Reviews

Midnight Tides: Book Five of the Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson

crash369's review against another edition

3.0

When I started this book, I had a terrible time figuring out where it fit into the Malazan world. Turns out it doesn't. It takes place way before any of the characters (or even their peoples) we know have existed. I would not put it past the author to somehow tie all the events together (maybe a few books later), but for now the whole book seems wildly out of context. Continuing on this theme of confusion is a huge cast of characters with difficult-to-remember names and unclear allegiances. And top all of this off with a plot that builds and builds, but then just ends at the climax. Yes, we got to the big battle, but what about all these characters you've made me keep track of for the entire 1000 pages? What happens to them next?

It's hard to call this a poor book, because its not. But in the end, I feel very little satisfaction or even much enjoyment for having read it

ronercat's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

empoi's review against another edition

4.5

Another Malazan book. Great humor, great characters, great everything. But it feels like work to get to know all new sets of characters again!

asriram's review against another edition

3.0

Still a very strong Malazan book, but there were as many things that I was not as fond of as things I was. After the amazing last book that was House of Chains, Midnight Tides failed to grip me as much. For one, I was confused on the timeline -- for most of the novel, I thought the entire novel was taking place thousands of years in the past, and only realized that it was in the modern era in the last 1/2 of the novel. The cast of characters on the Lethari side was great - Tehol Beddect and Bugg were definite highlights, with Brys Beddect and Shurq Ellaile also being standout characters. However, on the Tiste Edur side, while Udinaas and Trull were interesting characters, the overall Tiste Edur side of the plot was not particularly compelling. The final battle, while compelling, also felt drawn out and like there were too many plot threads that were hastily woven together at the end in a way that felt slightly less than satisfying. Contrasting to the previous book, which handled this better, and I have to say that overall, I was slightly disappointed by the book. That being said, this still was a good read, and I look forward to beginning to read The Bonehunters.

Overall rating: 3.5/5 stars.

krameriii's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

lasagnayo's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

raiju01's review against another edition

5.0

I'm speechless, honestly

First quarter was a bit slow, cause they were all new characters, but maybe around Book 2 it picks up and just escalates. This was an amazing book, my god.

Bro introduced my favorite character 5 books in what (technically last book but eh)

stjernesvarme's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

julianiseternal2024's review against another edition

5.0

This book introduces us to a new continent + new set of characters being 5 books into the series.
Yet it manages to capture my intrigue all the same. Erikson makes the mysterious, chaotic world of Malazan a place you want to spend your time in.

10/10

alesforz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0