The Last Song of Orpheus

Subterranean Press is proud to announce a new 30,000 word Robert Silverberg novella! In the course of his extraordinary—and prolific—career, Robert Silverberg has made an enormous contribution to imaginative literature. In The Last Song of Orpheus, his longest story in more than a decade, Silverberg has given us one of his most remarkable accomplishments, a resonant recreation of one of the central myths of western civilization. In this mesmerizing narrative, Orpheus—wanderer, demigod, and master musician—recounts his own astonishing story. That story ranges from the depths of the Underworld, where he attempts to rescue his beloved but doomed Eurydice, to the farthest, most dangerous corners of the ancient world, where he journeys in search of the legendary Golden Fleece. It is a tale of men and gods, of miraculous encounters, of the binding power of inescapable Fate. More than that, it is a meditation on the power of the creative spirit, and on the eternal human search for balance and harmony in a chaotic universe. Beautifully constructed and masterfully written, The Last Song of Orpheus is Silverberg at his incomparable best, showing us a deeply familiar series of scenes, themes, and characters from a fresh, wholly original perspective. Limited: 200 signed numbered leatherbound copies Trade: Fully cloth bound hardcover edition From Publishers Weekly “A powerful retelling of the myth of Orpheus…. Silverberg hews closely to the source material, with language elevated in the manner of a good translation of Homer. Though it’s not the literary sf that has won Silverberg much of his fame, readers who love ancient myths will find much to admire. ” From SF Crowsnest: “Silverberg’s prose is clever and fluent, almost biblical in style… Bob is writing in a fashion suitable to the heroic subject matter and he is an artist and does it well. ” From SFSite: “[The Last Song of Orpheus]... remains fairly faithful to its source material and yet adds much new, mostly due to the voice of the author. ” From SFRevu: “Subterranean is noted for its eclectic collection of short works. Silverberg’s adds further distinction to these offerings. ”