I have to read more Zelazny after this. I was struck by two things in particular: The surprising playful quality of the prose. He has little vignettes dispersed among the main narrative, and it gave me the sense that Zelazny was having a lot of fun while writing this book. It was kind of refreshing after reading so many other self-seriously, rigidly constructed novels. It gave me a feeling similar to the ones I experience when I listen to some experimental music, where the process is not treated as a mere necessary evil on the way to the finish product.

The second thing was struck a chord was the ending. I liked how it was all show and no tell, which I wasn’t expecting. It was kind of creepy, and very intense. I wasn’t expecting such a visceral end to a book which, until then, had been rather laid back.

Now that I’ve finished it, I feel like it was very dense, thematically. I suspect I will revisit it and gleam many meanings which I missed this time.

I would like to open the thread to recommendations. I’ve heard he wrote a fantasy series that is pretty good, and I think I would like to check that out.