(1976) Not so much a novel as a collection of three novelettes featuring Moorcock's moody Melnibonéan monarch, Elric. Mostly, Elric comes off here more as action star than broody antihero, though some of the latter appears in the third section. It doesn't always feel like an Elric story, but the setting, situation, and atmosphere are always compelling, and at barely 160 pages there's no opportunity for the pace to stumble.