Elric: The Stealer of Souls by Michael Moorcock
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I like the character of Elric quite a bit. When Moorcock set out to subvert the typical fantasy hero, he came up with Elric. Contrasting Elric is pretty much the anti-Conan. Conan, the wanderer, a dark, muscly barbarian without a past. Elric, the last King of his people, an albino, sick and wasted away, knows too much about the past. Conan loves adventure, and sets out to become a king; Elric loathes his legacy and burns his kingdom to the ground. Conan hates magic; Elric relies on sorcery to live. Conan is cocksure and headstrong; Elric is brooding, frequently suffering ennui or malaise. You get the idea.
You can see that Moorecock was still putting things together and can feel the strong pulp influences in these early stories; they're not quite as good as I remember them being, but they set the stage well and are a solid introduction to a character who went on to be very influential. If you like grim, brooding anti-heroes, Elric is your man.
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