Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. Show Full content visible, double tap to read brief content. Steven Erikson is an archaeologist and anthropologist and a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. His previous novels in the Malazan Book of the Fallen series--Gardens of the Moon, Deadhouse Gates, Memories of Ice, House of Chains, Midnight Tides, The Bonehunters, and Reaper's Gale--have met with widespread international acclaim and established him as a major voice in the world of fantasy fiction. He lives in Canada. Photo by Fazal Majid (Own work.) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
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igorama Yes, there are several major characters. What it doesn't have is a central plot. Lots of plots, some converging, some dropped and forgotten. It's rath…moreYes, there are several major characters. What it doesn't have is a central plot. Lots of plots, some converging, some dropped and forgotten. It's rather modular and the modules don't necessarily add up to one main story. But yes, many main characters that you can relate to.(less) Community Reviews· 2,127 ratings · 136 reviews Start your review of The Complete Malazan Book of the Fallen
Hands down my favorite fantasy series ever. Be warned, at first it is confusing and seems random, but if you bear with it, you will be rewarded. A couple of key points for potential readers: 1)
Nothing is trivial. Some first time readers complain that the writing is sub par at first glance, but it isn't, it only seems so until you realize that Erikson rarely wastes words, and pretty much anything on the page is relevant, you just may not realize it yet. 2) Characters will not give themselves away 1) Nothing is trivial. Some first time readers complain that the writing is sub par at first glance, but it isn't, it only seems so until you realize that Erikson rarely wastes words, and pretty much anything on the page is relevant, you just may not realize it yet. 2) Characters will not give themselves away (this goes for plots as well). Never is a character's personality or motivations spelled out in absolutes. They must be
judged by the reader through their actions. A character may muse on another character's qualities or their own, but every character is fallible, never take a point of view for granted. Characters can be introspective, sometimes to the point where a reader may want to skip, but there are often profound repercussions on the character's actions, and characters will sometimes seem to be acting paradoxically to their thoughts, but this only makes the characters more realistic. A character's thoughts
may give you some insight, but like real people, actions speak louder than words. 3) Your first read through will be woefully incomplete. Even in my third reread of the series I found pieces that I missed, changing my whole view of related events.
Nothing to see here, traveler. Move along. Just me tracking my UMCRO progress. 1.) Forge of Darkness 3.83 ✔ 1.)
Forge of Darkness 3.83 ✔ ------------------------------------ All books
written by both Steven Erikson and Ian C. Esslemont about Malazan world. And I'm reading them chronologically. Late in 2017 authors themselves suggested chronological reading order. Which, of course, caused a lot of stir among fandom. But seriously. There
were some fair criticisms out there. About spoilers, about key plots being ruined, even about boosting sails... So, I decided to test this, to tweak my 'Suggested by Fans' reading order and adapt it to that of which authors prefer. My opinion, since I'm on half of it? New
readers: Move away from this reading order and start with nothing else but Gardens of the Moon, first book in Malazan Book of the Fallen series and then continue onward by the order books were published. Fans: If you like puzzles, you'll like this suggested chronological reading order. Various parts of history are scattered all around in unfinished trilogies and new series and whatnot.
Jul 19, 2016 Ishan Goyal rated it it was amazing Steven Erikson, in his Malazan Book of the
Fallen, a series stretching to 10 books and 9000 pages, has created an essentially unknowable world into which viewers are allowed intermittent flashes. He does not invite you to take a journey alongside him, but throws a challenge to stay abreast and only the worthy shall pass, but for those who persist, an experience of a lifetime awaits.
Oct 27, 2016 Seb rated it it was ok It's with a heavy heart that I write this review. As a little background, I finished
reading the Wheel of Time (my favourite piece of work) and was seeking an equally epic saga to fill the void that was left behind. After much research, it seemed that the consensus around the internet was that The Malazan Book of the Fallen was the way to go. It was touted as a harder read but ultimately just as satisfying as WoT, if not more so. So with hope and excited anticipation, in I jumped. The first book w As a little background, I finished reading the Wheel of Time (my favourite piece of work) and was seeking an equally epic saga to fill the void that was left behind. After much research, it seemed that the consensus around the internet was that The Malazan Book of the Fallen was the way to go. It was touted as a harder read but ultimately just as satisfying as WoT, if not more so. So with hope and excited anticipation, in I jumped. The first book was hard going as expected, with a myriad of characters and themes introduced but I happily turned page after page, in full confidence that all the vague references and convoluted connections would iron themselves out over time as they tend to do. A slight alarm bell did ring - it seemed that far less was resolved within the first book than I was used to, but again, I chalked this down to the fact that this was meant to be a more challenging read and therefore to be expected. Book 2 was worse and I frequently found myself frustrated at the pace of writing and the focus on seemingly meaningless scenes, internal monologues and themes. Again, I ignored my gut and ploughed on in confidence. Before talking about how the rest of the books started to pan out, I'll add a note here on Erikson's style (in this saga at least). A great deal of the material is written as internal character monologues. Which of course, any fantasy reader would be used to. What is different is how these characters are often not musing about anything concrete - e.g. opinions on other characters, plans, decisions that need to be made, moral quandaries, etc. Rather, they muse in a very abstract way and the reader has to put a LOT of effort in to deduce how this relates to anything else in the book. I suspect that it often isn't meant to link to anything per se, but to reveal to the reader the inner psyche of these characters. Now that may not sound daunting to you, but when pretty much ALL internal monologues are of this nature and worse, seem to follow the same theme of "my life is awful; life is meaningless; what's the point in anything", it starts to get pretty wearying. Onto Book 3 - here, the pace seemed to pick up and I became excited. Actually, Book 3 is probably my favourite of the 9 I've read. There was less of what I talked about above, and more tangible inner monologues, decisive action and clear meaningful character development. Book 4 introduced more characters, but some were interesting and seemed to be important and the book was written in the style of Book 3 so I was a happy bunny. Book 5 seemed to take another tack yet again, but I persevered. Book 6 - a mixed bag, but more good than bad and I started to guess at the direction of the series. Another side point here - I'm 90% of the way through the series and I still don't know where the book is heading, who the main antagonist(s) REALLY is/are or whether there is supposed to be one at all. Maybe that's because I'm a simple minded reader and I like to know the direction I'm heading in, but if you're like me, you will probably be frustrated for that reason too. Book 7 is where things really started to go wrong - very wrong - for me personally. Books 7, 8 and 9 were 3,000 odd pages of what I disliked most about the series: seemingly aimless wandering of thoughts and deeds with characters I REALLY struggled to care about one jot. And that was for the main characters. Add to that the fact that you're often following class C and below characters and it becomes a chore rather than a joy to pick up the books. Something kept me going - namely, a faith in all the people on the web that had recommended this series, a faith that it just had to turn around and build to an exciting climax. My faith was not rewarded. By Book 9, you'd expect the build up to be exciting and gripping. It's not. So now, with just 1.25 books left, I'm giving up. I get that some people may like this style (honestly, I can't fathom how, but difference of opinion is what makes the world wonderful after all), but for anyone like me who likes a more traditional build up of characters and themes throughout a series, this is NOT FOR YOU. To anyone in the middle of the series who is of a similar mindset to me but has been encouraged by Books 3 and 4 (possibly 5), let me stress that Books 7-9 will leave you feeling disappointed and angry. I really, really wanted to like this series and to recommend it to others. But I can't; I just can't. So if any of the above doesn't put you off, please go ahead and enjoy yourself, but if you're like me, do yourself a favour, AND DO NOT PICK UP THIS SERIES. ...more
Aug 24, 2020 Joel rated it it was amazing One of the best series I've read! One of the best series I've read! ...more
Sep 14, 2014 Dan Becker rated it it was amazing The Malazan Book of the Fallen is one of the greatest
epic fantasies of all time. Grim, beautiful, anguished, hopeful, brutal, hilarious, and more. Characters so vivid they live beyond the pages. Triumphs and tragedies - sometimes one and the same. All told with wonderful writing. The scope and scale makes Game of Thrones (which I enjoy) seem parochial and lightweight. This story belongs on the same shelf as Lord of the Rings, the Fionavar Tapestry, The Once and Future King, Hobb's Assassin (Farse Grim, beautiful, anguished, hopeful, brutal, hilarious, and more. Characters so vivid they live beyond the pages. Triumphs and tragedies - sometimes one and the same. All told with wonderful writing. The scope and scale makes Game of Thrones (which I enjoy) seem parochial and lightweight. This story belongs on the same shelf as Lord of the Rings, the Fionavar
Tapestry, The Once and Future King, Hobb's Assassin (Farseer Trilogy), Zelazny's Amber, and The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. The Malazan tales may not be for everyone. There are horrible things in them - you've been warned. But they are handled very, very well. It is all redeemed.
Jul 21, 2016 Javin Goyal rated it it was amazing While thinking about writing a review abut this
series, a quote by one of my favourite authors, Stephen King, comes to mind - First impressions The number of characters The complex story line Unreliable narrators Complex magic system The sheer scope of the story Shades of grey The sheer epicness Schools of thought Themes explored Characters To summarize this huge review, I would like to reiterate that the earlier points are not critical in nature, but were meant to
inform you how daunting it is to read this series. It is not to be taken lightly as it will consume a huge amount of your time, energy as well as mind. I did read the series again and it was a lot more comprehensible and rewarding the second time around. I think I’ll reread it once again.
Aug 23, 2014 Μιχάλης rated it it was amazing Definetely 5 stars, maybe more. An unconventional, smart, complex, titanic in scale fantasy Epic, spanning two empires, four continents and countless characters, from street urchins and soldiers to
Gods and Primordial powers. Overall, a real classic series aimed at people who have read quite a bit of fantasy
and want something off the beaten track. A true epic narrative for all fantasy fans willing to ignore the non-linear plot, the tons of characters that philosofise all the time and the lack of clear explenations in order to read the most original and grand scale fantasy series out there
Nov 27, 2017 Filip rated it it was amazing 3.5 million words, yet I am left breathless. Humbled. By this. Masterpiece.
Sep 04, 2018 Mats rated it liked it Father, may I have another serving of pathos, please? Grandiose, epic, complex,
occasionally poetic, often meandering, yet only rarely annoying. A lot of patience for self-pitying characters required, as it is for philosophical ruminations that are, more often than not, trite, meaningless, and a stand-in for actual character development. Ask Erikson and he will tell you that less is indeed not more. More is more, always. There is a weirdly fetishistic relationship with the idea of the soldier, who Grandiose, epic, complex, occasionally poetic, often meandering, yet only rarely annoying. A lot of patience for self-pitying characters required, as it is for philosophical ruminations that are, more often than not, trite, meaningless, and a stand-in for actual character development. Ask Erikson and he will tell you that less is indeed not more. More is more, always. There is a weirdly fetishistic relationship with the idea of the soldier, who is
canonized to an uncomfortable degree, despite voluntarily fighting for an expansionist, imperialist regime. (The Malazan trains may have been built on the bones and faded memories of lesser cultures, but at least they run on time, am I right??) Some of the characters also seem to be written exclusively to cater to people who enjoy long-winded “who would win”-discussions. yet with such utter seriousness and gravitas that it works, even if it elicits the occasional eye-roll. And at the end
of each of these, you can see Erikson tugging at heartstrings so hard it feels oddly masturbatory. All in all, sure. It’s all fairly impressive. Just maybe don’t read all the books right after each other. Toss in some Hemingway or something in between, I dunno.
Aug 07, 2017 Kaśyap rated it really liked it Erikson actually created a very vivid and interesting world with
different races/species, gods,magic, huge epic battles, and a lot of history. However Erikson is a very inconsistent storyteller. On one hand there was never any central narrative drive to the series. Although the ending shows something that might have been an ultimate goal, we never even receive any vague hints regarding it as the series progresses. Nor was this really a character driven narrative because of the too many POV's, in Erikson actually
created a very vivid and interesting world with different races/species, gods,magic, huge epic battles, and a lot of history. However Erikson is a very inconsistent storyteller. On one hand there was never any central narrative drive to the series. Although the ending shows something that might have been an ultimate goal, we never even receive any vague hints regarding it as the series progresses. Nor was this really a character driven narrative because of the too many POV's, inconsistent
characterisation and the plot. Most of the time the motivations of the characters are not really apparent at all. A lot of the character's inner monologues are actually the author's philosophical musings that don't give us any insight into the character or His/Her motivations. While Erikson dealt with many interesting historical, sociological, and anthropological themes, they don't really make up for the deficiencies elsewhere in the plot and storytelling. The first book seems completely
disconnected from the rest of the series. Its as if the author suddenly changed his mind and decided to take the story in a completely different direction. The series on the whole was a mixed bag for me. It was good in parts with some well crafted characters, but on the whole i feel like it could have been much better.
Nov 04, 2015 Alyssa rated it it was amazing Dark, complex, beautifully real and emotional. Every character is a
real person, and there are both happy and tragic scenes ( although much more of the latter). Undoubtedly my absolute favourite book series. Some find it rambles but every word is carefully chosen, and I loved the feeling of being lost in a world I didn't completely understand. For those of you who are unsure after the first book, persevere and be rewarded, but make sure you have ample recovery time after the most brutal scenes. For those of you who are unsure after the first book, persevere and be rewarded, but make sure you have ample recovery time after the most brutal scenes. (When I was
nearing the end to dead house gates I was on a lunch break at work, and couldn't do anything because I felt so broken).. You will find yourself laughing, crying and horrified at times, and in complete awe of the whole series. I also recommend reading the novels that connect in, they all connect in small but magical ways, and will give you more of a complete picture. Planning to do my reread in chronological order ( more or less)
Feb 23, 2018 Nate rated it it was amazing One of the easiest recommendations ever to fellow fantasy fans. Simply sublime stuff. This edition is utterly worth the 80 bucks or whatever and is SO much easier to read than the physical copies, plus the ability to look up characters/places you’ve forgotten is incredibly valuable with this series. If you read Gardens of the Moon and liked it and have an e-reader, seriously consider taking the plunge and buying this.
May 02, 2018 Marcos rated it it was amazing 5 years and 3 and half millions words later, I turn the last page on
The Malazan Book of the Fallen. What a journey it was! Complex, intense, gut wrenching, thought provoking are a few words that could describe the experience. I now understand why it draws hardcore fans and specially why people we reread through all ten books plus the all the other books based on the universe. Witness!
This series is overrated. I spent two years reading it, and after a steady decline in quality over the last several books, the payoff simply wasn't there. The dialogue is atrocious. Most of the characters are
poorly written. The drama is sentimental. Coincidence is used liberally, and that is just one example of the author's inconsistent and sometimes lazy writing. Erikson relies on absurd plot devices such as suddenly having a character, mid-book, know information that they should have no way o This series is overrated. I spent two years reading it, and after a steady decline in quality over the last several books, the payoff simply wasn't there. The
dialogue is atrocious. Most of the characters are poorly written. The drama is sentimental. Coincidence is used liberally, and that is just one example of the author's inconsistent and sometimes lazy writing. Erikson relies on absurd plot devices such as suddenly having a character, mid-book, know information that they should have no way of knowing (like stuff that happened 500,000 years ago). In the case of Toll The Hounds, such a sudden and inexplicable revelation by one character made his
journey (the first 2/3 of the book) pointless. Finally, the story is almost entirely plot focused, not character focused. Few of the characters go through important changes. This is simply a story about how they get to the big battle at the end. Plot-driven books are usually light reads and cannot last more than, say, 100 pages. They're beach reads or summer reads. Erikson tries to make this work over 10,000 pages. I would say it's the defining flaw of the series. Many people say they like
this series quite a lot. I think this is because they invested so much time in it that they feel they must say it was worth it to justify the effort. Also, I think people mistake exhaustive world-building with well-thought-out writing. To those people I say: It's ok to say this series is bad because it is. It's not good storytelling. You should feel proud that you stuck with it and read it with an open mind. But at the end, you get to be the critic and it's an essential skill to develop as a
reader to evaluate a book/series on its artistic AND technical merit. There are some good qualities in the Book of the Fallen saga. Several characters are memorable and likeable. Erikson does, at times, show off some poetic and atmospheric writing. Also, I did enjoy some of the earlier books in the series and I think they were worthy reads. They just don't justify embarking on the whole journey.
Ok. Here goes. (EDIT: and goes. 3/1 Edit: and goes. 3/4 EDIT: and goes.) I cannot decide if this "book" (aka, the entire series, but I purchased as a single Kindle "book") deserves 2
stars or 3 stars... or -12 or 17. And it is clear (if you're reading this, you probably have seen the multitude of 5-star ratings and reviews) that *a lot* of people love this series. And they love it... *a lot.* So. Yeah. ¬_¬ The first thing you need to know is that this is epic. EPIC. If someone was like, "I need to kn I cannot decide if this
"book" (aka, the entire series, but I purchased as a single Kindle "book") deserves 2 stars or 3 stars... or -12 or 17. And it is clear (if you're reading this, you probably have seen the multitude of 5-star ratings and reviews) that *a lot* of people love this series. And they love it... *a lot.* So. Yeah. ¬_¬ The first thing you need to know is that this is epic. EPIC. If someone was like, "I need to know what 'Epic' means, and I thought reading, like, the Mahabharata
would help, but after tearing through that in, like, one afternoon, I thought, 'Hmmmmm, I still don't get it,' can you help me?" then you would give them this and then they would know. And the thing about super-duper-epically-Epics is that you have to (1) be super ambitious and (2) really know where you want to go with it and (3) write at the pinnacle of "your craft" and (4) not wallow in fucking pathos 499.379 days out of 500. And TCMBotF is probably (1). (3/1 EDIT: Maybe (2). People tell
me (3).) The other thing about TCMBotF is that Erikson is definitely trying to tell you things. He's got messages. Sometimes this seems clear (e.g., "neoliberal capitalism is bad" seems like a pretty evident message in particularly one+a couple more book). Sometimes it seems less clear, but probably benefits from that complication (e.g. "Empires are terrible... but maybe not always, absolutely... and even if they are terrible, that doesn't mean what came before them was good... in fact,
there's a good chance that was terrible, too. So maybe empires can be good, sort of, sometimes. Perhaps, sometimes, even necessary.") Sometimes... WTF? It's all just drowning in pathos, pathos, PATHOS. And for a book that has Messages, it And books 8, 9, and 10 are especially heavy in the sense of Suffering! The Suffering! The Sacrifice! The Pathos! The repeated multi-page italicized narrative monologues! (Though the kiddy torture is more book 2, but I think at that point I was still powering through with high expectations of a pay-off.) I mean, if you like verbose pathos... no, that's not it. If you read Moby Dick and thought, "Needs more talk about whales and whaling and stuff," but then you thought, "Whales are lame, what this should be about is pathos," and then you finished that book and thought, "But, wait, that's it? Where's the suffering?" then this is for you. And by the end of it... bleh. For the series ending, why did I read books 1 through maybe 5 or 6? They have almost no relevance. For all the impact they (don't) have on the ending, they could have just been summed up. But, nope, you read 5,000 or 6,000 or maybe 7,000+ pages for what amounts to backstory to the big reveal... PATHOS! Redemption, kinda... but then PATHOS! So, yeah. Overall, I left this feeling really disappointed. I "liked" it, sort of, but almost in spite of itself. I clung, desperately, to the parts I liked. I liked the crazy-ambitious world-building. I liked the attempt at complicating some "typical" narratives (even the smashing of neoliberal capitalism gets a few wrinkles thrown in, if only very sparsely.) I didn't like the meandering path the whole thing takes (I get that it was written as separate books, and maybe was never intended to have an overarching single narrative, but...) and probably would have preferred the final books to be "just one more installment" rather than an attempt to draw some kind of grand meaning from it all. I didn't like that the characters were so "one-dimensional" (there are maybe three characters in this whole series, even though there are approximately 1000 names) and I get the sense that some of that was actually on purpose. (3/1 EDIT: and I will note that I have heard/read a number of people discuss how rich the characters are, but I really disagree. 250 pages spent telling you how conflicted someone is isn't rich. That's just 250 pages telling you *one &$#@! thing.*) Did I mention pathos? And the verbosity? The pathological verbotical verbotiousness pathosiousness of it all? And wallowing. I said wallowing somewhere, right? Sigh. 3/1 EDIT: a couple of weeks later, bumping from 2 stars to 3 stars. For all its *multiple* issues, for my utter distaste for grimdark/*pathos*, for the many pages of wasted text (no, I promise you, every word was not significant, Malazan fans)... it's just a freaking towering accomplishment. Uggh. Additional 3/1 EDIT: I also think some of my distaste for the books is just distaste for some of the content/messaging/POVs. E.g. a recurring thread is that, perhaps paraphrasing too much, "Civilization is built on a lot of artificiality and unfairness and even brutality." Or, if you want it in quip form, "Civilization is uncivilized." So, yeah, there is a kind of deep truth to that. But there is also a kind of "this is the thing your high friend from sophomore year would constantly talk about and you kind of rolled your eyes even then." And, as with everything Malazan, it's like (making a number up) 500 pages of that. Which is ~5% of the book/series. So maybe it shouldn't count too much... But. 3/4 EDIT: Seriously considering bumping back down to 2-stars. I continue to stew on how I feel about this series, and I hesitate to rate 2-stars because (1) how grand in scope and ambition it really is and (2) the fact that it is causing me to stew this much. I'm back to thinking 2-stars because I realize how much I dislike some things. First off, grimdark is not my thing. Apparently. Second, and I think separately if still relatedly, the POV/worldview/philosophy/etc. that *could* be described as "all is broken" or "all is fallen" or maybe just "it's all shit"... ehh, I think that is fundamentally attractive to a whole segment of people (swaths of progressives, swaths of young people, swaths of "old white men," etc.) but it just clashes with my... well, everything; my POV/worldview/philosophy/etc. And you know, I guess, at the end, redemption, sort of... I guess? Maybe? Third, I think the worldbuilding here is both a great accomplishment... and the thing that ate everything else. Would you like to sit down and read a 10-volume history of the planet Earth, from the rise of Hominids through the multiple present conflicts in the world, skimming over everything, but then diving into a handful of individuals with inside-their-head level detail stretching to hundreds of pages? If yes, then this is (kind of?) for you. If you register some doubts as to whether such a thing could hang together without becoming "just one damn thing after another," diving from one story to another while not ever really telling a story, overall... yeah, then you anticipate the feeling I have now. And the thing is, I've now spent multiple days thinking about this, I've even watched a couple of YouTube videos where people discuss, including an interview with Erikson... and... This is just a flop, for me. There. I think I've finally digested it (for today.) 2-stars. ...more
Nov 04, 2014 Dimitra rated it it was amazing Where to start with this one? It's 10 books!!! Yes it's a big series, yes you will get frustrated at times,
yes the internal philosophy of the characters some times may tire you but it is totally worth it! Get through those first pages and be welcomed to the malazan empire were ordinary people do extraordinary things.
Feb 17, 2016 Lundos rated it it was amazing Best fantasy, high fantasy, dark fantasy, epic fantasy or whatever fantasy you want to call it series ever written. Superior to all in language, scope, vision, plot, and characters.
Everything else pales in comparison to this epic work. I finished it a month ago and I'm still exhausted. Incredible and epic on every scale. Everything else pales in comparison to this epic work. I finished it a month ago and I'm still exhausted. Incredible and epic on every scale. ...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here. A warning, this will be a long review because I wanted to review the entire series together instead of each individual book. There will be spoilers. The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven
Erikson has to be my favorite fantasy series of all time. The ambitious scope, character development, world building, and overall plot cohesiveness set this story apart from other fantasy series I have read including the works of Tolkien, Jordan, Sanderson, Brooks, Martin, Pratchett, and other greats. The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson has to be my favorite fantasy series of all time. The ambitious scope, character development, world building, and overall plot cohesiveness set this story apart from other fantasy series I have read including the works of Tolkien, Jordan, Sanderson, Brooks, Martin, Pratchett, and other greats. I had a few major gripes the first time I read this series which was done in piecemeal in over a year. The second time reading it
through I found new meanings and understanding that eluded me the first time, especially in the earlier books. The over-arching theme of the story is about the human condition and how we exist in a state where the counterbalances of fear and compassion, hate and mercy, and suffering and love can all be experienced together in one person and even in one single situation. Our emotional states are what make us more than just specks of stardust that happen to come in contact with one another.
The story focuses on an army of soldiers who are fighting a war against foreign gods in a foreign land. They don't have a reason to be heroes or to be human even, yet they continually perform miracles just by never giving up. They are unwitnessed by society but throw their lives into the grinder that is war because they know in their hearts they are fighting for the right cause. At the end they save all of humankind from a threat that no one else would dare oppose. There are many, many
amazing characters in this series including mortal beings of at least 10 different sentient races, ascendants on their way to god hood, gods themselves, and even some animals and ghosts. To give an idea of the scope that is covered, Erikson speaks of a history that goes back hundreds of thousands of years and through the viewpoints of the hundreds of characters in the story we travel the breadth of at least 4 different continents, many of which may be the size of an Asia or an America. Most of
these perspectives and narratives are meant to provide context to the sacrifice of these foreign soldiers, these Malazans. The ideas of the Malazan people and identity serves a whole other set of themes. The Malazan empire is only the latest in a long string of attempts to unify the peoples of Erikson's world by the so called Elder races of Jaghut, Forkrul Assail, Kchain Chemalle, Eleint, and Imass as well as mixtures and hybrids of these. The Imass race is the closest to the modern day humans
which also produce the most hybrids and exist in the modern world as undead warriors who have been cursed to roam the earth for over one hundred thousand years. The Malazan empire is then composed of descendants of the Imass just as our humankind is descended from a more primitive cave dwelling ancestor. Spanning multiple continents, the Empire arose from a island full of pirates based on an intelligent strategy of domination. Using the most cutting edge fighting styles and technology, they
defeat local peoples in crucial areas and then appoint local leadership and disappear except for a few military garrisons. They then recruit from the local area gaining yet more new skills and technologies. At the beginning of the first book of the series, they have already conquered at least two major continents and are marching across a third. Meanwhile, unknown to them there are several other empires being forged in the world, which provide the drama to fuel nine more very lengthy books. The first Malazan emperor ascended to godhood along with his chief assassin. They are at the core of every plot as they try to play gods and mortals against one another to gain more power. Most of the time they get mortals to do their dirty work for them and also have command over seven vicious hounds of Shadow that are the size of small horses. Besides these two Shadow-aspected figures, the major gods in this series don't always have obvious powers. Mael is the God of the sea and Burn is the
Goddess of the earth. Sechul Lath is a primitive God of chance who spawned twins of chance that are in the Malazan pantheon. There is a Goddess Kilmandros who one of the first gods but what she represents is never made clear except that she angers easily and has giant fists. There are several bestial gods of war including wolves (winter), tiger (summer), and boar. As well as an autumn-aspected Drek, the worm god. There is Hood the God of Death and Poliel the goddess of disease. Finally there is
Krul the father God who birthed all magic in the world. Magic in this series is quite a complex subject. The Malazan usage of magic is through what are called warrens and these are the most confusing things to understand for a first time reader. Warrens are essentially passageways through different dimensions, of which there are many flavors. Traveling by warren is how mages in this world get around quickly but they are extremely dangerous at the best of times because they are widely used
by all manner of creature. Later you learn that magical warrens are actually the blood vessels of Krul himself. There is another older form of magic that uses what are called Holds instead of warrens. Holds exist in entirely different dimensions and are aspected to each of the major Elder races with a few additions including the holds of Beasts and Dragons. Now dragons are where things get really interesting. Dragons are aspected to Chaos and exist in pure forms (Eleint) as well as
Soletaken forms which are Tiste people who can shapeshift into dragons. The Tiste people are another ancient race that appeared from the magical Holds of Dark (Andii), Light (Liosan), and Shadow (Edur). These are the mortal children of the gods and goddesses of the dark, the light, and the shadows. Some of them can shapeshift but this is an ability that can drive them to insanity after which they can no longer return to their human forms. The Deck of Dragons is like a set of Tarot cards that can
be used to divine the future and the fate of various mortals. It's hard to explain how the Warrens of Krul and the magic of dragons is related but essentially the different flavors of the different Warrens comes from dragons. Let me continue with a quick synopsis of the ten books in the series. The Gardens of the Moon is the introduction to the Bridgeburners, the elite unit of the Malazan army that gets nearly annihilated maybe on the new empress' orders. Here we meet some of the major
characters we will follow the rest of the series including Fiddler, Quick Ben, Kalam, Ganoes Paran, Whiskeyjack, Hedge, Crokus, Icarium, Anomandris Rake, Kruppe, and Toc the Younger. The end of this book is a massive convergence of gods, ascendants, and mortals in the city of Darujhistan, which the empire tries and fails to conquer. Many of the books are just a series of traveling stories followed by a large convergence in a location where shit happens. The next two books Deadhouse Gates
and Memories of Ice are told in a parallel narrative as the major characters split with Fiddler, Kalam, and Crokus going to the Seven Cities continent in the second book and the remaining Bridgeburners marching south on Genabackis continent and uniting with their former enemies in the third. The first book is one of my favorites with the wonders of the city and the humor provided by Kruppe and the High priest of shadow Iskaral Pust. The next two books are among my least favorite as characters
mostly just wander towards their destinies and occasionally run into one another. In the third book you find out about a foreign Crippled God who was bringing pain and suffering to the world and was chained by the Elder gods. Then later in this book the renegade Bridgeburner army is annhilated in the process of taking down the corrupt Pannion Seer and his army of cannibal fanatics. The few survivors of this campaign end up retired in Darujhistan later in the series. The fourth
book, the House of Chains may be my favorite book in the whole series. All the wandering that went on in the first three books is largely ignored and we get our first taste of one of the main anti-heroes of this series in Karsa Orlong, a massive barbarian warrior from the northern mountains who knows nothing of civilization. His Teblor people are one of the last remaining true barbarians who are slowly being enslaved by the nearby kingdom. He leaves his home and encounters these slavers and soon
vows that he will never again do the bidding of gods or other mortals and he will destroy all of human civilization. Meanwhile, in the Seven Cities continent, an up rising if the desert people is fueled by a prophecy of a whirlwind goddess. A Malazan army in the region is lead by a former Wickan warchief who fought the Malazans. They are tasked with marching a huge number of refugees from the northern cities to the city of Aren which has a large, naval supported garrison. During this long march
they are constantly harassed and completely annihilated even as they deliver the refugees to safety. This tragic story ends in the brutal betrayal of the Wickans by an evil Malazan priest. One of the lessons of the first several books is that the Malazans are not always trustworthy or even just but are composed of ordinary people of all sorts. The fifth book, the Midnight Tides, takes place in another continent and introduces a whole new set of characters. Books four and five start to
setup the drama that will be concluded in the final books of the series. In book five we learn of the continent of Lether, a small fledgling empire of humans descended of the same First Empire humans that the Malazans claim as ancestors. The Lether humans are obsessed with gold but meet their match in the Tiste Edur, who are an ancient humanoid race that minds their own business until they get provoked to war. The Edur's formidable sorcery leads them to victory including sacking the capital city
of Letheras. They are ruled by an invincible warchief that is given power by the Crippled God to never die. The major characters in this one include two sets of brothers from each side of the conflict, the Edur Sengars and the Lether Beddicts. Tehol Beddict is one of the most outrageous characters in any of the books, a clueless idiot who also happens to be a genius that lives with his house keeper Bugg that also happens to be the Elder God Mael. The sixth and seventh books, the
Bonehunters and Reaper's Gale, respectively, begin the end game of the series. In the sixth we are brought back to the Seven Cities from which a Malazan army is being assembled to crush the rebellion. This army gains a couple key veterans including the true hero of the entire series who was a Bridgeburner snapper named Fiddler but is otherwise very green. They are led by a new commander named Tavore Paran. The sister of Ganoes, who has become the Master of the Deck of Dragons, Tavore is a
serious military genius but not a great leader. The Paran family was a noble family that was included in the purges of the nobles that happened when the latest Malazan empress Laseen came into power. Even as her sister Felisin was sent off to a penal colony, Tavore swore allegiance to the empire and her brother Ganoes was outlawed as traitor. The army Tavore leads ends up fighting her sister Felisin, which she doesn't actually ever learn. Felisin has escaped the penal colony during the
uprising with an handless old ex-priest. She assumes the mantle of the dead goddess of the whirlwind and dies at her sister's hand. At the end of book six, the Malazan army now called the Bonehunters, returns to the Malaz capital to learn that the evil men from book four have taken power and are exiled from the empire, barely escaping with their lives. In the seventh book they sail to the continent of Lether. Meanwhile Karsa Orlong and Icarium also end up in Letheras as challengers to the
invincible Edur emperor. I haven't mentioned much about Icarium, he is an ancient Jaghut, large greenish humanoids with tusks, who has amnesia but also has the magical power that can destroy the world. So Karsa ends up killing the unkillable Sengar and Icarium nearly blows up the city and the Malazans defeat the Lether army and liberate Letheras. Really though the Lether ways of corruption through wealth have already defeated the Edur and they return to their original homeland. Meanwhile in one
of my least favorite plots, several of Anomandris's children go on an adventure to visit their fathers homeland and are led by another Tiste Andii. The seventh book is among my least favorite of the series and the eighth is the worst. When I say they are bad, these are still four star fantasy novels with amazing characters and awesomely intricate plots it's just the high points for me are in books one, four, six, nine, and ten. In the eighth book, Toll the Hounds, we follow Karsa Orlong
as he treks to visit the city of Darujhistan. Meanwhile the Tiste Andii children also head to Genabackis to meet their father who is ruling the fallen city of Black Coral. The city of Black Coral is where the Tiste Andii are trying to coexist with the surviving Pannion Domin people where some corrupted godling tries to gain power. In yet another plot the remaining Bridgeburner survivors living in Darujhistan seek to figure out why they are being hunted. Finally Anomandris Rake also heads there
and there is a massive convergence of powers on the city that ends up in a battle between the Hounds of Light and Shadow. This ends almost all the storylines outside of the continent of Lether. Oh wait I neglected to mention Anomandris Rake carries with him a massive sword that contains a magical Warren. Inside this Warren lives the souls of the beings that have been killed by the sword who are chained to a gigantic wagon that they must pull forwards. There is a God named Draconus inside
the sword who forged the sword and then was killed by Rake. This is one of the stories that I believe Erikson has written already or plans to write. Rake is killed and the sword is destroyed freeing Draconus into the world. Finally in books nine and ten, Dust of Dreams and The Crippled God, Erikson manages to clean up nearly every remaining loose end. The major plot is of the now renegade Malazan army called the Bonehunters marching to free the crippled God. There are two other minor
plots, in the first one some humans with Andii blood return to their ancient home, the legendary city of Kharkanas. This hidden - away city is about to be assaulted by the Tiste Liosan people if not for the noble stand of these Shake people and the remaining Tiste Andii who come to their rescue. In the second minor plot, several Elder Gods release a dragon of Otaratal which is an anti magic substance. This dragon was chained so it would not kill all of magic. After being released it was chased
down by a whole bunch of other dragons but then imprisoned again. The main plot follows the Bonehunters as they trek through the wastelands to an unknown destination. An assortment of allies are also trekking east but in a less suicidal way. They almost all die but in the end they are faced with impossible odds against an army led by Forkrul Assail. They succeed in their desperate ploy and they free the Crippled God into the mortal realm only for him to be immediately murdered. The
remaining Paran siblings are reunited and everyone lives happily ever after. The first time I read through this series I did so in a disjointed way over a much longer period of time. This time I really understood what was going on a lot better. One of my biggest gripes the first time through was the disappearance of Karsa Orlong in the last two books. I thought he would have a pivotal role to play and wanted to know how his quest to destroy civilization would go. However, I've now learned
that he was not relevant to this plot but Erikson is writing another book or series to focus on his story of what happens next. He has also already written two parts of a three part trilogy about the lost city of Kharkanas. I'm looking forward to reading those new series once he is done writing them. Steven Erikson is a ridiculously talented writer and I'm surprised he isn't more widely regarded for his work.
Apr 01, 2021 Taio rated it it was amazing Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson - 10/10 Greatest of all time. Zenith of the medium. Hallmark of media. Gold standard of storytelling. Apogee of creativity. Vertex of invention. Crest of ingenuity. Enough of that for now let's get into the actual review: Redundant as it is to say, Malazan simply does everything perfectly, Erikson created a masterpiece with very little to no actual weaknesses, a rich and interesting story that takes place in an enormous world, on a scale that dwarfs alm Greatest of all time. Zenith of the medium. Hallmark of media. Gold standard of storytelling. Apogee of creativity. Vertex of invention. Crest of ingenuity.
Enough of that for now let's get into the actual review: Redundant as it is to say, Malazan simply does everything perfectly, Erikson created a masterpiece with very little to no actual weaknesses, a rich and interesting story that takes place in an enormous world, on a scale that dwarfs almost all of its competition, and with simply some of the most amazing characters, probably the easiest ten I have ever given anything I have read. There are many great aspects to Malazan, one of
the more standout things is probably the worldbuilding, cause the world in Malazan is an incredibly huge one with distinct locations that possess diverse species, a multitude of races, and a vast number of ethnicities which all have their own unique cultures and characteristics. Malazan's world has a size, complexity, and attention to detail that most writers can only dream to match, but beyond all that the immersion of the reader into the world is just insane, you see Steven Erikson uses the
insane number of character POVs to make you almost feel like you are in the world itself, instead of boring long pages of description the world is revealed to you from the views of the characters in the story. Even after reading Malazan I still want to know more and more about this great world that Steven Erikson created. The characters in Malazan is another aspect that should not be underestimated, I mean with over 400 POVs it is kind of impossible to do so. Reading the dramatis personae
of any of the malazan books is pretty daunting cause of the huge number of characters and one would probably expect that there are just a few standouts but Erikson manages to create a huge cast filled with personality. A good character design is one in which the character can be identified from the silhouette, Erikson manages to accomplish that within a novel, now I am not actually referring to design because regardless of how good a writer is there's only so much you can do in a novel, but you
see Erikson infuses his characters with so much personality and substance that they pretty much feel like real people which is a crazy feat cause you would imagine that with so much characters a majority of them would be one-dimensional characters with probably a gag that their whole character revolves around and a sad backstory like certain other stories but Erikson manages to make almost every character depth filled and memorable, while also establishing emotional investment from the reader
without resulting to cheap gags, boring repeated tropes or sad backstories. I also think it is worth pointing out just how good the hype action scenes are, cause a lot of people tend to underrate how much great action scenes help any good story, Malazan for a story with so much depth manages to also give you some of that raw meathead action that a lot of us need. Karsa Orlong and Yedan Derryg, literal personifications of being raw, yes I added a whole ass extra line to single them
out but it's just such a joy to read about them, it is actually insane that both of them are in a single series and neither are the best character in the story. One of the things that has stopped me from writing this review for a while now is I couldn't think of a way to describe the plot of Malazan and its themes without spoiling it, and there's also the problem that I am pretty sure a lot of things flew over my head, but you see Malazan is a story about the average soldier, about normal
people going through the motions of life, about the struggles that we all face, about elves, about witches, about gods, about a man living on his roof with no clothing apart from his blanket, a story that reminds us about our limits, that reminds us to sometimes strive to surpass those limits, that reminds us of what it means to live, that reminds about compassion, that reminds of the horrors of the world, it's a story that induces happiness, sadness, excitement and sometimes leaves you feeling
broken, in fact one could say you feel like one of the fallen. To summarize it all, Malazan book of the Fallen is the greatest story ever told.
Apr 28, 2020 Veljko rated it did not like it Simply AWFUL!!!
Jan 02, 2015 Kirra rated it it was amazing I've been reading this series over a two year period and it's been a hell
of an adventure. Started reading it in .epub format, but was delighted to find out my library newly bought the whole series. Now, onto the meat of the matter: The world-building, story-lines and characters are intricate, detailed and inter-connected.. And there's so damn many of them. The writing can get a bit long-winded at times where you're just itching to find out what happens, but the author doesn't let you off the h The world-building, story-lines and characters are intricate, detailed and inter-connected.. And there's so damn many of them. The writing can get a bit long-winded at times where you're just itching to find out what happens, but the author doesn't let you off the hook and
continues to slowly wind out the plot-line... that turns out to be just one more intersection of the giant web that is the series. Most books follow a predictable course of 1 major culmination of events per book. That is decidedly not the case here. Trust me, when you think you might have it figured out, that this is it, that you understand the role of the characters, brace yourself, because you've been lulled into the (oh-so-false) belief that you, the reader, are in control. *pats
feels about to get squished* Never have I felt so beat up after reading a book before. You spend hundreds of pages trying to piece the pieces together and then while you're still mulling things over the picture hits you over the head, too fast to even see it clearly, but solid enough to whack off one character (or whole plot line!) after another. Their fights, hopes, possibilities snatched away, often in absurdly tragic/meaningless circumstances. No resolution, just a matter of chance.
It's fantasy, but written so well it feels all too real. *exhales* Fear not, however, there's also plenty of humorous dialogue and insightful remarks to lighten the load. Admittedly, in my fixated rush towards finding out what happens next I skipped over some of the prose, but there were some relevant tidbits to be found in that as well. The chapters are written from switching POVs, so you get to see the world from different well hashed-out perspectives, meet plenty of interesting
characters, get to know and feel with/for some more than others, be amused, irritated, intrigued and hurt along with them, but if anything, they will not leave you cold. This series re-defined the standard for epic-fantasy/high-fantasy for me. Note that I didn't give every book 5 stars, but the series as a whole clearly deserves it. The true ending fell a bit flat for me, just because I thought Dust of dreams was so emotionally demanding there was hardly much left to give in the end. That
feels all too fitting as well and makes me wonder whether the author intended it that way. *still on the look-out for another twist* :D Looking forward to re-reading it from the start (note to self: first exams!) and seeing what new insights I've missed the first time around.
Oct 28, 2019 Felipe Alonso rated it it was amazing The most amazing thing I have read,
just that. Steven did something incredible with this story, it has this incredibly huge cast of characters and this worldwide setting with different cultures and values, it even has a lot of races, all unique in their own right and yet he managed to weave all together into a beautiful seamless story; that you only get to appreciate as you advance with the books , what I'm trying to say is he's hellish good as a writer. Yet complexity is not a reason for which I Steven did something incredible with this story, it has this incredibly huge cast of characters and this worldwide setting with different cultures and values, it even has a lot of races, all unique in their own right and yet he managed to weave all together into a beautiful seamless story; that you only get to appreciate as you advance with the books , what I'm trying to say is he's hellish good as a writer.
Yet complexity is not a reason for which I love this book. For me, everything boils down to what it makes you feel, what did Malazan TBOF make me feel? hahaha. It's an emotional rollercoaster trough and trough, I'm not ashamed to admit I cried a few times, perhaps with 9 of the 10 books. And not just because it's grim and tragic, but because it evokes emotions of grace, compassion, and redemption. As for if this is hard to get into as it's too dense or hard? I don't know, this was one of
the first books I read in English and one of my first long sagas of fantasy, and it never felt like a chore, I enjoyed or suffered every moment, one just have to understand that this is not the kind of story where the author will tell you everything , most things you have to figure out on your own and it's normal, as you read on everything starts to fall into place. The first book was meant as a screenplay for a movie, perhaps that's why it feels at times disjointed. If you have read
through Deadhouse gate and you don't feel a thing, step out, this is not your thing.
This series is a lot of work. I stuck with it through the end because I don’t believe in not finishing a book once I start, even if it is 10 books in one. But I hated the process with a vengeance. I usually enjoy large series and have read Wheel of Time or Sword of Truth in about three months each. This series, which is shorter than WoT, took me an entire six months because I really had to force myself to even read a couple of pages. It is really hard to feel anything for the characters, if you This series is a lot of work. I stuck with it through the end because I don’t believe in not finishing a book once I start, even if it is 10 books in one. But I hated the process with a vengeance. I usually enjoy large series and have read Wheel of Time or Sword of Truth in about three months each. This series, which is shorter than WoT, took me an entire six months because I really had to force myself to even read a couple of pages. It is really hard to feel anything for the characters, if you don’t read regularly and all in one go you will lose track of all of the different characters and time frames going on and it is incredibly dark. For most of the books, I found the first three quarters tough going and then enjoyed the ending when some plot lines usually cleared up. I also enjoyed the end of the entire series which I thought was well done. But I cannot for the life of me understand all the raving reviews for these books. ...more
This is a really dark and heavy story, too much so for my current tastes. Didn't finish it (actually didnt even properly start, just went through the 1st book's sampler available for the Kindle from Amazon), but it was enough to convince me this is not a story I want to read in full, at least not now. Perhaps at another time when I'm carefree and buoyantly happy and need something heavy to drag me down a little... This is a really dark and heavy story, too much so for my current tastes. Didn't finish it (actually didnt even properly start, just went through the 1st book's sampler available for the Kindle from Amazon), but it was enough to convince me this is not a story I want to read in full, at least not now. Perhaps at another time when I'm carefree and buoyantly happy and need something heavy to drag me down a little... ...more
An amazing and complex world. However, why on earth does the author constantly use the three words "none the less" throughout his books. It
annoys me to such an extent I have to sometimes step back. It reminds me of reading Clancy long ago and scratching my head at his conspicuous overuse of the word niggardly.
I did it. It took a year. Sheer stubbornness. 10 roughly 1000 page books, half of which I didn't even particularly enjoy. Some of them are very good
though (Deadhouse Gates and Midnight Tides being standouts) and the conclusion basically stuck the landing even though I have some major complaints. Why did I do this? Would I recommend it to anyone else? Why did I do this? Would I recommend it to anyone else?
Slow start in the first 3 books. Everything changes from the 4th as all the characters come together. Such a complex universe, well defined plot and characters! These are not books you may want to read before falling asleep and definitely not if you enjoy short reads.
Mar 04, 2018 Sam Burnett rated it really liked it Starting this series was a mistake and reminded me why I stopped reading fantasy. It's an excellent series, definitely one of the best fantasy epics I've ever read, but at 11,000+ pages the amount of time I sunk into this was ridiculous. Starting this series was a mistake and reminded me why I stopped reading fantasy. It's an excellent series, definitely one of the best fantasy epics I've ever read, but at 11,000+ pages the amount of time I sunk into this was ridiculous. ...more Other books in the seriesRelated ArticlesIf you love the fantasy genre, this is the season for you! Some of the biggest books out this fall promise to be epics full of magic, adventure,... “It’s the ignorant who find a cause and cling to it, for within that is the illusion of significance.” — 7 likes “The slave’s grin was hard with malice. ‘Damn you, Fear Sengar.’ ‘How did that offend you?’ ‘You just stated the central argument – both for and against the institution of slavery. I was wasted, was I? Or of necessity kept under firm heel. Too many people like me on the loose and no ruler, tyrant or otherwise, could sit assured on a throne. We would stir things up, again and again. We would challenge, we would protest, we would defy. By being enlightened, we would cause utter mayhem. So, Fear, kick another basket of fish over here, it’s better for everyone.’ ‘Except you.’ ‘No, even me. This way, all my brilliance remains ineffectual, harmless to anyone and therefore especially to myself, lest my lofty ideas loose a torrent of blood.’ Seren Pedac grunted, ‘You are frightened by your own ideas, Udinaas?’ ‘All the time, Acquitor. Aren’t you?” — 4 likes More quotes…Welcome back. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. How long is Malazan Book of the Fallen?The average reader will spend 11 hours and 6 minutes reading this book at 250 WPM (words per minute).
Is WOT or malazan longer?Weighing in at over 4 million words, The Wheel of Time books are assuredly among the longest fantasy series out there, although reliable data on the matter is elusive; Wikipedia suggests it is some 1 million words longer than The Malazan Book of the Fallen, its chief competition for the honor (omitting shared universe ...
How many Malazan books are there?Malazan is the name of the Empire or world where all of the events in the story take place. The series began with Erikson's Gardens of the Moon that published back in 1999. As of the time of this writing, there are 32 books connected to the Malazan Empire written by both Steven Erikson and Ian C. Esslemont.
Is it worth reading Malazan Book of the Fallen?I would 100% definitely recommend the series! It's definitely a lot of work to read them but it definitely pays off, there's no other series like it. I finished the first book and overall it just wasn't for me. Nothing really gets explained and by the time it does, you already forgot why it was important lol.
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