Reviews

So, Malazan book 4 starts in a far more linear fashion and follows a single character for quite a period of time, which is unusual for this complex, complicated and at times almost impenetrable series of novels. But never fear, the multitude of characters and frequent changes in points of view intersecting both within this novel and with those preceding it, appear in due course. All the storylines are interesting in their own right. That and the massive and incredibly imaginative world of these novels is, I think, respectful of the readers intelligence and more enjoyable as a result. Attempts to actually understand the bigger picture are futile in general, but there are tiny glimmers of understanding appearing now…the best approach appears to be to let it flow over you and with time and persistence, comprehension will follow.

dylan_markiewicz's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

projectmemo's review against another edition

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4.0

This is pretty much a direct sequel to Deadhouse Gates. We follow the same characters - plus a few new ones - and all of the remaining storylines from that book get wrapped up here. The characters definitely grew on me after spending more time with them; though I still prefer the characters from books 1 and 3.
Of course we also get the iconic "wtf is going on" moments, but as opposed to the previous book where those moments get woven into the plot, in this book they happen with characters that are completely unrelated to the rest of the characters. Which is my main gripe with this book because not knowing what is happening with an entire character is not much fun, and while I'm sure that storyline will get explained later on, going back and forth to that plot felt a bit jarring, especially because every other character in the book is part of the main plot.

melx91's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

cosmicpootz's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned just ask the whirlwind goddess.

Content Warnings

thatbookisonfiyah's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Good, but not my favorite group of characters

Memories of Ice has become one of my favorite fantasy books of all time. An absolute masterpiece. House of Chains, however, was a struggle for me. I enjoyed the opening book with Karsa Orlong’s story, but then I struggled with the rest of the novel. Erikson is a great writer and his background in anthropology shows through his work, but I could not get connected to this group of characters. This group is just not the same for me as Whiskeyjack, Dujek, Anamander Rake, or even Coltaine and Duiker. I continue to enjoy the series and will definitely continue with Midnight Tides very soon!

pluviojim's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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