Malazan Book of the Fallen Series

Zapp Brannigan

The entire series is available in one ebook.

wyrn

Zapp Brannigan wrote: »

The entire series is available in one ebook.

Do you have a UK Amazon account? It doesn't seem available for me.

Zapp Brannigan

wyrn wrote: »

Do you have a UK Amazon account? It doesn't seem available for me.

No I shop on the US Amazon store. It's available elsewhere as well Linky

nesf

Ah, Toll the Hounds, this time I will make it past the turgid first half of you. My enthusiasm is draining though, Karsa or no Karsa. Also, Kruppe stopped being funny many, many books ago, kill him off please (;)).

Zapp Brannigan

nesf wrote: »

Ah, Toll the Hounds, this time I will make it past the turgid first half of you. My enthusiasm is draining though, Karsa or no Karsa. Also, Kruppe stopped being funny many, many books ago, kill him off please (;)).

You're dead to me.

I didn't like TtH on my first read, but every other read since I've really enjoyed it.

nesf

Zapp Brannigan wrote: »

You're dead to me.

I didn't like TtH on my first read, but every other read since I've really enjoyed it.

Most of it is fine, I just can't stand the "author's voice" bookending the chapters. I recognise it's a valid approach but I dislike this style of writing quite a lot even when it's not meant to be taken seriously.

pillphil

I still don't know how I feel about this series, I read as far as The Crippled God. I was just lost all the time. I've never been able to read poetry or songs in fantasy books and that seems to be an important source of information.
I read the first hundred pages of GotM again after I finished the series, and I suspect I'd enjoy rereading the whole series now that I know who the characters are but it took over a year to get through them. I'd usually read a book in a few days no matter how long the book is but I really had to force myself to keep reading. I stopped reading for a few months afterwards.

Tar.Aldarion

Doesn't sound like you enjoy it, no you don't need to read the crap poetry.

nesf

pillphil wrote: »

I still don't know how I feel about this series, I read as far as The Crippled God. I was just lost all the time. I've never been able to read poetry or songs in fantasy books and that seems to be an important source of information.
I read the first hundred pages of GotM again after I finished the series, and I suspect I'd enjoy rereading the whole series now that I know who the characters are but it took over a year to get through them. I'd usually read a book in a few days no matter how long the book is but I really had to force myself to keep reading. I stopped reading for a few months afterwards.

There's nothing wrong with not enjoying a book, film or tv show even if you're a fan of the genre and others in the genre hold it in high regard. I detest Firefly for instance, which can make for some cranky conversations about TV Sci Fi with friends. Erikson is very much love him or hate him or both. I really don't like some parts of his writing. I think he strays too much from what he's good at (developing a group of characters with few brushstrokes) and indulges to much in things he can't do well (poetry, heavy thematic passages, humour (Krupp's dialogue would work so much better in bardic poetry and I think this feeling is intentionally evoked but on paper I find it jarring as I would the text of a bardic poem).

/end trollbait

pillphil

That's the thing though, I could have stopped at any time, but I kept buying and reading them. I'd prefer to read a whole series, but if I don't like it, I'll usually stop.
I think as I progressed through a specific book, I enjoyed it more, but the transition to the next book, with characters I hadn't seen since the book before last, meant that starting each book was a bit of a struggle.
This wasn't helped by the fact that my reading rate was so much slower than normal.

I have to say, normal sized books only take a few hours to read now though

prq

MBotF is my favorite fantasy series - after The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever.

Haven't gone into the Kharkanas Trilogy yet.

nesf

Toll the Hounds, I'd have stopped was I not 7 books in already. Dust of Dreams is proving equally annoying. I'm beginning to strongly dislike Erikson's later writing style and miss his earlier days when the plot was convoluted but the characters actually seemed vaguely interesting.

prq

nesf wrote: »

Toll the Hounds, I'd have stopped was I not 7 books in already. Dust of Dreams is proving equally annoying. I'm beginning to strongly dislike Erikson's later writing style and miss his earlier days when the plot was convoluted but the characters actually seemed vaguely interesting.

I actually found Toll the Hounds to be the 2nd best book in the series, right after Memories of Ice

Midnight Tides however, and its juvenile humor... argghhh.

hadoken13

I have to say that the Malazan series are one of the best series I've ever read - really enjoyed them. I hear a lot from people who started reading Gardens of the Moon but couldn't get past the first couple of hundred pages - I could never understand that. The book caught my attention from the first page. Just because books don't start out slowly, giving a back story on every character before building up the narrative, instead launching straight into a battle, doesn't mean they are overly complex.

I loved the concept of his stories (although the last book dragged on a bit). As for Esslemont's books, they are starting to grow on me - his latest one, Blood and Bone wasn't bad and his next one, due for release in June I think should be good too.

Potatoeman

hadoken13 wrote: »

I have to say that the Malazan series are one of the best series I've ever read - really enjoyed them. I hear a lot from people who started reading Gardens of the Moon but couldn't get past the first couple of hundred pages - I could never understand that. The book caught my attention from the first page. Just because books don't start out slowly, giving a back story on every character before building up the narrative, instead launching straight into a battle, doesn't mean they are overly complex.

I loved the concept of his stories (although the last book dragged on a bit). As for Esslemont's books, they are starting to grow on me - his latest one, Blood and Bone wasn't bad and his next one, due for release in June I think should be good too.

Some people get lost in the details. I had a friend read them before me and a few questions cleared some things up. I will go back and reread them again sometime as I hear you pick up on things you missed.

prq

Sometimes only a few books afterwards are events fully explained. I found myself picking up earlier books and going "ah, so THAT's what really happened!"

nesf

prq wrote: »

I actually found Toll the Hounds to be the 2nd best book in the series, right after Memories of Ice

Midnight Tides however, and its juvenile humor... argghhh.

It certainly seems to divide people alright. Part of it comes down to Kruppe, long passages of his thoughts or speech are a real love/hate thing. Another part is the philosophising, again a love/hate thing. The final part is the Andii arc in the book. Some enjoyed having a bland and unremarkable character be developed into someone they cared about, others never had this transition. Personally, I felt this arc came across as far too forced and too many perfect pieces falling exactly into place, deus ex author etc.

Mostly I miss the gritty military fantasy though. It all started going a bit insane when he started introducing modern or early modern military tactics and structures into a medieval/classical fantasy setting. It's nit picking but when he talks in terms of modern command structures breaking down to 5-10 man units in this setting it's really hard to suspend disbelief. In a melee you really don't work at that level and crossbows and explosives don't change much, sharpers are just better pilums basically.

Sorry, I hate it when an author takes a turn in a direction I strongly dislike after many years of enjoying their work. Martin and Jordon did this already to me and now Erikson.

prq

I'm fine with Kruppe. It was the passages with Ublala's "prowesses" and Shurq's "implant" and Tehol's humor...

Also the Sengar family annoyed me.

Potatoeman

nesf wrote: »

It certainly seems to divide people alright. Part of it comes down to Kruppe, long passages of his thoughts or speech are a real love/hate thing. Another part is the philosophising, again a love/hate thing. The final part is the Andii arc in the book. Some enjoyed having a bland and unremarkable character be developed into someone they cared about, others never had this transition. Personally, I felt this arc came across as far too forced and too many perfect pieces falling exactly into place, deus ex author etc.

Mostly I miss the gritty military fantasy though. It all started going a bit insane when he started introducing modern or early modern military tactics and structures into a medieval/classical fantasy setting. It's nit picking but when he talks in terms of modern command structures breaking down to 5-10 man units in this setting it's really hard to suspend disbelief. In a melee you really don't work at that level and crossbows and explosives don't change much, sharpers are just better pilums basically.

Sorry, I hate it when an author takes a turn in a direction I strongly dislike after many years of enjoying their work. Martin and Jordon did this already to me and now Erikson.

There are certain things that highlight it was a roleplaying game i.e. Hellians pub crawl invasion.
I didn't like Kruppe. I did like the Sengars and I loved Beak.

prq

Impossible not to love Beak

ancapailldorcha

prq wrote: »

Sometimes only a few books afterwards are events fully explained. I found myself picking up earlier books and going "ah, so THAT's what really happened!"

Same here. My jaw nearly hit the ground when

Rake's shapeshifting ability is explained with one sentence in book 2.

Thargor

what was the meaning/significance of the giant green statue embedded in the desert somewhere does anyone know? Think it was the size of the Statue of Liberty or thats how I pictured it, there was also a hold full of thousands of hem floating in space iirc...

prq

Thargor wrote: »

what was the meaning/significance of the giant green statue embedded in the desert somewhere does anyone know? Think it was the size of the Statue of Liberty or thats how I pictured it, there was also a hold full of thousands of hem floating in space iirc...

You find the meaning at the end of the very last book

Thargor

Doh.

Im in an awkward position with the Malazan series, I have 2 books left to read and I do remember loving it when I was reading it but Ive forgotten too much that has happened and who people are now to be able to pick it up again. The series is crying out for a companion novel to explain who is who and whats happening. There are no decent summaries to be found online or Wikis which is surprising for such a popular series.

prq

Happened to me too so I restarted the series. I find most of the book enjoyable and was not in a rush, so it was a great refresher.

Potatoeman

Thargor wrote: »

Doh.

Im in an awkward position with the Malazan series, I have 2 books left to read and I do remember loving it when I was reading it but Ive forgotten too much that has happened and who people are now to be able to pick it up again. The series is crying out for a companion novel to explain who is who and whats happening. There are no decent summaries to be found online or Wikis which is surprising for such a popular series.

There are things that are explained at different stages that could cause problems and other things that are hinted at rather than explicitly stated.

adocholiday

I am currently about a third of the way through the fourth book and I am loving it. I have a 1 hour commute each way from work every day and it just flies by when reading these books. Took me 3 or 4 attempts to get past the first 200 pages of GoTM but once I did I couldn't put the series down.

The only thing that I hate is when a character is mentioned and I sit wondering who they are and if they are significant. For example (spoiler for book 4)

I've just read the part when the child walks into the parade ground in the soldiers uniform and holds up the white thigh bone when the army are preparing to march. Captain Keneb says that Duiker left the child in his care and I had to go back and find the part in Book 2 where it happened to see that person was significant.

That has happened me quite a lot during my reading of the series.

Oh and for those of you who have read it, I don't want to know the significance if there is any. Leave me in ignorance please!

keane2097

Thargor wrote: »

Doh.

Im in an awkward position with the Malazan series, I have 2 books left to read and I do remember loving it when I was reading it but Ive forgotten too much that has happened and who people are now to be able to pick it up again. The series is crying out for a companion novel to explain who is who and whats happening. There are no decent summaries to be found online or Wikis which is surprising for such a popular series.

Do you have an issue with the "Malazan Re-read of the Fallen" on Tor or have you just not come across it? Hard to see how that's not exactly what you're looking for...

keane2097

adocholiday wrote: »

I am currently about a third of the way through the fourth book and I am loving it. I have a 1 hour commute each way from work every day and it just flies by when reading these books. Took me 3 or 4 attempts to get past the first 200 pages of GoTM but once I did I couldn't put the series down.

The only thing that I hate is when a character is mentioned and I sit wondering who they are and if they are significant. For example (spoiler for book 4)

I've just read the part when the child walks into the parade ground in the soldiers uniform and holds up the white thigh bone when the army are preparing to march. Captain Keneb says that Duiker left the child in his care and I had to go back and find the part in Book 2 where it happened to see that person was significant.

That has happened me quite a lot during my reading of the series.

Oh and for those of you who have read it, I don't want to know the significance if there is any. Leave me in ignorance please!

Part of what makes the books so impressive is the re-readability of them for just those reasons. Something you would have no memory of whatsoever from the first time you read one of the books will leave your jaw agape when you go back and realise what it was foreshadowing (not that this applies to your specific instance).

Thargor

keane2097 wrote: »

Do you have an issue with the "Malazan Re-read of the Fallen" on Tor or have you just not come across it? Hard to see how that's not exactly what you're looking for...

I had a look ages ago but it seemed like something someone doing a thesis on the series in University would be reading, very in depth chapter by chapter analysis, I suppose I should set myself a goal of reading a few of them a day at work until I get to the end, Malazan is too good a series to give up on. Thanks for the reminder.