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Malazan Book of the Fallen Series

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12357…19

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    #122
    RoboAmish
    Registered Users Posts: 164 ✭✭RoboAmish


    Phenomenal series. It can be hard work to power through but it rewards the reader's patience and is ultimately well worth it. Even better on re-read too.

    Midnight Tides is my favourite of the bunch, but there's a load of diverging opinions on the matter. Haven't picked up any of ICE's novels or Erikson's new Tiste Andii series though mind...


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    #123
    ixoy
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 17,988 Mod ✭✭✭✭ixoy


    RoboAmish wrote: »
    Haven't picked up any of ICE's novels or Erikson's new Tiste Andii series though mind...
    ICE is a weaker writer (IMO) but it's nice to get some detail on other areas and places that are only mentioned briefly in the book (especially for where the final book in ICE's series will be).

    As for the Tiste Andii series - it's heavier going in some fashion than the others. Not in terms of complexity but thematically to me and with heavier doses of philosophy and a slightly slower pace. Well worth it though as it gives some interesting background to characters, answering previous questions and - naturally - asking new ones.


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    #124
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    Wrapping up my current book now, going to start Gardens of the Moon in a day or 2.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #125
    RoboAmish
    Registered Users Posts: 164 ✭✭RoboAmish


    Cheers ixoy. I'd always planned on picking up his Tiste Andii series, just needed a bit of a break from Malazan after devoting a good chunk of my time getting through the series. Might be my next purchase now that I'm finishing up with the Mistborn trilogy... saw it in a bookshop today and glad to see it's now been sold in a more compact size as opposed to the original oversized paperback.

    Little more wary of ICE... have heard he's a poorer writer alright. Kinda interested in reading about his Daru novel though...
    does it give some kind of closure to the crew that were stranded there after TTH? Not that I have much interest in a lot of them... Scorch and Leff, ugh...


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    #126
    sea_monkey
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 755 ✭✭✭sea_monkey


    the tiste andii book was one of my favourites so far :s


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    #127
    ixoy
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 17,988 Mod ✭✭✭✭ixoy


    Does anyone else fork out for the Tales of Bauchelain & Korbal Broach novellas? They're published in fairly expensive hard-back formats from PS Publishing. The first three were collected in a trade paperback volume at a much lower price but the latest two, which I've read, won't be available in a cheaper format for a while.
    I've just finished "The Wurms of Blearmouth" and, at £20 for 122 pages, it's expensive but fun. That and I like having these special editions.


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    #128
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    So, I'm a little over 200 pages into Gardens of the Moon. I see what people mean when they say it's hard work. Is it likely to improve any time soon?

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #129
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    So, I'm a little over 200 pages into Gardens of the Moon. I see what people mean when they say it's hard work. Is it likely to improve any time soon?

    Yes.


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    #130
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    Ta. Nearly every couple of pages there's a new character up to something. Interesting how Erikson provides little or no information on their thoughts and motives. I can see this series being the literary equivalent of The Wire.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #131
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    Ta. Nearly every couple of pages there's a new character up to something. Interesting how Erikson provides little or no information on their thoughts and motives. I can see this series being the literary equivalent of The Wire.

    Sorry, I meant to come back and edit that but I got distracted - I've read GOTM a bunch of times at this stage and it's one of these books that benefits dramatically from a reread - particularly after you're a few books in and know more about the characters.

    It's a lot easier to get into when you know what legends the likes of Whiskeyjack, Fiddler etc. are.

    If you're wanting some sort of mental signpost that you're making progress I would suggest you keep an eye out for the word
    "convergence"
    - once that starts to pop up regularly you should be starting to enjoy yourself.


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    #132
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    That's really helpful. There's regular references by several characters to a spinning coin which I think has something to do with
    the Gods
    . I'll keep with it then so. Even tempted to get a Kindle Fire HD for the dictionary function just for this series.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #133
    RoboAmish
    Registered Users Posts: 164 ✭✭RoboAmish


    GOTM is a book I appreciated immeasurably more as the series progressed. It's only when the whole tapestry is revealed that you realise how good of an opening chapter it really is.

    That being said, it's only in the next book that the series really finds it's way; Deadhouse Gates is probably one of my favourites in the entire series.

    Definitely worth persevering with even if you'll sometimes question why you're doing so. It can be as frustrating as it is rewarding a lot of the time but it is ultimately worth it.


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    #134
    AnCapaillMor
    Registered Users Posts: 4,920 ✭✭✭AnCapaillMor


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    Even tempted to get a Kindle Fire HD for the dictionary function just for this series.

    Actually that is a great idea. It really comes in handy later when he mightn't come back to a character for a few books.


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    #135
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    AnCapaillMor wrote: »
    Actually that is a great idea. It really comes in handy later when he mightn't come back to a character for a few books.

    Kindle's a good investment then? I've been on the fence for ages.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #136
    AnCapaillMor
    Registered Users Posts: 4,920 ✭✭✭AnCapaillMor


    I'd the app on a tablet, found it a godsend for the malazan books in particular.


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    #137
    laoch na mona
    Registered Users Posts: 2,965 ✭✭✭laoch na mona


    just about finished gardens of the moon and I haven't found it hard going


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    #138
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    AnCapaillMor wrote: »
    I'd the app on a tablet, found it a godsend for the malazan books in particular.

    Got myself a Kindle Fire HD so I'll see how it goes.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #139
    AnCapaillMor
    Registered Users Posts: 4,920 ✭✭✭AnCapaillMor


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    Got myself a Kindle Fire HD so I'll see how it goes.

    Look around the store, you can get some of the books in omnibus editions, saves on some dosh. Tricky to find though.


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    #140
    dan_ep82
    Registered Users Posts: 2,693 ✭✭✭dan_ep82


    laoch na mona wrote: »
    just about finished gardens of the moon and I haven't found it hard going

    Just found this thread.

    I was the same, I was entertained the entire way through.
    Easily my favourite series, re read a good few times now. The same with the black company books. Only problem I find is its very hard to find anything worthwhile reading after such an epic series.


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    #141
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    Well, I'm about 5 or 6 pages from finishing Gardens of the Moon. Not sure what to make of it to be honest. It's a bit light on character development which I suppose is fair given the sheer amount of characters. Parts of it seemed a bit random like
    Paran getting caught in Rake's sword and summoning Oponn
    . I don't know if that'll make more sense if I read more of the novels but I think I'll finish Deadhouse Gates as I've already bought it.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #142
    Zapp Brannigan
    Registered Users Posts: 8,326 ✭✭✭Zapp Brannigan


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    Well, I'm about 5 or 6 pages from finishing Gardens of the Moon. Not sure what to make of it to be honest. It's a bit light on character development which I suppose is fair given the sheer amount of characters. Parts of it seemed a bit random like
    Paran getting caught in Rake's sword and summoning Oponn
    . I don't know if that'll make more sense if I read more of the novels but I think I'll finish Deadhouse Gates as I've already bought it.

    Things make more sense as the series go on. Then when you go back for a reread you understand how amazing Erikson is.


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    #143
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    Well, I'm about 5 or 6 pages from finishing Gardens of the Moon. Not sure what to make of it to be honest. It's a bit light on character development which I suppose is fair given the sheer amount of characters. Parts of it seemed a bit random like
    Paran getting caught in Rake's sword and summoning Oponn
    . I don't know if that'll make more sense if I read more of the novels but I think I'll finish Deadhouse Gates as I've already bought it.

    Yeah pretty much everything in GOTM comes back with a vengeance later on.

    A lot of the seemingly minor characters from it go on to be absolute legends later as well, <3 Fiddler!


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    #144
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    I'll at least finish Deadhouse Gates. Reading a review on SFsite that says it's all downhill from here in terms of difficulty and that DG is one of the best entries in the series.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #145
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    I'll at least finish Deadhouse Gates. Reading a review on SFsite that says it's all downhill from here in terms of difficulty and that DG is one of the best entries in the series.

    I think I liked the third more having read both of them a few times. FWIW I did my first back to the start again effort after three books.


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    #146
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    keane2097 wrote: »
    I think I liked the third more having read both of them a few times. FWIW I did my first back to the start again effort after three books.

    You're first back to the start? Glad I bought the kindle now.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #147
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    You're first back to the start? Glad I bought the kindle now.

    i.e. finished book three, decided I'd probably missed a rake of stuff from the first two and went back and read them all again before moving on to book four.


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    #148
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    I know what you meant, just by the look of your post you've went back to the start a few times.

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #149
    keane2097
    Registered Users Posts: 17,770 ✭✭✭✭keane2097


    ancapailldorcha wrote: »
    I know what you meant, just by the look of your post you've went back to the start a few times.

    Yeah I've probably read the first three books three times at this stage, book four twice.


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    #150
    ancapailldorcha
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 37,174 CMod ✭✭✭✭ancapailldorcha


    Wow!

    We sat again for an hour and a half discussing maps and figures and always getting back to that most damnable creation of the perverted ingenuity of man - the County of Tyrone.

    H. H. Asquith



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    #151
    Tristram
    Registered Users Posts: 3,589 ✭✭✭Tristram


    Wow is right. That's a pretty formidable task. Maybe when I'm old and grey I'll go back and visit Malazan again but I'm not willing to commit that kind of time to it again anytime soon!


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