Chronicles Of Amber Books In Order

Publication Order of Chronicles Of Amber Books

Publication Order of Chronicles Of Amber Collections

The Chronicles of Amber is a series of science fiction and fantasy novels written by Roger Zelazny. The series is divided into two arcs each of which constitutes five books.
+The Story
The Chronicles of Amber series take place in a universe occupied by two so-called ‘true worlds’ called Amber and Chaos. Amber and Chaos are magical places whose forces are in such opposition that the tension created in between them eventually gave birth to the shadow worlds of which contemporary earth is one.
Members of the Royal Family of Amber have the power to walk through the shadow worlds. And as they traverse this plane, they can create new realities or alter pre-existing ones by adding and subtracting the shadows.

The first saga in the Chronicles of Amber series—The Corwin Cycle—began publication in 1970. Beginning with ‘Nine Princes of Amber’, the Corwin cycle told the story of a prince of Amber known as Corwin.
Corwin has no ideas who he is when readers meet him, his amnesia emanating from the coma he suffered. When his memories begin to flood back, Corwin learns that he is a prince, a member of the royal family that rules the one true world.
Corwin must get re-acquainted with this new paranormal existence. This involves re-discovering his family and learning to walk the infinite parallel worlds. Corwin’s story primarily finds him engaging in a fight to conquer Amber.
At the start of the series, Corwin’s brother Eric rules Amber, having taken the position after their father Oberon disappear. The journey he undertakes is long and arduous and Corwin suffers many physical, mental, and emotional losses.
Fortunately for the hero, he is made of stronger stuff than most. His regenerative abilities prove quite useful as he fights enemies from both Amber and Chaos. Corwin also finds that he can rely on a select few allies that include his brothers Bleys and Brand.
Though, it doesn’t take him long to realize that family ties are not always trustworthy and even the most honest of his siblings should be approached with some caution.

Corwin’s arc is often compared to Game of Thrones because, when all the fantastical aspects are removed, the series essentially tells the tale of a struggle for the throne of a great Kingdom. Blood is shed and family ties are broken for the sake of the power that can be gained by those who emerge as King of Amber.
The Corwin books are normally believed to be of superior quality to the Merlin novels which constitute the next five stories of the second arc of the Chronicles of Amber series.
The Corwin cycle is reminiscent of Highlander because it has nigh immortal protagonists and antagonists at the center of its conflict. There are also elements of the hardboiled detective genre, probably because Roger Zelazny wrote the Corwin Cycle in the 1960s and 1970s, an era where the hardboiled detective was all the rage.

The Merlin Cycle began in the 1980s with ‘Trumps of Doom’ and it continued through to the 1990s.
It centers on Merlin, Corwin’s son who is introduced in the Corwin Cycle. Because of the era in which they were written, the Merlin books feature a lot of computers and technological advancements which is why some Zelazny fans believe the second arc is more sci-fi/fantasy than straight up fantasy.
Merlin’s son was designed to be the modern hacker protagonist, a youthful individual with burgeoning talents in both magic and computing.
At the start of the Merlin Cycle, Merlin has been studying computer science on earth. Merlin proceeds to create a sentient computer. His only intention is to locate his father. He does not foresee the disaster that will manifest as a result of his actions.
Merlin’s books follow him as he comes to terms with his heritage as the Prince of Chaos and Amber. The Merlin Cycle calls back a few well-known characters from the Corwin Cycle as well as their descendants.
The Merlin Cycle ended in 1991 with ‘Prince of Chaos’. While the book closed a lot of threads from its own series as well as the Corwin saga, enough doors were left open for readers to speculate about a potential third cycle.
However, these same readers were not so enthused when ‘Dawn of Amber’, a prequel series was announced, written by John Gregory Betancourt and eventually published in 2002.

Betancourt was assigned the task of writing the prequel series because Roger Zelazny was dead by then. Four Dawn of Amber volumes were written and published and they were largely panned by friends of Zelazny like Neil Gaiman and George R.R. Martin who knew that the author never wanted other writers to continue the Amber series after he was gone.
On hearing this grumbling, certain sections of the audience chose to ignore the Dawn of Amber series as a whole as a means of respecting Zelazny’s wishes.
+The Author

Roger Zelazny was made famous by a group of sci-fi/fantasy novellas he wrote which showed his mastery over the written word. Zelazny showed that he had a way with mythology.
As such, there was quite a lot of anticipation when he began to publish The Chronicles of Amber series. Authors like George R.R. Martin were pretty young at the time and they remember being heavily influenced by Roger Zelazny.
+Nine Princes in Amber
Amber is the one true world in existence. Everything else, including our Earth, is a shadow. Corwin is a prince of Amber. After being exiled to Earth for centuries, Corwin is ready to return to his home.
And this time he intends to take the throne. However, the feat won’t be easy to accomplish. He will face off against his brothers in an electrifying battle that will test his determination to claim his birthright.
+The Guns of Avalon

Corwin is the one true heir to the throne of Amber. But others seek to bar his path to ascension. To guarantee his success, Corwin has begun to gather an army that he will lead in an assault against his enemies.
But if Corwin isn’t careful, a growing darkness might destroy everything he is working so hard to claim.