Jack of Shadows

By Roger Zelazny and Joe Haldeman

In a world half of light, half of darkness, where science and magic strive for dominance, there dwells a magical being who is friendly with neither side. Jack, of the realm of shadows, is a thief who is unjustly punished. So he embarks on a vendetta. He wanders through strange realms, encountering witches, vampires, and, finally, his worst enemy: the Lord of Bats. He consults his friend Morningstar, a great dark angel. He is pursued by a monstrous creature called the Borshin. But to reveal any more would be to spoil some of the mindboggling surprises Jack of Shadows has in store. First published in 1971 and long out-of-print, Jack of Shadows is one of fantasy master Roger Zelazny's most profound and mysterious books.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chicago Review Press
• Release date: May 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781613735275

Roger Zelazny

Roger Zelazny burst onto the SF scene in the early 1960s with a series of dazzling and groundbreaking short stories. He won his first of six Hugo Awards for Lord of Light, and soon after produced the first book of his enormously popular Amber series, Nine Princes in Amber. In addition to his Hugos, he went on to win three Nebula Awards over the course of a long and distinguished career. He died on June 14, 1995.

Book preview

VENICE

1

It happened when Jack whose name is spoken in shadow went to Iglés, in the Twilight Lands, to visit the Hellgames. It was there that he was observed while considering the situation of the Hellflame.

The Hellflame was a slim urn of silvery fires, gracefully wrought and containing a fist-sized ruby at the uppermost tips of its blazing fingers. These held it in an unbreakable grip, and the gemstone glimmered coolly despite them.

Now, the Hellflame was on display for all to regard, but the fact that Jack was seen looking at it was cause for much consternation. Newly arrived in Iglés, he was first noticed while passing amid lanterns, in line with the other onlookers, who were moving through the open-sided display pavilion. He was recognized by Smage and Quazer, who had left their places of power to come to compete for the trophy. They immediately moved to report him to the Games Master.

Smage shifted his weight from foot to foot and tugged at his mustache until the tears rose in his squarish eyes and he began to blink. He stared up at his giant companion Quazer—hair, eyes, flesh all of a uniform gray—rather than regard the colorful bulk of Benoni, the Games Master, whose will was law in this place.

What do you two want? he inquired.

Smage continued to stare and blink until Quazer finally spoke in his flute-like fashion.

We have information for you, he said.

I hear you. Tell it, replied Benoni.

We have recognized one whose presence here should be cause for some concern.

Who?

We must move near to a light before I may tell you.

The Games Master twisted his head on his bulging neck, and his amber eyes flashed as he glared first at the one, then at the other.

If this is some sort of prank— he began.

It is not, said Quazer unflinchingly.

Very well, then. Follow me. He sighed; and with a swirl of his orange and green cloak, he turned and headed toward a brightly illuminated tent.

Inside, he faced them once again. Is this bright enough for you?

Quazer looked about. Yes, he said. He will not overhear us.

Who are you talking about? asked the Games Master.

Do you know of one called Jack, who always hears his name if it is spoken in shadows?

Jack of Shadows? The thief? —Yes, I’ve heard stories.

That is why we wished to speak with you in a brightly lit place. He is here. Smage and I saw him only a few minutes ago. He was studying the Hellflame.

Oh my! The Games Master’s eyes were wide and his mouth remained open after the exclamation. He’ll steal it! he said.

Smage stopped touching his mustache long enough to nod several times. … And we’re here to try to win it, he blurted. We can’t if it is stolen.

He must be stopped, said the Games Master. What do you think I should do?

Your will is the law here, said Quazer.

True … Perhaps I should confine him to some lockup for the duration of the Games.

In that case, said Quazer, make certain that there are no shadows in the place where he is captured or in the place where he is to be confined. He is said to be exceedingly difficult to contain—especially in the presence of shadows.

But there are shadows all over the place!

Yes. That is the main difficulty in keeping him prisoner.

Then either brilliant lights or total darkness would seem to be the answer.

But unless all the lights are set at perfect angles, said Quazer, and inaccessible, he will be able to create shadows with which to work. And in darkness, if he can strike but just the smallest light, there will be shadows.

What strength does he derive from shadows?

I know of no one who knows for certain.

He is a darksider, then? Not human?

Some say twilight, but close to the dark—where there are always shadows.

In that case, a trip to the Dung Pits of Glyve might be in order.

Cruel, said Smage, and he chuckled.

Come point him out to me, said the Games Master.

They departed from the tent. The sky was gray overhead, changing to silver in the east and black in the west. Stars dotted the darkness above a row of stalagmitical mountains. There were no clouds.

They moved along the torchlit way that crossed the compound, heading toward the pavilion of the Hellflame. There was a flicker of lightning in the west, near, it seemed, to that place on the boundary where the shrines of the helpless gods stood.

As they neared the open side of the pavilion, Quazer touched Benoni’s arm and nodded. The Games Master followed the direction of his gesture with his eyes to where a tall, thin man stood leaning against a tent pole. His hair was black, his complexion swarthy, his features somewhat aquiline. He wore gray garments, and a black cloak was draped over his right shoulder. He smoked some darkside weed rolled into a tube, and its smoke was blue in the torchlight.

For a moment Benoni studied him, sensing that feeling men know when confronting a creature born, not of woman but of an unknown darkstroke, in that place men shunned.

He swallowed once, then said, All right. You may go now.

We would like to help— Quazer began.

You may go now!

He watched them depart and then muttered, Trust one of them to betray another.

He went to collect his guard force and several dozen bright lanterns.

Jack accompanied the arresting party without offering resistance or argument. Surrounded by a party of armed men and caught at the center of a circle of light, he nodded slowly and followed their instructions, not saying a word all the while.

They conducted him to the Games Master’s brightly lighted tent. He was pushed before the table at which Benoni sat. The guards moved to surround him once more with their lanterns and shadow-destroying mirrors.

Your name is Jack, said the Games Master.

I don’t deny it.

Benoni stared into the man’s dark eyes. They did not waver. The man did not blink them at all.

… And you are sometimes called Jack of Shadows. There was silence. Well?

A man may be called many things, Jack replied.

Benoni looked away. Bring them in, he said to one of the guards.

The guard departed, and moments later he returned with Smage and Quazer. Jack flicked a glance in their direction but remained expressionless.

Do you know this man? Benoni inquired.

Yes, they said in unison.

But you are wrong in calling him a man, Quazer continued, for he is a darksider.

Name him.

He is called Jack of Shadows.

The Games Master smiled.

It is true that a man may be called many things, he said, but in your case there seems to be considerable agreement. —I am Benoni, Master of the Hellgames, and you are Jack of Shadows, the thief. I’d wager you are here to steal the Hellflame. There was silence again. … You need not deny it or affirm it, he continued. Your presence is ample indication of your intentions.

I might have come to compete in the games, Jack ventured.

Benoni laughed.

Of course! Of course! he said, swabbing away a tear with his sleeve. Only there is no larceny event, so we lack a category in which you may compete.

You prejudge me—and that is unfair, said Jack. Even if I am he who you have named, I have done nothing to give offense.

—Yet, said Benoni. The Hellflame is indeed a lovely object, is it not?

Jack’s eyes seemed to brighten for an instant, as his mouth twitched toward an unwilling smile.

Most would agree on that point, he said quickly.

And you came here to win it—in your own fashion. You are known as a most monstrous thief, darksider.

Does that rule out my being an honest spectator at a public event?

When the Hellflame is involved—yes. It is priceless, and both lightsiders and darksiders lust after it. As Games Master, I cannot countenance your presence anywhere near it.

That is the trouble with bad reputations, said Jack. No matter what you do, you are always suspect.

"Enough! Did you come to steal it?"

Only a fool would say yes .

Then it is impossible to get an honest answer from you.

If by ‘honest answer’ you mean for me to say what you want me to say, whether or not it is true, then I would say that you are correct.

Bind his hands behind his back, said Benoni.

This was done. How many lives do you have, darksider? the Games Master asked.

Jack did not reply.

Come, come now! Everyone knows that darksiders have more than one life. How many have you?

I don’t like the sound of this, said Jack.

It is not as if you would be dead forever.

It is a long way back from the Dung Pits of Glyve at the Western Pole of the world, and one must walk. It sometimes takes years to constitute a new body.

Then you’ve been there before?

Yes, said Jack, testing his bonds, and I’d rather not have to do it again.

Then you admit that you have at least one more life. Good! In that case, I feel no compunction in ordering your immediate execution—

Wait! said Jack, tossing his head and showing his teeth. This is ridiculous, since I have done nothing. But forget that. Whether or not I came here to steal the Hellflame, I am obviously in no position to do it now. Release me, and I will voluntarily exile myself for the duration of the Hellgames. I will not enter Twilight at all, but will remain in Darkness.

What assurance have I of this?

My word.

Benoni laughed again.

The word of a darksider who is a piece of criminal folklore? he finally said. No, Jack. I see no way to assure the safety of the trophy but by your death. As it is within my power to order it, I do so. —Scribe! Let it be written that at this hour I have judged and ordered this thing.

A ring-bearded hunchback, whose squint made lines on a face as brittle as the parchment he took up, flourished a quill and began to write.

Jack drew himself to his full height and fixed the Games Master with his half-lidded eyes.

Mortal man, he began, you fear me because you do not understand me. You are a daysider with but one life in you, and when that is gone, you will have no more. We of darkness are said not to have souls, such as you are alleged to possess. We do, however, live many times, by means of a process which you cannot share. I say that you are jealous of this, that you mean to deprive me of a life. Know that dying is just as hard for one of us as it is for one of you.

The Games Master dropped his eyes.

It is not— he began.

Accept my offer, Jack interrupted, to absent myself from your games. Allow your order to be fulfilled, and it will be you who will be the ultimate loser.

The hunchback stopped writing and turned toward Benoni.

Jack, said the Games Master, "you did come to steal it, didn’t you?"

Of course I did.

Why? It would be hard to dispose of. It is so distinctive—

It was for a friend to whom I owe a favor. He desired the bauble. Release me and I will tell him that I failed, which will be no less than the truth.

I do not seek your wrath upon your return—

What you seek will mean little compared to what you will receive, if you make that trip necessary.

… Yet a man in my position cannot readily bring himself to trust one who is also known as Jack of Liars.

Then my word means nothing to you?

I am afraid not. And to the scribe he said, Continue your writing.

… And my threats mean nothing?

They cause me some concern. But I must weigh your vengeance—several years removed—against the immediate penalties I will suffer if the Hellflame is stolen. Try to understand my position, Jack.

I do indeed, he said, turning toward Smage and Quazer. You of the jackass ears and you— gynandromorph!—neither will you be forgotten!

Smage looked at Quazer, and Quazer batted his eyelashes and smiled. You may tell it to our patron, the Lord of Bats, he said.

Jack’s face changed as his ancient enemy’s name was spoken.

Because magic is slowed in Twilight, where science begins, it was perhaps half a minute before a bat entered the tent and passed between them. During this time, Quazer had said, We compete beneath the banner of the Bat.

Jack’s laughter was broken by the creature’s passage. When he saw it, he lowered his head and the muscles at the hinges of his jaws tightened.

The silence that followed was interrupted only by the scratching of the quill.

Then, So be it, said Jack.

They took Jack to the center of the compound, where the man named Blite stood with his huge axe. Jack looked away quickly, and licked his lips. Then his eyes were drawn irresistibly back to the blade’s bright edge.

Before he was asked to kneel at the chopping block, the air about him came alive with leathery missiles that he knew to be a horde of dancing bats. More of them poured in from the west, but they moved too quickly to cast him shadows that mattered.

He cursed then, knowing that his enemy had sent his minions to mock him in his passing.

When it came to a theft, he generally succeeded. He was irritated at having to lose one of his lives on a sloppy job. After all, he was who he was …

He knelt and lowered his head.

As he waited, he wondered whether it was true that the head retained consciousness for a second or two after being severed from the body. He attempted to dismiss it, but the thought kept returning.

But could it be, he wondered, more than simply a botched job? If the Lord of Bats had laid a

Reviews for Jack of Shadows

[bragan_8 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A short fantasy novel from the early 70s, featuring a world divided into two halves, one of strange magical powers and permanent night and one of science and technology in the light of permanent day, focused on a being from the dark side, a thief called Jack, who has power over shadows.Which makes it sound like a much more mundane kind of story than it actually is. In reality, it has a slightly surreal, slightly myth-like feel to it, and every time I felt like I was getting some kind of handle on the world or the story, it'd go somewhere I wasn't expecting and didn't feel remotely sure about. Most of the way through, I kept thinking that it was interesting and (as is usual for Zelazny) well-written, but that it felt more like an odd little writing exercise than a novel, and there was no way it was going to be entirely satisfying. And yet, in the end... I liked it, possibly more than I feel like I really should.Rating: a bemused and possibly over-generous 4/5.

[lyndatrue · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Not my favorite work by Zelazny; it's a world inhabited by reason (the daylight side of the earth) and magic (the night). We don't really have a satisfactory answer as to why the earth no longer rotates, and sadly, I prefer answers. The language is rich, the characters engaging, but I think this was about the era that Roger started to lose me.

[wvlibrarydude · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A decent read, but Zelazny has better books. Lord of Light and Creatures of Light and Darkness are much better.

Jack is an interesting character. What happens when you separate the soul from the body?

[karlstar_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I found this very interesting and fairly unique. It is a fantasy novel set in a world that is tidally locked to the sun - one side perpetually faces the sun. Lightsiders have technology, darksiders have magic. Jack is from the twilight realm, a little of both. Jack is not a 'good' character morally, but the story was still enjoyable.

[nogdog_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As with many of Zelazny's stories, this one walks the line between fantasy and science fiction. Jack is, perhaps, not one of Zelazny's most likable characters, but is still interesting enough that the reader will want to find out what happens to him. In reading it, certain themes and ideas that would show up in later books -- especially the second Amber series -- were evident, in particular the idea of using computers to solve magical "equations" along with the concept of the amoral character becoming more moral. All in all a good read, though perhaps not quite up to the quality of his best books.

[jeanned_14 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a story that has so many layers, so many interpretations. Not only the characters, but the plot and settings can be peeled back...all is metaphor for the dualities of existence. Only Jack, who draws his power from shadow, is able to move between the two hemispheres of his planet: light and dark, west and east, scientific and magical, progressive and conservative, egalitarian and feudal, mechanistic and organic. I rate this classic of fantasy and science fiction at 10 out of 10 stars.

[questbird · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An early Zelazny but still a goodie. I'm a bit surprised that it seems to be out of print. The world is very interesting. One side is blasted by eternal sunlight, inhabited by the technocratic Daysiders, and the other is shrouded in eternal night; the dwelling of the sorcerous many-lived Nightsiders. Jack of Shadows is a nightsider but only just. He has special power over shadow. The story begins intriguingly with Jack's arbitrary execution (and this story is a straightforward narrative with no jumping around in time) and follows Jack's subsequent quest for revenge. He begins the book a fairly amoral fellow (reminded me of Jack Vance's Cugel the Clever, only less glib). By the end of the book Jack has changed his world, and acquired a little bit of morality, enough at least to show some remorse for his misdeeds.Ultimately this is a good tale, but it could have benefited from more depth (perhaps another volume). More depth to the minor characters, more detail about the world, especially about the Dayside and its people and government (Jack spends a little time Dayside during his adventures). In fact Roger Zelazny did write a prequel episode ('Shadow Jack') for 'The Illustrated Roger Zelazny', which is quite good. More such would have made the plot exposition a bit more subtle and less rushed.

[jimmaclachlan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very interesting fantasy/SF story. Jack, the hero, is an amoral, immortal whose self-interest leads further & further into an interesting quest that ultimately changes the world. Zelazny blends fantasy with SF until you're not quite sure which label applies. The story is told in his wonderfully concise style that makes re-reads a pleasure while the story haunts you in odd moments. Highly recommended.

[iftyzaidi · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of Zelazny's earlier and less well known works, though upon reading it, its apparent that to relegate it as a 'B' list work is to do it a disservice. It is short and perhaps not as well paced as some of his other books, but once it gets going it captures the immagination. The main character, who originally seems somewhat flat gains depth as we gain a greater insight into his world (all other characters remain 2-dimensional though, which is fair enough given the brecity of the book). The plot is indeed an epic one and I think there is very interesting subtext to the straightforward sf/fantasy elements of the story.The world itself is one where day and night, science and magic are seperated, as some kind of cosmic mechanism is preventing the world from turning, fixing one side (the day/science) facing the sun and the other (night/magic) in darkness. Jack of Shadows is a thief from the dark side who is caught and punished, and vows vengeance upon all who he feels wronged him. Of particular interest is the (seemingly) minor character of Morningstar - an enigmatic figure who has been frozen in punishment by some divine entity in the twilight zone between dark and light and who helps (perhaps instigates) Jack's quest of vengeance. What follows, in my reading anyway, is a retelling of the tale of the Fall from the Garden (in the form of a fantasy quest of course).Zelazny was not yet at the height of his powers in terms of the writing, but some sections are stylishly written and the trademark energy, imagination and creativity are all on song. This is an entertaining read.

[tadad_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I waffled between 3½ and 4 stars on this one. The characters are right up there with Zelazny's best, but I think the plot isn't quite as strong as something like Lord of Light.

[yuvalro_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The most interesting alternative/dark fantasy book I've read. Zelazny does it again.

[haloedrain · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Much of the story has the feel of a fable. Peculiar, but in a good way.

[ashleytylerjohn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was kind of fun. Nice and short, not very similar to anything else I can immediately think of, and the the character seemed appropriately motivated to do what was done (half the books I read make me question why on earth characters would behave that way, outside of "the plot requires it.") It's also an elegantly-written, moody sort of a read, and while not particularly comic, it had a certain wry sensibility that can raise a smile from time-to-time.

Most of all it seemed old-fashioned (in the best possible way) and dreamlike, like an easier-to-read Worm Ouroboros, or a vastly shorter The Night Land, and is slightly episodic (somewhat like Anvil of the World). Hard to describe, worth the effort.

[ashareem · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of my favorite Zelazny reads.

[al9g · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The old saying goes that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, But Zelazny raises the question in this book, does power corrupt or does power simply reveal what was already there. Is power the light that reveals what lurks in the shadows? Zelazny's tale of the thief who breaks the world has quite a few parallels to his 'Amber' series. For fans of Amber this one has intrigue, magic, as well as plots of double cross, revenge and power. Betrayed by his employer and the one he loves, Jack of the Shadow Guard, one of the Lords of the realm of darkness fights back against impossible odds to reclaim himself and enact his vengeance. But at the height of his revenge and power he earns the title Jack of Evil to replace Jack of Shadows. He is more powerful than all the darksiders - but can he stop the world from ending? This one is out of print and hard to find, but was worth the search.

[jargoneer · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Short fantasy by leading SF/Fantasy writer.In another time and place I used to be quite a fan of Zelazny's but never got round to reading this novel (despite liking the short graphic adventure based on the same character in The Illustrated Roger Zelazny). Years later and probably too late I finally got round to Jack of Shadows.The action takes place on a planet of two halves, one light and one dark. On the light side humans and technology are the order of the day, on the dark side dark lords with magical power oversee everything. Jack of Shadows is one such dark lord but is unique in that is able to move about, his power not being linked to a specific place but to shadows, without them he is powerless.The novel opens with Jack being executed for being a potential threat at the Hellgames, i.e., he may steal the jewel that is the Hellflame (which is his aim for with it he will the hand of Evine, the Colonel Who Never Died's daughter). Death is not the end for darksiders though, an unspecified time later they will be reborn in the Pits of Glyve and so Jack lives again. Most of the first section of this novel deals with Jack being resurrected and having to journey through his enemies' lands without being caught. Initially he successfully, being helped by Rosie, a human he loved years ago but who is now an old witch, but eventually the Baron of Bats traps him and he is imprisoned in an amulet in the hope he will go mad. Jack tricks the Baron by using a spell to change the Book of Eils, which lists the seven dark lords that monitor the shield wall that protects the darkside from destruction. By this simple act Jack is made persona non-grata in the darkside.Travelling to the light Jack visits Morningstar, a creature of immeasurable age trapped in stone. Like most oracles Morningstar is vague about revealing the future, that there are possibilities he cannot foresee but informs Jack he should be wary of travelling the road he is set upon. At this point the novel changes abruptly. Jack of Shadows is now Jack Shade, a university professor in Darkside Customs, living in a recognisably modern world (and judging by the amount people consume tobacco desperately needing a smoking ban). Jack has adopted this persona to get access to a computer (this is in the era when people had to book computer time) in order to search for the secret darkside weapon, Kolwynia. He has to go on the run again as he has been tracked down by his foes and so heads back to his natural domain.The novel then jumps again. The Baron of Bats is being attacked by a mountain and none of powers can save him. At the heart of the mountain is Jack, he has found the secret weapon and is bent on using it to destroy all he believes betrayed him and gaining control over all of the darkside. Jack proves to be a particularly heartless ruler; makes a mess of things and ends up having to journey to the centre of the earth to fix everything, although this is a fix with major consequences.Written in 1969, as a homage to Jack Vance, all this takes place in 200 pages; now Zelazny would be expected to produce a trilogy or an ongoing series and the page count would be in the thousands. This means that the book zips along at pace but the characterisation is close to zero – only Jack exists beyond one dimension, and that is primarily down to the introduction of an external soul (darksiders are supposedly soul-less), which conveniently also provides the hope of redemption, not to mention authorial cop-opt.Zelazny is an interesting case; he was associated with the American new wave writers of the 1960s and big things were expected of him but as his career developed it was increasingly obvious that he lacked the ambition and technical skill to match his contemporaries (Delany, Disch, Le Guin, for example). He was content to write competent genre novels and stories for most of the time and Jack of Shadows is one of the first of this change of direction. The novel is not bad, the brisk professional style sees to that, but it never threatens to be good, that would require effect than the Zelazny seems willing to put in. In fact it reads like Zelazny put all his effort into the first section of novel and then just dashed the other two off; the middle section set in the 'real world' is especially perfunctory and serves no function other than providing a way (computers) for the author to miss out almost obligatory quest (perhaps we should be grateful for small mercies). Having said that, it's a masterpiece compared to most of the dreck that passes as fantasy nowadays; better written, more inventive and out-of-print. Why? Like Thomas Burnett Swann, one of the best fantasists of the 1960/70s, and much of Fritz Leiber, this novel just doesn't meet the almost completely rigid criteria that publishers have adopted with regards to fantasy. It is ironic that a genre that prides itself on the imagination shows so little imagination when it comes to publishing.

[misterjjones · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I’m a big fan of Roger Zelazny’s books, mainly because he managed to cram so much into his books. Jack of Shadows is no exception. In a world half in darkness, ruled by magic, half in light, ruled by science, Jack of Shadows challenges the mighty and seeks his revenge. In a lesser (or, to be honest, a more recent) author this might take five books and several thousand pages, Zelazny manages to weave a remarkably intelligent yarn. Although simple, the story is not simplistic, and for a thirty year old minor novel, Jack of Shadows takes a view of power and evil that seems remarkably sophisticated when placed next to today’s “epic” fantasy. It was never going to win literary prizes, and contains many elements re-used in his more famous works, but it’s worth picking up if you fancy a short break from farm boys becoming kings.