[Originally read September 20-21, 2010]I should start by noting that I didn't read the full version of this novel -- instead, I read the abridged one that first appeared in two parts in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. This is the actual version which won the Hugo Award, and as much as I would have liked to find the full version, my library system didn't have it, so I had to settle for the abridged one, found in Volume 2 of the Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny: Power and Light.All that being said, I just finished the book, and I'm tired, but I still pulled myself out of bed and turned the computer on so I could write this review. 'Cause damn it, Zelazny was so good that he's worth the extra bit of effort.I'm not really sure what to say about this book. If you'd asked me if I liked sci-fi half a year ago, I would have told you to take your phaser and shove it up your (_(_). (Set phasers to: buns!) Ok, I may not have been that aggressive about it, but the idea of spaceships and aliens didn't really appeal to me. Then I started reading Zelazny's brand of SF, starting with Lord of Light, The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth, and now this. I can now say I'm a sci-fi fan, and it's all Zelazny's fault.I think the important thing about Zelazny's brand of SF is that it's not about the blasters, or the spaceships, or the bizarre alien races. It's about people. It's about how they interact with other people, who may or may not be human. It's about what could happen if the Earth were a little different, or if we were on a planet that was just a little different than Earth. I guess it's more subtle SF, and that's what makes it good.Zelazny once again creates a story that makes no goddamn sense to me for the first five pages, but becomes a work of art by the end. (And then, when I'm finished, I read those 5 pages again and suddenly all is clear.) While it's true that all of his protagonists seem to have some amount of similarity, I'm OK with that, because I like the archetype: an intelligent, powerful guy who sticks up for what he believes in and won't take crap from anybody. But he's also got a soft side, on occasion.Conrad is made even more memorable than some of Zelazny's other characters simply because of his physical appearance. Two differently colored eyes, a fungus on his cheek that looks like a "map of Africa," a right foot that wears a reinforced boot because that leg is too short, and some other details I'm probably forgetting. Conrad just doesn't look like your standard hero, and that's part of what makes him so interesting.Although I was left a little unsure of exactly what's going on throughout the book, by the time the denouement rolled around, I was quite pleased with how things worked out. Mind you, that's not a spoiler, because I like happy endings just as much as the tragic ones. So it could be either, and you won't know until you read it. =PAll in all, a great book. If you've read it before but haven't read the version from Power and Light, I'd recommend doing so -- Power and Light (once again, the 2nd volume in the Collected Stories of Roger Zelazny) has some awesome notes at the end of the story that just give it even more layers of delight.Oh, and did I mention that Zelazny once again blended SF with fantasy and mixed in a heap of mythology (this time Greek)? 'Cause he did. And it was awesome, just like it was in Lord of Light.RIP, Roger. Thanks for all the great stories.[Re-reading September 21-24, 2013]Still an awesome book. Still love Conrad.
4.5 starsORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.The Earth has been mostly depopulated as humans have discovered more sophisticated and comfortable cultures elsewhere in the universe. Much of its infrastructure was destroyed during “The Three Days,” and most of the mainland areas are still “hot.” Genetic mutations have caused the birth of creatures previously thought to be only myth. Now Earth is a strange and dangerous place, fit only as a tourist attraction and a vacation spot for the Vegans.But some people still love Earth, including long-lived Conrad Nomikos, Commissioner for the Arts. Conrad hates the Vegans, so he isn’t happy that he’s been assigned to be the tour guide for Cort Mishtigo, a rich Vegan who may be planning to buy up more of Earth. But even more interesting than Mishtigo’s plans for Earth is the nature of Conrad himself. Who is he?This Immortal is a gorgeous novel and Conrad Nomikos makes a great hero, similar to Corwin from Zelazny’s later Amber Chronicles. Conrad’s love of Earth and, particularly, for his Greek heritage is full of beauty and passion:You will pass, but the hills of Greece will remain, will be unchanged, with the smell of goat thigh bones burning, with a mingling of blood and wine, a taste of sweetened almonds, a cold wind by night, and skies as blue-bright as the eyes of a God by day. Touch them, if you dare… That is why I am refreshed whenever I return, because now that I am a man with many years behind me, I feel this way about the entire Earth. That is why I fought, and why I killed and bombed…I listened to This Immortal on audio (Brilliance Audio) and fell in love with narrator Victor Bevine whose deeply resonant voice captured perfectly the strength and depth of Conrad, the tenderness of Conrad’s wife Cassandra, the alienness of the Vegan, the gentle deadliness of Hasan the Assassin, and even the zealous geekiness of George, the scientist whose curiosity and ambition makes him willing to experiment on his own friends, pets, and unborn child.The end of This Immortal wraps up a bit too quickly — I wanted to stay longer with Conrad on our devastated planet. I hope everything turns out okay…
What do You think about This Immortal (1989)?
This book shared the '66 Hugo award with Dune, which is quite an honor by itself. In contrast to Dune, it's a quick 200 pages. But like Dune (and like most Zelazny books), it thrusts you into a story without any introduction and expects you to learn about the characters and history that led up to the storyline by clues you pick up along the way.Zelazny has created something like a Greek epic. It takes place in Greece, has Greek Hero's and Monsters. What's missing from a typical Greek epic are the gods, and I'm afraid there really wasn't quite enough tragedy or suffering.It was an enjoyable story: not very predictable, some interesting characters, a few "what happens when an irrestible force meets an immovable object" scenes, and a "big mystery" that was resolved satisfactorily by the end. All of which I enjoy.Words I (re)learned:ineluctable (inescapable)anachronism (chronological displacement of people, things, or customs)caique (a kind of boat)elegy (a sad Greek poem)
—Andy
I was wondering what this book was about. Then I read a review where someone mentioned that Zelazny was kind of into old mythology, and this is his attempt at the Herakles myth. Unfortunately it’s not enough to make a good book.We follow an immortal as the bodyguard of an alien visitor who wants to see the remnants of a post-apocalyptic earth. During this tour he fights with giant snakes, giant albinos, giant boars and an assassin who wants to kill the alien. That’s all he does, really, fight with giant monsters, true to Herakles. Did I mention that he's Greek?Apart from the pointless plot, the writing is subpar. Zelazny goes on for pages of dialog without telling you a single time who's speaking. The whole book consists of only three chapters, and those breaks seem inadequately placed. His descriptions of the settings are sometimes non-existent. I often found it hard to picture the environment they were traveling through. The characters were shallow.Finally, this is not a sci-fi novel. Immortals, satyrs, weird mutations that mix features of different species. Mutations won't get you a crocoduck, that’s not how it works.
—Packi
Conrad Nomikos is not what he first appears. On the outside he seems to be in his thirties, walks with a limp, one side of his face is disfigured, and he has a government job working with Earth's antiquities. Dig a little deeper and you learn that he's been working that job at least twenty years, he knows the most powerful and influential people on a first-name basis, and he talks about historical events in a more intimate way than most.THIS IMMORTAL, by Roger Zelazny, is told from Conrad's PoV, and he's as interesting and complicated a character as one would expect from a man who's lived as long as he has. Published in 1965 it tied with Herbert's DUNE for the Hugo in 1966, and reminds us that we've been fascinated with the concept of immortality in our genre for quite some time.After a devastating nuclear war, Earth must deal with human and animal mutations, and the "invasion" of the blue-skinned Vegan aliens, who see the planet as a tourist attraction. Conrad will protect his home using methods others won't always understand. Zelazny's story is fast-paced and fascinating, his characters quick-witted and layered (with lots of nimble dialogue). We're never really clear about how old Conrad is or all that he has done, but it's the mystery that makes him interesting, particularly considering his Greek origins--is this a result of Earth's nuclear tragedies or is it immortality relating to the gods?Strange but thought provoking, this book reminded me the true subtlety of sci-fi's founding authors. Worth reading.
—Vanessa
