I read this many years ago and wasn't as "over-awed" as so many seem to be about this book.

I may re-read it just to check my memory. I remember being distinctly "underwhelmed".

I have a lot of books in my "waiting to be read pile", but may get this one out again simply because I've read a lot of Zelazny books I liked and this one seems to be universally loved.

It's interesting how our perceptions of books can change over time. Maybe when I first read it, I wasn't in the right mindset or didn't fully appreciate the style and themes.

By re-reading it, I hope to gain a new perspective and understand why so many people hold this book in such high regard.

Zelazny is known for his imaginative and engaging writing, and perhaps this book is a prime example of his talent.

I'm curious to see if it will have a different impact on me the second time around.

Even though it's been a long time since I last read it, the fact that it's still on my radar shows that it must have left some sort of impression.

I'm looking forward to revisiting this book and seeing if it lives up to the hype.

I understand clearly why Lord of Light is comparable to Dune.

Both of them share similar themes where humanity, in the future, exploits the concepts of religion for the sake of power and personal vendetta.

This initially presented as a rather confusing read, perhaps even more so than the typical sci-fi. I failed to realize early on that it commences near the end, not even in the middle. However, after the major battle with the gods, everything gradually falls into place.

Similar to Dune, especially God Emperor, Lord of Light has multiple layers within its story. These layers offer profound elements that truly make you think deeply. It makes you ponder about the nature of power, the role of religion, and the consequences of human actions in a future context.

The complex and intertwined plotlines keep the reader engaged and continuously challenging their understanding.

Overall, both works have their own unique魅力 and offer valuable insights into the human condition and the potential directions our future might take.

\\n  4.5/5\\n

This book was one that I couldn't quite figure out if it was fantasy or science fiction. However, the only thing I'm sure of is that it had a clever plot and story structure. The only problem (which was on my part) was that since I didn't have much connection with Hindu mythology, it was a bit of a confusing read for me until I got to know the characters. I think it's a book that requires careful reading because it can be difficult to catch the transitions made in some places. I would recommend it to those who love fantasy and science fiction. I liked the author's style and I'm thinking of reading the Amber Years series in the near future.

Alright, as an atheist who was formerly a Hindu and has a good knowledge of Hindu mythology, this was a bit of a letdown.

It's one of those books that seemed to have great potential at the start but then gradually lost its momentum by the end, except for a few moments of brilliance that didn't really lead anywhere.

If you're a devout Hindu, you probably won't like this book because of the way religion is incorporated and used. However, having said that, let me share my personal complaints, which will include significant spoilers.

So, this isn't exactly a retelling of Hindu myths. It's about a group of colonists who conquer a planet, live there, establish a caste system, and assume the personas of Hindu gods, which is only hinted at and not directly stated.

Most of it may seem quite creative and well-written, and the author has clearly done excellent research, including some obscure gods and art forms that might seem completely foreign and unique to non-Hindus.

I personally have no issue with religion being used in this way, and I was quite excited to read it at the beginning, thinking I would understand most of the references.

The first chapter starts off strongly with the resurrection of Sam/Buddha and his slow adjustment to everything that's happening, preparing for the war against Heaven.

However, then the author decided to explain the events that occurred before Buddha's resurrection, his actions, and their consequences that led to the present, implicitly in 5 out of 7 total chapters.

Now, don't get me wrong. The chapters themselves weren't necessarily bad. Some of them had quite interesting, even epic moments.

However, despite the author's research and attention to detail, ultimately, the whole use of religion is just a superficial decoration, with underdeveloped characters (except for the protagonist and another major character) that could have been so much more.

Besides the basic attributes mentioned about them, which might seem novel to most people but not to those who already know their origin.

When that's over, it all comes down to one chapter to wrap everything up, which was rushed and ended in a very unsatisfying way, especially considering the fate of the characters.

When I look at the story as a whole, it's nothing special, just needlessly confusing for the most part.

I feel like being familiar with mythologies was actually a hindrance to my experience rather than an enhancement.

Don't let my review stop you from picking it up, though, especially if you're the kind of person who values the journey over the destination and wants to try something different.

It definitely gets strange and trippy in a good way during certain chapters, and I can see why this book received so much praise. It just wasn't a satisfying experience for me personally.

A book that makes extensive use of Hinduism, where historical leaps and personal changes occur in a very uncertain moment, and you might ask "where was I?".

It is a science fiction that you could say it would be nice if a film was made that starts to make sense towards the end.

This book takes the reader on a journey through a complex and mysterious world, filled with elements of Hindu mythology and philosophy. The story weaves together different timelines and characters, creating a tapestry of confusion and wonder.

As the reader progresses through the book, they begin to piece together the puzzle and understand the significance of the events that are unfolding. The use of Hinduism adds an extra layer of depth and meaning to the story, as it explores themes such as karma, reincarnation, and the nature of reality.

The idea of making a film based on this book is an exciting one. A well-made film could bring the story to life and make it accessible to a wider audience. The visual effects and cinematography could enhance the奇幻 elements of the story and create a truly immersive experience for the viewer.

However, adapting a book into a film is not without its challenges. The filmmakers would need to carefully balance the need to stay true to the original story while also making changes to make it work on the big screen. They would also need to find a way to translate the complex themes and ideas of the book into a language that is understandable and engaging for a mainstream audience.

Overall, this book has the potential to be a great film, but it would require a talented and dedicated team of filmmakers to bring it to fruition.

As long as you accept that you probably won't have any idea what's going on for the first 100 pages, it's rather impressive. This statement holds true for many complex literary works or intellectual pursuits. The initial confusion can be a deterrent for some, but for those who are willing to persevere, it can lead to a rewarding experience. For me, it's more of a cerebral fun than an emotional one. The process of trying to understand the intricate details and hidden meanings requires mental effort and engagement. It's like solving a puzzle, piece by piece. While it may not evoke strong emotions immediately, the satisfaction that comes from cracking the code and seeing the bigger picture is truly fulfilling. It challenges our minds and expands our intellectual horizons.

This book has received a bunch of awards and is considered the best in the entire author's opus.

However, not for me.

I simply can't give it more than a three because it didn't attract me at all. In fact, I dragged it from dislike to not liking it.

And that three is rather meager.

Somehow I constantly feel that I read it about 30 - 40 years ago, but it eludes me like in a fog, and yet there are signs that it's familiar.

Apparently, I didn't like it even then.

When I try to find reasons, I always end up on Indian mythology, which is the basis of this book, and which I've never really sympathized with, and I won't as long as they use names like:

"Āryatārābhattārikānāmāshtottarāsatakastotra" - what the hell is that supposed to represent???

I'll forget it again, and you should read it if you're attracted to legendary books from antiquity so that you can judge for yourself. (I think that serious SciFi fans should definitely fill their portfolios with it.)

No recommendation.

The Good:
This book is simply amazing! The characters are well-developed and engaging, the setting is vivid and immersive, the ideas are innovative and thought-provoking, and the scope is truly epic. It is written so beautifully that it feels like a modern-day mythology. And to top it off, it's also hilarious! The author has managed to blend science fiction with humor in a way that is both entertaining and engaging.

The Bad:
The only drawback of this book is that the story moves at a breakneck pace, leaving the reader struggling to keep up. It's not often that I find myself wishing a book was longer, but in this case, it definitely needed more exposition. There were times when I felt like I was missing important details because the story was moving so quickly.

'Friends' character the protagonist is most like:
Sam, the protagonist, is cynical, driven, and the sanest god in the room. He serves as a foil to the other characters, highlighting their quirks and idiosyncrasies. In many ways, he is similar to Monica from 'Friends'. Both are highly organized, perfectionistic, and have a strong sense of right and wrong. They are also both the glue that holds their respective groups together.

Oh wow!

I'm truly at a loss for words when it comes to expressing just how much I adored this book.

The seamless combination of elements from myth, humour, and science fiction makes it a one-of-a-kind novel.

Zelazny's mastery of language is nothing short of sublimely poetic. His words dance across the page, painting vivid pictures in the reader's mind.

And the story! It takes so many unexpected twists and turns that it leaves you breathless.

With each new chapter, you're drawn deeper into the captivating world that Zelazny has created.

It's truly amazing how he manages to blend these diverse elements together to create a literary masterpiece.

This book is a must-read for anyone who loves a good story that challenges the imagination and leaves you with a sense of wonder.

I can't wait to pick it up again and experience it all over again.

I don't have the energy to review this without openly discussing spoilers, so read at your own risk.

I'm holding off on rating this for now. I still don't know how I feel about it. It wasn't until chapters 6 and 7 that anything started making sense, which is about 75% of the way through the book. The first five chapters were painful to read. If that was all there was to the book, I'd have given it a single star.

If not for the blurb or book reviews, and if there were no other information about this book other than what was in its pages, I still might not know that this was a book about an advanced human civilization on an earth-like planet. Part of this might be because I was just reading as quickly as I could to get through it and return it to the library. But really, there is very little explicitly told to the reader. Some people love this style. I'm not someone who always needs literal explanations, but some context would have been nice. Heck, a prologue would have fixed it.

“And there were five who crash landed in a strange place on the Star of India. They brought with them advanced technology and the one who deigned to call himself Yama, engineered evermore, so that they might live forever as gods. The gods colonized that planet, entrapping and subjugating its inhabitants, forcing their human children to live in ignorance and respect of their supreme technological power.”

Seriously, that's all I would have needed. So I struggled and slogged through it to get to the end where many things seem to be revealed.

The ending was interesting with the introduction of the crusading Christian madman and the return of Sam. Suddenly the whole book sort of became a commentary on science vs religion. This happens to be one of my favorite philosophical debates, and my appreciation for the book increased tenfold. I could see why some might think Zelazny a genius. It is, in truth, very clever. Even if I hated the delivery, I can see that.

This was read as part of the Sci-Fi Fantasy Book Club's monthly read, so I'm looking forward to the discussion on this one. So far I seem to be the odd man out in disliking it, but I think it will at least provide interesting discussion.

Zalazny's writing style is really not for me. I didn't find it immersive. I didn't think it painted any great pictures. In fact, I could scarcely picture anything at all, and that's half of what frustrated me. I may as well have read half of it in Latin for all the sense it ever made to me. I found the inclusion of midwestern slang/dialogue/accent incredibly jarring: “I’m going to get me one of those!” Every time I read this or a similarly structured sentence, I just groaned. A technologically advanced human civilization hasn't yet learned to speak with proper grammar? Really?

There were some humorous parts, and on occasion I did laugh out loud, but there wasn't enough of it to make me ignore all the other things I didn't like. There are a lot of humorous metaphors (Tak: the “demon”, transformed into an ape, “converted” by Sam is one of the natives of the planet). The characterizations weren't great. I never felt particularly attached to any of the characters. I never even really cared enough to hate them. They were just names on a page. Tak was the best one, and he wasn't even present most of the book.

I don't think I will be reading anything else by this author. I do think he was ahead of his time. I do think there is a message here worth examining. I just don't think I could willingly endure this level of rage-inducing frustration again.

One of the most wonderfully peculiar books I have ever read is, probably, Zelazny's Lord of Light.

He has combined the Science Fiction genre (and perhaps that of Fantasy too) with the concepts of reincarnation and Hindu mythology in a truly incredible story.

This story not only amazes but also enchants the reader.

Zelazny's writing, although not great, has its charm. I believe that if it was a bit more clear, the book would have been a masterpiece.

Of course, as it is now, it is still a very good book, but it has that little "disadvantage" for me.

On the other hand, the combination he has done with the multiple names/characters is simply exceptional, especially with the protagonist.

You see the protagonist in many unexpected places, which adds to the mystery and allure of the story.

Overall, it is a very good book with a nice and original mix of myth and fantasy.

Definitely recommended!

- - - - - -

*Greek review for the book can be found here.

I had this book on my TBR status for far too long to admit. It was an incredibly long time. Even before a friend highly recommended it about six years ago, and I already felt guilty that it was still waiting, physically, on my TBR pile. I told myself: soon. It was one of my challenges for 2011 to get this read, and with some help from a Goodreads group, I finally managed to do it.

All that being said, I am truly uncertain if it was worth reading or not. The numeric rating seems easy to give this time, but I'm not sure if I'm glad I read it or if I regret it. It is so quintessentially 1960s science fiction, with both its pros and cons. The good aspects are the ideas and the scope. It's a science fiction remake of Hinduism vs Buddhism on a different planet where advanced technology takes the place of the supernatural, and the original crew plays the role of Hindu Gods to their non-uplifted descendants. Wow. That is an ambitious and "oldie" science fiction concept from a more vibrant and ambitious (albeit less realistic) era. Also on the plus side is the writing, or more specifically, the prose. At times, it is truly lovely, with a great first line and a great last line. Phrases like "frowning his frown of success" or "Because a world has need of your humility, your piety, your great teaching and your Machiavellian scheming" add a touch of elegance.

However, there is another side to this coin, which is everything else. And it is a credit to the good aspects that, in my mental judgment, they balance out the rest, because there were many other things in this book that affected my judgment of it.

The structure of this book is uneven. It is non-linear, which I can handle, as it's nothing new. But some of the chapters read like almost independent short stories (or novellas, depending on the word count) with an uneven rhythm and variable importance to the plot, and not much of a follow-through. The pace was also not very comfortable for me.

As they say, God is in the details. When building a science fiction universe to parallel a complicated cultural-religious myth, it is crucial that it is consistent with the science fiction elements introduced, as well as the plot and characters. I felt that a lot of the book and characters were introduced as "easter eggs" for Hinduism and Buddhism, to include as many possible references as possible. It must be especially enjoyable for those with a profound knowledge of the things being mentioned, although I think I missed a lot of the cleverness. But the plot often falls into a mythical tone, making the characters and their technology seem like vague props. Some examples include how we are told from the beginning how personality is supposed to mold the host body, but we get Kali put into a male body, and later we find out there are several successive Agnis. How do they turn it off? I love the science fictional aspect of the myth, but the "aspects" of each divinity are not very credible. Particularly Ratri's. I would say the motto of this book is precisely that sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, but Zelazny plays that game only partially and when it's convenient. And other things, like the idea of mind transfer is explored only shallowly as a vessel for reincarnation. Nobody seems to have ideas of other things to do with it. The digital era is still away, and the ideas of "true gender" are definitely strange. And then there are clumsy bits that are possibly plot holes, like for example Ratri not knowing Tak had been put in an ape's body in the first chapter, but in the chronologically set earlier last chapter she is aware of that.

It is also very dated in its perspectives. None of the characters or the author seems to have much environmentalist or speciesist angst over the idea of settling a planet or dealing with indigenous species. The characters smoke all the time - if you've read more Zelazny, you're not surprised by this, are you? It often felt more historical than science fiction.

Finally, and this aspect deserves its own point, this book felt pretty sexist, maybe even misogynistic. It would never pass the Bechdel test. There is a character who is either a lesbian or suffering from penis envy, or both ("It was almost as if sex were a thing that transcended biology; and no matter how hard he tried to suppress the memory and destroy that segment of spirit, Brahma had been born a woman and somehow was woman still. Hating this thing, he had elected to incarnate time after time as an eminently masculine man, did so, and still felt somehow inadequate, as though the mark of his true sex were branded upon his brow. It made him want to stamp his foot and grimace." and from the PoV of one of the demon's "The woman he dismissed. She was only a woman, and she had required assistance from Yama". Yes, demons are not meant to be PC, but the entire plot is structured this way. There are 2 major women characters, and some secondary ones. Ratri is helpful, not particularly powerful, and without much personality. Of the secondary ones, Madeleine is a penis-envying petty tyrant who is quickly dispatched, Maya is just decoration ("Some others would even say that one such as yourself had been chosen for deification only because your original form and attitude struck the fancy of some lustful divinity, rather than for your other obvious virtues") and I'm not sure if there are more. And Kali, Kali chooses to be in a man's body, is unforgiven by her husband for that choice, repents, and after being "killed" is punished by being stuck in the body of a brain-damaged child who ends up worshipping the shrine of her hero and first husband every day. How is that for punishing uppity women? It was just too much for my stomach.)