Sign of the Unicorn

Roger Zelazny

Corwin is nominally in charge of Amber. Yet there are dark forces building up outside Amber, and he still cannot trust many of his siblings. At the onset of the novel, he is framed by a dark minion in the murder of one his brothers. He knows it is time to gather the remaining family together to rescue Amber.

He learns more of his brother Brand's story. Brand has been abandoned is a jail in a far off Shadow of Amber. Corwin invites his siblings to an evening promising them some developments of the family politics. He shares some of the darkness stories, then gets them to work together to rescue Brand. This attempt brings out even more family secrets. To deal with these, Corwin takes a journey in Amber that yields an amazing find.

This is a linking novel. It has its share of bloodshed and infighting that is common between the princes and princesses of Amber. It has the magic prevalent in Amber, and danger in the Shadows. Yet I would not recommend this novel without reading the first two. It is good within the series, but not as a stand alone.

The Nine Princes of Amber
The Guns of Avalon
Sign of the Unicorn
The Hand of Oberon
The Courts of Chaos