[2011] What are you reading?

I posted this in arno_ed's Malazan thread, but I figured it belonged here as well.

I was really looking forward to reading Book 7, Reaper's Gale. It seemed like a lot of separate plot threads were going to come into a titanic crash against one another. However, this book was marred by Erikson's meandering writing style. I've said before that I don't mind reading a 1200+ page book, but this book was filled with countless pages of random musings. A good editor would have lopped off at least 400 pages and produced a far greater work.

But the most egregious problem Erikson commits over and over again is his shifting POV's between his overlarge group of characters. Yes, it is great that he ties this groups together and has a large cast, but he is terrible at forming a good narrative with them. Too many times, he gives 5-10 pages to an interesting group, takes them right up to the point of a juicy conflict, then leaves those characters for 100+ pages. All too often, Erikson transitions to another character and spends 1-2 pages describing the setting of a new character until he finally mentions who the hell we're reading about.

Book 7 Spoilers

Spoiler

There were so many conflicts I wanted to read.

Karsa and Icarium journeying to throw down against Rhulad. As well as the other champions (particulary the Segulah). This was so built up, then fizzled out completely. After Erikson gets into nitty gritty detail of obscure military characters, he completely abandons the Champions and their fights against the Emperor. Just that he mowed them down, and that Icarium fled. This whole plotline was left alone for hundreds of pages, and then there was a kind of deus ex machina takedown by Karsa with the aid of a bunch of spirits. Epic letdown.

Fear, Trull, and Seren. The whole Silchas Ruin party was so freaking mopey. I felt like I was reading Twilight at times. Fear finally reunites with his brother. Dead before they can talk. Seren hooks back up with Trull, he's dead before we really get a scene with them together. Fair enough that he kills those characters off, but if you mope your way through thousands of pages with those plot threads, you have to give us more than that as a payoff.

Quick Ben, Onrack, and Trull had a dreadfully boring trip. Even Quick Ben and Hedge reuniting was handled off screen, while Onrack and Trull witnessed them from afar. Ditto Hedge and Fiddler finally meeting up in Lether. Build towards this emotional scene, now let's throw it to another character's POV and quickly move on to something else.

The Malazan army. Interesting Marine tactics, but handled very unevenly. Erikson moved to very obscure characters at odd moments. The giant battle in the village could have been colossal, but instead he chose this moment to start introducing us to very minor characters' POV. It lost all sense of momentum every time it started to get in motion. Beak was interesting and all, but that was a complete and total deus ex machina device. Let's introduce a character and have the Bonehunters magically device a vastly superior force using magic that had never been displayed before this book.

The Redmask plotline was also grating. It was a cool concept to introduce, but Erikson cut away from Redmask and his army every time they were about to enter a conflict only to pick it up hundreds of pages later, killing all momentum. Toc the Younger was wasted again. I feel ripped off following this brooding guy around for him to die at that spot. Maybe it'll play in the final 3 books, but that was weak sauce.

Surely Tehol and Bugg can provide some much needed humor and fun to the story. Alas, Erikson gave them short treatment as well. They were used too briefly, and we got a pretty high level view once Tehol's financial collapse finally hit. Bugg trapped, and Tehol was arrested. Even the fun lead up would get a brief mentioned then get buried for far too long.

I was pretty disappointed in this book. 2 out of 5 stars, and I'm getting the feeling that I'll leave this series disappointed when I do finish. I would definitely not recommend at this point to anybody else. The only other series of length that I read recently is Robin Hobb's Fitz and Fool series, which was so superior to this. If I wasn't this invested, I'd quit the series, but I do want to see how it ends.

I'm reading Book 8 now, which is in theory exciting. Back to Darujhistan.

Book 8 Spoilers

Spoiler

I'm excited about the location, Crokus\Cutter\, the return of Ralick Nom, Mappo hunting down Icarium, Gruntle, the impending civil war in the assassin guild, and that squad of Bridge Burners. Alas, we have Kruppe, who is the most annoying character in the entire series.

 

Have you read the Cassandra Kresnov series by Joel Shepherd? Pat's Fantasy Hotlist raves about that series, which sounds similar to Altered Carbon: Sci-fi\mystery-thriller. Just what every replicant needs. I added Altered Carbon to my buy list.

Cowboy_Bebop, speaking of steampunk. I just picked up Boneshaker by Cherie Priest and The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder. Don't know when I'll get around to reading them, but I've heard rave things about both.

 

I finally finished Toll the Hounds by Steven Erikson. This book was a microcosm of the entire series: Some really good plotlines utterly derailed by atrocious pacing, too many POV's, schemes that don't make any sense even after you finish the book, and countless times where Erikson waxed philosophically about something. There might have been a pretty good 600 page book in there, but instead we got this 1200+ page monstrosity. I've said it before, but Erikson either needs an editor or his editor should be fired.

After 8 books of this, I reached my limit and am chucking the rest of the series. I just read plot summaries of the last two, and I have to say I'm glad I did quit.

Spoiler

It was great to be back in Darujistan, but there seemed no point to be there. I was hoping for so much more with Cutter and Ralick.

The entire Tiste Andi plotlines could have been axed. Almost half the book following these moping idiots around, and then Anomander sacrifices himself for some bizarre ritual inside his sword. I guess Mother Dark is now free, whatever the **** that means. I cannot say how much this entire plotline annoyed and bored the hell out of me. The Twilight series had more life than this.

How cool to have Gruntle and Mappo team up to find Icarium, but then Erikson puts them through a stupid journey and leaves it hanging. And from the things I've read about 9 and 10, he really doesn't resolve Icarium.

Karsa really didn't do much in this book, except banter with his companions. I've read interviews with Erikson that he intends to write further books to finish the Karsa plotline. Really, Erikson. You couldn't do that in the 12,000 pages of your freaking series?

I know people out there like this series, but I'd give it a huge thumbs down (and Erikson a middle finger). Over 12,000 pages, and concepts and characters are still muddled and plotlines left unfinished. I keep getting the feeling that Erikson wrote this to stroke his own ego. Look I created this enormous world that needs a 2,000 page atlas and compendium to understand. I won't bother to explain it fully during the course of my epic series. You'll have to keep reading additional books or search out forums online for that. The waxing poetic nonsense comes across as pure poseur alert.

I seriously regret the four months I spent reading this. I wish I could have that reading time back. So many great fantasy books I put on hold (Rothfuss, Abercrombie), but I'm burned out on fantasy right now.

I need a giant palate cleanser after Erikson so I'm moving onto something light. Up next: Sarah Addison Allen and The Peach Keeper. Allen's first book, Garden Spells, was summer popcorn chick lit, but done really well (food, romance, family relationship, life in a small town, sex, and magic!). Her next two efforts were okay, but I'm optimistic about her newest novel. This is also my first novel to read on my Kindle, so I'm curious how that will go.

 

I've long been intrigued by Bakker, but have held off due to it being an incomplete series. Pat's Fantasy Hotlist loves the guy's work. I'm also in the same boat with C.S. Friedman's Magister trilogy, but that'll be complete this fall. I might have to check that out based on Pat's reviews.

Agree with you about Karsa. I think I hit my limit when I realized a freaking ox pulling a morgue cart got about as much writing time as Karsa in Toll the Hounds.

Oh well, you have to try new authors to discover great novels. I'm looking forward to detoxing from fantasy with some other works that have been languishing in my read stacks for a while. But I'm looking forward to tackling Rothfuss and Abercrombie in a month or so.

 

I'll keep that in mind about Bakker.

I'm with you on Abercrombie. I shouted out with joy when I read he committed to one more standalone and another trilogy.