Jun 082012
 

Zelaznical delight merges with Lovecraftian horror with a lack of fright to make a pleasant Game. I found this story a pleasant plumbing of late Victorian literature for characters and familiars intent on playing a once-in-a-lifetime Game. The stakes of the Game are, of course, Reality; the Rules, mercurial; and the players, fluid, at best.

This book, Zelazny’s last, tickles a reader of a certain age and experience in a way that no one else will. Zelazny at his best, a large and complex plot, a chapter a day, leaving behind a thin, well-crafted volume bringing delight to the erudite.

Unmercifully out of print, but you can find it used here or at any excellent charity shop.