Memories of Ice (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #3) in The Bridgeburners

Feb 24, 2011 Kevin Xu rated it it was amazing

Shelves: re-read, favorites, 35-until-becoming-an-aficionados

This is one of the most EPIC book I have ever read. Scratch that, it is the most EPIC book I have ever read. This book is the PRIME EXAMPLE of how fantasy should be WRITTEN and why I read fantasy. This is why the word, EPIC was created and invented, to describe and sum up this book in one word. The book has absolutely no fillers what so ever. Steven Erikson is the most EPIC writer I have ever read, and this is his BEST book of all time. He is CLEARLY LAPS AHEAD of George R.R. Martin in WRITING S ...more

67 likes · Like · see review

Apr 25, 2010 Duffy Pratt rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, shared-world

First read - 7/10/10 This was easily my favorite so far in the series. There was easily enough in this book for two shorter books, and I sometimes wonder why Erikson doesn't break up his books into shorter chunks. As it is, the books are enormous, and in the previous books, I've sometimes felt either lost or weighed down. That didn't happen here. But I guess the trend of epic fantasy has been longer books and longer series, and if that's so, then Erikson is right up there with the longest and th First read - 7/10/10 This was easily my favorite so far in the series. There was easily enough in this book for two shorter books, and I sometimes wonder why Erikson doesn't break up his books into shorter chunks. As it is, the books are enormous, and in the previous books, I've sometimes felt either lost or weighed down. That didn't happen here. But I guess the trend of epic fantasy has been longer books and longer series, and if that's so, then Erikson is right up there with the longest and the longest.

What sets this book apart is that it had emotionally satisfying endings. Here, not only at the end, but there was also a point in the middle of the book that could have acted as the same (after the amazing siege). Not only that, but after 3000 pages, I feel like I'm really getting to understand some of the characters, and also feel like I have some grounding in the way this fantasy world works.

There's still an annoying tendency to hide information and/or motivations, for what simply seems the sake of hiding it. But I felt that there was less of that here than elsewhere. And in some parts, it became clear that part of the reason for the "hiding" was because the characters themselves don't understand what's going on. One great example was towards the end (Minor Spoiler Coming) when one new "Mortal Sword" has a conversation with another more experienced "Mortal Sword". Part of the conversation is about what it means to be a "Mortal Sword," and ultimately neither one of them have a clue. It was a great conversation, and one of my favorite moments in the book.

Overall, Erikson shows here that he not only has a good sense of tragedy (which was on display in the previous books), but he can also carry off elegy in a very satisfying way. This book has at least four resolutions that I found to be very, very satisfying. The satisfaction came because Erikson seems to be getting better and better at writing characters and making me care for them.

I have some other books to attend to before I turn to the next mammoth volume in this series. But I'm now pretty confident that I will be sticking with this series all the way through.

On Reread: This book was the turning point for me the first time through the series (or I should say the first eight books - I still haven't read the last two). After reading it, I finally became convinced that Erikson had a masterful command of what he was doing. On re-reading, the most I can manage to say is that I'm even more amazed at what Erikson has done. When all is said and done, this series is over 3 million words long. The confusion that I had at the beginning stems mostly from the book being so tightly written. Just imagine what it takes to envision a work that's over 3 million words long and have the main problem for readers be that the writing may be too concise. The mind boggles.

...more

7 likes · Like · see review

Feb 24, 2011 Aaron Singleton rated it really liked it

Shelves: sf, fantasy

Memories of Ice is the third book in the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. This book follows the events in Gardens of the Moon, returning to the continent of Genabackis. All the characters from GotM are back and their stories continue.

Memories of Ice is considered by many to be one of the best, if not the best, in the series. Erikson's writing is much improved since GotM. This book is epic in every way-- the battles are insane, the magic, the races, the meddling gods, the worl ...more

Like · see review

Dec 19, 2010 Asgar rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, five-star

I've read fantasy for a long time, among other genres, but I've never experienced anything quite like this sequence.
It transcends, and it flies high above all else. I can't enjoy any form of entertainment anymore, it just all seems so pale in contrast with this series.
Finishing MoI, much like with Deadhouse Gates, it has left me shattered in every possible way. It drags readers through an aggressive array of emotions. And the narrative is so subtle. The dialogue is incredible.
Nothing compares. ...more

1 like · Like · see review