Corum: The Prince with the Silver Hand

Eternal Champion #12

by Michael Moorcock

Book by Moorcock, Michael

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Dark Fantasy, Collections

341 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

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

[Mark Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this was my first Moorcock, picked up in a secondhand bookshop in the 70s when I was a very bored kid. I ended up with about 30 of his books - but Corum and the Fhoi Mhore (random spelling) have a special place in my imagination.

Inspired by Irish myths and very heavy on atmosphere, all Moorcock’s talent is on display here. There is a previous trilogy but you don’t need to read it first. It does explain where various missing bits of his body are though.

[S. ≽^•⩊•^≼ I'm not here yet]

Does anyone have any suggestions on what to read first in Michael Moorcock's fantasy world?!
I found this chronological order here and there...
Even in order doesn't sound right!

1-
The Eternal Champion
Von Bek

2-
Hawkmoon
The History of the Runestaff

3-
A Nomad of the Time Streams
*The Swords Trilogy
*Elric: Song of the Black Sword

4-
Sailing to Utopia

5-
The Roads Between the Worlds

6-
The Dancers at the End of Time

7-
Kane of Old Mars
The New Nature of the Catastrophe
*Corum: The Prince with the Silver Hand

8-
Legends from the End of Time
Stormbringer

9-
Earl Aubec and Other Stories
Count Brass

*The Swords Trilogy: The Knight of the Swords, The Queen of the Swords, The King of the Swords

*Corum Series:The Bull and the Spear, The Oak and the Ram, The Sword and the Stallion

*Elric books:
Elric of Melnibone
The Fortress of the Pearl
The Sailor on the Seas of Fate
Elric at the End of Time
The Weird of the White Wolf
The Sleeping Sorceress
The Vanishing Tower
The Revenge of the Rose
The Bane of the Black Sword
Stormbringer
The Moonbeam Roads: (Daughter of Dreams, Destiny's Brother, Son of the Wolf)

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This omnibus edition contains the final three novels featuring Corum Jhaelen Irsei: The Bull and the Spear; The Oak and the Ram & The Sword and the Stallion.

Book Four of the Chronicles of Corum doesn't exactly pick up where Book Three left off. In fact, a great deal of time has past. A duration that has left Prince Corum as melancholy as, perhaps, a certain Danish prince of Shakespearean renown. Thus begins a new cycle of tragedy and triumph for this Celtic myth inspired incarnation of Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion. This first stage of the cycle sets Corum on a quest to find a legendary spear that will control a giant bull that will, or so legend foretells, defeat a great monstrous evil which blankets the world in ice, snow and death. Can Corum find the spear in time to save the world? Well, he's not called an Incarnation of the Eternal Champion for nothing. Moorcock delivers another wonderful chapter in his sprawling epic of endless conflict between order and chaos.

Book Five is not only another fine chapter in the tragic life and struggles of Corum Jhaelen Irsei, the Prince with the Silver Hand, but it is also a powerful modern tale inspired by traditional myths and legends. Moorcock plays with the myth cycles of Celtic lore and Irish stories of Cuchulain. These are reworked and presented in entirely new ways, but the influence and inspiration is clear. While many middle books in a trilogy have a tendency to start nowhere and end nowhere, this one does offer a unique and important series of events in the life of Corum and establishes the particular quest which is necessary for this chapter and then resolves things quite well before foreshadowing the tragedy that seems to fall upon all of Moorcock's long-suffering heroes.

"Ah, the world was ever so. How sad are heroes when their tasks are done...". This is probably true of all of Moorcock's heroes and all the incarnations of the Eternal Champion, but certainly true of Corum Jhaelen Irsei. This volume brings to a close the high romance epic of the Prince with the Silver Hand and it is a sad and tragic one. And like the Celtic fables and lore that inspired the tales of Corum, this is another story of loss, pain and despair that ultimately overshadows the victory like only Michael Moorcock can deliver.

[Steven Poore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Corum's second batch of adventures follows much the same formula that Moorcock has used throughout his fantasy writing - set-up, quest, complication, resolution - but here the tales are completely assured, the groundwork in the Multiverse already laid, the world moved on, and Corum's fate as nailed to the mast as Elric's was before him.

The Mabden world in which he finds himself, summoned from his own time, is colder, darker, losing its magic. Corum must fight decay and death with the last remnants of the world's magic, becoming obsolete and unnecessary himself in the process. Steely and resolute, he doesn't seem to realise what this must mean until the very end, when all his companions have gone.

Excellently executed mythologising with more than a touch of the Celtic about it.

[Andy Goldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Somehow with all my reading and re-reading of the Eternal Champion books, I had never read the second Corum trilogy. Thoughts. Dang, that ending. No encounter with Agak and Gaga’s from Corum’s POV? Bummer.

The Corum books seem more fairy tale-ish to me than the other EC books, but I found a lot to enjoy in them.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read these stories as standalone books, and my reviews for each are on their specific Goodreads pages.
I am leaving this as "in search of" in case the White Wolf edition has an extras (they usually do). Not used in my 2020 Reading Challenge, obviously.

[Alex Stalf · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time favorite.

[Richard Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic sword and fantasy fiction by the man who (almost) started it all.

[Jonathan Harrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read most of this before but 45 years ago. In some ways this is even better than Elric. Hawkmoon next

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Bull and the Spear - 4.5/5

Corum is now worshipped as a legendary hero after his successful battle against the sword rulers, the gods of law and the gods of chaos. The influence of crooked higher beings has been completely severed from his realm and everyone in his small kingdom lives in relative peace. Corum being the immortal he is, however, outlives many of his friends and loved ones and comes to find crippling sorrow and restlessness after many decades of watching the world gradually fall apart around him. Consumed by loneliness, a lack of purpose and a grieving heart, he finds himself longing to be summoned into another great battle, just for the chance of feeling alive again. With the aid of his old friend Jhary, Corum is summoned into a new age of twisted gods, bloodthirsty fiends and the return of ancient foes. Searching for purpose in his gloomy life, Corum goes on a journey to claim the aid of the legendary spear Brionac and the spirit of a bull to assist him in his war against a new age of evil and chaos.

I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this one. I thought the first two books in the Corum series were good and the final book in the original trilogy wrapped things up nicely. I didn't really see how the story could continue from where things left off, but surprisingly I actually enjoyed this one more then the entire original trilogy.

The tone feels much more bleak and melancholy. Many series have immortal characters, but not many series out there explore what happens after these characters outlive everything they've ever loved and fought for. While it starts off very depressing and grim, it eventually turns into a redemption tale of finding a sense of purpose after losing all meaning in one's life.

The writing in general is also just more mature all around. I felt more emotionally invested in the characters and found the conflict much more dazzling and immersive. It also breaks out of the shell of being a typical revenge story and one of searching for meaning after all vengeance has already been wrought.

***

The Oak and the Ram - 3/5

The seasons have changed from spring to summer and the encroaching threat of the Fhoi Myore is threatening to unleash a storm of icy death upon the last remaining inhabitants in a dying world. With the assistance of his friends and lover in the new realm he now calls his home, Corum sets out on a journey to seek the aid of the High King of the Mabden, Amergin. The king is trapped in a spell of dark magic cast by the Gods of Limbo. It falls to Corum of the Silver Hand to restore the rightful power of the High King with the miraculous forces of two legendary talismans: the Golden Oak and the Silver Ram.

If book 4 in this series was the strongest, this one is the weakest in comparison. It's not bad at all, but it feels like it retreads ground a little too much and doesn't really bring anything new to the story. It feels a little too similar to things that have already happened earlier in the series. Usually a ridiculous amount of things happen in each of these books, but this one kinda felt like it kept going in circles, repeating plot points and not all that much happened. It also wasn't nearly as dark, emotional and climactic as the previous book.

I've heard a lot of people say this entry was rushed and the next one is much more satisfying so I'll be looking forward to finally finishing up the tales of Corum.

***

The Sword and the Stallion - 4/5

Corum's final stand against the wrathful Cold Gods known as the Fhoi Myore reaches its bitter conclusion. Friends become enemies and enemies become friends in the final battle to decide which races will rule and which races will perish. Wielding the accursed magic sword Traitor and riding upon the ancient stallion that guides his blade of truth, Corum will fulfill a dark prophecy that could sever the world from chaos and mad gods or erase all life from the world once and for all.

A very tragic ending to Corum's second trilogy. The original trilogy ended on a surprisingly happy and wholesome note, but the ending of the second trilogy is full of despair, cruel irony and themes of Greek Tragedy. Many friends die. Lovers separate and turn against each other, sometimes to no fault of their own. Prophecies are fulfilled, rarely to anyone's benefit. While the ending is sad and even a bit frustrating in some ways, it feels very poetic and in tune with how things were being set up for such a bittersweet finale where death, betrayal and sacrifice was the only way to achieve ultimate peace and freedom for the few survivors of the world.

I enjoyed the first trilogy a bit more overall, but I think the first book in the second trilogy and the end of the 6th and final book were wonderfully dark and well-crafted.

[Pavlo Tverdokhlib · Rating 2 out of 5]

WARNING: this review will probably contain SPOILERS for "Corum: The Prince in the Scarlet Robe", being a direct sequel




When we last left Corum, he defeated the Sword Rulers, and was living happily ever after with his human bride and the non-psychotic humans.

fast forward 100+ years. Corum's beloved died of all age at 96. Corum grows distraught and increasingly melancholy, drifting ever closer to madness.

Then, as usually happens to the Eternal Champion, he is summoned to another place and time. In this case, far into the future of the same world, to fight with the descendants of his wife's people against the monsters from Limbo, who use the elemental Cold to subdue humans and kill the world.

This is a very by-the-numbers straight-up heroic fantasy, with a heavy Celtic flavour. Since the main villains are clear from the beginning, the story is much more grounded than "The prince in the Scarlet Robe", which was all over the place. This time it's decently clear cut- collect lost magical treasures, use them to defeat evil.

The story is not without its twists and turns (with a few cliches that will seem obvious to a modern reader), but for the most part it's hard to call Corum's latest adventures anything "original".

Unlike last time, Corum is now a willing hero fully accepting of is role as the Eternal Champion--which serves to make his character far less interesting. instead of having Corum come to grips with/challenge his destiny, this time he's being a rote hero with nary a complaint. Although the story remains entertaining, I feel that this Corum is little different from Hawkmoon, who is the blandest hero in Moorcock's roster.

In terms of overall cosmology- there's a few references to things happening in other continuities, but they're quite brief.

Overall, it's an okay book, and if you're looking for a straight-up heroic fantasy and have some reference points in Celtic mythology (I don't), it should be an enjoyable read.

Personally, I found it a bit disappointing as follow-up to the original Corum trilogy. 2.5/5

[7thTrooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moorcock måste nog vara en av de mest produktiva författarna jag läst. Alla Corum-böcker (inklusive de första tre) skrevs mellan 1971 och 74. Jag misstänker att det liksom med böckerna om Hawkmoon hammrades ut snabbt för pengar och det märks att det inte är en helt genomplanerad serie. Corums rättegång i "The Sword and the Stallion", till exempel. Det är en mer eller mindre lättläst serie man kan plöja igenom snabbt och fortfarande få valuta för pengarna om man kommer med rätt inställning. Efter de förra tre böckerna hade jag inte skyhöga förhoppningar men om jag måste välja tar jag nog ändå dessa tre över den första trilogin. Moorcock kan sin flyhänta berättarteknik och trots att det finns transportsträckor så går det mesta i bra takt. Däremot är slutet alltför abrupt och har tyvärr inte alls den vikt som Moorcock förmodligen ville ha. Själva handlingen i sig saknar nog all form av djup; hjälte A skall hämta sak B och gör detta. Om än att det i ganska typisk Moorcock-anda är ganska mycket mörkare än stereotypisk fantasy. Men på det stora hela har Moorcock ändå lyckats skapa en helt okej samling här. Det är lite som att sitta framför en brasa medans en äldre släkting berättar.

[Andrew C Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first trilogy. Actually that became one of my all time favorite fantasy trilogy. The Prince with the Silver Hand was a disappointment comparing to The Prince in the Scarlet Robe.

The idea to put Corum in the Gaelic mythology was great but sadly the novel became a bit constrained, too dense in act. And in top of that it lost a bit of Moorcock's uniqueness, and for me it became boring. I've finished the first trilogy in one week but this one took me more than a month because I wasn't so curios and excited about the act and the outcome.

I would recommend this book only for Moorcock and Corum fans but for casual fantasy readers, The Prince in the Scarlet Robe is enough. Avoid the disappointment.

[Tamcamry · Rating 5 out of 5]

• This is really one of M.M.’s best books. Each story in this book is a page turner. I could barely put it down. This story gives Corum a very Moorcock ending. I still don’t know if he needed to kill him off, but I understand why he did it. I know that Corum most likely will not be back, but, if I’m able to read the later stories, I hope that they’re like this one more and less like some of the earlier works. In this book he tries to just tell a story. In some of the earlier books, he tries to make some sort of political message. Some times it worked but usually it seemed forced.

[Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a great take-off story from the Elric series. I really like the Characters in this story. Moorcock has created quite a world(worlds I should say).