A Book Review: Duke Elric by Michael Moorcock (Elric of Melnibone #4)

I discovered recently with surprise, that Elric of Melnibone is a source of inspiration for many rock/metal bands. For examples, bands such as Hawkwind, Blue Oyster Cult, Deep Purple, Skelator, Domine etc.. have all written songs based on stories from Elric mythos. It seems the influence of this iconic fantasy character extended his reach wider and broader than I originally thought. Personally, as someone who has an enormous interest in fantasy fictions, reading Elric books gave me invaluable insight into the history behind the development of this genre. But even more importantly, these stories are good yarns and deserve to be read by serious fantasy fans.

Duke Elric, is the 4^th volume in Del Rey's republication for Michael Moorcock's famous Elric saga, an antithesis to Tolkienian literature and its derivatives. This volume collects 3 Elric tales; a full novel titled The Sailor on the Seas of Fate, followed by Duke Elric, a script for a DC comic, and finally a short story titled The Flaneur des Arcades del l'Opera.

In this review, I will share my thoughts about this book, beginning with a synopsis.

Synopsis:

Stormbringer, a black, sentient sword forged by chaos, groans in its owner's scabbard thirsting to

drink the human soul. This dreadful sword bounds its wielder Elric of Melnibone, the albino, exiled sorcerer king of Melnibone, to an existence in horror and anguish. With Stormbringer in his hand, Elric grasps the decisive intervention in a game of cosmic balance within multiverse, where the forces of law and chaos do battle. In this conflict, Elric knows not his purpose beyond a feeling that he is a pawn, fated to betray everything he holds dear at the appointed time.

In Elric's weird, he traveled the world seeking a metaphysical answer that perhaps doesn't exist. Strange tiding drove Elric to a misty, foreign shore, where a mysterious ship, piloted by a blind captain, appeared and welcomed Elric onboard to sail across The Seas of Fate...

My thoughts on this book:

Tolkienian mythos (and its derivatives) is set in a world where Platonism's objective good and evil engage in mortal combat. Elric mythos, can be seen as an antithesis to Tolkien's works, repudiating this clear moral delineation, then invite readers to explore what it means to be human in a world of grays, through the eyes of the mytho's protagonist, Elric of Melnibone. I do not think Elric stories present a post-modern view on moral framework. i.e. I do not think Elric stories are suggesting there is no right and wrong. Instead, I opine Elric stories reflect the reality that in a world of grays, right and wrong aren't as black and white as good versus evil. This, I believe, is one of the main themes in Elric saga.

Ok, let me stop ranting my philosophical reflection on Elric mythos (but hopefully you found that bit interesting). It's time for getting down to discuss my thoughts on this particular book, Duke Elric.

This book collects 3 Elric stories. The first story is a full length novel called The Sailor on the Seas of Fate. This novel follows the narrative styles found in other Elric novels, consisting of 3 novellas connected by an overarching plot. I found the writings in The Sailor on the Seas of Fate to be superior than most Elric stories. The story flows smoothly at an even pace, it is fast enough to keep the story vibrant with kinetic energy, yet it is also slow at certain places, giving readers the time it needs to be immersed in this atmospheric, but gloomy tale. Elric's characterization stole the show in this novel, where his emotions, mixed with self-doubt, anguish and uncertainty was portrayed vividly. The Sailor on the Seas of Fate also plays an important role at giving readers further insight into Michael Moorcock's fictional creation, Eternal Champion. Without spoiling the story, let me just say in this story, Elric met other incarnations of Eternal Champion. Through this meeting, he discovered a bit more about himself and multiverse. I think this book (Duke Elric) is worth reading for The Sailor on the Seas of Fate alone.

The next story collected in this book, is a script for a DC comic titled, Duke Elric. In this story, Elric's weird intertwines with the history of our world, where he appeared in the crusader era. Personally, I think this story is mediocre when compared to the rest of Elric saga. Despite having an interesting ending, and an intriguing premise where Elric visits our world, but the plot in Duke Elric just didn't grab me because it feels plain and flat.

The final story in this book is called The Flaneur des Arcades del l'Opera. This story is set in WW2,

and we are introduced to an albino spy called Zenith, who has a glaring connection with Elric in both physical appearance as well as persona. In my opinion, this is the weakest story in the book. While the premise of the story fascinates me, but many places in this story are confusing, almost unreadable because it made disruptive jumps between our world and other worlds in multiverse with no explanations or transitions in between, therefore leaving readers in the dark to figure out the details and connections for themselves.

Overall, the stories collected in the second half of this book is a mishmash. However, the first half of this book collects the full length novel, The Sailor on the Seas of Fate, a doom-haunted, deeply memorable story which is arguably one of the best in Elric saga. This novel alone made this book worth reading. I hope you have enjoyed reading my review and found useful information here. In the next time, I will review the fifth volume in Del Rey's republication for Elric saga, titled In the Dream Realms.