officiumdefunctorum Posted January 15, 2018 Report Share Posted January 15, 2018 Alright, I'm done with Esslemont's books. Finished Deadhouse Landing yesterday, and I definitely approve of Path to Ascendancy, though I find myself wanting to go back and re-read BotF so I can recall all these characters who are important later on. I was listening and was like "Wait, I know that name. Who the heck were they, again?" I think I'd probably enjoy Kharkanus, tbh. I feel like maybe I should do something new, though? (*is reading gardens of the moon, again*) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 16, 2018 Report Share Posted January 16, 2018 Just finished Esslemont's Novels of the Malazan Empire. Next up is Path to Ascendancy, which I'll be starting after this post. My rankings: 1. Return of the Crimson Guard 2. Assail 3. Orb Sceptre Throne 4. Stonewielder 5. Blood and Bone 6. Night of Knives I ranked Assail much higher than most, it seems, but I just really liked it. Naval stuff is always a good time for me and Esslemont does it well. I also really like the Crimson Guard characters especially Shimmer. My favorite scene from all of them combined involved the Wickans and warrens towards the end of RotCG. If you've read it you know what I'm talking about and if you haven't then that's really not much of a spoiler. @officiumdefunctorum Who needs anything else but Malazan? Lol. Other than Midnight Front by David Mack that releases at the end of this month I plan on doing Kharkanas as soon as I finish Path to Ascendancy. Really looking forward to Dancer's Lament if it's as good as everyone says! I'm off to start it now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ammanas Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 (edited) With Erikson writing Kharkanus and Esslemont's new series I think one comment I heard, from a Malazan reviewer, really sums up Esslemonts Path to Ascendancy novels when they said, "Esslemont has made Malazan fun again!" I can't remember where I read that, but his two newest books are probably the most fun malazan novels. Definitely not the best malazan book. I find several of Eriksons books (probably all) to be higher quality and more satisfying. I realize some people may not know what I am talking about between "best" and "fun" but its kind of hard for me to articulate. Edited January 17, 2018 by Ammanas 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 Fun would be a great word to describe what I've read of Path to Ascendancy so far. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officiumdefunctorum Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 Agreed with @Ammanas. I know what you're saying. Now that I'm (resigning myself to) rereading BotF, the gulf between the "fun" Dancer and Kellanved and the ascendants we know in BotF seems incredible. I don't want to say Esslemont is sacrificing character integrity for readability or laughs, but there is almost a sense of rewriting history rather than illuminating it. I know GotM is the Malazan outlier for a variety of reasons, but there are some plot discrepancies between it and Deadhouse Landing that are pretty glaring. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 17, 2018 Report Share Posted January 17, 2018 It’s called GotMism lol 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ammanas Posted January 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2018 So this is really cool via Eriksons official facebook page. It appears that every time he finishes a chapter (for the Karsa trilogy) he will post a picture of the opening epigraph. Here is one he just posted: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 Oooh boy! That fleet clash in BH was every bit as awesome the 2nd time around. i would LOVE to see that on film. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officiumdefunctorum Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 2 hours ago, Briar King said: Oooh boy! That fleet clash in BH was every bit as awesome the 2nd time around. i would LOVE to see that on film. Right? Speaking of second time around, Felisin is just as annoying in Deadhouse Gates as I remember. As much as I'm tempted to skip through her internal monologuing, I love Heboric too much to do so. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 (edited) I actually liked her so much more the 2nd time around in DHG knowing what happened in HoC. It was interesting seeing the transformation but seeing Baudin again was even better. He is one of my favorite characters of the series who I always pictured as Ray Stevenson aka Titus Pullo from HBO’s Rome. oh and James Purfoy aka Marc Antony from same show was always my go to picture for Dancer. im on a roll. Christopher Lee is my Shadowthrone with dark skin. That just fits to me.. Forkrul Assail are the creatures called Hungers in Morrowind but with hair. Mappo/Trells are the big hairy beast from Guy Pierce’s Time Machine movie. Edited January 22, 2018 by Briar King 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officiumdefunctorum Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 (edited) Even with the knowing, she's still annoying me. It's very effectively written. Her story is interesting and, as Erikson would say, filled with "pathos", but I can't like her, yet. On the matter of visuals, I feel kind of bad about visualizing Karsa as Jason Momoa's Khal Drogo... The T'lan Imass are totally Skyrim Draugr, though brownish rather than all gray. (Now I feel like we need a Malazan fancasting thread) Edited January 22, 2018 by officiumdefunctorum 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orlion Blight Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 Facebook spat out this status from 2011: Quote Yay, Apsalar! Yay, Icarium and Mappo! Yay, Karsa beating a short-tailed K'Chain Che'Melle to death! Boo, Crokus, you suck! I also complained that Kiska was only around for two paragraphs, so I must have been talking about Bonehunters. I still think Crokus kinda sucks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 3 hours ago, TheOrlionThatComesBefore said: Facebook spat out this status from 2011: I also complained that Kiska was only around for two paragraphs, so I must have been talking about Bonehunters. I still think Crokus kinda sucks. Not a big Cutter fan myself. Speaking of Not Apsalar, can someone in a spoiler tag or pm remind me what the back story with Telorast and Curdle was? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orlion Blight Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 7 minutes ago, AngelEy3 said: Not a big Cutter fan myself. Speaking of Not Apsalar, can someone in a spoiler tag or pm remind me what the back story with Telorast and Curdle was? I don't think there's much to their back story at the moment. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Just a few pgs away from ending BH. Last night I dug out RotCG thinking it came before RG and I was quite excited to get started on it again as I never finished it the 1st time but then I looked at reading order and saw it should be read after RG. No complaints cause RG is great and I will read Beak a book sooner then I thought I would. rust...BH is fantastic this 2nd time as it was it on 1st. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ammanas Posted January 26, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Has anyone else read the "secret" malazan short story called Goats of Glory? Well its not really secret its more obscure than anything else. I read it a few years ago and thought it was fun, although I am hazy on the details of it. Here is a spoiler free description of it that I found: Goats of Glory is a short story by Steven Erikson, appearing as the first story in the sword and sorcery anthology, Swords & Dark Magic. Although the story does not share any characters or locations with the Malazan novels to date, Steven Erikson has confirmed that it takes place in the Malazan world, "just south of Shal Morzinn on the same landmass as Seven Cities" 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officiumdefunctorum Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 58 minutes ago, Briar King said: Just a few pgs away from ending BH. Last night I dug out RotCG thinking it came before RG and I was quite excited to get started on it again as I never finished it the 1st time but then I looked at reading order and saw it should be read after RG. No complaints cause RG is great and I will read Beak a book sooner then I thought I would. rust...BH is fantastic this 2nd time as it was it on 1st. If I remember the events of RG correctly, certain elements are rather important with regard to the goings on of the Crimson Guard. Makes sense. I'll be honest, though. I'm not sure it benefits the story to mix ICE and Erikson's books. Having read them separately, ICE's books follow a continuous story of its own, one that may have suffered for a lack of continuity if I was reading it as a companion to BotF. Maybe it's a process requiring some experimentation. I've done both separately, maybe I'll do them together, now. I'm nearly done with my DG re-read. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Obvisiously I can’t speak on that issue past NoK in the grand scope of things but reading NoK before BH fit really nice together with people and locations I thought. i would try it if you read both already individually. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Halfway done with Deadhouse Landing. When I'm finished I will have read everything Malazan except for Kharkanas and Bauchelain & Broach. Read 1-10, took a break for Oathbringer and a couple other titles, and then started Novels of the Malazan Empire. I agree with @officiumdefunctorum about the IcE books having their own continuity that could possibly be slowed down or forgotten, but I'll probably still try it for myself. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Who Sharded? Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 I still recommend reading them all in publication order, especially for first timers. RotCG has a big event that is spoiled in Toll the Hounds. I also think as a series, ICE's series is more disjointed than Erikson's. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 (edited) It is decided. After Kharkanas and a new release at the end of the month, I've decided to start over again with GotM. I know we are on the Shard, but I'll be damned if Malazan isn't my favorite fantasy world. Anomander Rake's presence, alone, makes it top 3 for me. Edited January 26, 2018 by AngelEy3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ammanas Posted January 26, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 1 hour ago, AngelEy3 said: I've decided to start over again with GotM. I know we are on the Shard, but I'll be damned if Malazan isn't my favorite fantasy world. I think Malazan is the only series that I can think of that the second read was more enjoyable that the initial one. There is so much foreshadowing, and connections that you will make on the second read it will blow your mind! I think the biggest one for me was in Midnight Tides where (Spoiler for Toll the Hounds) Spoiler Featherwitch does a reading and basically says the Rake will be killed at the end of book 8! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briar King Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Oh how I lovvveee the past sections in prologues. RG has a great one. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelEy3 Posted January 26, 2018 Report Share Posted January 26, 2018 Just finished Deadhouse Landing! Wow. Esslemont's best work yet imo. Off the top of my head I think that on a reread I would most be looking forward to the chain of dogs and the entirety of books 5 through 7. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
officiumdefunctorum Posted January 27, 2018 Report Share Posted January 27, 2018 I'm just looking forward to my second read of Midnight Tides to experience Tehol and Bug, again. They are too precious for words. Tehol is very probably my favorite character. And @AngelEy3, I enjoy Malazan differently than my other favorite, The Wheel of Time. WoT feels very resolved, whereas I could spend days just coming up with more questions and wanting to know more about Malazan, the people, and the history. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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