Title: Master of Chaos
Author: Michael Moorcock
In: The Mammoth Book of Dark Magic (Mike Ashley)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Magic
Dates read: 8th January 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 1964
5th sentence, 74th page: “I’ll try this, lady.”
He is the conqueror of lands. The sword of the Queen. But even this castle and its mistress might be too much for the newly appointed Master of Chaos.
When I think of dark fantasy, I think of some incredibly twisty, crazy stories. Ones that have a sense of darkness that you can’t shake. Yet, this story didn’t quite have that feeling of darkness. It was a little bit more light and entertaining. With just a hint of darkness behind the storyline. I love that it’s a story which features trickery as the central battle. One that wins the day in the end.
This story features a castle which protects itself from invaders and conquerors. Just by showing someone their greatest fears. It’s intense, engaging and very, very interesting. I’m not sure what I would be shown if this happened to me. Probably a lot of snakes running around everywhere. (Slithering. Whatever, you get my drift.)
At the beginning of this short story, I found it quite confusing. But, as the story unfolded, I started to gain a little more understanding. And it suddenly became kind of amazing. Definitely a story which I’m going to enjoy reading again, as I discover more and more of this storyline.
Earth and Skye 
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