From the Bookshelf of Hugo & Nebula Awards: Best Novels…

This Immortal

Roger Zelazny

Start date: December 1, 2023

Finish date: December 31, 2023

Discussion: Monthly Reading: Discussion

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Monthly Reading: Discussion

* September, 2024--The Forever War-- Spoilers OK
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last updated Sep 01, 2024 08:35AM

* September, 2024--The Forever War--No spoilers, please
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last updated Sep 01, 2024 08:20AM

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What Members Thought

May 16, 2019 Oleksandr Zholud rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is the first novel by Zelazny and for such it was quite successful – it won (tie-in with Dune) Hugo in 1966. It was read as part of Earth Day Challenge by Hugo & Nebula Awards: Best Novels Group. I re-read it in December 2023 as part of the monthly reads in the same group.

The mankind almost killed itself in a 'Three Day' nuclear war and now remnants of the population work for advanced alien civilization that made a tourist attraction and museum out of Earth. There is a great sentence, which ...more

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Jan 03, 2024 RJ - Slayer of Trolls rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: nebula-hugo

Roger Zelazny's first novel invokes Greek mythology in a future setting that is not quite post-apocalyptic despite taking place long after a nuclear war on Earth; it leans more toward "Dying Earth" than "Mad Max." Many traits that would become indicative of Zelazny's style in the future are present here, including snappy dialogue, a Byronic hero, plot twists that may or may not make sense, and plenty of ambiguity. Mostly though the book is loads of fun, and the Zelazny formula has a fresh feelin ...more

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Feb 03, 2020 Perla rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 1960-s, ebooks, premios-hugo, ps-c-2020

Esta historia sobre una Tierra abandonada después de una catástrofe ecológica ocasionada por el hombre, revive a las criaturas de los mitos Griegos. Es una historia estirada hasta ver saltar los hilos de una débil tesis sobre un humano longevo sin acercase siquiera a insinuar si es un Prometeo, o es un Dios Menor o yo no lo entendí.

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Jul 26, 2022 Norman Cook rated it really liked it · review of another edition

1966 Hugo Award winner - Best Novel (tie) (as ... And Call Me Conrad, serialized in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, October-November, 1965)

This is an expanded version of ... And Call Me Conrad that tied Dune by Frank Herbert for the 1966 Hugo Award (with The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein another one of the finalists). Even with this pedigree, it is apparently out of print and unavailable except as a used book. This is a shame, because although it may not quite stand 1966 Hugo Award winner - Best Novel (tie) (as ... And Call Me Conrad, serialized in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, October-November, 1965)

This is an expanded version of ... And Call Me Conrad that tied Dune by Frank Herbert for the 1966 Hugo Award (with The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein another one of the finalists). Even with this pedigree, it is apparently out of print and unavailable except as a used book. This is a shame, because although it may not quite stand the test of time like Dune or The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, it is an excellent book. It's Zelazny's first novel, so it's remarkable that he was able to stand against other giants of the field (including E.E. "Doc" Smith and John Brunner, the other two finalists that year).

It is easy to see some of the hallmarks of the nascent New Wave movement in this novel. There are no chapter breaks, it's one long story. The plot is more focused on human relationships than it is on glitzy scientific extrapolation, although there is plenty of that, too. It's a dystopian future where Earth was essentially obliterated in a three-day nuclear war, and is now mostly a tourist destination for Vegans (aliens from the Vega star system, not non-meat eaters). The protagonist, Conrad, is an Earthman who has acquired immortality with an age in the hundreds of years. He is leading a tour group around the world ostensibly for the benefit of research for a travel book by one of the Vegans. But when someone tries to assassinate the Vegan, it's up to Conrad to try and protect him (or possibly help kill him). There are spies, assassins, terrorists, mutants, and various wild creatures who get in Conrad's way, but of course our hero is one of those super-strong, super-intelligent supermen that early science fiction is full of, so in spite of lots of near-death fights, duels, and rampaging monsters, he holds his own.

Zelazny is known as an expert wordsmith and even this early work is filled with beautiful and occasionally humorous language. The cover of this book club edition by Richard Powers is moody and impressionistic, sort of the art equivalent to the New Wave. ...more

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