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Fantasy. Fiction. HTML: Vast legions of gods, mages, humans, dragons and all manner of creatures play out the fate of the Malazan Empire in this first book in a major epic fantasy series from Steven Erikson. The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting and bloody confrontations with the formidable Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii, ancient and implacable sorcerers. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the bloodshed, yearn for some respite. Yet Empress Laseen's rule remains absolute, enforced by her dread Claw assassins. For Sergeant Whiskeyjack and his squad of Bridgeburners, and for Tattersail, surviving cadre mage of the Second Legion, the aftermath of the siege of Pale should have been a time to mourn the many dead. But Darujhistan, last of the Free Cities of Genabackis, yet holds out. It is to this ancient citadel that Laseen turns her predatory gaze. However, it would appear that the Empire is not alone in this great game. Sinister, shadowbound forces are gathering as the gods themselves prepare to play their hand... Conceived and written on a panoramic scale, Gardens of the Moon is epic fantasy of the highest order�??an enthralling adventure by an outstanding new voice. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.… (more)
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Having said that, I remember that, my first time through Gardens of the Moon I came away thinking “this is a pretty good story set in a really confusing universe.” I recently started a re-read of the entire series to date, and the second time around I came away from this book thinking, that while it is slow to get going (and the weakest of the series, so far at least, and I have pretty much given up on worrying that Erikson is going to start slumping now), it’s still a very entertaining story that provides a tantalizing introduction to this amazing world.
Any new reader is going to struggle a bit with being thrown into Erikson’s massively complex world with only a listing of dramatis personae and a bit of a glossary. Erikson’s paints on a really big canvas, giving us many layers to unravel in many areas: geography, races, history, geopolitical structure, physics, magic system, etc. This first book of the series is one where the new reader is going to have to pay close attention, re-read passages from time to time, and accept that quite a few things about this world are simply not going to make a whole lot of sense for a few books. I don’t have a problem with any of that.
Some people have complained that Erikson keeps pulling bigger and badder-ass magic out of nowhere in a way reminiscent of a novice RPG master, but I don’t really see it that way. This is a world where both the elder races and the ascendants are much more powerful than man (not that they don’t have their own weaknesses and challenges to worry about). It’s a good thing for humanity that, with the exception of the occasional Jaghut Tyrant, they’re all generally much more interested in their long-standing conflicts with each other than in dominating us puny lesser mortals (although they’re clearly not above using the occasional human as a pawn).
This book does have weaknesses beyond simply having a complicated setting. The introduction almost feels trite. Some of the writing is choppy and confusing. The Battle for Pale, Parran’s visit to Hood’s Gates (if anyone can explain to me where exactly his sword came from I would appreciate it), and Tattersail’s immolation still leave me confused after multiple re-readings.
The geography also at times seems not to make sense (or maybe it’s more fair to say that the map and the world don’t always match). Lake Azur doesn’t seem anywhere near big enough to support a substantial water-born merchant trade complete with privateers. And how can each of the four levels of Darujhistan, from highest to lowest, all be immediately adjacent to a Lake?
The characterization also takes quite a while to really draw you in. To the extent that the book has a single protagonist you’d have to say it is Ganoes Paran. I find it hard to warm to Ganoes much, especially in the first two thirds of this book (i.e., up until his fateful meeting with Anomander Rake). We’re told that he’s a good guy (rather than being shown that he’s a good guy). Much of what he says and does feels unconvincing (including the strange little romance with Tattersail).
In a book that constantly bounces back between storylines and characters it inevitably takes a while to get to know everyone. The Bridgeburners are likable and easy to root for. It is easy to sense that Quick Ben, Whiskeyjack, and Kalam are going to be the real stars of the series. And while it takes a while for Sorry to evolve into more than Cotillion’s pawn, I found her an intriguing and ultimately empathetic character. The supporting characters are generally quite strong. The Phoenix Inn regulars are a likable lot, with the mysteriously powerful and deliciously funny Kruppe stealing just every scene he pops into. Characters like Anomander Rake, Hairlock, Onos T’oolan are all original and memorable.
And while it takes a while to develop much momentum, the story does start to come together nicely about halfway through the book, building tension and keeping you turning pages. Erikson gives us a few of the brilliantly inspired scenes that will mark the series going forward (my favorite being Paran’s brief visit inside Dragnipur). And as the multi-layered (and at times confusing) story moves towards its multi-layered (and at times confusing) conclusion, we can tell that this is an author who is going to be well worth reading.
In some respects, this is a fairly traditional high fantasy. The narrative takes place in the context of a continent-spanning military campaign. Empires contend with plucky rebels; mages mix with thieves and assassins; humans tangle with ancient gods etc.
It sounds pretty rote, but Erikson's execution is so... audacious for a debut fantasy novelist. Gods run riot through Gardens of The Moon, powerful but constrained. Dead lich races contend with insectoid warriors, and elves weave complex plots from a flying mountain. This gallimaufry of conceits yields originality without the quotation marks and "look at me!" quality that can permeate some New Weird fantasy. Oft-times, I was so swept up in the action I didn't stop to consider the sublime hyperbole of what I was reading until long after.
These febrile imaginings wouldn't be enough to sustain the novel, however, if they weren't put to servicing a complex, enjoyable plot. For an eight-hundred page book, Gardens of The Moon rarely felt like a slog, and there's little of the filler - like journeying from place A to B - that fills all too many doorstop fantasies. Though it regularly jumps from character to character, I found all the disparate plot-lines sustained my interest equally and I was neither to sorry to see them go, nor too eager for their return.
Much has been made of this complexity. All the negative reviews I've read lambast the book for dropping the reader into a story already in motion with no assistance or explanation. Fie to that, I say. Gardens of The Moon doesn't pander to its readers, certainly; it has the temerity to treat them like adults who can read for comprehension, are capable of dealing with ambiguity, and don't need to be spoon-fed mental pap like literary geriatrics. If you read at all outside the genre, and messianic stableboys are likely to inspire homicidal urges, you will be fine.
Refreshingly for this style of fantasy, Erikson eschews chauvinism. Gardens of The Moon is full of great, powerful characters or every gender (and race), and they make for interesting and usually likable protagonists. With such a large cast, he's not averse to relying on stock sometimes, but the rug is always waiting to be yanked when you think you have someone pegged. More frequently, some of the more powerful characters remain ciphers at this early stage - but again I think a little bit of ignorance can be a tantalising, attractive thing.
More importantly, I think Erikson understands something precious few epic fantasy writers do: it's not just world-ending and bending that's the important thing at stake _for the characters_. This understanding propels both small plots and large; a person's interior journey resonates just as or more strongly than external ones - and in some cases propels them.
Granted, Eriskon is doesn't bring the literary style or thematic depth of someone like Guy Gavriel Kay - but then, neither did Kay with his first books. What Erikson does bring, though, is superlative, exciting fantasy, that doesn't insult the reader's intelligence, latch onto tired cliches, or rely on endless pages of travel, enchanted commoners, simpering women, or gratuitous violence and sex. I don't know about you, but that's enough for me - more than enough.
From the get-go the book is very unique, and it's one of those things you'll probably either love or hate. We meet tons of new characters in a world we've never experienced, filled with complex politics and even more complex magic systems. As confusing as this can be, it's certainly better than a three page infodump.
The first 200-250 pages are nothing if not complicated. By the end of the first part, I was finally beginning to see what was happening, and by page 300 I was utterly immersed. The plot is unformulatic, filled with twists, and expertly handled by Erickson, who obviously can write.
Trying to sum up the plot of this novel is difficult, so I won't try. It's original. That's all you need to know.
GARDENS OF THE MOON is a fantastic read, gaining momentum as it goes until the climax (which you wouldn't think is possible, based on what comes before it), which is utterly superb. Can't wait for Book Two.
This is one of those series in which everything is gray, and there are multilateral angles to the story with no good side or an evil one, except possibly the Empress Laseen (whose story we don't know yet). There are lots of political and social undercurrents; unlikely alliances and truces; a world where no faction ever trusts another.
And then there is action. Truly unconventional, amazing action. What more can one expect? Needless to say, I will be diving into Book 2 soon.
4/5
The problem is that, in order to get excited by a story, I need to become emotionally invested in the characters first. But that just never happened for me here. So many people traipse through this tale, crossing and recrossing each other's story lines, that I just kept getting lost. Who is this, again? Who is he with now and what are they doing? Never mind that there doesn't seem to be a single likable character in the entire mix. I just can't keep them all straight long enough to bond with any of them.
So many of these characters seem to be interchangeable. There's a group of wizards, and a group of soldiers, and another group of wizards, and some thieves and some super-wizards... Most of the players in any one group seem completely indistinguishable from one another, and even characters from different groups seem equally depthless and banal. The magic system seems vague, and yet all powerful. I can't even tell how many races there are supposed to be, because it's not always clear whether this new "group" being mentioned is a race, or a religious order, or a nationality.
The first time I tried to read it, I got about 20% in and bailed. But I've read so many good reviews that I decided to give it another shot. This time I got 98% of the way in - I reached the freaking climax! - and I was so confused and so underwhelmed by the big finish that I just folded up my tent and went to watch some TV instead. If a 500 pg book can't hold me during the last 50 pages, when it is purportedly paying off that 450 pg investment, there is something seriously wrong.
A number of people have told me that it really starts coming together in book 2 or maybe book 3, but I'm just not willing to wade through 1000 or more pages of confusing crap to get to the good stuff. And frankly, I have a hard time believing there's anything in the future other than more confusing actions being conducted by interchangeable cardboard characters that I have come to loathe. So why on earth would I want to keep reading about them?
Erikson's universe is huge in scope, and while you don't get the full extent of it in Gardens, you can come to understand the vastness that Erikson fills out into during his later books. The book focuses on the expansion of the Malazan empire across the continent known as Genabackis, and how their weary army trundles onwards, from battle to battle, city to city.
This book serves mostly as a setup for the events that follow, but it introduces many characters that become prevalent throughout the books that follow, in particular Ganoes Paran and the Bridgeburners. The Bridgeburners are legendary in the second army, and prove to be very likable characters. They're tough soldiers who have been put time and time again into bad positions, and their options suddenly aren't looking that great. The other half of the book focuses on the inhabitants of the 'lone jewel' of the continent of Genabackis; Darujhistan, and how their lives come to interfere with those of the Malazan soldiers.
Gardens of the Moon is a tragic tale of war, and all that war entails. It does not shirk from the destruction and death that occur during the pursuit of conquest, it shows a somewhat gritty tale of soldiers just trying to get from one day to the next.
After a backstory prologue (essential reading) and an initial backstory chapter (also essential) that take place on different continents than the map that's provided, we get to the heart of the matter: the Malazan Empire is expanding, waging a military campaign in Genabackis. We're joining the story when only two significant strongholds remain defiant, and in short order we're introduced to a number of overlapping subplots involving players from a wide range of various factions and races (human, non-human and immortal). Towards the end, these threads come together in a powerful series of climactic events that extend for more than a hundred pages and that will leave you exhausted. I've not been so captivated since discovering Martin's "Ice and Fire" series (but fans of one won't automatically be fans of the other.)
The trouble with such a simple summary is that it mistakenly suggests GotM is conventional. There's a breakneck pace in this marathon of a book, and more factions and races than can be categorized into a simple good and evil schema. Seemingly throwaway lines can become surprisingly relevant. Very soon, if you're paying attention, you realize that 'throwaway' doesn't really apply here. That even includes the short poems prefacing each chapter, which all have something important to say (and might be your only means of acquiring some of the information.)
It's definitely impressive, although a book can't be made this dense for plot and pacing without sacrificing something. There are descriptive passages, but they're generally short and even those contain telling details. Gone is the flowery scene setting you're used to, normally intended for atmosphere rather than to convey information. The book's greatest weakness, for its demand on patience from readers, is the initial flatness of characters for lack of introducing them in immediate detail. Instead their facets are revealed to us in pieces at a time, gradually evolving into three dimensions over the course of pages and chapters.
The sheer density of GotM requires patience, absorption, and no skipping or skimming. The language is straightforward and it isn't actually a difficult book to follow and enjoy, provided you treat it with respect. If you don't "get it" on your first attempt, do some preliminary Internet research to help you sort out this world and its people, then try again. With moderate effort, any fantasy fan can find the magic that GotM has to offer and lose themselves completely in the rhythm and depth of this enormous beginning to an enormous story.
Parts were really good; parts were really sloggy. I really like some characters; I really dislike others. I hate books that have huge infodumps, but this one....it could have used a few.
The aspect of world-building leaves something to be desired. A good part of the problem may be because there are so many names and places and events being tossed around, willy-nilly. The places are so huge that I wondered if the author really knew what a 'league' was. The structure of the magic is only brushed upon—apparently the "warrens" (sources) the mages use have specific flavors/abilities, but that is not reflected in what the mages do with their magic. It is amazing to have so much magic going on and still not really know what happened.
The writing style... goes from 'fair' to 'atrocious' to 'funny.' The characters exchange inside jokes the readers have no way of understanding—or make references to things that make no sense to us outsiders. Was there an editor involved in this process? There are misused words, repetitious words/phrases, terrible punctuation, wildly awkward sentences that never will make sense no matter how often they're reread...
And yet...
The revelation of vast powers at work, political and military maneuvering, and tiny glimpses into the lives of pawns of every social station was just enough to keep me turning the pages, wondering how (and if and when!) problems would be solved. The whole is complicated emotionally by having points of view from the side of the conquerors as well as those being conquered. I've heard that the second book involves the characters better, as opposed to laying out the draft of the juggernaut empire. Here's hoping...
This is an author and a series that cannot be appreciated without a re-read. Coming back to this after having read through Toll the Hounds (book 8) I have great admiration for the author and enjoyed the first book quite a lot. Compared to the later books, Gardens of the Moon is restrained in scope yet is rich in both character development and foreshadowing. It does a great job in setting the stage for the rest of the series.
The first time I read through this series I felt that Ganoes Paran was the main character, if you can say such a thing, but this time I enjoyed the genesis of Crokus a lot more, and noticed the care with which Erickson treats this character.
The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting, and bloody confrontations. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the bloodshed, yearn for some respite. Yet
I really punished myself with this book. I’d heard so much about how you have to read it so carefully for detail that I began studying it like an academic text rather than reading for enjoyment, and it ended up taking me nearly a month to read. That...that just isn’t feasible in my world. I don’t have the attention span for it. Once I allowed myself to read it for enjoyment and acknowledge that I’m not going to catch everything the first time through AND THAT THAT’S OKAY, I began enjoying myself significantly more.
Do I want to read something light and fun now? Yes. Do I want to return to the world? I dunno. The fog of the first half of the book is currently hovering over my psyche. I need to remember that I need to be fair to myself and my style of reading, no matter what other people say.
His action scenes were great and full of perfect detail that really allowed me to get into it!
I think there were too many characters, that sort of distracted from the story.
Still, overall I would say it was a good fantasy novel, but not a great one. I am willing to continue reading the series so its good enough to keep me interested.
This is a decent fantasy novel with flashes of brilliance, although it was those same flashes that left me feeling slightly disappointed by the book's end. There are sections of the book with
In contrast to most people I think the story starts better than it ends. The machinations of the Empire up to the fall of Pale are murky and exciting; by the end of events in Darujhistan everything feels rather small time and anticlimactic. It's only at the end we're warned of the threat from the south (and GotM seems to imply only Dujek's men in the whole Empire are aware of this threat - something I find hard to believe unless the Malazan Empire is truly incapable, which would be a flaw in itself) and nothing was really accomplished in this book. I'm certain it will set things up for later but for now it appears as if nothing big has happened except perhaps Character X meeting Character Y.
Regardless, Erikson's biggest problem here, and which makes me worry about the future of the series, is his characterization. Paran is barely likeable - from the very start, in the prologue, he is little better than a snotty brat; when we meet him grown up he remains curt (at best) to everyone and arrogant (an aristocratic trait our "hero" should have left behind). I found extremely little in the entire 700 pages to make me like Paran. In all honestly I wish he hadn't been rescued from Hood's clutches early in the book. Crokus may be slightly annoying as the fantasy cliché "ordinary lad destined for great things" (one assumes), saddled with a rather pathetic and confused romance in this novel, but at least there's an innocence to him that gives you something to like and latch on to.
If the above two are going to be the series leads then I hope Erikson develops them enough to improve them significantly. The supporting cast in the story is, by comparison, pretty good. The Bridgeburners, the Darujhistan lot, the Moon's Spaw group, are all much more likeable and interesting. Kruppe is the best of the lot and probably the only really memorable character in the book (although others have the potential to advance). Adjunt Lorn ends up a sorry character. Her doubts about the mission seem unrealistic and a clumsy piece of moralising and / or attempt at sympathy; a feeling enhanced by the way she later discards her doubts. If the Claw is really all that then I find it hard to believe that Lorn would have risen so high if she weren't sufficiently convinced of her role. If Erikson had spent a bit more time on developing his characters and not moving many different story arcs along at a pretty fast pace then Lorn's doubts could have been made to seem more believable. As it was, the writing didn't convince me.
My other major concern with this book was its ratcheting up of, well, shall we say "power levels"? There's so much talk of great beings, that are capable of such destruction (wasn't the Jaghut potentially able to enslave most of the Genabackis continent?) and we've already seen some of them and witnessed most of those we have seen either completely defeated or damaged. One does wonder where the series can go from here, especially for another nine books. What can be the great fear that keeps this series running? I'm curious to find out and a little worried at what the answer will be. My feeling is Erikson should have done what Glen Cook did in the Black Company novels and keep the great powers that exist in that world at arm's length. But, then again, this is much more "epic" fantasy than the Black Company so we'll have to give Erikson his chance.
Overall, despite my criticisms here there was still a lot to like. As said, the supporting characters were good, the world building is very nicely done and the writing was, for the most part, better than I was led to expect. Significant flaws also, as I've mentioned, and that's what means this isn't as exciting a first instalment as the likes of The Blade Itself or A Game of Thrones but it's also by no means bad enough to prevent me from carrying on with these tales of the Malazan Empire.
My main problem with this book is that Erikson appears to have no internal governor or external editor and, so, we end up with a volume that just spews ideas at the reader like a fire hose. It felt like every fifth page introduced some new race, or a new type of being, or a new secret brotherhood, or a new system of magic, or a new...whatever. All lovingly described in intricate-yet-vague detail. The result is that it's hard to discern what is important to the story and what is just some cool-sounding term or idea that will make a momentary appearance because it crossed the author's imagination and then be dropped from the tale.
There's a corollary to this type of thing that you often see: once you toss in too many ancient powers (there are copious qualifications of things as "elder"), gods, omnipotent sorcerers and unstoppable assassins, all opposed to each other, you've only got three choices. One is a quick Armageddon—however, that doesn't lend itself to an 11 book series plus several novellas. Another is a stalemate due to mutually assured destruction—but that's kind of boring for a story. The third option...and the one chosen here...is a series of rather anticlimactic checkmates where a threat fizzles due to some Achilles Heel or the intervention of yet another new power. For example, we spent a significant portion of this book fearing the return of an eldritch entity of continent-destroying power, the Jaghut Tyrant, only to have something called an Azath (no real idea what that is) suddenly just appear on the scene to imprison it. Huh?
The disappointment with the above is that Erikson actually writes rather colorfully and with a lot of excitement. There is some good world-building, some great characters, and an exciting story line hiding amidst the chaff. If you like works such as Glen Cook put out, something here will resonate with you. I want to keep reading this story. But, I really don't want to slog through another forty-eleven "cool" ideas packed around it. I think I'm done with this series.
First I will go over what I liked in this novel – the writing. Steven Erikson has a way with words. I had read a couple of reviews saying the opposite – harping on Erikson for using the same few uncommon words over and over. I simply found this to be untrue. His language use was beautifully dark and sinister. At times I felt I was reading an epic poem instead of a novel. His style of writing is not something you can learn so much as it is part of his nature. I envy writer’s with this gift.
What some people may not like, but I can appreciate is the twisting maze full of dead ends, shifting corridors, and nasty traps Erikson guides his readers through. Some folks like this style of writing as it challenges them to stay on their game as they turn each page. Other people tend to want an easy to follow story where they can just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. Erikson has given us a glossary at the back of the novel which will come in very handy to those falling in the first category. If you fall in the latter, I would not recommend this book.
Now on to what I did not care for in the story – the characters. Erikson’s large list of main characters was quickly introduced to us and all of them (save for one who talked in the third person) appeared exactly the same to me. By this I mean their mannerisms were identical, their language was too similar. Even their thought processes were unoriginal, focused solely around their own survival in a world out to destroy each of them in a very personal way – all the while they were indiscriminately killing other poor souls who crossed their paths. There was no real buildup – fast or slow – explaining what defined the characters and the actions they took throughout the book. I was simply thrust into the middle of the story and expected to pick favorites based on what I still am not sure.
As an aspiring writer myself, reading Gardens has taught me that a great book is nothing without its characters. Prior to reading Gardens, I had been focusing too much of my own plot-lines around the story I want to tell, rather than character development and getting my readers invested which is the real reason they keep turning the pages.
The question now is: “will I continue on with this series?” I believe I will as I have read reviews saying book two is much better than its predecessor. If you have read it, what do you think (see Poll)?
Overall I give Gardens of the Moon 2 out of 5 stars, but who am I to say you won’t love it?
Steven Erikson's characters are great; the reader is thrown into his world from the off, expected to follow along with who's who and what's what, and while this is initially disconcerting, I realised it was part of the experience Erikson was trying to create - confusion and
I have to say I think Erikson has the edge over Martin for me. It took longer for me to get into the Malazan world, but once I did, it was a total conversion and a revelation. The first book - Gardens of the Moon - is inferior to the rest of the series in terms of writing; and Erikson just throws you into the action, with nothing explained at all. It's a little frustrating at first, but stick with it. Whatever you do, don't give up before the end of the second book, which I know is a big commitment - but totally worth it. Erikson is an archaeologist and anthropologist and (like Ursula Le Guin) uses his scholarly knowledge to good effect in his books. The level of magic used is *much* higher than in Martin; there's no use pretending you're reading anything other than fantasy.
I remembered it as a massively complex, deeply interwoven book that starts one way and then twists expectations and ends up somewhere very different.
Of course, because my expectations were different now, and I've read the next four books in the series too: as I write I'm
The prose is pretty dense, the world
Many seem too powerful to have wound up in their situation, too. There are super powerful magics wielded by thousands of year old gods and mages in blunt, rather stupid ways, yet I'm supposed to believe that there are really many levels of subtlety behind their actions. It's not working for me, though.
It might be a better story if I could really devote the time to it, possibly even read it a couple of times. Not happening. Some friends of mine certainly think it's a wonderful series, but they also say it's extremely epic (long, complex, & full of loose ends) & this book isn't as well written as the rest. I have too many other books I want to read.
I've given Erikson a fair shake at hooking me, but he didn't do it & I'm sorry for that. If he'd concentrated on developing a few of his characters a little better & quicker, then moved on to expanding the world, I think I could have gotten into this. As it is, there is too much confusion & I don't care about anyone, so why bother wasting more time?
It takes a couple hundred pages to lay the foundation but once it does things really get going. I almost put the book down when I hit the second section and a second deluge of characters and information was introduced, completely separate and seemingly unrelated from the first portion of the book. I'm glad I stuck with it. This book has it all: war; magic; gods; assassins; politics; mystery; betrayal; loyalty. It offered a different twist on typical fantasy elements that I enjoyed. Erikson leaves several things for his readers to figure out as certain things are left deliberately ambiguous, which I also enjoyed. I may pick up other books in this series, especially if they feature Wiskeyjack and crew.