...All things considered I think The Crippled God is a fitting conclusion to the series. It would have been impossible to write a novel that answers all questions and it would certainly not have been in style if Erikson had tried. Some things are left to Ian C. Esslemont to explore. His next novel Throne and Orb will no doubt answer some of the things missing in this novel. Personally I don't mind a bit of ambiguity at the end of this series. You can't really draw a line somewhere and tell the reader this is where it all ends on a history as complex as that of the world of Malaz. The finale of this novel is a convergence on a scale we haven't seen before. I must admit I thought the dramatic impact was a bit less than in novels that don't carry the burden of Erikson's enormous cast quite so heavily. It doesn't quite match the ending of Duiker's tale in Deadhouse Gates, or the finale of Memories of Ice, which remains my favourite in the series. Still, for the real Malazan fan this book is a treat. Not that is wasn't clear before this novel but Erikson has just completed a landmark series in the genre.

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