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Malazan: High House Shadow edition


AncalagonTheBlack

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Even though people have trouble with Gardens of the Moon, I would definitely recommend starting with GotM instead of Forge of Darkness.  For me the best part of the Kharkanas books is the origin stories and easter eggs that you wouldn't pick up on if you hadn't read the other books.  I think I would hate FoD if it was my first Malazan book.

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24 minutes ago, End of Disc One said:

Even though people have trouble with Gardens of the Moon, I would definitely recommend starting with GotM instead of Forge of Darkness.  For me the best part of the Kharkanas books is the origin stories and easter eggs that you wouldn't pick up on if you hadn't read the other books.  I think I would hate FoD if it was my first Malazan book.

Yeah, FoD assumes you know lots of weird Malazaan lore.

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  • 3 months later...
On 7.5.2017 at 6:59 PM, kuenjato said:

For me, SE is trying to do what Bakker manages, but because everything is so over the top, it often comes off melodramatic and cartoonish. I've contemplated resuming the series, but as the things I did not like about the series apparently become magnified to an incredibly degree in the later volumes, I've never mustered the endurance.

Same for me. I read the first MBOTF novels years ago (at the same time as I read Bakker's series), but I had to quit after MOI - it was simply too much of everything: Magic, overpowered characters and creatures, battles, exaggerated historical dimensions, ... I read the books in German at that time because I wasn't confident in my English skills yet, so I can't judge the language, but I couldn't understand why this series is so often compared to ASOIAF. Besides scale and "gray" characters, these series have nothing in common, especially in terms of magic. And unlike many others, I didn't like the way Erikson dealt with that topic. Bakkers philosophical approach was way more convincing than Erikson Warrens and their assignment to certain "elements", but maybe that's just my point of view. Last year, I tried to give Erikson another chance and bought the audiobook, but it still seemed exaggerated and absurd to me. I guess you either love or hate it; there doesn't seem to be a middle course.

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  • 2 weeks later...

So I've been doing a Malazan re-read, my first full one since the series finished (since Bonehunters came out, actualy, so the second half basically). Up to Reaper's Gale, and got to say, so far my issues with Reaper's Gale and TBH the first time are a lot less visible now reading in the context of the entire series (in contrast, Deadhouse Gates and House of Chains actually had a few more pacing niggles than I remember, though no big deal).


But also, what's hitting me this time, is that while the, let's say, historical history is a bit empty, as I've said before including recently in that asoiaf topic, the mythic history is brilliant, on another level. Like, every other major series I can think of is broadly based around a single big concept/event that has repercussions on the present events in a big way. Others might have an effect on shaping the story, but it's mostly one event/idea that's either driving or distorting the plot (the long night in aSoIaF,  LotR is a continuation of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, itself a direct continuation of previous events, etcs), and any other events are often previous to that in basically one chain of events.

But in this, there's several huge myth-events, often unrelated or only tangentialy so, all of which could carry an epic on their own, that directly impact the plot and are being either dealt with or used by many factions in the plots. And the repercussions of them frequently crash into each other, creating that special brand of Malazan chaos.

It's the kind of thing that's always interested me, the mythic backstories, and Malazan really knocks it out the park.

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MBOTF really does feel like a simple slice of time in Malazan world's history is being treated rather than an overarching major event as you said, polishgenius. Perhaps that has more to do with following events on 3 different continents, but, for me,  the Crippled God always seemed rather unimportant to any semblance of a plot.

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  • 1 month later...
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58 minutes ago, Dora Vee said:

Started Gardens of the Moon and am 12% complete. All I have to say now is that I would love to see some artwork with Moon Spawn.



There's plenty if you google, but tbh I'd advise against it for a couple books at least because some of the most popular stuff to paint could spoil you if you pay too much attention. Here is someone's impression of the Seige of Pale though which is pretty ace.
The cover of the ebook omnibus of the whole series also features the same scene, but tbqh I'm not fond of it, since neither Tattersail nor Moon's Spawn look much like I imagine them.

eta: I have no idea why the first image I linked is so small when when I grabbed it it was full size. I'll see if I can find a better one...

 

eta eta: A bit better.

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41 minutes ago, polishgenius said:



There's plenty if you google, but tbh I'd advise against it for a couple books at least because some of the most popular stuff to paint could spoil you if you pay too much attention. Here is someone's impression of the Seige of Pale though which is pretty ace.
The cover of the ebook omnibus of the whole series also features the same scene, but tbqh I'm not fond of it, since neither Tattersail nor Moon's Spawn look much like I imagine them.

eta: I have no idea why the first image I linked is so small when when I grabbed it it was full size. I'll see if I can find a better one...

 

eta eta: A bit better.

Thank you! Yea, I suspected Google, but something told me not to do that. Guess I was right not to. Anyway, I just love Moon Spawn. Amazing weapon. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
8 minutes ago, End of Disc One said:

Holy shit.  I loved Fall of Light, but this whole time I've been way more interested in the Toblakai trilogy.

I hope he jerked all the philosophical ramblings out of his system with FoL and is ready to get back to the more traditional Malazan format.

Yeah, just, yeah. This.

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I think I'm probably more like to read the Toblakai books than his prequel trilogy. I do have a copy of Forge of Darkness (the hardback was for sale for £1 in Poundland, which was hard to resist) but I'm not convinced I'll ever actually read it since I get the impression the series might be like some of the bits of the main Malazan series that I found increasingly tedious as it went along.

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