To Die In Italbar [Mass Market Paperback]

These books are two of Robert Zelazny's lesser-known works, "To Die In Italbar" and "A Dark Travelling." "Travelling" is a sort of YA novella, a little frothier than usual Zelazny books, and "To Die" is a deeper, darker, more horrifying story.

"To Die In Italbar" brings us to a future where one man, Heidal (known as H), is given strange, mysterious powers -- he can be afflicted and then cured of any disease, no matter how hideous or incurable. (Thanks to a disease/healing goddess who visits him in his dreams) When he accidently infects and is attacked by the people of Italbar, he becomes a walking plague machine. Malacar, the one man still living on Earth with his telepathic alien translator, wants to find Heidel with the help of a vengeance-loving girl from a brothel. But Heidal is becoming more and more dangerous with the goddess's help...

"A Dark Travelling" has a family that makes yours look downright normal. Jim is a teen werewolf. His sister is a witch. His brother is an assassin who lives in a castle. His father travels dimensions, or "bands." But one night his father mysteriously vanishes, and Jim goes on a desperate, magical search for him. And it leads him to sorcerers and rebels on one of the "darkbands," where his father has been taken captive for a shocking reason.

These books aren't the most prominent ones that Zelazny wrote, but they're enjoyable reads. "Dark Travelling" has a sort of frothier edge to it -- the plot almost never stops going until the end, with a small cast of characters (several of whom remain a bit underdeveloped) and no philosophical musings. "Italbar," on the other hand, is much deeper and darker, with a lot of dream conversations and telepathic linking. A lot more action is going on inside the characters' heads.

On a quality front, these ibook reprints have good smooth paper and good bindings. Teens as well as adults will probably enjoy these -- there is a tiny amount of ...content in "Italbar" (Jackara works at a brothel) but nothing major. Fans of Robert Zelazny and thoughtful SF/F should definitely check these books out.

If you liked Isle of the dead then this one is a must-read! The story is set in the same universe with its Pei'an pantheon and also has the protagonist of Isle of the dead - Francis Sandow - in it. In fact he's the one who brings the story to a good end. I don't agree with the author himself, saying that this book was not up to his standards and that he just wrote it in a hurry, after quiting his job as a civil servant and turning into a professional writer.(I read this in the biography that Jane Lindskold wrote about him.) If he did write it in a hurry, he made a good job of it. The story has a good plot, believable characters and, most of all, the real Zelaznian descriptions of certain scenes. As in the Amber-novels and a novel like The dream master, in this book mr. Zelazny again succeeds in visualising to the reader the images the characters in the book experience. In this particular book these are the dreamsequences that Heidel von Hymack goes through when he is sleeping and, while sleeping and dreaming, being in touch with Myra-o-arym, the Pei'an goddess of healing, who, after Heidel has been mistreated, turns into Arym-o-myra, the goddess of sickness and death. But there's more. The skills of John Morwin and the ways he uses them, the dead dr. Pels in his space-ship and Malacar Miles with his telepathic servant Shind. This is a very rich book.

I decided to review this slim volume because To Die In Italbar has the distinction of being the second (and last) volume in the series he started with Isle of the Dead. While Francis Sandow only puts in a momentary appearance, it is a significant one, and once again the story turns on the clash between two Peian gods. This time the goddess the Shimbo faces is Arym-o-Myra, goddess of healing and disease. And this time the conflict is over the survival of the human race.

The novel works several threads, the most important is that of Heidel von Hymack, who has accidentally become Arym-o-Myra's avatar. Able to bring the diseases of his body into balance, he can cure any disease. Unfortunately, the side effect is that when Hymack's body isn't in balance, he is a disease carrier. He delays too long on one planet, causes a plague, and is nearly killed by a crowd. Anger replaces his concern, and suddenly he is overcome by Jackara's darker side. Now humanity is the disease to be cured.

Two people see a potential use for Hymack. Malacar Miles is an insurrectionist, bound to oppose the planetary commonwealth and defense the existence of the planets that were one part of earth's influence. Malacar lives in the shattered remains of his planet, living th life of a terrorist. When he discovers the existence of Hymack he sees an opportunity to launch a truly destructive campaign. Also tracking Hymack is the dead Dr. Pels who is seeking a cure for his own condition.

And then there is Francis Sandow, who the Peians have called in to deal with the resurgence of Arym-o-Myra. He has no agenda other than keeping folks alive and putting a god that has legitimate reason to be awake back to sleep. On one last planet all these forces meet - telepath against telepath against god.

Again, Zelazny demonstrates creativity that refuses to fall into a rut. He poses bit questions in human packages without hubris or theatrical deliver of messages. The result is a poignant tale that can set you thinking about what is and isn't important in a universe full of possibility.