'd built this up in my head and had pretty high expectations.

This particular edition is a weird mix of introductions and discussions (skipped all of those), one short story about another character from the same universe (skipped that too), three comic book transcripts, and Elric of Melnibone - the first book in the series.

What a weird idea, to have comic book transcripts. No images, just the dialogue (which seemed really long at times!) and the author's descriptions and instructions for the illustrator. Surprisingly, those comics were the part I enjoyed most. They had a fairytale quality to them, with the hero being tested in three quests. They also had some concepts that I really enjoyed, so I was excited to get to the actual novel part, where we'd get more depth.

Sadly, the novel(la) was a big disappointment for me. No added depth, same telegraphic stroy-telling (until we suddenly got an overload of insignificant details), a boring plot and cardboard cut-out characters, including Elric.

A shame, because I really liked the idea and a few worldbuilding elements, but nothing else worked for me.

[Thomas Bijok · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book from a different era of fantasy. This is a welcome change of pace from more modern fantasy stories out there. A warning though, a large part of this book is taken up with a script for an Elric comic that leads into the events of the novel. As you are reading a script, it can be a little jarring as scene descriptions are intended for the artists. The novel itself goes along at a quick pace with an economy of words and mastery of language. Chapters are short but powerful and, Moorcock is able to paint a vivid picture without spending tens of pages, describing one scene. There are also several preliminary articles from Moorcock and other writers, describing his career and their impressions on the legacy of Elric of Melnibone. These are interesting and insightful for fans of Moorcock's work. There are also two essays at the end of the book by Moorcock, regarding his ideas about the fantasy genre and his inspiration in creating Elric. Well worth a read.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 3 out of 5]

First let me list what’s in this volume. It contains~
* A 'Series' Introduction by John Clute;
* A similar 'Series' Introduction from the author;
* 'The Return of the Thin White Duke' by Alan Moore as 'Foreword';
* Fantasy classroom: Putting a Tag on it;
1. Master of Chaos
2. Elric: The Making of a Sorcerer
3. And So the Great Emperor Received His Education
4. Elric of Melnibone
* Fantasy Classroom: Aspects of Fantasy
* Introduction to the 1986 Graphic Adaptation of 'Elric of Melnibone'
* El Cid and Elric: Under the Influence!
Of course, the writing is good. But...
I would like to hang those know-alls who had created this so-called authorised volumes where the best short stories of Elric have been drowned in postmodern maudlin stuff. This 'Michael Moorcock Collection' is truly a classic example of ruining a perfectly good series. Perhaps they drew inspiration from Star Wars!