Gardens of the Moon

Wow, thats how to start a series! I am certain I missed most of what was happening and the finer points but it didn't matter! Im sure it will be revealed to me as I go through the series, even with all of that, this was a great book, engaging, funny at times and with action and mystery to keep you hooked and intrigued. Some of the best characters I have ever read, Anomander Rake (even though his part was fairly small in this book) will probably be one of the coolest characters ever, Parran, Whiskeyjack and the Bridgeburners, Tattersail and the other mages!

I think the most interesting par for me was the magic “Warrens” I can't wait to find out how they work.

“Open yourself to the Warren that comes to you – that finds you. Draw forth its power – as much as your body and soul are capable of containing – but remember, when the body fails, the gate closes.”

The way the characters interact with each other is great, how he swaps the POV mid fight or scene so you see what the other people are seeing/thinking is brilliant! And the fluidity of characters from chapter to chapter or even scene to scene, you like them and think they are fighting for good one page then suddenly through a POV shift or just the next sentence completely change your mind about them! Made everything very real.

A masterpiece, and supposedly a weaker entry to the series coming from some Malazan veterans! If thats true then I am in for a ride.

I cannot wait to start Deadhouse Gates!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Just finished the first book and my head is spinning a bit. This thing is crammed full of fantastic ideas, rich world building and dozens truly interesting characters. It asks a lot of questions that it doesn't answer and presents a lot of new concepts, characters, and even plots without any fanfare or explanation whatsoever... that sounds bad but it wasn't a negative experience. The style is jarring but it's also immersive, I found myself completely dialled in just to make sure I was soaking up all the details that I would need to know what the $&@! was going on, and for the most part that attention to detail was richly rewarded. I loved this world, loved these characters and loved this story... it's only getting four stars because It was so dense that I had to re-read frequently to make sure I had the story straight. Despite that, it felt epic, engaging, and I loved the style of the writing itself. I'll pick up book 2 for sure.

This series was one I only recently heard about. But was immediately curious. Most who have read and love it say the same thing; it can be extremely confusing to get in to, but it's worth it. And wow are they right.

You're thrown right in the deep end of a story that's already alive, with little to no explanation on what's going on. On top of that, it feels like every chapter, you're introduced to 2-3 new characters. Combine that with a magic system it doesn't really explain, multiple races and so many gods, and you can easily find yourself going cross-eyed trying to piece it together. I almost put it down and walked away, as I hate feeling lost in a story.

But then, something just clicks. You start picking up things here and there. You get some idea to the magic, the races, the gods, the mini-plots (of which there are many). But builds, brick by brick. See, they don't hand hold you through the story (which don't get me wrong, I'm totally ok with), but instead let you catch the subtleties on your own to understand this lived in story. And that's pretty refreshing. There's so much going on, that if they did hand it to you on a spoon, I think the book would have to be twice as big, and it's already a meaty-boy.

So to summarize my experience with this book; it can be extremely confusing to get in to, but it's worth it. I'm hooked till the end.

My first experience with Malazan was a success!

I think a lot comes with balanced expectations with Gardens of the Moon. I felt prepared and because of that, I was never lost and the characters and magic and worldbuilding never felt too much for me. There were a lot of great characters that I found very interesting, particularly Tattersail, Whiskeyjack, Anomander Rake, and Paran. Erikson is better with characters than I expected; the characterization is just more subtle than some authors.


I think if I had picked this book up knowing nothing about it, it would have felt like there were a lot of deux ex machina and ill-defined magic, but knowing how fleshed out everything is with time, this didn't bother me.

There were no storylines I didn't really like, and other than a few confusing lines in the climax, I was totally on board with figuring things out as I went.

9/10 and I'm excited to see where Deadhouse Gates takes me!

Wow! This book takes you on an epic ride! My favorite thing about this book is really Erikson's prose! This guy is a master wordsmith capable of painting pictures with the finesse of a true literary artist.
I will admit the book does take sometime to get into it. It is filled with lots of characters, more then most epic fantasy books. But halfway through you see where Erikson is taking the story and you're like, “Oh... I see what he did there.”

The author kept me in the dark for half the book which kept me from caring about what was happening in the second half. Poor writing and names that are unpronounceable took away from the world the author had built. I don't think I will continue to [b:Deadhouse Gates 55401 Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2) Steven Erikson http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316126263s/55401.jpg 3898716].

Did I barely have any idea what was going on? Yes. Did I enjoy it anyway? Also yes.

This book is a lot. Characters keep getting introduced up until the very last chapter, and even if you managed to keep track of all of them, there is still the story and the world and the alliances and the conflicts to remember. Gardens Of The Moon throws you in its world with very little context, but gives you more information bit by bit, and things do start making sense. I felt like I had a pretty good grasp on things up until around 60-65% in - that's when things started getting just a bit too chaotic and grand for me.

The story has a lot of unique elements here that I hadn't come across yet in other fantasy fare. There's a few developments that happen to characters that really caught me by surprise, such as deaths that are actually way more than just a simple death.
As far as fantasy elements go, this combines so many of them. The story has mages, dragons, shapeshifting, gods, puppets, possession,... as well as so many revelations about characters that it can feel very overwhelming. I don't feel I have a good grasp on what is and what is not possible in this world yet.

I am not super into military fantasy or just fantasy that is very epic and big, unless everything is revealed a little more gradually. This might start making more sense in the rest of the series though.
I however enjoyed the arcs of some of the characters and even though they were many, they all had a role to fill and had something interesting going on, which is a pretty rare feat.

Apparently when it comes to the Malazan series, in order to give it a fair chance you'd have to read the first 2-3 books, and I am eventually going to check out the second one. Right now I am not convinced I will read the entire series, but I am still intrigued enough to at least give that one a try.

and so begins my foray into what many in the book community have referred to as... the ultimate epic fantasy masterpiece, unrivaled in scope.

this first book was...not very good lol. erikson doesn't trouble himself with trifling norms such “character development” or “world building”, at least not this early on in the series. some folks have referred to these basic writing features as “hand holding” but to me, it's simply good story telling, and it's very lacking here.

i didn't feel attached to any of the characters. the book insisted that some characters went through development that is completely absent from the text. for example, what the hell happened to Paran from the prologue and how does he become such a gritty lieutenant in the first chapter, despite having come from a noble family? this bugged me so much lol, i really didn't like how we were just expected to take at face value that he's this hardened military man now, who for some reason can handle seeing horrifying scenes of carnage without batting an eye, unlike his superiors. maybe we'll find out in later books? who knows

What a rewarding endeavor! I knew as soon as I originally finished the series a reread would be in the works, and oh boy! was that fun. Erikson has an unbelievable grasp on his world and it's much more apparent with some insider knowledge. Seriously considering following the suggested Ultimate Reading order...

One hears so much about this series, so I thought I'd give it a go on audiobook (given it's length).
There are a ton of characters and the story drops you in without a single explanation of anything. I found the Malazan Wiki an invaluable resource to keeping things straight in the early going, but then you get a pretty good sense of the characters and it seems like it went really quickly.

Looking forward to the 2nd installment.

Fantasy at its best. At least, for me.

Grand, so very grand. It's almost like a “history novel.” I was craving something more... impersonal compared to what most modern books are. Gardens of the Moon has less focus on characters, and more focus on power, empire, and gods. I love how dark the book is, not just in tone either. You really never know what's coming. Erikson simply doesn't satisfy your curiosity, instead always leaving you wanting just a little more. The retained sense of mystery did wonders to keep me engaged throughout the whole book.

After reading Gardens of the Moon, I have a new standard for what I expect in fantasy. It is with a tinge of disappointment that I recalibrate my expectations, since other books will certainly not be able to meet this standard. Nonetheless, Gardens of the Moon is incredible and awe-inspiring, and I am now a devotee of the Steven Erikson cult.

Most certainly one of the most intricate and genius plots I've ever encountered in all my reads. I have no comprehension as to how a human mind can weave so many characters and moving pieces together. After about 150 pages this turned into quite the page-turner for me, with every chapter and sub-chapters (for lack of a better word) being a new element or twist to the plot. At times I felt a sense of the character depth and complexity I look for in my 5-star reads, but other times I felt the characters were chess pieces to aid the plot. Even though I was definitely confused at times by character names or word choice, (or even by two sentences that rereading didn't resolve), I overall followed the events and thoroughly enjoyed this book.

This is the first book in a 10-volume series (eight of which are currently published). It's an epic fantasy spanning a world and with a myriad different characters. There are several maps, lists of dramatis personae, and glossaries to help you navigate this intricate world. It would be daunting to someone new to the fantasy genre, and on someone less so to a fan (like me).

Until relatively recently, I resisted getting involved in multi-volume fantasy series – at least those that expand beyond a trilogy. But that all changed when I started George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series (4 published, 3 to come). Got hooked there. I also got hooked on Jim Butcher's Codex Alera series (I've read 2 of 6 so far). Erikson has been compared to Martin because both are not afraid to kill off main characters (both good, evil, and somewhere in between). But these three, Erikson, Martin, and Butcher all have very different writing styles. Erikson's style is less straight-forward than the others. With Martin and Butcher, following the plot and the character's motivations doesn't tax your brain. But there is so much going on in Erikson's world. It's a little much at first but then a third of the way through this book, it begins to get clearer. And his use of sorcery in the story is heavy, detailed, and fascinating.

It's a strange place – maybe not as strange as China Mieville's Bas-Lag, but wonderfully strange all the same. And the characters are wildly diverse as well. But they could use some more fleshing out. Of the two dozen or so that I followed through this tale, I was only getting a clear picture of four or five of them. But I found the whole thing to wickedly engrossing. I love some of the weirdness he puts into this tale, like, for instance, a sorcerer who ends up having his soul transferred into a marionette. Think Chucky with wizardly powers. In this series the Malazan empire is hellbent on world domination but that is neither easy nor assured. Who knows how long it will take me to get through this series, but I'm looking forward to doing so.

One thing I gotta add is that Jeez Laweez, but these Malazan covers (US versions) are cheesy-looking! I mean, look at this one, is that guy sporting a mullet?! Sheesh. And, Book 3 looks like it may have the worst cover. I'd be embarrassed if I cared enough.

**Second Read Review**The second read was much more enjoyable than the first because I was able to pick up on nuances of the story much better. I was more prepared and actually slowed down. I have a habit of skipping whole paragraphs that just include description. With this book I needed make sure I read every word so that I wasn't missing something. Thus, I was able to pick up more this time around. I liked more characters this time around and the story held my attention. I am starting [b:Deadhouse Gates 55401 Deadhouse Gates (The Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2) Steven Erikson http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51VJH2TSVHL.SL75.jpg 3898716] now as I want to see where the series leads me. Which is quite a step up from what I thought in my review from my first read. I'm not going to change my rating as I still believe that “I liked” the book but I believe that other books in the series will get higher ratings.**First Read Review**Intense but good. After reading this book I felt like a re-read is a must after reading the whole series. Many times I was confused about the storyline, but I believe that there was a reward at the end for soldiering through it. I don't think I could read this whole series one after the other, too intense but I will get through it. This is not a book that you can just zip through, I believe that my “speed reading” hurt me while reading it. When I read the other novels in the series I will be more attentive off the bat, I missed too much of the nuances in the beginning. I do love the fact that this series is completely different than what I've read in the past. Eriksen's voice is refreshing, new and challenging!