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The Chronicles of Castle Brass #1
Count Brass
From the back cover:
Michael Moorcock launches his latest dream machine. A romance more awesome than the last, set in the marshes of the Kamarg, dominated by the ancient Castle Brass. Chill to the incredible adventures of Dorian Hawkmoon, the Dule of Köln!
Moorcock is the mastermind behind the fantasy revival. With this, his first Chronicle of Castle Brass and sequel to the High History of the Runestaff, he assumes undisputed eminence over the cosmology-weavers of the universe.
Cover Illustration: Bob Haberfield
Michael Moorcock launches his latest dream machine. A romance more awesome than the last, set in the marshes of the Kamarg, dominated by the ancient Castle Brass. Chill to the incredible adventures of Dorian Hawkmoon, the Dule of Köln!
Moorcock is the mastermind behind the fantasy revival. With this, his first Chronicle of Castle Brass and sequel to the High History of the Runestaff, he assumes undisputed eminence over the cosmology-weavers of the universe.
Cover Illustration: Bob Haberfield
140 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1973
7 people are currently reading
767 people want to read
About the author
Michael Moorcock
1,206 books3,744 followersMichael 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.
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.
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February 23, 2023I've always had a soft spot for the weird, high tech/neo-medieval European setting of the Hawkmoon novels, with their ornithopters and clock-obsessed evil empire of Granbretan ("Great Britain"). In retrospect, I think these books planted some of the seeds of my interest in European history that sprouted (too many) years later, when I more or less abandoned fantasy for history as my preferred reading material.
I encountered the Chronicles of Count Brass trilogy at around age fifteen, then hunted down The History of the Runestaff, the four-volume series that preceded it. I think I preferred the latter. The Chronicles of Count Brass felt like they were trying to wrap up the entire Eternal Champion mega-series, but in a way that seemed to violate the cyclical and infinite nature of the cosmos that Moorcock had established in the Elric, Corum, Erekose, and other books. I believe he was already quite sick of heroic fantasy by the time he wrote these. It probably shows.
That said, it's been well over thirty years since I read Count Brass, so take these remarks with a pinch of salt.
I encountered the Chronicles of Count Brass trilogy at around age fifteen, then hunted down The History of the Runestaff, the four-volume series that preceded it. I think I preferred the latter. The Chronicles of Count Brass felt like they were trying to wrap up the entire Eternal Champion mega-series, but in a way that seemed to violate the cyclical and infinite nature of the cosmos that Moorcock had established in the Elric, Corum, Erekose, and other books. I believe he was already quite sick of heroic fantasy by the time he wrote these. It probably shows.
That said, it's been well over thirty years since I read Count Brass, so take these remarks with a pinch of salt.
December 14, 2021
I'm rarely the one for New Adventures: once the heroes have completed their journey, faced their personal demons, defeated their villains, and brought peace to the land, they should have earned their peaceful retirement instead of being pulled ahead to another big one. More to the point, I didn't consider the History of the Runestaff as one of Moorcock's best: it wasn't bad, it's just that he'd not yet really found his style at the time. As such, Chronicles of Castle Brass started out with a couple handicaps in my head, and my expectations weren't high.
Well, turns out those expectations have been quite well beaten for the time being. This first volume starts out well enough with an intriguing premise, and ends with a genuinely painful twist, and though it fell into a bit of a slump in the middle, it still got me curious for what's to come.
Make it three and a half stars.
Well, turns out those expectations have been quite well beaten for the time being. This first volume starts out well enough with an intriguing premise, and ends with a genuinely painful twist, and though it fell into a bit of a slump in the middle, it still got me curious for what's to come.
Make it three and a half stars.
April 26, 2012
Apart from the first chapter which is rather dull because much time is spent filling in the background to the protagonist, Hawkmoon, who featured in a previous trilogy (The History of the Runestaff), this was an enjoyable read. Hawkmoon had fought heroically against the Dark Empire, which had been defeated five years previously, and had subsequently married the daughter of one of his friends and co-combatants, Count Brass, who had perished in battle. Hawkmoon now lived happily and peacefully in the castle once owned by Count Brass in the capital of the late count's lordship in the Kamarg.
The story begins with a mystery - why are some of the citizens of Aigues-Mortes (the capital of the Kamarg) doubting the heroism of Hawkmoon in the war against the Dark Empire, and even going so far as to accuse him of treason? The mystery deepens as Hawkmoon investigates these rumours and their source until, with the aid of some old friends, he gets to the root of the problem, although not without some personal losses to himself.
As with a number of Moorcock's other novels, there is a curious blend of feudalism and advanced technology (there had been a much more technologically advanced society in the past and some of this technology is still understood and/or used by a small number of people), which works well and also gives a sense of deep history to the world of Hawkmoon. Time and inter-dimensional travel add to the novel's science fictional elements, with an apparent nod to William Hope Hodgson's The House on the Borderland in terms of how they are described. This may also help to explain whether or not Hawkmoon lives in a future or an alternate earth from our own as the story is clearly set in versions of known places (the Camargue in the south of France [Kamarg], London [Londra], Croydon [Kroiden], and so forth).
With plenty of action, weird scenes, strange people, and plenty of mystery and intrigue, this is a good yarn and could be read at a single circa 5- or 6-hour sitting.
The story begins with a mystery - why are some of the citizens of Aigues-Mortes (the capital of the Kamarg) doubting the heroism of Hawkmoon in the war against the Dark Empire, and even going so far as to accuse him of treason? The mystery deepens as Hawkmoon investigates these rumours and their source until, with the aid of some old friends, he gets to the root of the problem, although not without some personal losses to himself.
As with a number of Moorcock's other novels, there is a curious blend of feudalism and advanced technology (there had been a much more technologically advanced society in the past and some of this technology is still understood and/or used by a small number of people), which works well and also gives a sense of deep history to the world of Hawkmoon. Time and inter-dimensional travel add to the novel's science fictional elements, with an apparent nod to William Hope Hodgson's The House on the Borderland in terms of how they are described. This may also help to explain whether or not Hawkmoon lives in a future or an alternate earth from our own as the story is clearly set in versions of known places (the Camargue in the south of France [Kamarg], London [Londra], Croydon [Kroiden], and so forth).
With plenty of action, weird scenes, strange people, and plenty of mystery and intrigue, this is a good yarn and could be read at a single circa 5- or 6-hour sitting.
August 13, 2020
Dorian Hawkmoon thought his adventuring days were over at the end of The History of the Runestaff tetralogy, in which he opposed the evil Dark Empire of Granbretan and toured much of Moorcock's multiverse as an aspect of the Eternal Champion, frequently in the company of many of the other interlocked characters from the overall tapestry, but he was wrong. The Chronicles of Castle Brass trilogy kicks off five years later with a ghost hunt, and once again the forces of Law and Chaos are put into play for the Balance. There's struggle and loss and heroism aplenty in the rich mix of science and sorcery, lost friends are found again, old enemies have to be confronted, and it's altogether a grand spectacle, the kick-off of the conclusion to the whole Eternal Champion saga.
March 13, 2008
I've read quite a few books in the Michael Moorcock Eternal Champion series. This one is definitely middle of the road. The first book, Count Brass, was not good. The ending saved it. The second story, Champion of Garathorm, was better than the first and probably average for a Moorcock story at the time it was written. I liked seeing a female version of the Eternal Champion for once. The third story, Quest for Tanelorn, was on the complete opposite end of the Moorcock spectrum than the first. Sailor on the Sea of Fate from Hawkmoon's point of view. Great stuff and the aftermatch provided an ending to the Eternal Champion cycle.
August 26, 2020
I find the Castle Brass books fascinating, but hard to review without a skeleton-summary of the plot. So if that scares you, the summary, not the skeleton, then don’t read further.
The first book of the trilogy of Count Brass, and here we are introduced to “Dorian Hawkmoon, the Duke of Koln, and his bride, Yisselda, Countess of Brass, old, dead Count Brass's daughter, the only two who remained of that group of heroes who had served the Runestaff against the Dark Empire and finally defeated Granbretan in the great Battle of Londra, putting Queen Flana, sad Queen Flana, upon the throne so that she might guide her cruel and decadent nation towards humanity and vitality.”
And here our story starts. Hawkmoon is enjoying his life, his wife, and his children. Reminiscing about the Great Battle, we learn of heroes and villains, heroics and treachery, what is and what could have been. He regales his children with tales of adventures, mythical beasts, and great warriors. A peaceful life, calm after the storm of war. But this serenity is shattered by accusations of murder most foul - by Hawkmoon of all men - seemingly from the mouth of the ghost of Count Brass himself. How can this be if he, and what is really going on? And what of the jewel? To the Marshes, where Hawkmoon is confronted by none other than a youthful Count Brass with a strange tale of an oracle. Dorian fears the Dark Empire and their scientists have worked some gruesome evil. But to what end? Soon news from Queen Flana warns of a revival of the Dark Empire - masks, the Beast Orders, revenge on the victors of old battles - and Hawkmoon is forced to again confront the ghost in the marsh. Ghosts - as in more than one - eventually arrive: Count Brass, Huilliam D’Averc, Oladahn, and Bowgentle. (Dead) friends of the Battle of Londra. How is this? After much discussion, the five men discern all is not right in their conflicting realities, so it is time for a quest! Thus ending part of the first..
As we reconvene Hawkmoon is leaving Castle Brass behind to join his (dead somewhere) friends, who all believe it is a different year, but agree as comrades in battle that their common enemy - the Dark Empire! - is behind their shared plight. As it turns out, the Oracle is none other than Kalan of Vitall, scientist, and not dead at all, merely somewhere/when else, yet here too. But he soon retreats into the Multiverse, and Hawkmoon and the Four Dead must travel to Soryandum for assistance from the Wraith Folk. Continued visits by Kalan and the Pyramid will slowly dwindle the group’s numbers, as each man is drawn back to another (his own?) time. Meantimes, Dorian, Count Brass and Bowgentle reach Soryandum, and Rinal, a being known to Dorian somehow, where they learn more of the intricacies of the Multiverse. Bowgentle is soon lost, so Hawkmoon and Count Brass continue traveling, inside a sphere, and out, looking for Count Kalan. Repeated meetings of people they know - realities of the Multiverse, again - unsettle the duo, they they know enough now to soldier on. But soon they meet Taragorm of the Palace of Time (another evil one who survived the Battle of Londra… a theme here!) and learn of Kalan’s desperate and chaotic(!) plans. Seems there is as much safety as danger traveling the Multiverse, as beings can only be killed in their own “time/place stream” Oddness upon weirdness. The rest has to be read in its totality to be savored. Much happens, unhappens, and rehappens, just another series of enigmas in the Multiverse. It pulls you in and lets you wander around, creating your own reality, until it pushes you back out into the real reality. Hah! Stupendous fun! Did someone say madness?!?
The alternate history of Europe idea was pretty cool. Moorcock has a way of renaming things that works without being too simple or too overdone.
A bit heavy on dialogue for my taste, but only in certain sections.
The pacing was glacial for the first half. Sure, some of it was backgrounding the tale, but not all. Then the whirlwind! Yowza!
An interesting mix of medieval and modern - knights, horses, sailing ships, and machines.
Surely Moorcock had some enormous tesseract-type object to keep track of the Multiverse?
The first book of the trilogy of Count Brass, and here we are introduced to “Dorian Hawkmoon, the Duke of Koln, and his bride, Yisselda, Countess of Brass, old, dead Count Brass's daughter, the only two who remained of that group of heroes who had served the Runestaff against the Dark Empire and finally defeated Granbretan in the great Battle of Londra, putting Queen Flana, sad Queen Flana, upon the throne so that she might guide her cruel and decadent nation towards humanity and vitality.”
And here our story starts. Hawkmoon is enjoying his life, his wife, and his children. Reminiscing about the Great Battle, we learn of heroes and villains, heroics and treachery, what is and what could have been. He regales his children with tales of adventures, mythical beasts, and great warriors. A peaceful life, calm after the storm of war. But this serenity is shattered by accusations of murder most foul - by Hawkmoon of all men - seemingly from the mouth of the ghost of Count Brass himself. How can this be if he, and what is really going on? And what of the jewel? To the Marshes, where Hawkmoon is confronted by none other than a youthful Count Brass with a strange tale of an oracle. Dorian fears the Dark Empire and their scientists have worked some gruesome evil. But to what end? Soon news from Queen Flana warns of a revival of the Dark Empire - masks, the Beast Orders, revenge on the victors of old battles - and Hawkmoon is forced to again confront the ghost in the marsh. Ghosts - as in more than one - eventually arrive: Count Brass, Huilliam D’Averc, Oladahn, and Bowgentle. (Dead) friends of the Battle of Londra. How is this? After much discussion, the five men discern all is not right in their conflicting realities, so it is time for a quest! Thus ending part of the first..
As we reconvene Hawkmoon is leaving Castle Brass behind to join his (dead somewhere) friends, who all believe it is a different year, but agree as comrades in battle that their common enemy - the Dark Empire! - is behind their shared plight. As it turns out, the Oracle is none other than Kalan of Vitall, scientist, and not dead at all, merely somewhere/when else, yet here too. But he soon retreats into the Multiverse, and Hawkmoon and the Four Dead must travel to Soryandum for assistance from the Wraith Folk. Continued visits by Kalan and the Pyramid will slowly dwindle the group’s numbers, as each man is drawn back to another (his own?) time. Meantimes, Dorian, Count Brass and Bowgentle reach Soryandum, and Rinal, a being known to Dorian somehow, where they learn more of the intricacies of the Multiverse. Bowgentle is soon lost, so Hawkmoon and Count Brass continue traveling, inside a sphere, and out, looking for Count Kalan. Repeated meetings of people they know - realities of the Multiverse, again - unsettle the duo, they they know enough now to soldier on. But soon they meet Taragorm of the Palace of Time (another evil one who survived the Battle of Londra… a theme here!) and learn of Kalan’s desperate and chaotic(!) plans. Seems there is as much safety as danger traveling the Multiverse, as beings can only be killed in their own “time/place stream” Oddness upon weirdness. The rest has to be read in its totality to be savored. Much happens, unhappens, and rehappens, just another series of enigmas in the Multiverse. It pulls you in and lets you wander around, creating your own reality, until it pushes you back out into the real reality. Hah! Stupendous fun! Did someone say madness?!?
The alternate history of Europe idea was pretty cool. Moorcock has a way of renaming things that works without being too simple or too overdone.
A bit heavy on dialogue for my taste, but only in certain sections.
The pacing was glacial for the first half. Sure, some of it was backgrounding the tale, but not all. Then the whirlwind! Yowza!
An interesting mix of medieval and modern - knights, horses, sailing ships, and machines.
Surely Moorcock had some enormous tesseract-type object to keep track of the Multiverse?
September 27, 2024
₊ ⊹ ཐི 3.75 stars ཋྀ ⊹ ₊
June 7, 2025
En vrai il se tient mieux que les autres
January 26, 2024
A classic of swords and sorcery. What more can one say?
August 5, 2017
This is the first in the Count Brass series, but follows the previous series about the Runestaff. I read that many years ago and no longer have it, so it's just as well that this begins with a summary and drops in various other aspects of the back story as the book goes on.
Duke Dorian Hawkmoon is enjoying a quiet life ruling the Kamarg, a marshy area with its own unique wildlife such as horned horses (and based on the real-life area of France, known as the Camargue). The setting is an alternative Europe, seemingly in the far future after a period where a technological society - possibly ours - collapsed. Five years before the story begins, Hawkmoon and his friends were instrumental in overthrowing a tyrannical regime known as the Dark Empire, based on a reborn technology and operating from their version of Great Britain. The rulers of the regime supposedly all perished at the Battle of Londra (London) or just before, yet Dorian's tranquil existence, married to the daughter of Count Brass (who also died in the battle), and enjoying family life with her and their son and daughter, begins to be blighted when local people start to eye him with disapproval.
He discovers that rumour is rife that the ghost of Count Brass is out in the marshes at night telling passersby that Dorian betrayed him and led him to his death. Determined to quash this, he rides out to meet the apparent imposter, but discovers things are not that simple. This man is a younger version of the Count, and soon he brings younger versions of Dorian's other close friends to meet him, who also died in the struggle against Granbretan. They have been brought there by someone they term the oracle, who has told them they are in a netherworld - for them, it is endless night - but that they will be restored to their former lives if they kill Dorian who otherwise will lead them all to their deaths. Luckily, he persuades them to doubt the oracle, and when the creature reappears in a strange pyramidal device which can appear and disappear, it transpires he is one of the supposedly deceased ex-rulers of the former Dark Empire. Dorian and the others set out on an epic journey to find out what is going on and why this man is having to work through intermediaries to kill him. The answers when they come lead to heartbreak for Dorian.
This is a short page-turning read, not a profound story, but colourful and with a zany cast of characters including a villain who wears a mask with a working and chiming clock in it. The ending is the best part, as Dorian truly pays a terrible price and yet is left wondering whether the past he remembers is real or imaginary.
Duke Dorian Hawkmoon is enjoying a quiet life ruling the Kamarg, a marshy area with its own unique wildlife such as horned horses (and based on the real-life area of France, known as the Camargue). The setting is an alternative Europe, seemingly in the far future after a period where a technological society - possibly ours - collapsed. Five years before the story begins, Hawkmoon and his friends were instrumental in overthrowing a tyrannical regime known as the Dark Empire, based on a reborn technology and operating from their version of Great Britain. The rulers of the regime supposedly all perished at the Battle of Londra (London) or just before, yet Dorian's tranquil existence, married to the daughter of Count Brass (who also died in the battle), and enjoying family life with her and their son and daughter, begins to be blighted when local people start to eye him with disapproval.
He discovers that rumour is rife that the ghost of Count Brass is out in the marshes at night telling passersby that Dorian betrayed him and led him to his death. Determined to quash this, he rides out to meet the apparent imposter, but discovers things are not that simple. This man is a younger version of the Count, and soon he brings younger versions of Dorian's other close friends to meet him, who also died in the struggle against Granbretan. They have been brought there by someone they term the oracle, who has told them they are in a netherworld - for them, it is endless night - but that they will be restored to their former lives if they kill Dorian who otherwise will lead them all to their deaths. Luckily, he persuades them to doubt the oracle, and when the creature reappears in a strange pyramidal device which can appear and disappear, it transpires he is one of the supposedly deceased ex-rulers of the former Dark Empire. Dorian and the others set out on an epic journey to find out what is going on and why this man is having to work through intermediaries to kill him. The answers when they come lead to heartbreak for Dorian.
This is a short page-turning read, not a profound story, but colourful and with a zany cast of characters including a villain who wears a mask with a working and chiming clock in it. The ending is the best part, as Dorian truly pays a terrible price and yet is left wondering whether the past he remembers is real or imaginary.
June 17, 2021
In re-reading all of the Eternal Champion books I have made a point of giving them and honest hard. Does eating and review. I can’t with this one though. It was my first fantasy novel and the nostalgia is too strong. I just love it.
May 25, 2025
2.5⭐
There were some things I liked about this vintage sword and sorcery / fantasy book, but it overall left me a bit dissatisfied at the end. I liked the first half of the book more, and there was just too much going on in the last part and it was a bit confusing.
There were some things I liked about this vintage sword and sorcery / fantasy book, but it overall left me a bit dissatisfied at the end. I liked the first half of the book more, and there was just too much going on in the last part and it was a bit confusing.
November 11, 2021
A particularly psychedelic tale of Dorian Hawkmoon. But also sad and unexpected in places.
October 16, 2019
I'm disappointed.
For a single word review, it would be 'dull'.
It's a really short book, but even so a fair chunk of it is recap of the previous series with the same characters. Which is great, because now I know not to bother reading those, either!
The writing is fine, the descriptions are good. But I found the characters kinda stiff and uninteresting. The whole 'other worlds' gig that the storyline revolves around (and the other books judging by the recap) left me cold. I didn't really believe in it, and I didn't really care about it.
I read an Elric book a few years back at my brother's house, and didn't much like that either. I don't think this is a particularly bad book. Michael Moorcock just isn't for me I guess.
For a single word review, it would be 'dull'.
It's a really short book, but even so a fair chunk of it is recap of the previous series with the same characters. Which is great, because now I know not to bother reading those, either!
The writing is fine, the descriptions are good. But I found the characters kinda stiff and uninteresting. The whole 'other worlds' gig that the storyline revolves around (and the other books judging by the recap) left me cold. I didn't really believe in it, and I didn't really care about it.
I read an Elric book a few years back at my brother's house, and didn't much like that either. I don't think this is a particularly bad book. Michael Moorcock just isn't for me I guess.
September 6, 2020
“Count Brass” by Michael Moorcock was better reading this time around than the first time. I was a big Michael Moorcock fan as a teenager in the 80’s, reading and rereading most of his books numerous times, but the Castle Brass series was one I just couldn’t get into. But shopping for used books I thought I’d give it another try, now that I’m several decades older.
It picks up with Hawkmoon five years after the events of the Runestaff series of books, after Hawkmoon and his companions, not all of whom survived, brought down the evil Granbretan empire. In this Hawkmoon is living his life, enjoying peace and calm with his wife and children, when there are rumors that his dead companions are out in the marshes outside town, calling him a traitor and blaming him for their deaths, turning his fellow living citizens against him.
He heads out to investigate and begins an adventure with his five years’ dead companions, or their doppelgängers. They find out that at least one of the evil scientists from Granbretan survived the last battle and is manipulating time and space for revenge.
They’re successful but the story concludes with a bittersweet ending, and an opening to continue the series.
Overall it was enjoyable to escape and read this again. I definitely enjoyed it more now some decades after the first time I tried reading it. But it was also harder to suspend disbelief about some of Moorcock’s descriptions, like two guys in full plate armor, not making any noise as they bound out of a chariot. I didn’t feel like I was “in the story” the way his other books made me feel when I was a teenager.
I’d definitely recommend to a Moorcock fantasy fan, but not as an introduction to Moorcock’s work. This series is very much a sequel to his “History of the Runestaff” series.
It picks up with Hawkmoon five years after the events of the Runestaff series of books, after Hawkmoon and his companions, not all of whom survived, brought down the evil Granbretan empire. In this Hawkmoon is living his life, enjoying peace and calm with his wife and children, when there are rumors that his dead companions are out in the marshes outside town, calling him a traitor and blaming him for their deaths, turning his fellow living citizens against him.
He heads out to investigate and begins an adventure with his five years’ dead companions, or their doppelgängers. They find out that at least one of the evil scientists from Granbretan survived the last battle and is manipulating time and space for revenge.
They’re successful but the story concludes with a bittersweet ending, and an opening to continue the series.
Overall it was enjoyable to escape and read this again. I definitely enjoyed it more now some decades after the first time I tried reading it. But it was also harder to suspend disbelief about some of Moorcock’s descriptions, like two guys in full plate armor, not making any noise as they bound out of a chariot. I didn’t feel like I was “in the story” the way his other books made me feel when I was a teenager.
I’d definitely recommend to a Moorcock fantasy fan, but not as an introduction to Moorcock’s work. This series is very much a sequel to his “History of the Runestaff” series.
September 30, 2022
In this book, slain characters from the previous Corum Hawkmoon trilogy mysteriously come back to life and blame Hawkmoon for their deaths. Hawkmoon, of course, is deeply disturbed by this, for these people were his closest friends and he mourns their loss. Hawkmoon has to get to the bottom of this before his entire kingdom revolts against him for his supposed treachery.
I suspect that this book only works if you've read the previous trilogy, otherwise, I don't think it would have the weight or the reader would have enough familiarity with the resurrected characters for them to fully resonate. So I wouldn't recommend picking this up as a solo read out of order.
I suspect that this book only works if you've read the previous trilogy, otherwise, I don't think it would have the weight or the reader would have enough familiarity with the resurrected characters for them to fully resonate. So I wouldn't recommend picking this up as a solo read out of order.
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October 23, 2025The 14th and final volume in the classic epic fantasy sequence : The Eternal Champion Michael Moorcock's epic novels of the fantastic are classics of the genre that appeal to all ages and walks of life. From the earliest pulp novels of the 60's to the award winning MOTHER LONDON he has earned wide critical acclaim. COUNT BRASS, the concluding volume of the tale of the eternal champion, makes the fearsome journey to Tanelorn in search of resolution. The avatar of the champion - Elric, Corum, Hawkmoon and Erekose must pool their talents in order to bring about the conjunction of the million spheres.
November 1, 2020
Although this is seminal work in weird fiction and I have utmost respect for Moorcock as a trailblazer, his propensity for dashing his plots off the top of his head is in full glorious display here. As someone who relies myself on stream-of-consciousness plotting, I often like to read writers who are a bit more meticulous in their story craft as it gives me a chance to see how the other half lives. Whenever I read Moorcock, I feel as if I'm gazing into a similar well to the one I've lived in my whole life.
January 14, 2020
Having read the original series of Hawkmoon adventures (the Runestaff) last year, and enjoying them, I was eager to pick up where I left off. Moorcock's writing builds a brilliantly vivid picture of alternate universes and it was good to get acquainted with the characters again. After a steady start to this set of books, the story has a great twist at the end involving time travel and the changing of events, leaving me eager to pick up the next book and see how this plays out.
August 2, 2020
Comme l'indique le titre, il sera ici question du comte Airain, ou plutôt d'une machination menée par quelques ennemis d'Hawkmoon pour se venger, par le biais de son ami. C'est plutôt tordu, et pas franchement joyeux. Et pour être honnête, on entre ici dans la partie dispensable des aventures d'Hawkmoon. ca n'est pas moins bien écrit (au contraire, même), mais c'est beaucoup plus contraint, beaucoup moins libre, et ça se ressent à la lecture.
April 19, 2020
Moorcock se fait plaisir, et nous ravit, en faisant revivre les héros - et les ennemis - qu'il avait tués à la bataille de Londra dans une histoire plus enlevée que logique et plus souriante de réellement solide ou brillante.
Qu'importe ! Où ai-je mis le second volume ?
Qu'importe ! Où ai-je mis le second volume ?
August 11, 2022
One of the better Hawkmoon novels, in that it tells a self-contained, inoffensive adventure story, but ultimately rather disposable. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/201...
October 30, 2018
It was OK, mostly.
July 27, 2019
I had forgotten how much I enjoyed these short tales. Slightly dated, but still worth a read.
August 6, 2019
Interesting... very interesting.
August 30, 2019
I must have read this over 30 years ago - and enjoyed it at the time.
It's not improved with time, but still a nostalgic and entertaining read
It's not improved with time, but still a nostalgic and entertaining read
December 6, 2021
I have had these on my shelf for ages and finally getting around to reading them. They are a sequel to the Hawkmoon series I enjoyed as a teen.
Will review when finished the trilogy.
Will review when finished the trilogy.
August 31, 2023
Inventive escapism. Ideal for a fourteen year old me.
Still loving it many years later.
Still loving it many years later.
September 14, 2023
A weird mix of sci-fi and fantasy, but not badly done.
January 22, 2024
Amazing
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews