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In "To Die In Italbar, the galaxy is in chaos, with people falling prey to an unidentifiable disease. Only one man has the ability to help--a man who can heal or kill with a touch, known only as "Mr. H." In "A Dark Travelling, James Wiley is an "ordinary" 14-year-old who has lost his scientist father to a parallel world in the darkbands. With the help of Becky, his sister with magical powers, and Uncle George, there were wolf, James goes in search of his parent. But he must take care: for if show more there just happens to be a full moon at the wrong moment, James's itchy palms might lead him into trouble....- TWO COMPLETE NOVELS IN ONE EDITION! show lessTags
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About a man who is something of a galactic Typhoid Mary. At first his condition has a dual nature; he can actually heal disease as well as infect at different times, but then he begins to drift more to the dark side. It becomes clear that he is in the control of an alien goddess, whose influence on him grows, and so grows his potential for destruction.
That's only the premise, the tale is actually reasonably complex with a large cast of characters for a novel of only 175 pages. Zelazny juggles the story elements effortlessly and whirls to a conclusion where the action occurs offstage to some degree, but it's still an exciting and satisfying ending. A neat trick.
Yet another novel of his that is not regarded as one of his big hits, that I show more enjoyed reading as much if not more, than those books. show less
That's only the premise, the tale is actually reasonably complex with a large cast of characters for a novel of only 175 pages. Zelazny juggles the story elements effortlessly and whirls to a conclusion where the action occurs offstage to some degree, but it's still an exciting and satisfying ending. A neat trick.
Yet another novel of his that is not regarded as one of his big hits, that I show more enjoyed reading as much if not more, than those books. show less
Zelazny's worst, according to Zelazny, "To Die in Italbar" is still better than most sci-fi. Simple story with varying competing protagonists mostly on a domination/serving slide, Zelazny, as always, lays out the multiple worlds and egos with precise worlds. If you can't be a fop, be an artist.
This book is preceded by [b:Isle of the Dead|1124895|Isle of the Dead|Roger Zelazny|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1209743316s/1124895.jpg|1877102]. Humanity has spread to the stars. An alien race, the Pei'an's have a pantheon of gods that allow a corporeal being, with the proper training, to use/co-exist to create wonders, such as new planets. Francis Sandow was the only human to successfully do this. In "Isle of the Dead" we saw what happened when two gods clashed, now another has gotten a human, 'H'. 'H' is a great healer when things are going well, but when angered, the balance is altered & he becomes a plague. Others want to use him for their own purposes. Sandow must step in.Well, the above is the obvious story, anyway. As show more usual, Zelazny has more than one story going on. The assumption of the god/goddess is very reminiscent of the attributes & aspects that are assumed in [b:Lord of Light|13821|Lord of Light|Roger Zelazny|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166573587s/13821.jpg|1011388]. Again, Zelazny explores power, it's shape, use & effect on man. The healer can also be the destroyer, two sides of the same coin. Another character shows us to what depths justifiable rage & revenge can take a 'good' person.I've read the story several times & get something more/different out of it each time. It has aged well, pretty timeless, actually. The various bits & pieces will appeal differently to people, especially obvious on a re-read several years later. Supposedly, he didn't like this book much, but I find it still has quite a hold on me, like most of his works. show less
A man can kill or cure by touch as he travels through a plague-stricken land. Z. called it his worst book, and it has not proven to be memorable to me, either.
OK. Disjointed.
Noted during my 1980s attempt to read every book in my small town library.
Noted during my 1980s attempt to read every book in my small town library.
That was good in a 1970's kinda way.
That was good in a 1970's kinda way.
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Author Information
Roger Zelazny was born in Euclid, Ohio on May 13, 1937. After receiving a B.A. from Case Western Reserve University and a M.A. from Columbia University, he began publishing science fiction stories in 1962. He received six Hugo awards, three Nebula awards including one in 1966 for And Call Me Conrad and 2 Locus awards. He died of kidney failure show more secondary to colorectal cancer on June 14, 1995. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Belongs to Publisher Series
fantapocket (9)
Prisma Science Fiction (1707)
DAW Book Collectors (117)
Présence du futur (205)
Science Fiction Book Club (5829)
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- Le sérum de la déesse bleue
- Original title
- To Die in Italbar
- Original publication date
- 1973
- People/Characters
- Malacar Miles; Heidel von Hymack; Larmon Pels; John Morwin; Jackara; Shind (show all 7); Francis Sandow
- Important places*
- Planète Blanchen; Italbar, planète Cleech; Planète Summit; Capeville, planète Deiba
- First words
- La nuit qu'il avait choisie des mois auparavant, Malacar Miles traversa la rue Numéro Sept et passa sous le fluoro-globe qu'il avait endommagé la veille.
On the night he had chosen months before, Malacar Miles crossed the street numbered seven, passing beneath the glow-globe he had damaged during the day. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Et il se dit, oui, nuage dans le ciel, écureuil sur la branche, fille — que désirer de plus ?
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)He did not think of Francis Sandow, Heidel von Mymack or even the Commander, for she had just said, "It's a nice day," and yes, he thought, cloud in the sky, squirrel on the branch, girl, give it that much, give it that. - Original language
- English
- Canonical DDC/MDS
- 813.5419
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
- Genres
- Science Fiction, Fiction and Literature
- DDC/MDS
- 813.5419 — Literature & rhetoric American literature in English American fiction in English 1900-1999 1945-1999 Fantasy / Science Fiction Science Fiction
- LCC
- PZ4 .Z456 — Language and Literature Fiction and juvenile belles lettres Fiction and juvenile belles lettres Fiction in English
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 754
- Popularity
- 37,377
- Reviews
- 15
- Rating
- (3.38)
- Languages
- 9 — Czech, Dutch, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Lithuanian, Polish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 17
- ASINs
- 19
