Bonehunters by Steven Erikson

Let me start by reiterating that this is probably hands down the most intricate ambitious and engaging fantasy series I've ever read. Erikson has pushed the boundaries of the genre with this work in terms of world building, characters and intelligence of writing without sacrificing pace and engagement. It's so refreshing not to be patronised by a book, and for this the reader forgives the sometimes confusing mountain of sub-plots and characters, moreso than when George RR Martin throws in random POV characters in his series (especially in that fourth book!).



After the prequel theme of Midnight Tides, Bonehunters drags us back to the current day. Picking up the story threads from House of Chains (an astonishing book, and perhaps one of the strongest) we rejoin the Fourteenth Army suppressing the 7 cities rebellion. The 14th, with Kalam and Quick Ben, pursue Leoman of the Flails north to a city famed for its grim history to the Malazans. Elsewhere we catch up with Icarium and Mappo; with Cutter and Heboric; and with Trull Sengar, and Onos. Throw in Ganoes Paran taking a more active role, and Apsalar totally kicking arse, and the sub-plots begin to swell. Everyone's favourite barbarian Karsa (witness!) gets plenty of attention, and it's fun working out how all their paths will cross and un-cross, and how we pick up threads from Midnight Tides to form one ongoing narrative (rather than the three plot arcs of the first half of the series).
So what's good about this book, in the context of the series. We get some significant plot advancement with regards the Empire, the various imperial armies, some of the key characters (such as Icarium, Karsa, Ganoes). The Edur really emerge as utter bastards, their ethics tainted by Rhulad and his master, the Crippled God. It's quite a stark jump from how we left them in Midnight Tides, and I hope it'll be expanded further in Reaper's Gale.


The big feature of this book is the gods becoming far more involved in the scrap. Erikson has had gods butting in all the way along: thus far Shadowthrone, Cotillion, K'rul, Crippled God, Oponn, and the ascendants. This book, however, we get a much more definite feel of their personal involvement. Poliel, and Soliel, are newcomers and key to the book, we get loads of Shadowthrone and a much more sympathetic version of Cotillion. A bunch of others pop in, and the primordial spirit, Eres' Al, whose relationship to Bottle (a superb character) is fundamental to the book.


I'd previously rallied against the Grecian-style hidden gods in Erikson's work, especially in Midnight Tides where it felt that Erikson pulled a god out of the bag to resolve several plot crises. I've no huge problem with it, as long as it's not used too casually to diminish the very real drama and tension the mortals undergo. Erikson needs to tread carefully with it.


There are some genuine stand out scenes in here: Y'Gbatan, and the escape; Ganoes 's trip across the Jhagut underworld; Icarium unleashed; and the astonishing scene with Kalam, Tavore and T'Amber in Malaz City. Superb pace and writing, and absolute page turners, which in a series as complicated and convoluted as this is admirable. I think what I'm trying to say is that despite the mounds of info here that Erikson can still crank up the pace and action pretty much unlike any other current fantasy writer.


Any down sides? Although there was a central story (the resolution of Seven Cities, the return to Malaz City, and the binding of the 14th), the numerous other side-plots (Edur, first throne, gods warring, Icarium's past, etc etc) made the book feel, perhaps for the first time, like a filler. I suppose that was inevitable, when you are into the second half of the series. And unlike book four in GRRM's Song of Ice and Fire series it's 'filler' that never drags: I continually wanted to know what was going on with the huge cast of characters.
So, top marks again, with the aforementioned caveats.

Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson

Midnight Tides is the fifth book, and thus the half-way point, in the Malazan series of epic fantasy novels. It is also unusual in the series in that it is set before the first four novels, and focuses on a new continent and a new conflict. Given that Erikson’s first book, Gardens of the Moon, jumps in part of the way through the story of the Empire, I suppose we shouldn’t be too surprised!

Midnight Tides gives us the back story to the Tiste Edur, one of the three Tiste races we have been gradually introduced to over the last four books. The Edur, unlike their more sophisticated Andii and Liosan cousins, live a more tribal life in the cold north of the continent of Lether. We’d met them previously as washed up bodies in Memories of Ice, and in more detail in House of Chains both through Trull Sengar and also during the attempt to reclaim the Throne of Shadow from the mobile island, Drift Avali.

Trull Sengar by Slaine69

At the start of House of Chains, Trull Sengar was ‘shorn’, exiled from his race in the fragment warren The Nascent, by his brothers. One of the key plot threads in Midnight Tides tells of Trull’s background and his relationship with his three brothers, all of which pop up live and dead in the rest of the series. Trull is a likable character, more pensive and ethical than most of his kin, and an uneasy participant in the escalation of war between the Edur and their capitalist neighbors, the Letheri. The Edur become ruled by Trull’s brother following a mission to retrieve a mystical sword forged by the Crippled God. Rhulad is a fabulous creation, an impetuous youth corrupted by sorcery and ultimately insanity—and the image of him with gold coins soldered to his flesh is one of the most evocative in the book.

 Rhulad by artist Puck

Running parallel to the Edur story line we have several others. Amongst the Letheri we have three brothers who provide the opposite viewpoint on both the war and the Letheri Empire. That at least two are seeking its ruin gives us an idea about its inevitable decline. I loved the detail that Erikson throws into the society, almost as a caricature of the materialist nature of the First World. The Letheri measure value by debt, and that debt may be inherited for generations creating strata within their greed dominated culture.  The most fascinating of the characters is Tehol, a business genius with deep running morality, and a very  amusing man-servant, Bugg.  The interplay between the pair provides the main comedy in a book deep in tragedy.

Naturally, as is Erikson’s style, the main plotline (of war between Edur and Letheri, creation of an Empire, the machinations of the Crippled God, and the effects on two sets of brothers) is underpinned by other racial sub-plots and more fleshing out of his intricate milieu. It can become distracting, not least during the often confused finales to his books but afterwards I often reflect upon the richness and complexity. So in Midnight Tides we have ascendants trapped from ancient days trying to get free, demons and tribal gods, another Forkrul Assail popping up (as one did in House of Chains), and the mention of Holds—a precursor version of Houses.

Art by Laurent Saint Onge

It all creates a very readable story with strong bold characterisation in places. The downside of Erikson is that the characters often feel diluted by their number, and although I loved the key characters of Trull, Rhulad, Tehol and Bugg, they came at the expense of a number of others. Some of the supporting characters were fun, notably the undead Shurq, Udinaas  the possessed slave, and both the Crimson Guard and the Ratchatchers’ Guild. But with such a vast selection the inevitable fatalities at the end of the novel don’t seem to carry the same weight.

Art by Laurent Saint Onge

Finally, and this is a minor quibble, Erikson has a bit of a habit of sneaking gods amongst men. In the earlier books, where the Ascendants were characters (like Anomander Rake, or Caladan Brood, Shadowthrone etc) it felt okay. But in this book we have a few gods sneaking around as humans and abruptly revealing powers at opportune moments. As funny as it seems, I do worry it is a little lazy and hope he doesn’t overuse the tool through the rest of the series.

Art by Laurent Saint Onge

So, all in all, a good book in an excellent series and I look forward to getting back to the main plot with book 6, the Bonehunters.

House Of Chains by Steven Erikson

House of Chains was the first of Erikson's series that I hadn't read previously, having previously lost momentum on the third book. So in many ways it was a good tester as to whether I've got into the series, and got on top of its intricate plot lines. And by and large I think I'm managing well, perhaps with occasional trips to Wikipedia. 

The story continues on from the rather misery laden finale of book two, with events also following book three (which ran in line with Bk2). You'll recall that Felisin, younger sister to Ganoes Paran (now master of the deck) and Tavore, adjunct successor to Lorn, has become the focus of the revolt of the 7 cities called the Whirlwind. She names herself Sha' ik, and is partly possessed by the Goddess of the  Whirlwind (which is a fragment of a shattered warren). With the ex-priest of Fenner, Heboric, she is part of a rather disparate pack of revolutionaries comprised of warlocks (two of whom are nasty pieces of work), a traitor Fist, and tribesmen. One of her bodyguards, Karsa Olong, becomes a key character and his somewhat grisly story occupies the first chapters of the book and throw some sense on prior events, not least in the Nascent. This fragment of warren also introduces us to the Tiste Edur, Trull Sengar, and latterly the Tiste Liosan. There's more with the undead warriors, the T'lan Imass, and some plot lines on how they've influenced various cultures.

Image from Deviant Art http://slaine69.deviantart.com/art/Trull-and-Onrack-148690529 

One such cultural influence is on the Teblor, and we find gradually about this sub-species of  thelomen toblakai that are essentially huge barbarians, like Bharghast, or Trell. Erikson's anthropology comes to the fore here, as it does when we get some strange almost time travel scenes later in the book.

Image from Deviant Art http://slaine69.deviantart.com/art/Karsa-the-Toblakai-206542715 

It'd be easy with all the background to stifle the book with history and legend. Erikson avoids this in the main part, although there are sections in which the info dump gets too heavy handed. His main virtue is writing down to earth falable characters, and interacting them with gods and epic heroes. I found greatest interest in former Bridgeburners, Kallam and Hedge, and to a lesser extent, Pearl and Cutter. Hedge definitely carries a good part of the book, and given Erikson's habit of doing a George RR Martin I did read his chapters with anxiety. Yet Erikson clearly likes writing his foot soldiers caught up in the epic struggles, and didn't start bumping off characters I like! 

As a book it reads well, with enough pace to keep the reader engaged. The resolution had the typically chaotic finale that Erikson likes, as he illustrated in book 3 especially. Plenty of floating plot threads and story arcs are ongoing, although I think book 5 is a sideline into the Tiste Edur. Looking forward to it fleshing out the world a bit more.

Steven Erikson: Memories of Ice

The third book of Erikson’s incredible series marks the point where I slipped away from the books about six or so years ago. It’s tricky with such a hefty series to keep momentum, and it coincided with me getting into more classic fantasy authors such as Vance, Zelazney, Moorcock and Anderson. But having completed book three I’m avidly now reading book four, enjoying the ping-ponging between story threads and characters. 

Memories of Ice picks up the story not long after Gardens of the Moon’s epic finale, and follows many of the characters from that book—namely Whiskeyjack and the Bridgeburners; Kruppe, Colle and Murillio; Toc the Younger, and Tool, the T’lan Imass. The new characters of Gruntle and Stonny, and the Grey Swords, notably Itkovian, are given sufficient page space for us to begin to care about them—always a risk when your dramatis personae runs to five pages! 

The gist of the book is the uneasy alliance between Commander Dujek Onearm, Whiskeyjack and Captain Paran, with the Malazan army, and the forces of Caladan Brood, and Anomander Rake’s Tiste Andii. They unite due to the concern of the Panion Domin, a fledgling coastal empire with cannibalistic troops, and mysterious links with an Elder race, the K’Chain Che’ Malle (bet he got sick of typing that). The tone of the book is similarly brutal to the prior one, with fairly full on violence, slaughter and warfare. The scenes involving the assault on Capustan are remarkable yet disturbing, and would it ever be filmed it would make Game of Thrones seem rather tame (as far as war scenes would go anyway). 

What really made the book for me, however, was the progression of the back story arc of the Chained God, and the marked fleshing out of Erikson’s world. From the origins of the T’lan Imass, to the revelations about Rake and his dreaded Stormbringer-esque sword, to the Deck of Dragons and the creation of houses, this book really aids the understanding of the milieu. The gods feature heavy in this book—Fener, K’rul, Hood, Burn, Trake, Togg and Fanderay. The manipulations of the mortals, their forms and their actions creates a very epic sense to this instalment, yet for me Erikson doesn’t lose track of the personalities and emotions of the characters. The impact of the horrors of war, and the sense of duty against all odds, is explored and although Erikson’s dialogue and humour can feel a bit clunky at times, there are some wonderful sections of fantasy prose. And, as with the prior two books, there is no patronising the reader—the book is unapologetically intricate. 

So onto book four, my first ‘fresh’ one for years, in the hope I can pick up the nuances and backwards-forwards timelines that have knitted the first three together. Totally recommend anyone reading the books, but be aware it’s a fair commitment!

Latter two images by JK Drummond, who you can check at http://www.jkdrummond.com 

Deadhouse Gates by Stephen Erikson

The second instalment of Stephen Erikson’s epic Malazan series was a re-read for me, having first read the book in close succession to Gardens of the Moon perhaps six or seven years ago now. I’d read them in my return to fantasy literature following a good decade of reading other genres, alongside the first three Songs of Fire and Ice, the first Farseer book by Robin Hobb, Scott Lynch’s Lies of Locke Lamora, and the first two Dragonlance trilogies. 

 Erikson’s book compares well against them all. He strikes a good balance between dark mature fantasy and accessible narrative. He’s easy to read in terms of structure and dialogue, yet doesn’t shy from a remarkable intricate and complex world. The world in question has a history of hundreds of millennia, with ancient races and immortal protagonists (called Ascendants) and superb magic systems. No surprise that it evolved as a setting for his (and Esselmont’s) role playing game—many aspects (the magic, the elite groups of characters, the demons and monsters) are very DnD-style. So naturally, he’s on a winner with me. 

 The book establishes a parallel storyline to that created in Gardens of the Moon. There are some characters who journey from GotM into this book, acting as a continuity of the narrative, and then a host of new characters sufficient to make you spend many hours flipping back and forth to the dramatis personae. 

Essentially the book is set on the continent of the Seven Cities as the natives begin an uprising against the Malazan Empire referred to as the Whirlwind. There are at least five definite plotlines interweaving through the book. Firstly, we have Kalam, Fiddler, Crokus and Apsalar from GotM, initially travelling to return Apsalar home, but then getting caught up in the initiation of the Whirlwind. Naturally, Kalam, as a super-assassin, has another mission in mind, part of which involves locating a house of Azath (which we saw at the finale of GotM in Darujhistan). 

 Secondly we have two new characters, Mappo and Icarium, whom I must say I really loved. They are wanderers, Icarium being a half-Jhagut and thus near immortal, and Mappo being a Trell assigned to accompany him. They find that a convergence is due on Seven Cities of races of shape changers, and they are investigating the source of this (which ties in with the first plotline quite neatly). This ‘Path of Hands’ is a way in which the shape changers may seek immortality (i.e. Ascendancy). 

 Thirdly we have a disparate group of prisoners sent to work in the otataral mines north-east of Seven Cities. The key characters are Felisin, who is the younger sister of Ganoes Paran (from GotM) and the new Adjunct to the Empress, Tavore, and Heboric, a former priest of the war god, Fener. This plotline is quite a disturbing one as Felisin compromises more and more to survive, and becomes a difficult character to warm to and empathise with. 

 Fourthly, we have a veteran soldier turned Imperial Historian, called Duiker who is attached to the new Fist, Coltaine, in the northern city of Hissar. Coltaine is a horse-barbarian who previously fought the Empire but is now subsumed into it. He takes command of the Malazan 7th Army and leads a convoy of refugees across the entire desert continent towards safety in the city of Aren. It is this plotline that is the backbone of the novel, with the other plotlines dipping in and out the events along the way. 

 Against all of these plotlines are the rich complex history and the concepts of interfering gods, intricate magic, and ancient races. What I like about Erikson is that he doesn’t pander to the audience or indeed patronise them. He cracks on with the story as if you are totally familiar with his milieu, and indeed the fact this was my second reading of the book was a great help!! He manages to tie seemingly disparate plotlines together without resorting to naff coincidences or deus ex machina. The reference to past events allows a construction of a sense of history and past in the narrative, adding to the realism of the setting. 

 Any criticisms? The abundance of characters makes characterisation tricky, and even the more frequent POV characters (Kalam, Fiddler, Duiker, Felisin) struggle to develop. In truth, only the latter two make any ‘journey’ of sorts as characters, and neither particularly cheerful ones. The dialogue can feel stilted at times, but that’s not peculiar for fantasy novels, and the occasional episodes of humour revolve mainly around banter. In fact, the tone in this book felt far grimmer than the first book, possibly because we were lacking any lighter characters (such as Kruppe and the guys from the Phoenix Inn, and the Eighties-action-movie banter of the Bridgeburners). It never gets to the exhaust-in-car levels of George RR Martin, but it teeters on the edge of unrelenting for most of the book. As is increasingly common in modern fantasy we have increasingly morally ambiguous characters, treading a fine line between hero and anti-hero, but Erikson writes them well and offers out characters with moral integrity to anchor the plot (for me: Fiddler, Duiker, and Mappo). 

 The series continues in Memories of Ice, which advances the GotM plotline and the characters from that (the Bridgeburners, the Phoenix Inn regulars, and the Tiste Andii), as well as more with regards the Ascendants, the gods and the main story arc of the series (the Crippled God). I’m starting on that after two beta-read/reviews of fellow Myrddin authors: going to be a fantasy summer!!