Well, "review" isn't the right word. I don't feel qualified to write one since I am won over by Erikson's books - this is not even remotely objective. So here's my two cents on this work of epic fantasy at its best, a ten volume series by Steven Erikson. The final volume was completed on Feb 2011 - so for the fans, it was a long wait. Ten years, in fact. Still, Erikson was mercifully on schedule, unlike George R R Martin, Patrick Rothfuss and several other authors who seem to get sidetracked by other projects or whose novels are ridiculously bloated and late. I started reading these in late June so it's taken me over a month to get this far. Volume 5 is on its way. None of the public libraries in London have vol 5. 6-10 appear to be available however.
Anyway, the Malazan novels are primarily military epics. You might read them like you would read
A Romance of the Three Kingdoms/War of the Three Kingdoms. There's a lot of camaraderie amongst the armies and a lot of the characters end up in wars or smaller pitched battles. One of the volumes thus far was divided into two parts, with one part solely dedicated to chronicling the human suffering of a colossal refugee train across the make-believe continent. There is indepth discussion of battle tactics and of the types of weapons used (but without the rote technicality of K J Parker). The Brigeburners, a famous legion are truly remarkable and lighten up the mood of the otherwise ghastly scenes of war and genocide or the less jovial species such as the Tiste Andii. The sappers in Erikson's novels are a nasty but likeable lot, there jokes always pulling out a small grin on the corners of my mouth. Which is good because there's not much to smile about in The Malazan series.
There are scores upon scores of characters. Each novel has several maps, a glossary and varying cast characters. The list runs on over 2 dozen pages if simply from volumes 1-4 alone. But many of them do stand out in the readers mind, even if you only meet them briefly. And if they don't, there's always the Malazan wiki for you to reference. I think this is why the series is a standout amongst others. For all these characters, there are many back stories and histories (especially if they aren't of the human race) and the Malazan novels are slowly unveiling what links all the nonhuman races together. The Seguleh, the Moranth, the Barghast, the Trells, the Elder races (thankfully, not elves) etc. paint a varied and rich tapestry against the tales of ...humans.
There is actually an overarching plot to the ten volumes. The Crippled God is seeking revenge and destruction of the world (yawn) to repay the pain of his imprisonment. Yawn. That's not particularly important in the grand scheme of things though it will be by volume 10 I suspect. The "Grand scheme of things" is one of those ironies in Erikson's books. Mortal beings are ridiculously powerless and many of the cast realize this truth, that they are all chess pieces to the gods, unwilling and forced to do as they are bid or sometimes do their bidding unknowingly. The Gods believe that they themselves are unmoving and all powerful. But when an individual takes it upon him/herself to chance this status quo, the effects are far reaching - and to be honest, the Gods deserve it for underestimating the power to choose. The Crippled God, then is a reminder that the Gods are not all powerful, despite the eons of experience they have in destroying or raising who races and empires for their schemes.
Is this different from other fantasies that I've read? Yes. This world is not leakproof but the world building is spectacular. I don't know how to judge. I'm too amazed by Erikson's world. Really.
Superb rambling here. I guess everyone's dozed off.
Labels: fantasy, novel, review
