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EUROPE'S MOST VISITED SF/F WEB SITE |
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The History Of The Runestaff by Michael
Moorcock check out website(s): www.orionbooks.co.uk
Initially brought out in 4 separate volumes entitled 'The Jewel In The Skull', 'The Mad God's Amulet', 'The Sword Of The Dawn' and 'The Runestaff'. These were and are brilliant works of fantasy fiction, published in the 1960s when this genre was taking off. But before this collection there was a title that really got me into fantasy fiction and the first of many, many tales of fantasy by Moorcock, namely 'Stormbringer' a work described by J.G. Ballard as one of 'powerful and sustained imagination.'
Why then did Michael Moorcock choose a hero sounding like a German (Dorian Hawkmoon von Koln) and the British for villains (Count Meliadus of Kroiden)? Moorcock, I believe, liked to kick against the Establishment of the day, so this time when the Earth had grown old, when the evil ones were in a place called Granbretan and Deau Vere was the starting point for the crossing of the Silver Bridge towards Castle Brass and Aigues Mortes, where Count Brass, Hawkmoon and the forces of good sheltered. The great armies of the Dark Empire ravage and destroy the once peaceful city states and it is only Hawkmoon, once captured and tortured by this Dark Empire, who can save the Castle Brass and the lands beyond. But first he must find the secret of the mysterious Runestaff and this quest will send him into the world of wonder and evil. Hence these 4 books recount Dorian Hawkmoon's mighty adventures. Michael Moorcock wrote the books rapidly in the mid-sixties, which he recounts carries the unmistakable mark of a time when '...a perhaps naive belief that we could swiftly improve the world for everyone.' As such they do not compare to the great literary masterpieces of Tolkien, Peake and others, but at the same time have shaped modern fantasy into what we have now, a vast array of titles by authors now well-known and many not so. Phil Stoyle
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OTHER REVIEWS - June 2003
The Mammoth Book Of Best New Horror edited by Stephen Jones Cerulean Sins by Laurell K. Hamilton The History Of The Runestaff by Michael Moorcock The Mammoth Book Of 20th Century Science Fiction edited by David G. Hartwell The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Eye In The Sky by Philip K. Dick Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel: Monster Island by Christopher Golden Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Lost Slayer by Christopher Golden Children Of Dune/God Emperor Of Dune by Frank Herbert Exploring The Matrix: Visions Of The Cyber Present edited by Karen Haber The Tomorrow People 3: 1: Secret Weapon The Wreck Of The River Of Stars by Michael Flynn The Weavers Of Saramyr by Chris Wooding Pure Dead Brilliant by Debi Gliori Felaheen: The Third Arabesk by Jon Courtenay Grimwood The Usurper's Crown by Sarah Zettel Prince Of Ayodhya by Ashok K. Banker HARDBACK TO PAPERBACK The Praxis (Book One of Dread Empire's Fall) by Walter Jon Williams Shadow Puppets (Book 3 of The Shadow Saga) by Orson Scott Card
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This title is one of the 'Fantasy Masterworks'
series published by Gollancz and Moorcock's collection is probably
one of the best known (and original) of the lot. 
Published
in 1965, the stories of Elric of Melibone were forerunners of the
great 'Runestaff' series. Check these earlier stories out before
you read all about Dorian Hawkmoon, the hero of the Runestaff. 
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