Introduction thread - always need one of these

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Emma

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Thanks, but I can't take credit, I just helped out some friends who created it a few years back. None of them are very active anymore, so I sort of keep an eye on the place.

[John]

Hi, I'm John. Starting Gardens of the Moon again (4th time), but taking notes this time. Never made it much past halfway (losing track of who is against who, and even who BECAME , much less good vs evil). I haven't made it past page 400 on any of the three previous attempts, but I am enjoying the book, and not getting frustrated.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Well, there aren't any real clear cut sides in this one..

Welcome John. Best of luck on your fourth attempt. Hopefully the discussion threads help.

[Lee, High Priest of Shadow]

Have to admire your persistence. Using this group will help you with questions you might have as we discuss each chapter at length. We were strict on spoilers as well, so it is safe to use.

[Glenn]

I recently started this series for the first time, about 1/3 of the way through Gardens of the Moon.

I have found the Malazan wiki to be useful for character and chapter summaries. (http://malazan.wikia.com/wiki/Malazan...)

I'm careful while in the wiki to prevent reading spoilers but in a complex book like this it really helps me to have those summaries.

But the author is great at managing this huge list of characters in my head. What a great read...

[Lee, High Priest of Shadow]

Hi Glenn, you will find that the is chapter by chapter comments here, with all the spoilers tagged.
Enjoy your read.

[Akiva]

Finished The Crippled God this weekend. WOW.

After telling myself I would come up for air by reading something that's not in a series, I began re-reading Gardens of the Moon instead. :D

I have only recently rediscovered fantasy and was pleased to find that the genre grew up with me. Non-fantasy-readers have no idea.

I also enjoy well written world lit, cyberpunk, and historical fiction. Intend to try my own hand at a fantasy epic/family saga sometime.

[Akiva]

Oh yeah, planning to read the Kharkanas trilogy sometime, especially after finishing Toll the Hounds. But I need to finish Daniel Abraham's Dagger & Coin Quintet before I see him at a con, so I might put off Kharkanas for a bit....

Tried ICE's writing, but it didn't touch my soul the way Erikson's did, so not sure if I'll read his other stuff.

[Luna. ✨]

Hello everyone *waves*

I am Sarah I'm from Melbourne !
I have not read this series but can't wait until I do, so I joined this group so when I'm ready I can read the discussion threads and join in.
Everyone enjoy your day :D

[Lee, High Priest of Shadow]

Waving! Hey you! Welcome aboard.

[Eugenio]

I never really introduced myself before taking part in the NoK group read.

I'm Eugenio, and I'm from Toronto, ON, Canada. I had tried reading Gardens of the Moon a few years ago and it was one of the first books I put back down after 100 pages. The military terminology, hierarchy and the magic (as it turns out warrens) just were too confusing to start cold turkey. After telling a friend I gave up on the book, he scolded me and even told me that the author was Canadian!! How dare I not give a Canadian the good old home town try!!


So I gave it another try, and once I passed the 200 page mark, I was hooked. I read the Book of the Fallen (BotF) in a mad rush last year, not taking any breaks and not regretting it. I was introduced to GoodReads while I was in the middle of BotF, and never really looked around the app/website. Then I found this group, and the Malazan world is that much easier to grasp.

Looking forward to the rest of the group read of the Malazan Empire books.

[Lee, High Priest of Shadow]

Great to have you onboard Eugenio

[Eugenio]

Thanks Lee!! Can't wait to get through the Empire group read! Thanks for moderating it!

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Craig.

[Joanna]

Hi, it's been a while since I had the time to sit and read. Even last year I could not keep up with my book challenge, but now I have a fair bit of time on my hands. After a google search of good fantasy books, I decided on the Malazan series. So far I am thoroughly enjoying GoTM but it is very confusing, therefore I am not power reading, but rather taking my time, checking resources online about characters etc whenever I find myself confused.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Joanna. We have detailed discussions of every chapter. Hopefully you find that helpful. I know I did.

[Trevor]

Greeting fellow Malazans and the like! Very glad to find goodreads as well as this group. I started these books in 2012 and have read the series three times so far. I have tried to read other 'epic/high/military fantasy' as well, to be clear. That said; imho, once one finds Malazan, one has read the best and so... am finding it difficult to read other authors (even Esslemont!). I have read many many other authors, but none approaches Erikson in this genre. Anywho...happy to be hear among avid fans/readers. Looking forward to participating in the many ongoing discussions!

[Ria]

Hello, everyone!
I started reading Gardens of the Moons 3 or 4 years ago, but never finished it. I was somewhere around page 160 and was just beginning to understand what was happening (or at least I thought I was). It was interesting, I loved the dark atmopshere and how despite the not so many descritions (at least I don't remember there being much description), Erikson's style itself gave me a feel of what the world looks like and to this day I still have a pretty clear image in my head (hopefully it's not too far away from the truth). I loved the challenge, but was too busy with school to read peacefully at the time, so I decided to set the book down and continue reading when I can pay more attention to it. I even joined this group to serve as a bit of motivation, but I think this is the first time I've ever commented.

Well, I still haven't finished Gardens of the Moon. But I've been thinking more and more about it for the last few months and I think I'm ready now. I have a few group reads to wrap up before that, but I hope I can start somewhere around march. I'll just start from the beginning again and follow the chapter threads as I go along, hopefully that will clear up some if not all of the confusion.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Trevor and Ria

[Sue]

Hi, my name is Sue! I'm just starting this series and am looking forward to the books and discussions. Or at least, reading about them! Loving the first book so far ....... wish the book had that most excellent map you're displaying on your site .... and also wishing your site map was larger!

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Sue.

[Jared]

Hi, I'm Jared. I first started reading the Malazan series at my brother's recommendation while waiting for the next Wheel of Time book a few years back. I've read the series start to finish twice now. I've also read all of Esslemont's books. If I had the money, I'd get the new trilogy, but that's life.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Hi Jared. Welcome. Maybe you could borrow the new trilogy from the library instead?

[Jared]

I checked there already. They don't have it. I just need to get a second job, then I can get all the books I want.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Craig. Bonehunters is my favorite.

[Slow]

Hello everyone.. finished the core 10 books some time ago and have not been able to pick up any other fantasy series since then.. even though I don't remember all the details, I remember the extreme feelings the stories created.. and that lingering excitement is still strong enough to repel getting involved in any other fantasy world.

I know there are other stories available outside of the main 10 books, but I want to read about Kharkanas and Kellanved next, and those books are not yet complete. So, I started looking for forums where people might be discussing about it.. and thought I would start by saying hello to everyone here.

Any suggestions welcome on whether I should re-read the 10 books or read the already published novels, or take some some other author, then come back to read these. Thanks in advance.

[K]

Hello. My name is Kristen. I heard about Malazan, when I was considering reading Wheel of Time. Someone said that people who like one series don't like the other. I figured I should try both. Seems at least some folks here like both series for different reasons.

I managed to haul most of this series from the end of summer sale at my library, so I'm pretty psyched. A lot of YouTube reviews suggested buddy reading this series especially with someone who has read it before so that you can understand it better. So, hear I am. Wish me luck! 😀

[Aaron]

Good Luck Kristen on your journey. I’m guessing you’ve done your research about Malazan. It’s a wonderful series but it does take some getting used to. About your other point, Wheel Of Time is my favorite series. It has its own flaws but it’s amazing. Malazan is my #2. Great Authors Great Series.

[Graeme]

Hi all. Just started reading this series and looking to discuss it.

[Jared]

Hello everyone!! I'm Jared, and I'm a Malaza-holic! GotM has me tight in its grip, and this group has become the most precious of resources when it comes to after chapter discussion and explanations. You all rock, and I hope to fall in love with this series as deeply as you all seem to have!

[A.L.]

Hello, I recently joined GoodReads and today I finished Toll the Hounds. I've been reading the Malazan books for two years now, and they are pretty interesting. I'm a historian and aspiring writer so the attention to detail that Erikson, an archaeologist puts into his lore and focuses on his characters is fantastic.

[Anwin]

Hey all, active and no-active members. Just popped in to say hi because my 3rd reading of the series is well into the 2nd released book and I should say - AWESOME.

The first time I read the entire series (including Esslemont's) I got the entire picture.

The second I read the series I followed the chronological order. And that gave some great perspective,

The third time I am reading is giving me details. Details baby, details. Can't stop.

I am 99.9999% sure I will have a 4th read too in the coming years so I can focus on the intricate details - real intricate. Can't wait in fact. But will be giving 1-2 years time before I restart.

By the 5th read I will become a High Priest of Malazan and start my own Malazan Church :D.

[Anwin]

A.L. wrote: "Hello, I recently joined GoodReads and today I finished Toll the Hounds. I've been reading the Malazan books for two years now, and they are pretty interesting. I'm a historian and aspiring writer ..."

Hello...you should read faster :D

[Gail]

Wow, the last intro was 2 years ago, so I'm a little behind. I started by reading GOTM in 2015 but put the series down, not wanting to devote all my self-alloted reading time to one series. I picked it up again a couple of years later with DG and immediately re-read GOTM. I finished my first complete re-read almost a year ago, including all the ancillary novels, and find myself referring to quotes, scenes and characters frequently in numerous and variable situations. With the Me Too movement so recent, Erikson's equitable treatment of genders became a rallying cry for me.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Welcome Gail. Not much talking around these parts lately, but I still think the discussion threads are worth a read.

[Nazar]

Hello Rob! Really enjoyed your commentary throughout my read. Just finised tCG several minutes ago. Its crazy that it feels like I read these books together with you all, although I never met any of you in reality!

[Rob, Quick Ben]

Nazar wrote: "Hello Rob! Really enjoyed your commentary throughout my read. Just finised tCG several minutes ago. Its crazy that it feels like I read these books together with you all, although I never met any o..."

Cool. I'm glad you're enjoying them Nazar. It really was an epic group read.

I plan to go back and reread some day and check out all the spoiler tags I skipped over on my first read.

[Connor]

I followed along with the commentary on my re-read and would definitely echo Nazar’s comment. Anyone wondering whether it’s worth following along, I would heartily recommend checking in after (or during) each chapter

[Luiz Fernando]

Rob wrote: "Nazar wrote: "Hello Rob! Really enjoyed your commentary throughout my read. Just finised tCG several minutes ago. Its crazy that it feels like I read these books together with you all, although I n..."

Hello Rob,

I too plan to re-red the books and then check out all the spoiler tags! I am starting Deadhouse Gates today. Each time I finish a chapter, I immediately go to check the threads. It's like if the comments from Rob, Lee, Hanne, David and many others... were part of the books too.

Please, keep the threads online! I could never reach The Crippled God without them.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

So long as goodreads doesn't go anywhere, I don't expect this group or our comments to go away.

I probably wouldn't have made it to The Crippled God without this group read either.

I'm still not sure when I'll have the stamina to attempt a re-read though. I hope you enjoy yours.

[Connor]

Rob, is there a group/thread (if it isn't this one) that we can be added to which will alert us to your next re-read? I've read it through twice, the second time scouring the read-through comments after each chapter to pick up any crumbs. My next one would definitely need to be a group reading!

[Rob, Quick Ben]

I don't think it will be likely for there to be any planned re-reads. At this point I think I'm the only mod left. I haven't talked to the others in years sadly.

[Book Nerd]

Hi, don't know if anybody's still around here. I've been working through the Malazan books this year and really enjoying them. I'm reading Midnight Tides now. It's the funniest book in the series by far.

[Rob, Quick Ben]

The group is not really active, but I'm still lurking around some of the old threads.

Hopefully our past discussions are useful/interesting to you if nothing else.

Welcome and enjoy the rest of the series!

[Nikki]

Tehol and Bugg are hilarious - at first when I started Midnight Tides I was disappointed to discover we had moved to a totally new location, not to mention time period, with an audible groan at the new cast of characters. Didn't take me long to get over it and its now one of my favourite books of the series.

[Anwin]

Midnight Tides first time readers... welcome and enjoy the ride. Like moderator Rob I also lurk this group :-D. Can never get enough of the Malazan world.

And eagerly waiting for the next instalment of the God is not willing series as well.