The Malazan Fallen discussion
Malazan Chatter (General stuff)
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loose threads, but Malazan related
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Gardens of the Moon
Deadhouse Gates
Memories in Ice
House of Chains
Midnight Tides
*Night of Knives
Bonehunters
Reaper's Gale
*Return of the Crimson Guard
Toll the Hounds
Dust Of Dreams
*Stonewielder
The Crippled God
The Forge of Darkness
I didnt really read em in order, just as and when I got hold of em (I mean the Esslemont and Erikson interconnection not the actual publishing order). Now that ive finished em all (so far anyway) I just pick one up every now and then to refresh myself with the story it doesnt really matter which one it is they are great books and get better the more I read em.
May I leave the bridgeburners club? This club will not be associated in any way with that club will it? I joined it in hopes of a resurrection - but I got a whole new club instead!
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:)
sounds logic if the bridge is burned. as long as i don't end up with bruises i'm fine ;)
what should one do if they have fallen?Get up offa that thing
And dance till you feel better
Get up offa that thing
And dance till you
Get up offa that thing
And dance till you feel better
Get up offa that thing
Try to release that pressure
lololand do read the Esslemont...I am halfway through the new one and think it's great!
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I think we need a thread where people video themselves pronouncing the names of the characters and places.
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Me too. I then try to talk with a friend of mine (in real life b/c the internet's obviously not real) and we almost don't know what the other person's talking about. :D
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I always say the former as well and I'm at the point where there's no way to change that. :D
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But I ain't changing now :)
What about T'lan Imass? Is the apostrophe between the 'T' and the 'L' a letter pronunciation or a gutteral stop? Tee-lan or T-eh-lan? Or are both wrong and I've been pronouncing like and idiot this whole time? :D
I've always pronounced it Tlahn, but who knows. You know, unless you've heard SE say it. :)
Lee wrote: "I actually pronounce it Mall-a-zan which I am sure is wrong. I Heard an interview with SE where i am sure he said Mah lay zen.But I ain't changing now :)"
Well you are from Australia, so your way is at least cooler sounding than someone in the states. :)
Well to be fair, I always find dialogue of Malazan soldiers sounding closer to Australian than Canadian/American :P
I found the dialog SE penned regarding the marines to be almost profound. If you've read about the camaraderie of close units in combat found in the works of actual military engagements, these interactions are spot on. His research must have been exhaustive, or he is a great listener and has been exposed to this level of black humor and channeled it completely.
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Not related to this series necessarily, but one of my friends that I talk books with a lot (via chat at work most of the time), generally does audiobooks while I do the text.
His attempts at spelling names he's only heard pronounced can often lead to much confusion and amusing conversations and the 2 of us try to figure out who the other is talking about.
I can only imagine if I convince him to give this series a try what those conversations will be like. lol.
I'm American, so I pronounce everything wrong. :p Just being funny. There's plenty of us who are good with language. Just not me.
Rob wrote: "Seak (Bryce L.) wrote: "I think we need a thread where people video themselves pronouncing the names of the characters and places."Not related to this series necessarily, but one of my friends th..."
Haha, I listen to lots of audiobooks too and I'm always looking up Wikipedia or other reviews to try to spell the darn names! Yeah, this series would be perfect.
bump>>Throughout my reading and viewing lifetime (tastes do change and evolve), some of my many favorite pieces of fiction have evolved into canon (Star Trek, Middle Earth, Conan, Alien, Elric, Jack Ryan, B5, etc.). And some of these canons have produced remarkable coffee table books; compendiums, art, timelines, etc.
Malazan is quickly becoming a favorite world of fiction, but I don't know if one could say it has been canonized. With that in mind:
1). Does a body of work need to be canonized before a coffee table book can be produced?
2). What type of coffee table book would you want to see created first? I'll go ahead and say I would love to see some artists commissioned to create one on the art alone. If one were to create a business plan and really put some thought into the setup of a Kickstarter, this would be a worthy endeavor.
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David Sven wrote: "I wonder how a comic book version of Malazan would work."If a proper staff were assembled, it could be MAHvelous. I recall the MM: Elric comic from the early 1980s that was pretty impressive. A graphic novel would be nice too, but I read somewhere (here perhaps?) that that idea has been tabled, at least for now.
Traci wrote: "I'm American, so I pronounce everything wrong. :p Just being funny. There's plenty of us who are good with language. Just not me."lol! I'm originally a Brit from "up north lass" but married a Kiwi, spending 22 yrs there, where vowels are elongated then 15yrs ago came to live in SE Queensland where just about everyone is an immigrant from somewhere. South Africa, Melbourne, Auckland, Paraparaumu(NZ), Blackpool, Liverpool, Essex, Newcastle. I'm not sure whether I'm helped or hindered by all these influences!!
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Today, Malazan has officially Usurped ASOIAF as Most Awesometacular Series of All Time!! 24 books huh.. I have decided! I shall have a Bookshelf aka shrine dedicated to Steven Erickson.
Had to make the announcement here because only you guys could even begin to understand my feelings right now.
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Dania wrote: "Today, Malazan has officially Usurped ASOIAF as Most Awesometacular Series of All Time!! 24 books huh.. I have decided! I shall have a Bookshelf aka shrine dedicated to Steven Erickson.
Had to m..."
You are my favorite person.
Truly LOL!
She sees the light!! I need to rebuilt my Erickson library... I keep giving Em to people I try to convert... I have bought 5 copies of. Gardens so far! I and 3 of midnight tides! I'm like one of those Mormons! Trying to turn people into Malazanheads!
Fëanor809 wrote: "She sees the light!! I need to rebuilt my Erickson library... I keep giving Em to people I try to convert... I have bought 5 copies of. Gardens so far! I and 3 of midnight tides! I'm like one of th..."Good on you! I have done that a time or two myself, and am responsible for a couple of people becoming MBotF junkies too!
I think this might be an appropriate place for this posting. We'll see. Anyway, over the past few years I've tried to figure out what it is about Erikson's "Malazan Book of the Fallen" and Esslemont's "Malazan Empire" series that I like so much. Now that I'm finally rereading George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series I think I'm finally starting to get a handle on why.I have come to the conclusion that--and please bear in mind that the following is just my personal opinion--that Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series doesn't 'hold a candle' to the Erikson/Esslemont "Malazan Book of the Fallen/Malazan Empire" or Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time" series. Now, why is this so?
I think what it comes down to is my own personal growth and maturity. At this stage in my life (i.e., 57 years old) I find that Martin's ASoIaF series is maybe just a bit too misogynistic for my tastes. Sure, I certainly understand that historically the medieval period was incredibly brutal and cruel, and that Martin's series is kind of modeled on the that period of time. But having said that, I guess where I am now in my life is that while I can read historical fiction and non-fiction and place it in its proper context, I'm just not sure that I really want to have to do that with the fantasy fiction that I am reading these days. Also, it has simply been aeons since I last read most of the ASoIaF series, with A Feast for Crows being the most recent some 6-7 years ago, and now that I am rereading A Game of Thrones I find it just a bit jarring to my sensibilities.
In contrast, it is my opinion that both Steven Erikson's "Malazan Book of the Fallen" and Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series are much more egalitarian in the way that the sexes are treated and characterized throughout, and that simply appeals much more to me these days. Erikson, in particular, is an 'equal-opportunity employer' when it comes to character development. He has women in positions of political, economic, military, and cultural or religious authority; and it all just feels so right and natural. Robert Jordan's WoT series is much the same, as there are women of significant power and depth of character--both good and bad--occupying just as much meaningful narrative time as the male characters.
Like I said, these are simply my personal opinions and observations based upon where I am in my reading life right now; and is, in large part, why I am absolutely enthralled with the fantasy worlds and characters created by both Steven Erikson and Robert Jordan.
Christopher wrote: "I think this might be an appropriate place for this posting. We'll see. Anyway, over the past few years I've tried to figure out what it is about Erikson's "Malazan Book of the Fallen" and Esslem..."I also prefer MBotF and I understand your viewpoint but reading ASoIaF you do have some awesome and strong women who defy their culture and world to be powerful and that is fun too. I am of course thinking of Dany, Cersei, Catelyn, Arya, Breanne all of whom in their way determine their own fate and no longer accept the roles their society would push them into.
I am a WoT virgin and am not going to rectify that for 2 years at least.
@Christopher - I was noticing that lately that Erikson does such a good job keeping the genders balanced. I can't say it better than you did, so I'll just agree. I like reading it because not at any point do I see a "damsel in distress." :)
I would disagree with you just on WoT. Altho he does have strong women, they are depicted in such a shallow way, with their #1 method being annoying to men. The gender politics suck. All of them are pretty power hungry, and in opposition to whatever man is above them in power. Plus, puhlease, Rand is every teenager's wet dream, 3 women in love with him, the 3 women are all so so beautiful, and so so special, and not only that, they are so accepting and love each other! Bleh. However yes, the world of SoIaF is a raper's heaven. Cersei, a powerful woman, is a bitch because she's been scorned by a man. Breanne is trying to be a man. And most of the powerful women are bitches. Except Dany and she needs a man to retain power. I still have hope for Dany tho we'll see what happens. Well, hopefully.
Lori wrote: "I would disagree with you just on WoT. Altho he does have strong women, they are depicted in such a shallow way, with their #1 method being annoying to men. The gender politics suck. All of them ar..."No worries, Lori, as I said it was just my opinion. I respect your observations/opinions about the WoT, and maybe it is just because I have read/reread those books so many times over the past 23 years that I have a comfort level with the characters that I clearly don't have with the ASoIaF series. I do definitely believe that the MBotF is the most intellectually creative and egalitarian fantasy series I've ever read, and my outright favorite.
And I'm sure I'm reacting because I'm very sensitive to gender politics and now that I'm reading MoL it's driving me nuts! lol
It just hit me when I looked at the large map: Malazan is so much bigger than just Genabackis!I didn't realize before, but that's fantastic! I'm even more excited now. To read about all these places...
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I didn't realize before, but that's fantastic! I'm even more excited now. To read about all these pla..."
Oh yeah - there's a small planet's worth of continents
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I love the Malazan universe so much I would be tempted to start it (although the 2nd in the series really has me excited with a title like "Return of the Crimson Guard")