Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson

"I killed him," Squint moaned. "... Who took the man's life? A broken old soldier of the High Fist's arm-- Oh, Beru, have mercy on my soul..."

Duiker wrapped the old man in his arms and held him fiercely. The bow clattered on the platform's wooden slats. The historian felt the man crumpling against him as if his bones had turned to dust, as if centuries stole into him with each ragged breath.

Commander Blistig gripped the bowman bu the back of the collar and yanked him upright. "Before the day's through, you bastard," he hissed, "ten thousand soldiers will be voicing your name." The words shook. "Like a prayer, Squint, like a Hood-damned prayer."


Well, I'm officially a fan of Erikson's absurdly ambitious epic. The scene above is from the intense climax of one of the book's five main storylines. I can tell you that just retyping the passage gave me goosebumps. Erikson is brutal with the fates of his characters, and this scene was particularly heart-wrenching.

Deadhouse Gates' plot is a bit more simple to explain than Gardens of the Moon. The book takes place immediately after the events of Gardens, and follows five main archs that occasional interweave with one another. The storylines are as follows: Kalam is an assassin with plans to strike at the very heart of the Malazan Empire. Crokus, Fiddler, and Apsalar are on a journey to return the latter from wartorn Genabackis to her quiet fishing village. Icarium and Mappo are non-human companions of incredible power on an endless journey to escape their own pasts. Felisin, Heboric, and Baudin are escapees from an Imperial mining camp simply struggling to stay alive. Duiker is the Imperial Historian, following the Malazan Army's death march through the wastelands of the Seven Cities. All of these storylines take place amidst the backdrop of Dhryjhna, the Apocalypse. A whirlwind of rebellion, both figuratively and literally. And that's not even to mention the Path of Hands, a background storyline in which shape-shifting demigod's battle against one another in a misguided attempt to ascend to full Godhood.

I have a hard time picking which of the story archs I enjoyed the most. Icarium and Mappo's relationship is deeply complex and surprisingly compelling. The more you learn about the pasts of these two companions, the more attached to them you become, the more you want them to win out in the end. Which is bizarre, considering their secret is one of unimaginable violence, capable of wiping out entire civilizations. All in all, though, I think Duiker's arch is the most interesting. The Historian follows the Imperial Army's escort of tens of thousands of refugees escaping cities torn apart by revolution. Coltaine is the leader of this army, a man feared by enemies and revered by allies. His will to survive and move forward is staggering and in many ways, he alone is responsible for saving the the lives of the horde of refugees. Coltaine's eventual betrayal by his superiors and many of the refugees he delivered to safety is a tragedy of much greater depth than you might expect to find in a fantasy story such as this one.

Erikson continues to amaze me with his ability to create genuinely memorable characters. High Priest of Shadow Iskaral Pust, for example, is perhaps one of my all-time favorite minor literary characters. Pust is a mischievous little man, completely incapable of internal monologue. This failing is apparently unbeknownst to him, but knownst to us*, as he consistently and inadvertently describes his deepest, darkest motives to the very people he is trying to hoodwink. Even with his cast of hundreds, it's hard to think of even a single, insignificant character to which Erikson doesn't give some sort of depth and soul.

All in all, Deadhouse Gates surpasses Gardens of the Moon in just about every way, which is saying something. The characters are richly painted, the dialogue is fresh and believable, and once again, the mythology of this series continues to blow my mind. Magic (thankfully) plays a smaller role in this book than Gardens but Gods and demigods still play a very important role in the story. I compared the Malazan series to a Homeric epic in the way its Gods interfere with the lives of mortals and Deadhouse only further strengthens that comparison. One scene, in particular, involving a lonely demon, the God of Shadow, and the re-animation of the bodies of thirteen hundred horribly mutilated children was simultaneously grotesque and touching. I again recommend everyone goes out and reads Gardens of the Moon, if only so it will lead them to Deadhouse Gates. After you read Deadhouse, you won't need my recommendation to want to continue the series.

Highlights: The entire "Chain of Dogs" storyline, Gesler and his crew, Apt and "her" adopted son
Lowlights: The meaninglessness of death in this series, Felisin's bitchery, not enough Quick Ben

* A cookie to anyone who can tell me what this reference is from without using google.

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson

The old stones of this road
have rung with iron
black-shod hoofs and drums
where I saw him walking
up from the sea between hills soaked red
in sunset he came, a boy among the echoes
sons and brothers all in ranks
of warrior ghosts he came to pass
where I sat on the worn final
league-stone at day's end--
his stride spoke loud all I needed
know of him on this road of stone--
the boy walks
another solder, another one
bright heart not yet cooled
to hard iron

Mother's Lament
Anonymous

I should preface this review by saying I'm not much of a fantasy reader. Aside from Erikson's The Malazan Book of the Fallen, the only other fantasy series I've ever followed is George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. That said, I like to think I can recognize good fantasy when I see it. The Malazan series is not like anything else I've ever read. Erikson uses metafiction, like the poem I've used to open this review, as well as a number of citations from fabricated histories to create a living, breathing world for his characters to inhabit. A world that geniuinely feels old.

Gardens of the Moon begins what is planned to be the ten part epic, The Malazan Book of the Fallen, chronicling the events of a brewing civil unrest threatening to tear the Malazan Empire asunder. As much as I wholeheartedly recommend this book, it's far from easily accessible. Erikson employs a third person narration that jumps back and forth among dozens of characters across any number of parallel timelines. This is not a book that holds your hand. Erikson throws the reader into a maelstrom of political intrigue and sorcery. I had to read Gardens much more intently than I'm used to in order to fully grasp all the events of the narrative. Understanding those events' repercussions and the motives of those that carry them out is even more befuddling. In the end, the density of the book only makes its finale more rewarding. I think anyone who completes this undeniably arduous journey will find themselves extremely eager to get started on part two, Deadhouse Gates.

I'll only touch on the plot, as it is too intricate to give an accurate summary. Gardens starts the series on the continent of Genabackis, across the ocean from the Malazan Empire's capital. It tells the tale of the Empire's seige of the last two Free Cities of Genabackis, Pale and Darujhistan. By the end of the novel, however, events much grander than simple imperialism have been set into motion, with the world itself hanging in the balance. I highly recommend Gardens of the Moon to anyone who loves good storytelling and being swept up in an epic. I plan to start Deadhouse Gates soon, and a review is forthcoming

In terms of writing style, it's hard for me to compare Erikson to anyone else, as I'm not well read in the fantasy genre. I can say that Erikson's ruthlessness with his own central characters fates' is similar to George R.R. Martin's. You really never know how is going to be killed or when. No one is safe, no matter how important you perceive them to the story. In the Erikson's universe, though, death is not always final. Gardens' narration of epic battles and single combat are excellently done, and Erikson's narration of violence reminds me a lot of Clive Barker. One particular scene describing a demon ripping a sorceress limb from limb in the opening chapter was reminiscent of Barker's occasionally grisly Weave World.

I'd like to make a note here about the supernatural aspect of this series. Part of the reason I'm not a big fan of fantasy (also largely why I enjoy Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire) is that I'm not crazy about magic and the supernatural. I'd much prefer to see a character taken down by a clever plot than a "focused wave of blue flame") That said, Gardens of the Moon is loaded with ageless warlocks, dragons, zombies, and hocus pocus... And I loved every page of it. I think why Gardens is so successful, and so appealing to me personally, is that all of the potentially-cringe-inducing, magicians-in-a-magical-world stuff comes across less like something out of Harry Potter and more like something out of Homer. With his clever use of faux-history and incredibly rich character development, Erikson mananges to create his own Malazan mythology. I suppose the comparisons to Homer are strengthened when you start to see Malazan's Gods (or Ascendants) becoming involved in human affairs to suit their own mysterious desires.

Highlights: The intense character development, the mythology of the series
Lowlights: The names are hilariously dorky (Sergeant Whiskeyjack? Honestly?), The way that Erikson assumes you to figure out some (ridiculously complex) things on your own. Also it inspired me to write a review where I use the word "asunder."

*I should note that Gardens of the Moon, while the first book of the series chronologically, is only one of three recommended entry points into the Malazan series. Deadhouse Gates runs on an effectively parallel timeline to Gardens and can also be used for an entry point. The fifth novel, Midnight Tides is another. Each of these novels introduces one of Erikson's three main storylines, which are expected to converge by the series' finale.