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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
This is the first book in the Malazan Book of the Fallen series that I have not given a 5-star rating. This one, like Memories of Ice, took me an exceptionally long time to read, but unlike with Memories of Ice, I don't feel like this one paid off as hard as that one did. I didn't dislike this by any means, but it wasn't as good for me as previous installments.
The Good:
-Karsa Orlong. WITNESS the glory of this badass dude as he starts off as an infuriating asshole that ticks just about every one of my boxes of hatred...and then turns it the fuck around with no cheesy ass redemption arc. Karsa don't need no stinking redemption arc to grow! His character arc was so well done and quite subtle and I enjoyed it a lot, especially because of how insufferable he was at first. Good on Erikson.
-Pov's I enjoyed (other that late game Karsa): Pearl and Lostara Yil, Fiddler, and Kalam. I was thrilled as always to see Quick Ben up in here too, as he is still my all time and absolute fave.
-The various reactions and fallouts from Memories of Ice to the remaining Bridgeburners. Fiddler made me tear up a bit, not gonna lie.
-The bromance of Trull and Onrack. Erikson is amazing at a bromance.
The Bad:
-The ending of certain subplots had me really let down. I was expecting a reveal that didn't happen, a meeting that didn't truly take place, a conversation not had, and a battle that ended before it had begun. Felt a bit built up for nada.
-Karsa in the beginning. I get why it happened, and we cool now, but UGGHHH insufferable. That's a long, uninterrupted time in page-count to spend with someone you can't stand.
-Pacing issues had this one taking me forever and dragging ass in some parts, especially when chess pieces were just moving multiple scenes in a row.
The Ugly:
-Quite a bit of ugly up in here. Trigger warnings for rape, non-consensual body modification, and genital mutilation. I am thrilled this person gets their comeuppance, and it is definitely not glorified, but holy shit. Definitely take caution before diving into this one.
As I said, this was by no means bad, I just feel a little underwhelmed coming off of three 5-star reads in this series in a row. No biggie though, I'm still having an amazing time with this series, and I'll, of course, be continuing on with Midnight Tides relatively soon. I will be taking a break just so I don't get burned out.
The Good:
-Karsa Orlong. WITNESS the glory of this badass dude as he starts off as an infuriating asshole that ticks just about every one of my boxes of hatred...and then turns it the fuck around with no cheesy ass redemption arc. Karsa don't need no stinking redemption arc to grow! His character arc was so well done and quite subtle and I enjoyed it a lot, especially because of how insufferable he was at first. Good on Erikson.
-Pov's I enjoyed (other that late game Karsa): Pearl and Lostara Yil, Fiddler, and Kalam. I was thrilled as always to see Quick Ben up in here too, as he is still my all time and absolute fave.
-The various reactions and fallouts from Memories of Ice to the remaining Bridgeburners. Fiddler made me tear up a bit, not gonna lie.
-The bromance of Trull and Onrack. Erikson is amazing at a bromance.
The Bad:
-The ending of certain subplots had me really let down. I was expecting a reveal that didn't happen, a meeting that didn't truly take place, a conversation not had, and a battle that ended before it had begun. Felt a bit built up for nada.
-Karsa in the beginning. I get why it happened, and we cool now, but UGGHHH insufferable. That's a long, uninterrupted time in page-count to spend with someone you can't stand.
-Pacing issues had this one taking me forever and dragging ass in some parts, especially when chess pieces were just moving multiple scenes in a row.
The Ugly:
-Quite a bit of ugly up in here. Trigger warnings for rape, non-consensual body modification, and genital mutilation. I am thrilled this person gets their comeuppance, and it is definitely not glorified, but holy shit. Definitely take caution before diving into this one.
As I said, this was by no means bad, I just feel a little underwhelmed coming off of three 5-star reads in this series in a row. No biggie though, I'm still having an amazing time with this series, and I'll, of course, be continuing on with Midnight Tides relatively soon. I will be taking a break just so I don't get burned out.
15th of February, 2018.
Wasn't as sad as the other 3 books but somehow it was even worse.
Wasn't as sad as the other 3 books but somehow it was even worse.
An entry that ends very abruptly but is still better than 90% of what's out there. Spoilers below of couse.
House of Chains is the 4th installation in Erikson's epic and felt to me like he was trying to subvert expectations. The first three books taught us to expect a sprawling ensemble and a plot that only becomes apparent in last the third of the book. But in House of Chains we spend the first 270 pages with a single character: Karsa of an ancient race. On his quest we see him cross teh seas and plenty of this felt like an Elric of Melnibnone reference.
Something that never worked from me from the beginning was believing that Karsa would entertain the idea of joining the Crippled God. He is nothing if not dogged self-belief whereas the CG relies on characters who feel trapped or losers and manipulates them. He misjudged Karsa. Karsa is an excellent person to follow because he's so brutal and dogged. Erikson sets him up such that you wan his bluffs to be called and you want him to fail - but that's not what happens at all. Instead we watch as Karsa joins Shai'ik and with it we rejoin the characters from Deadhouse Gates.
The book absolutely feels like a direct sequel to DG and I wonder what the experience is of reading it directly after instead of going to Memories of Ice. As it was I had to go back and read my character notes and a few plot synopses because I couldn't remember a lot of the finer details from my DG reading last year.
After Karsa joins the rebellion the book progresses like a typical Malazan book.
Overall though this is a build-up to the Paran sisters coming to clash.
And here's where the structure deviates again.
In all prior Malazan books the last 100 pages or so have been reveal after reveal in an epic battle with brutal losses. But here? Here it's a bait-and-switch. All the setup of the rebellion, the efforts of Leoman to remove the threat: all come to naught as the goddess abandons Felisin and she is cutdown as she reaches for her sister. That was a very nice piece of writing. Made even better by the fact that Tavore has no idea what just happened - yet.
The final 100 pages felt very confused. I think what happened is that the Bridgeburners ascended and rallied all of the dead souls of Raraku to fight for Malazan - against the Whirlwind. And this because Raraku was annoyed that the goddess had stolen their water in her plot? And now the desert is being flooded? Did I get that right?
One of my final notes from this book sums up the reading experience: Lostara and Pearl have uncovered Felisin's fate, Kamal has found the Hounds of Dark, and Apsalar has discovered Shadows plan, maybe, Fiddler has gotten one over on them, and we got some lore drop on the Tlan UMass and the Nameless Ones. The Azath would seek to capture the Imass if they got the throne? Or just paranoia. So many threads to keep track of. How the hell Erikson keep this straight? Writing is great.
This, more than any of the prior books, feels transient. So I am compelled to pick up book 5. This is not quite as good as the previous books because of the style and plotting choices but it's still incredible. I have no concerns about continuing.
House of Chains is the 4th installation in Erikson's epic and felt to me like he was trying to subvert expectations. The first three books taught us to expect a sprawling ensemble and a plot that only becomes apparent in last the third of the book. But in House of Chains we spend the first 270 pages with a single character: Karsa of an ancient race. On his quest we see him cross teh seas and plenty of this felt like an Elric of Melnibnone reference.
Something that never worked from me from the beginning was believing that Karsa would entertain the idea of joining the Crippled God. He is nothing if not dogged self-belief whereas the CG relies on characters who feel trapped or losers and manipulates them. He misjudged Karsa. Karsa is an excellent person to follow because he's so brutal and dogged. Erikson sets him up such that you wan his bluffs to be called and you want him to fail - but that's not what happens at all. Instead we watch as Karsa joins Shai'ik and with it we rejoin the characters from Deadhouse Gates.
The book absolutely feels like a direct sequel to DG and I wonder what the experience is of reading it directly after instead of going to Memories of Ice. As it was I had to go back and read my character notes and a few plot synopses because I couldn't remember a lot of the finer details from my DG reading last year.
After Karsa joins the rebellion the book progresses like a typical Malazan book.
Spoiler
Alongside the Whirlwind characters we follow Tavore and her response to the rebellion, Loren the redblade shadow-dancer and Pearl the assassin are on the trail of Felisin at Tavore's request, there's a band of Tlan Imass looking for renegades that have made a deal with the Chained God, the Tlan Imass throne is under seige (and we learn that shadowthrone carries that name for a reason), Crokus and Apsalar are back for a little bit as is Cotillion - they encounter the traveller and lots of Tiste, we learn that Shadow and Dark are different things and that they are all related to warrens. There's a Tiste Eidur and an Imass travller. Karsa goes on a sword/horse sidequest and finds another Azath house with a woman growing as a tree. He also liberates some Jhag in a warren, which feels important but is instantly forgotten.Overall though this is a build-up to the Paran sisters coming to clash.
And here's where the structure deviates again.
In all prior Malazan books the last 100 pages or so have been reveal after reveal in an epic battle with brutal losses. But here? Here it's a bait-and-switch. All the setup of the rebellion, the efforts of Leoman to remove the threat: all come to naught as the goddess abandons Felisin and she is cutdown as she reaches for her sister. That was a very nice piece of writing. Made even better by the fact that Tavore has no idea what just happened - yet.
The final 100 pages felt very confused. I think what happened is that the Bridgeburners ascended and rallied all of the dead souls of Raraku to fight for Malazan - against the Whirlwind. And this because Raraku was annoyed that the goddess had stolen their water in her plot? And now the desert is being flooded? Did I get that right?
One of my final notes from this book sums up the reading experience: Lostara and Pearl have uncovered Felisin's fate, Kamal has found the Hounds of Dark, and Apsalar has discovered Shadows plan, maybe, Fiddler has gotten one over on them, and we got some lore drop on the Tlan UMass and the Nameless Ones. The Azath would seek to capture the Imass if they got the throne? Or just paranoia. So many threads to keep track of. How the hell Erikson keep this straight? Writing is great.
This, more than any of the prior books, feels transient. So I am compelled to pick up book 5. This is not quite as good as the previous books because of the style and plotting choices but it's still incredible. I have no concerns about continuing.
"Oh mother, look at us now."
best character writing and emotional moments of malazan so far. I didn't like deadhouse gates and didn't expect to like this. this is the best malazan book by a LARGE margin so far. can't wait to read more.
best character writing and emotional moments of malazan so far. I didn't like deadhouse gates and didn't expect to like this. this is the best malazan book by a LARGE margin so far. can't wait to read more.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
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:
Complicated
Always so good. Erikson is a master of storytelling, specifically endings.
Liberazione dalle catene
"E il mio ritorno? A Raraku, il deserto che mi ha visto cadere e poi risorgere, una rinascita che persiste, perché malgrado la mia età non sembro né mi sento vecchio. E così è per tutti noi Arsori di Ponti, come se Raraku avesse rubato parte della nostra mortalità, sostituendola con... con qualcos'altro."
"Il cuore non viene dato né rubato. Il cuore si arrende."
"Allora che cos'è questa sporgenza alla quale mi aggrappo con tanta disperazione? Perché continuo a credere di potermi salvare? Di poter tornare...e trovare ancora una volta il luogo dove la follia non ha radici, dove la confusione non esiste.
Il luogo...dell'infanzia."
La sopravvivenza passa attraverso infanzie rovinate, tradimenti dettati da inclinazioni naturali - non lo è anche la deliberata scelta di abbracciare il male? - e rimpianti da cui fuggire disperatamente.
Siete il guerriero eletto, chiamato a gran voce affinché la verità abbia la meglio sulle vostre leggende?
Siete il sergente derelitto di un manipolo di altrettanti uomini demotivati, sbiadite ombre di esistenze senza più stimoli?
Oppure il testimone silente del lento disgregamento della vostra comunità, vittima inconsapevole di un potere più grande di se stessa?
Non ha importanza.
Nessun eroe, solo tante esistenze dedite alla sopravvivenza.
Il quarto tomo, duole ammetterlo, è molto sottovalutato persino dagli aficionados di vecchia data.
Eppure la storia, lenta nel prendersi i suoi tempi per predisporre i pezzi sulla scacchiera, si avvale di un'atmosfera spietata e compassionevole; indecifrabile per larghi tratti, ma al solo scopo di squarciare il Velo di Maya quando si giunge al cospetto della verità. La Casa delle Catene, in tal senso, è rivelazione del nuovo e riscoperta del conosciuto: da qui incomincia ufficialmente la storia.
E se lo sguardo della conoscenza passa dagli occhi dell'implacabile Karsa Orlong delle Pianure Teblor, menzioni meritorie vengono guadagnate non solo dalla storia d'amore dei due assassini sotto l'Ombra, ma anche dal circolo autodistruttivo dell'Apocalisse tra le sabbie di Raraku.
"E il mio ritorno? A Raraku, il deserto che mi ha visto cadere e poi risorgere, una rinascita che persiste, perché malgrado la mia età non sembro né mi sento vecchio. E così è per tutti noi Arsori di Ponti, come se Raraku avesse rubato parte della nostra mortalità, sostituendola con... con qualcos'altro."
"Il cuore non viene dato né rubato. Il cuore si arrende."
"Allora che cos'è questa sporgenza alla quale mi aggrappo con tanta disperazione? Perché continuo a credere di potermi salvare? Di poter tornare...e trovare ancora una volta il luogo dove la follia non ha radici, dove la confusione non esiste.
Il luogo...dell'infanzia."
La sopravvivenza passa attraverso infanzie rovinate, tradimenti dettati da inclinazioni naturali - non lo è anche la deliberata scelta di abbracciare il male? - e rimpianti da cui fuggire disperatamente.
Siete il guerriero eletto, chiamato a gran voce affinché la verità abbia la meglio sulle vostre leggende?
Siete il sergente derelitto di un manipolo di altrettanti uomini demotivati, sbiadite ombre di esistenze senza più stimoli?
Oppure il testimone silente del lento disgregamento della vostra comunità, vittima inconsapevole di un potere più grande di se stessa?
Non ha importanza.
Nessun eroe, solo tante esistenze dedite alla sopravvivenza.
Il quarto tomo, duole ammetterlo, è molto sottovalutato persino dagli aficionados di vecchia data.
Eppure la storia, lenta nel prendersi i suoi tempi per predisporre i pezzi sulla scacchiera, si avvale di un'atmosfera spietata e compassionevole; indecifrabile per larghi tratti, ma al solo scopo di squarciare il Velo di Maya quando si giunge al cospetto della verità. La Casa delle Catene, in tal senso, è rivelazione del nuovo e riscoperta del conosciuto: da qui incomincia ufficialmente la storia.
E se lo sguardo della conoscenza passa dagli occhi dell'implacabile Karsa Orlong delle Pianure Teblor, menzioni meritorie vengono guadagnate non solo dalla storia d'amore dei due assassini sotto l'Ombra, ma anche dal circolo autodistruttivo dell'Apocalisse tra le sabbie di Raraku.
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated