Arbieroo reviewed The Gates of Creation by Philip José Farmer
Review of 'The Gates of Creation' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
It turns out that this is a sequel - and a copy of the predecessor is in a warehouse along with the vast majority of my other books. So that is mildly irritating but not the book's fault...
Reading this book I was quickly and persistently reminded of [b:The Great Book of Amber|5367|The Great Book of Amber (Chronicles of Amber, #1-10)|Roger Zelazny|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348965047s/5367.jpg|8810]. I haven't checked which series started first but the correspondences are manifold: murderous family plots and feuding; protagonist who spent much time on Earth; ability to create whole universes; gates/trumps between places.
The Amber stories are better than this, however. Better world building, better characterisation. Better prose. This is my first encounter with [a:Philip José Farmer|10089|Philip José Farmer|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1234714074p2/10089.jpg] and I can't say I'm positively impressed.