By: Roger Zelazny, Jane M. Lindskold Publisher: Eos Average Rating: Binding: Mass Market Paperback Label: Eos Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 336 Publication Date: February 01, 2000 Release Date: February 08, 2000
Product Description: The great wars between gods and demons began five millennia ago--and ended with the demons' crushing defeat and banishment from their homeland. The demon race would have surely perished in the empty dimension of their exile had they not found a secret conduit to a safe and hidden plane...called Earth.
Greatest among the demons was Kai Wren--the Godslayer and Lord Demon--a master swordsman, dreamer, and glassblower who can contain entire universes in bottles of his creation; a legendary warrior who once, long ago, singlehandedly destroyed a god. But now, Kai Wren must seek vengeance for the murder of his devoted human servant, and he fears that this one death heralds the crumbling of a peace that has reigned for a thousand years.
Forced into a series of uncomfortable alliances, Kai Wren strives to preserve the Demon Realms. But his heart has become his fatal weakness, growing soft during years of peace. He has given trust where trust should not be given, only to discover that among his closest companions are those who will betray him--even destroy him--unless he can regain that which once made him LORD DEMON.
The great wars between gods and demons began five millennia ago--and ended with the demons' crushing defeat and banishment from their homeland. The demon race would have surely perished in the empty dimension of their exile had they not found a secret conduit to a safe and hidden plane...called Earth.
Greatest among the demons was Kai Wren--the Godslayer and Lord Demon--a master swordsman, dreamer, and glassblower who can contain entire universes in bottles of his creation; a legendary warrior who once, long ago, singlehandedly destroyed a god. But now, Kai Wren must seek vengeance for the murder of his devoted human servant, and he fears that this one death heralds the crumbling of a peace that has reigned for a thousand years.
Forced into a series of uncomfortable alliances, Kai Wren strives to preserve the Demon Realms. But his heart has become his fatal weakness, growing soft during years of peace. He has given trust where trust should not be given, only to discover that among his closest companions are those who will betray him--even destroy him--unless he can regain that which once made him LORD DEMON.
Amazon.com: Roger Zelazny (1937-1995) was a wizard of the pen: he won six Hugos and three Nebulas and is revered by science fiction and fantasy readers. Lord Demon is his last novel, the second of two projects unfinished at his death. Jane Lindskold, his partner and a fantasy author herself, completed it from some manuscript, a few notes, and conversations she'd had with him. Fans are often skeptical of posthumous collaborations: "It's not real Zelazny"--but Lord Demon comes darned close. It deserves space beside the Amber series, The Dream Master, and Lord of Light. As Zelazny once said of another novel: "It has all my favorite things--blood, love, fire, hate and a high ideal or two."
Lord Demon is vintage Zelazny: a "scientific" fantasy built on favorite themes (the necessity of knowing oneself, of taking risks, and of accepting the vulnerability that comes with feeling passionately), drawing on East Asian, Irish, and hero's quest myths, and featuring his signature protagonist: erudite, smart-mouthed, detached, homicidal when roused but more often immersed in art, poetry, and the creation of alternate realities; unexpectedly kind to the weak and deeply romantic in his approach to women. The bad puns and wildly whimsical turns the story takes are also characteristic.
Fans will hear echoes of Amber: Kai Wren and his demon colleagues represent Chaos; the gods live in Origin, imposing their will to order the planes of existence; the powerful demon He of the Towers of Light has sculpted his home to resemble Origin, and approaching it is much like walking the Pattern; and so on. What's unique is what Kai Wren learns in Lord Demon. The immortal doesn't fail, nor does he return triumphant to marry and rule his folk. This hero and the author finally accept the limits of superpower and the pleasures in being "only human." ---Nona Vero
I've never been a fan of fantasy - until now! Kai Wren is a glassblower who creates entire worlds inside the bottles he makes; worlds in which many of his demon-friends live, each inside their own bottle. These mini-worlds serve as a home for Kai Wren and friends, since they've been exiled from their former home by the "gods" after a long war. During that war, Kai Wren became known as a "godslayer" and earned the name "Lord Demon." Since that time, Lord Demon lived a very private life absorbed in his artistic endeavors, that is, until he discovers that another demon wants him dead. Kai Wren must watch his back at every turn, and thus begins to experience the very human emotions of mistrust, fear, anger, jealousy, and--later--even love. He finds that the affection he had felt for Viss of the Terrible Tongue (his mentor and a very powerful demon) was, in fact, due to a spell she had cast on him; one which also caused him to become antisocial, to her benefit. Kai Wren finally overcomes the evil Viss and finds love for a human lady in the process. This fantasy tale appeals to me because of its contemporary nature and adult-like subject matter. The personal interactions and learning experiences of Zelazny's characters are much like those of human beings, instead of what we'd expect from a typically-crafted, supernatural demon. In this way, he creates characters to which we can relate, and from which we can learn lessons in friendship, trust, and the balance between those values and self-protection.
lord demon very good, very creative, colourful and flowing, the plot is excellent keeping you on edge until the very last moment, you wont be dissapointed and probably have a few sleepless nights rustling pages...
Final treasure from the Lord of Light I was a bit surprised to read some of the scathing comments that other reviewers have posted about "Lord Demon," and from the general trend of these reviews I suppose myself to be among the minority of Zelazny fans who thoroughly enjoyed this book. So be it. "Lord Demon" was fresh and original Zelazny fiction, full of warmth and wit and all of the other goodness that readers have come to expect from this master of letters. Zelazny was never an author to churn out endless carbon-copy reworks of the same tired themes, and once again he succeeded in breaking out of his own mold when he wrote this book. In fact, I suspect that many of the negative reviews about "Lord Demon" are rooted in the fact that this novel, like so much of Zelazny's fiction, is completely different from anything else that he's ever written. This book is not "Nine Princes In Amber," which is appropriate enough since Zelazny already has a book by that name!
Kai Wren is something of a self-imposed exile among demon-kind, concentrating most of his time and energy on the creation of fabulous (and potently magical) art glass. When a beloved human servitor is murdered by lowly "scrub" demons, however, Lord Demon's thirst for vengeance draws the lonely recluse back into demonic society and politics.
Yes, the reader sees much of what is coming long before Kai Wren catches on. Big deal. The story is told primarily from Kai Wren's perspective-- that is, from the perspective of an ancient and powerful being, confident in his own immortality and therefore blinded by arrogance-- so it shouldn't be too surprising that the reader often sees things that Lord Demon is incapable of comprehending, for all of his terrible power and ancient wisdom. The author's POINT is that Kai Wren is maddeningly overconfident and frequently underestimates his foes. Of course Kai Wren is oblivious to things that would come instinctively to lesser beings! When you, the reader, see Kai Wren walking blindly into danger, it adds depth to his character and heightens the novel's suspense. In fact, professional writers even have a name for this type of literary device: "foreshadowing."
I also see many reviews complaining about the "planes of hangers and socks." Ridiculous, yes, but also vintage Zelazny humor! I have a feeling that these reviewers haven't read much other Zelazny fiction, for his sense of humor always tended to run toward the absurd-- one of my favorite Zelazny short stories, "Unicorn Variations," is about beer-swilling, chess-playing mythical beings, and who could forget the 'Alice in Wonderland' bar scene from Zelazny's 'Amber' series? Personally, I thought The Walker's one-line explanation of the hangars and socks was hilarious, and a single quote from a novel hasn't made me laugh out loud like this in a long, long time!
Is "Lord Demon" Zelazny's best novel? Probably not. But Roger Zelazny's genius was such that even his second-tier efforts tower above most other fantasy and sci fi yarns! With "Lord Demon," Roger Zelazny delivered exactly what his fans have come to expect: a well-told tale about extremely human characters, told with wit and warmth, and offering a touching lesson or two along the way. You may even see a reflection of your own mortality in the dark eyes of Kai Wren-- Lord Demon.
I couldn't finish it! I really loved the Amber series, also by Zelazny, so I purchased this book. Now, it is very rare that I do not finish a book, even if I dislike it. However, this was one that I could just not bring myself to finish. Even halfway through, I was unsure of precisely what the plot was. It was extremely strange and I found it hard to follow. I do not suggest this book, especially to fans of the Amber series. It was nothing like what I expected.
Not his best While this book is certainly not a bad read, it did disapoint me a bit. I expected really good things from this book since I greatly enjoyed "Donnerjack", (another of the Zelazy, Lindskold "collaborations"), but it didn't deliver. Some of that Zelazy charm was there, but the characters just didn't jump of the pages like they do in "Donnerjack" or in other Zelazy's works. I guess everything can't be as good as the Amber books or "Lord of Light." So I guess I'd say, not bad, but not fantastic.
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