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A review by ktymick
Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson
4.0
3.5
With Erikson's return to the characters and continent of the first book, the highlight of Memories of Ice is in its introduction and reintroduction of sympathetic faces. Part of the problem of the first book was the Erikson's struggle to break each of his characters out of the one-dimensional portrayal he cast them into. It was mostly forgivable considering the sheer volume of characters he needed to set into place, and with 9 books to go, he has plenty of time to flesh them out. By the end of the third installment, characterization is in full swing, with Erikson penning out an impressive degree of complexity in his long-standing players as well as significant newcomers to the plot.
The main issue of this book was the pacing of the exposition, which seemed to peak halfway through the book at the siege of Capustan. This entire segment of the book was an emotionally devastating look at the savagery of war, and the immense resultant grief that follows in its wake. Erikson deftly sidesteps the archtypical triumphant siege stories readers might expect in fantasy stories (a la Helm's Deep) without sacrificing any of the impact. However, there is then a muddled few hundred pages explaining how the background plot is slowly weaving together, delaying the anticipation for the climactic assault at Coral, which can really only pale in comparison to the Capustan sequence--although it does its best to match its emotional weight by knocking out a few beloved characters in the battle.
But this also leads to another flaw of the book, which is the growing reliance on deus ex machina to resolve conflict and resurrect losses. There exists a sense that just as the gods in this story manipulate the world of mortals behind a veil, Erikson is stringing his reader along with an assumption that he's leading us where he wants us to be. The question, then, is whether we trust Erikson to make the right decisions. Too often is death treated as merely a temporary removal from the game, which thus far has been treated with appropriate respect. But as Erikson continues to obfuscate his world's rules, it becomes hard to understand when we should truly acknowledge an event at face value. Character fates and narrative resolutions are frequently reversed, and its up to Erikson to continue providing apt justification for hoodwinking his audience.
All that being said, the Malazan Book of the Fallen is a demanding series for demanding readers and I'm still intrigued by the world Erikson is unveiling. He's a clever writer and is unparalleled in his ability to create battle sequences that pack a punch. If only Ralph Lister was contracted to narrate the final 7 books, I'd be more excited to start book 4.
With Erikson's return to the characters and continent of the first book, the highlight of Memories of Ice is in its introduction and reintroduction of sympathetic faces. Part of the problem of the first book was the Erikson's struggle to break each of his characters out of the one-dimensional portrayal he cast them into. It was mostly forgivable considering the sheer volume of characters he needed to set into place, and with 9 books to go, he has plenty of time to flesh them out. By the end of the third installment, characterization is in full swing, with Erikson penning out an impressive degree of complexity in his long-standing players as well as significant newcomers to the plot.
The main issue of this book was the pacing of the exposition, which seemed to peak halfway through the book at the siege of Capustan. This entire segment of the book was an emotionally devastating look at the savagery of war, and the immense resultant grief that follows in its wake. Erikson deftly sidesteps the archtypical triumphant siege stories readers might expect in fantasy stories (a la Helm's Deep) without sacrificing any of the impact. However, there is then a muddled few hundred pages explaining how the background plot is slowly weaving together, delaying the anticipation for the climactic assault at Coral, which can really only pale in comparison to the Capustan sequence--although it does its best to match its emotional weight by knocking out a few beloved characters in the battle.
But this also leads to another flaw of the book, which is the growing reliance on deus ex machina to resolve conflict and resurrect losses. There exists a sense that just as the gods in this story manipulate the world of mortals behind a veil, Erikson is stringing his reader along with an assumption that he's leading us where he wants us to be. The question, then, is whether we trust Erikson to make the right decisions. Too often is death treated as merely a temporary removal from the game, which thus far has been treated with appropriate respect. But as Erikson continues to obfuscate his world's rules, it becomes hard to understand when we should truly acknowledge an event at face value. Character fates and narrative resolutions are frequently reversed, and its up to Erikson to continue providing apt justification for hoodwinking his audience.
All that being said, the Malazan Book of the Fallen is a demanding series for demanding readers and I'm still intrigued by the world Erikson is unveiling. He's a clever writer and is unparalleled in his ability to create battle sequences that pack a punch. If only Ralph Lister was contracted to narrate the final 7 books, I'd be more excited to start book 4.