
Lord Valentine's Castle
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Narrated by:
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Stefan Rudnicki
About this listen
The Majipoor Cycle begins as young Valentine, a man with no memory, is hired as an apprentice juggler by a group of eccentric performers. While the traveling troupe takes to the road, Valentine's sleep is disturbed by nightmare visions of warring brothers and difficulties on faraway Castle Mount. In a quest to discover who Valentine really is, his wise and peculiar companions resolve to help him claim the rewards of his birth. But another trial awaits Valentine that will test his belief, resolve, and strength of character.
©1980 Robert Silverberg (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Editorial reviews
Some authors write prose that speaks so distinctly that it needs no embellishment from a narrator. Silverberg is such an author, and so Rudnicki, being one of those no-frills narrators who basically acts as a conduit for the listener, is an ideal choice for narrator. His performance is understated but compelling and it is that understated nature of his reading that is largely responsible for his appeal. Rudnicki is not going to dazzle you with his range of voices or other vocal trickery; instead, he keeps things basic, and for the most part just conveys the author's text and keeps out of the way, making listening to an audiobook read by him akin to reading the book yourself.
Some folks just know how to tell a story. And when you get two natural-born storytellers like Silverberg and Rudnicki together on the same project, the result is quite an unforgettable journey. John Joseph Adams
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Story
Ross Jenkins, Art Mueller, and Morris Abrams are not your average high-school students. While other kids are cruising around in their cars or playing ball, this trio, known as the Galileo Club, is experimenting with rocket fuels. Art's uncle, the nuclear physicist Dr. Donald Cargraves, offers them the opportunity of a lifetime: to construct and crew a rocket that will take them to the moon. But there are those who don't share their dream and who will stop at nothing to keep their rocket grounded.
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Give us another or two Spider
- By Michael on 03-28-07
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Gate Crashers
- By: Patrick S. Tomlinson
- Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan
- Length: 15 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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On humanity's first extra-solar mission, the exploration vessel Magellan, or, as she prefers, "Maggie", discovers an alien artifact. Deciding that finding advanced alien life is too important to ignore, Captain Allison Ridgeway chooses to return to Earth while ordering her crew to reverse engineer technology far beyond anything back home. Meanwhile, at mission control, the governments struggle to maintain the existence of aliens a secret while also combating bureaucracy, the military industrial complex, and everyone else who wants a piece of what could skyrocket humanity into a new technological age.
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Solid Satire
- By Matthew on 03-16-20
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Shardik
- By: Richard Adams
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 23 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Shardik is a fantasy of tragic character, centered on the long-awaited reincarnation of the gigantic bear Shardik and his appearance among the half-barbaric Ortelgan people. Mighty, ferocious, and unpredictable, Shardik changes the life of every person in the story. His advent commences a momentous chain of events.
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Overlooked, underappreciated and forgotten epic
- By "sharp31" on 08-06-18
By: Richard Adams
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The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume One
- By: Neil Clarke - editor
- Narrated by: Amy Tallmadge, Jeremy Arthur
- Length: 28 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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The best science fiction scrutinizes our culture and politics, examines the limits of the human condition, and zooms across galaxies at faster-than-light speeds, moving from the very near future to the far-flung worlds of tomorrow in the space of a single sentence. Neil Clarke has selected the short science fiction (and only science fiction) best representing the previous year's writing, showcasing the talent, variety, and awesome "sensawunda" that the genre has to offer.
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Hit and Miss; Many more misses than hits
- By Terrence Feenstra on 09-15-16
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Three Hearts and Three Lions
- By: Poul Anderson
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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The gathering forces of the Dark Powers threaten the world of man. The legions of Faery, aided by trolls, demons, and the Wild Hunt itself, are poised to overthrow the Realms of Light. Holger Carlsen, a bemused and puzzled twentieth-century man mysteriously snatched out of time, finds himself the key figure in the conflict. Arrayed against him are the dragons, giants, and elfin warriors of the armies of Chaos and the beautiful sorceress Morgan le Fay.
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I FEEL ALL AT SEA
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 03-24-17
By: Poul Anderson
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The Longest Way Home
- By: Robert Silverberg
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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One of the most renowned and respected literary artists in the field of science fiction, Robert Silverberg transports us once again to a spectacular, deftly conceived world in transition and propels us on a remarkable odyssey of survival and self-discovery.
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Valentine redo?
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 05-14-11
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A World Out of Time
- By: Larry Niven
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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After more than two hundred years as a corpsicle, Jaybee Corbell awoke in someone else’s body and under threat of instant annihilation if he made a wrong move while they were training him for a one-way mission to the stars. But Corbell bided his time and made his own move. Once he was outbound, where the society that ruled Earth could not reach him, he headed his starship toward the galactic core.
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Do you know how people get old?
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 11-13-12
By: Larry Niven
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Sundiver
- The Uplift Saga, Book 1
- By: David Brin
- Narrated by: George Wilson
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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For nearly a billion years, every known sentient species in the universe has been the result of genetic and cultural guidance - or "uplifting" - by a previously uplifted patron race. Then humans are discovered. Having already uplifted chimps and dolphins, humanity clearly qualifies as an intelligent species, but did they actually evolve their own intelligence, or did some mysterious patron race begin the process, then suddenly abandon Earth?
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good, but flawed
- By J Michael on 04-16-08
By: David Brin
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Lord of Light
- By: Roger Zelazny
- Narrated by: Matt Godfrey
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Earth is long since dead. On a colony planet, a band of men has gained control of technology, made themselves immortal, and now rule their world as the gods of the Hindu pantheon. Only one dares oppose them: he who was once Siddhartha and is now Mahasamatman. Binder of Demons, Lord of Light.
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How could a performance be so wrong?
- By 1st World Problems on 05-29-22
By: Roger Zelazny
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Nine Princes in Amber
- The Chronicles of Amber, Book 1
- By: Roger Zelazny
- Narrated by: Alessandro Juliani
- Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Amber is the one real world, of which all others including our own Earth are but Shadows. Amber burns in Corwin's blood. Exiled on Shadow Earth for centuries, the prince is about to return to Amber to make a mad and desperate rush upon the throne.
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Great book, lame deal!
- By Robert on 08-13-12
By: Roger Zelazny
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Blood Music
- By: Greg Bear
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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An amazing breakthrough in genetic engineering made by Vergil Ulam is considered too dangerous for further research, but rather than destroy his work, he injects himself with his creation and walks out of his lab, unaware of just how his actions will change the world.
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THOUGHT UNIVERSE
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 08-01-15
By: Greg Bear
Superb
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It's like having sheet cake...The WHOLE sheet cake. It's cloying at the end of the day.
Despite the wonderful alien races, simple strong writing, interesting characters, and a great plot. THEN...That crazy wacky King of Dreams. SO much planet-spanning messages to everyone in the night, so many blurry analogies, hidden godly wills, and a mishmash of mysticism and religion.
It just pulled me away from the core of a great novel.
Please understand, religion in fantasy is commonplace. Look at Jordan's Wheel Of Time series as an example of religion woven smoothly into fantasy writing. It works. It strengthens the entire story, and is one of the essential underpinnings of the entire series.
Here, not so much.
I hate that I love this work, and am equally frustrated by it's poorly driven religion. I finished the work, and hoped that this would end in the first novel. Nope. It got worse.
I'm VERY confident that some of you will disagree, and that's okay. This is MY opinion, and I have to be true to myself.
Sorry, Robert, I really tried.
Help! I'm Drowning In Poorly Written Mysticism!
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Would you listen to Lord Valentine's Castle again? Why?
Absolutely! I have loved this story ever since I got my first hardback copy from the Science Fiction Book Club when I was a kid. Mr. Rudnicki really brings everything to life!Who was your favorite character and why?
Valentine, of course.Which character – as performed by Stefan Rudnicki – was your favorite?
The Hjort in Valentine's troop. Mr. Rudnicki did a great job giving him a gurgling voice you'd expect from a frog-like race.Any additional comments?
All I can say is listen to this book! You'll love it!Superb!
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A great rendition of a classic
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No gore or violence.
Fantastic wonderful story
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Slightly convoluted story.
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fascinating world. Rudnicki has limitless range
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What made the experience of listening to Lord Valentine's Castle the most enjoyable?
I read this book a number of years ago and was happy to find it on Audible. It didn't challenge my intellect or make me want to take up a political cause - it was just a fun futuristic/medieval romp. Sometimes those are the best books.Would you be willing to try another book from Robert Silverberg? Why or why not?
Sure.What do you think the narrator could have done better?
I liked the narrator - his voice was smooth and he didn't overdo the drama in his voice. It was delightful.Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
It wanted me to dust off my juggling balls.An old friend revisited
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That's the charming, mysterious start to Robert Silverberg's sf-that-often-feels-like-fantasy novel Lord Valentine's Castle (1980). Valentine is a laid-back man unconcerned that just about all he can remember is his name. A 13-year-old herder called Shanamir takes him under his wing (thinking he might be simple), escorting him into Pidruid, where the boy plans to sell his "synthetic" mounts at market during a big festival to honor the once every 20 years visit of the Coronal, who rules this world of Majipoor. That the Coronal's name is Lord Valentine doesn't impress Valentine, who says that it’s a common name and that he sure wouldn’t want the burden of ruling “over billions upon billions of people, across territories so huge we can’t comprehend them.”
If at this point we match the title of the novel with the name of its protagonist, we might suspect that we're in a Special Protagonist with Amnesia story, if not an Unjustly Deposed Ruler out to Regain His Rightful Place story. We might even recall something like Roger Zelazny's Nine Princes in Amber (1970). Valentine, however, isn't driven to discover his identity and soon joins a troupe of wandering jugglers led by a Skandar (four-armed bear-like giant) because he's intrigued by the art and by Carabella, a young lady juggler. But wait! He learns to juggle suspiciously quickly and capably, and after the troupe performs before the Coronal, he feels soiled and drained and begins dreaming provocative dreams involving violence, the Coronal, the Pontifex (the ruler of the bureaucracy of Majipoor), and himself. And then he has a Dream-Speaker interpret the dreams, and--
Much of the early pleasure of reading Silverberg's novel comes from wondering when and how Valentine will learn his identity and what has happened to him. Indeed, when all that comes out in the first "Book" of the five that comprise the novel and Valentine gets a goal, things become more predictable and less interesting. But there is still much to enjoy because Majipoor is a world "full of wonders," because Silverberg's writing is pleasurable, because he explores duty, destiny, identity, memory, history, performance, love, dreams, the divine, self-control, social interaction, and cross-cultural understanding.
Majipoor is a giant, airy world poor in metals and fossil fuels, but rich in flora and fauna and geographical features. Although it's currently a backwater planet neglected by star-faring civilizations and doing little inter-planetary exploration or trade, 14,000 years ago humans from Old Earth settled there. And in the past non-human species ranging from tentacled Vroon to two-headed Su-Suheris immigrated to Majipoor. The 20 billion citizens of various races and environments live in culturally diverse and historically rich cities, each with its own architectural styles and urban layouts, from tree houses to "frozen poetry." Apart from remnants of ancient advanced technology (e.g., floater cars, vibro blades, and dream sending devices) and "magic" that seems mostly telepathy, the people of Majipoor seem to live in a pseudo-Medieval fantasy civilization.
Millennia ago the human settlers won a war against the indigenous Metamorphs and confined them to a reservation-like prefecture on one continent, since when there have been no armies or wars on Majipoor. The harmony derives from the balanced system by which the Pontifex rules the bureaucracy, the Coronal enforces the laws, the King of Dreams sends admonitory and punitive nightmares, and the Lady of the Isle sends dreams of love and calm. Nevertheless, unfinished business between the Metamorphs and their conquerors still festers.
Silverberg depicts Majipoor with affection, imagination, and fine prose. It's a beautiful place ("Cascades of dark leaves, tapering, drip-tipped, glistened as if polished by the rain") and an exotic one: "the [psychosensitive] plants had folded their intricate compound leaflets in the course of the quarrel and looked shriveled and blackened for ten feet on all sides of him. He touched one. It was crisp and lifeless, as though it had been torched. He felt abashed at being a party to such destruction." And just when I'd become numb to yet more descriptions of new places and plants, Silverberg introduced a great conception, the Labyrinth, a vast, multi-leveled subterranean city of bureaucrats, "Multitudes of toiling clerks in the kingdom of eternal night."
There is much humor in the novel, whether situation-driven (as in a satiric sequence where Valentine plays two feuding bureaucrats off against each other) or character-driven (as with Lisamon Hultin, a Conan-esque giantess bodyguard, or Deliamber, a diminutive Vroon wizard).
Juggling is a key motif in the novel. It is not, Valentine learns, merely an entertainment, but a way of life, a friend, a creed, a species of worship, a poetry, a mathematics, and a balance. When juggling he reaches a quiet place, a meditative, selfless ecstasy. And he can apply the art of juggling to life situations.
With his rich baritone, Stefan Rudneki reads the audiobook well. He does neat non-human characters and boldly sings various songs. Perhaps he should distinguish Valentine's accent, which his friends say differs from theirs.
Lord Valentine's Castle recalls Jack Vance and Gene Wolfe (vast history, various cultures, ancient tech, episodic travelogue plot, etc.), though Silverberg writes more appealing characters than Vance and a lighter story than Wolfe. People who like vintage sf/fantasy set on huge, culturally and environmentally diverse worlds would probably like it.
"And Can You Juggle as a Skandar Can?"
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Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
yes, because the story is a little different.What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)
It end about the way I expected.Have you listened to any of Stefan Rudnicki’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
I hear Stefan perform on other book and he is always give a good performance.Could you see Lord Valentine's Castle being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?
No.just a good story
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