The novel “To Die in Italbar” by Roger Zelazny was published for the first ime in 1973.
Heidel von Hymack is a man who, thanks to a contact with a deity, received the power to treat people simply by touching them with his hands. Known simply as “H”, he uses his power on several planets but as a result of an accident the other face of that power starts manifesting itself, the one that causes death by touch instead of healing.
Malacar Miles has been a military man for many years and thinks he can exploit the powers of Heidel von Hymack to destroy his enemies. Finding him, however, isn’t simple and in his research he must overcome various obstacles because higher forces are also at work and have other plans for “H”.
“To Die in Italbar” is a novel that had a complicated development. Roger Zelazny wrote the first version in 1969 after becoming a full-time writer to honor the contract with his publisher, who didn’t publish it. In 1972 he revised it and added a lot of material, managing to get it published in 1973. Years later, the author claimed to have written it quickly because he needed to earn some money, he called it his worst novel and claimed that if he could kill off one of his novels, that would be “To Die in Italbar”.
Among the parts added to the novel in the published version, there’s the one that includes Francis Sandow, the protagonist of the 1969 novel “Isle of the Dead”, which was successful even outside the USA. “To die to Italbar “isn’t exactly a sequel but the two novels are set in the same fictional universe.
Perhaps because he felt the need to write the novel quickly, Roger Zelazny included various elements typical of his works. The author had a predilection for mythology and created more or less divine characters inspired by various classical traditions. In the fictional universe of “To Die in Italbar” there are beings that can be considered gods, including the one who gives Heidel von Hymack a power of life or death. Immortality, death and their possible contrast are another theme present in various Zelazny’s works.
“To Die in Italbar” has two main subplots separated for almost the whole novel that follow the two protagonists, Heidel von Hymack and Malacar Miles. Roger Zelazny develops them showing the reasons behind their actions while other characters that may be important often remain only sketchy. Francis Sandow’s participation is minimal, although important in the plot. I honestly didn’t even remember him having read this novel for the first time many years ago. It would be useful to read “Isle of the Dead” first to better understand that character and in general that fictional universe.
Roger Zelazny’s ideas were intriguing and imaginative, in “To Die in Italbar” my problem is their development. Even in the version published after its extension, it’s still a quite short novel although by the standards of the time it was of normal length. It includes the points of view of various characters because in addition to the two protagonists there are other important characters such as the artist John Morwin and Dr. Pels. Shind is an interesting character who works with Malacar Miles and deserved greater development.
The complexity of the plot and the number of important characters would have deserved in my opinion a further revision or even a rewrite of “To Die in Italbar” to fully develop its potential. The intense presence of death, also in Heidel von Hymack’s attitude, is rather depressing and didn’t help me enjoy this novel. In the end I saw more of its flaws, also compared to other novels by Roger Zelazny, than its merits. If you like the author and these themes, you might like this novel too.
