Least Favourite Malazan Novels

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Least Favourite Malazan Novels Revisited

Poll: Least Favourite Malazan Novels (97 member(s) have cast votes)

Least Favourite Novel

Gardens of the Moon (10 votes [10.31%])
Percentage of vote: 10.31%
Deadhouse Gates (5 votes [5.15%])
Percentage of vote: 5.15%
Memories of Ice (2 votes [2.06%])
Percentage of vote: 2.06%
House of Chains (24 votes [24.74%])
Percentage of vote: 24.74%
Midnight Tides (13 votes [13.40%])
Percentage of vote: 13.40%
The Bonehunters (3 votes [3.09%])
Percentage of vote: 3.09%
Reaper's Gale (10 votes [10.31%])
Percentage of vote: 10.31%
Toll the Hounds (13 votes [13.40%])
Percentage of vote: 13.40%
Return of the Crimson Guard (7 votes [7.22%])
Percentage of vote: 7.22%
Dust of Dreams (10 votes [10.31%])
Percentage of vote: 10.31%

Least Favourite Novella

Blood Follows (14 votes [14.43%])
Percentage of vote: 14.43%
The Healthy Dead (17 votes [17.53%])
Percentage of vote: 17.53%
The Lees of Laughter's End (13 votes [13.40%])
Percentage of vote: 13.40%
Night of Knives (26 votes [26.80%])
Percentage of vote: 26.80%
Pot Crack'd Trail (27 votes [27.84%])
Percentage of vote: 27.84%

Vote Guests cannot vote

#21 Harvester

Evil Baron Kitty of the Abyssmal Army

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 09:54 PM

... and, of course, importance isn't a matter of pure subjectivity... :thumbsup:

Thanks for reminding me.
Yeesh, that'll teach me...

#22 Illuyankas

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Will cluck you up

Posted 17 April 2010 - 09:57 PM

You should always assume everyone on the internet has objective opinions. It's a lot more fun that way.

It's also mostly a kneejerk reaction to writing off a book because of an offscreen healing.

Hello, soldiers, look at your mage, now back to me, now back at your mage, now back to me. Sadly, he isn’t me, but if he stopped being an unascended mortal and switched to Sole Spice, he could smell like he’s me. Look down, back up, where are you? You’re in a warren with the High Mage your cadre mage could smell like. What’s in your hand, back at me. I have it, it’s an acorn with two gates to that realm you love. Look again, the acorn is now otataral. Anything is possible when your mage smells like Sole Spice and not a Bole brother. I’m on a quorl.

#23 Harvester

Evil Baron Kitty of the Abyssmal Army

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 10:08 PM

You're killing me... I have stated my frickin love of DoD in almost every post... I haven't written it off. :rolleyes:

You're twisting my words on purpose now, you witch. :thumbsup:

#24 Illuyankas

Retro Classic

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Will cluck you up

Posted 17 April 2010 - 10:19 PM

Harvester, on 17 April 2010 - 12:34 PM, said:

I love all the books and I thought I would never be able to decide... but Setoc is mute :rolleyes:

, so it's you... Dust of Dreams!...No wait...no, come back... come back!It's okay... I still love you... :thumbsup:

ANYTHING CAN BE TWISTED

ANYTHING

(I really just miss the arguments about silly things like whether Hood wanted a wife, which he doesn't, but might do depending on how vindictive SE is feeling when he finishes)

#25 Harvester

Evil Baron Kitty of the Abyssmal Army

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 10:43 PM

And we all know why Hood tried to prevent T'amber from drawing her sword as long as possible or what favour he asked of Paran. I have to track down these arguments somewhen.

#26 The Seguleh 46th

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 10:48 PM

Surprised that HOC is in the lead. Figured the Karsa prologue was worth the price of admission alone! But, that's just my simple opinion.

Also....Pot Crack'd Trail? Huh! Haven't even heard of it yet. Lemme guess, another book that you English boys are gonna get to enjoy way before us in the States even get to sniff. Sigh.........

This post has been edited by The Seguleh 46th: 17 April 2010 - 10:49 PM

#27 Harvester

Evil Baron Kitty of the Abyssmal Army

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 11:01 PM

Crack'd Pot Trail it is, and you can buy it on Amazon.com... it's just a little expensive right now. :thumbsup:

#28 RodeoRanch

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Posted 17 April 2010 - 11:19 PM

DoD by a country mile. I truly disliked it. Maybe it'll get better once read in sequence when "Crippled God" comes out,

#29 Jusentantaka

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Posted 18 April 2010 - 03:57 AM

gardens of the moon by a mile or two... but I started with the second book and went from there, and read it only when I got all confused in the beginning of toll the hounds.

#30 lobo the wolfman

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Posted 18 April 2010 - 07:53 AM

Toll of the Hounds, as awesome as the last 200 pages are it seemed like too much of the novel was a bit pointless.

In a world gone mad, we will not spank the monkey, but the monkey will spank us.

#31 caladanbrood

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Posted 18 April 2010 - 08:43 AM

The Seguleh 46th, on 17 April 2010 - 10:48 PM, said:

Surprised that HOC is in the lead. Figured the Karsa prologue was worth the price of admission alone! But, that's just my simple opinion.

Really? That was pretty much the reason it's my least favourite. I only started enjoying reading about Karsa in Reaper's Gale. If it had been quarter of a book about Torvald Nom, it might have been a different matter, but in general, Erikson's writing tends to be better when it skips quite quickly between different PoVs.

O xein', angellein Lakedaimoniois hoti têde; keimetha tois keinon rhémasi peithomenoi.

#32 HoosierDaddy

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Posted 18 April 2010 - 08:47 AM

House of Chains to me suffers for a couple of reasons:

(1) It's between two of the best individual books in the series (MoI and MT).
(2) It has to introduce the Whirlwind politics, which are frankly not the best part of the series.

Trouble arrives when the opponents to such a system institute its extreme opposite, where individualism becomes godlike and sacrosanct, and no greater service to any other ideal (including community) is possible. In such a system rapacious greed thrives behind the guise of freedom, and the worst aspects of human nature come to the fore....

#33 The Seguleh 46th

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Posted 20 April 2010 - 06:03 PM

H.D., on 18 April 2010 - 08:47 AM, said:

Well, i will give you the Whirlwind politics were a bit out there, but its still my 3rd favorite novel, behind DG and MOI, and that is for the great prologue of Karsa. I agree with ya caladanbrood to a degree about loving the POV shifts, but it was nice to stick with one character for once and really get to know him. Love how SE has us (well, most i would imagine anyhow) really disliking him from the start, and then seeing him develop into more of a character that we dislike a bit less, at least in the anti-hero sort of way. Also, would a 1/4 book of Torvald Nom have been more entertaining? Most likely. Yet so much of what went on with Karsa in that prologue will probably be coming around full circle here very soon, i would imagine. So many good moments in that book as well, the Dogslayers, the ghost army, Heboric's self-discovery (or rediscovery, who knows?), etc. But that's just my opinion.

This post has been edited by The Seguleh 46th: 20 April 2010 - 06:04 PM

#34 The Seguleh 46th

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Posted 20 April 2010 - 06:09 PM

BTW, i'm almost done with RotCG (got about 70 or so pages left i think.....

Spoiler

), and that book utterly rocks! May not be as deep as most of the SE novels, with the inner monologues and philosophizing, but ICE has done a great job of keeping the flow and making me really care about the characters and why they are doing what they do. Have a feeling most won't agree with my assessment, but i really, really have enjoyed this book thus far. Now hopefully the last 70 pages won't kill all of what i just said! Posted Image

#35 Defiance

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Posted 21 April 2010 - 06:23 PM

House of Chains, tentatively. I loved everything with Karsa (liked him from the beginning), but the rest of the book seemed really slow until the last 100 pages. Even then, it didn’t have quite the payoff I was expecting – sadly never got to see the Bonehunters in action. The only really memorable thing from HoC was Karsa. Honestly beyond that I can’t tell you much of what happened (oh, and Kalam and Cotillion fighting together was awesome, I remember that). I'll have to come back to this topic after I've reread the entire series, though. While I wasn't big on TtH at all, the awesome climax prevented it from being my least favorite. DoD is also possibly my least favorite. Like I said, it’s all pending a reread. I’m reserving judgment on DoD until a reread/TCG, though, because I figure once the “second half” of the book arrives it’ll put things more in perspective.

uhm, that should be 'stuff.' My stiff is never nihilistic.
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#36 teholbeddict

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Posted 21 April 2010 - 06:31 PM

I had to go with RotCG and Blood Follows. RotCG is honestly one of the worst fantasy books I've ever read. Thank god it wasn't the first Malaz book I picked up because I never would have read another. Not to mention I didn't like the way alot of the character's story lines were handled, especially the old guard. I'm surprised NoK is getting so many votes, I really didn't mind it at all, in fact it was quite enjoyable.

This post has been edited by teholbeddict: 21 April 2010 - 06:32 PM

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#37 Salt-Man Z

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Posted 22 April 2010 - 06:46 PM

Well, the poll won't let me vote on account of not having read any of the novellas (except NoK, which actually has "novel" printed right on the cover!) but my least favorite is easily Reaper's Gale.

"Here is light. You will say that it is not a living entity, but you miss the point that it is more, not less. Without occupying space, it fills the universe. It nourishes everything, yet itself feeds upon destruction. We claim to control it, but does it not perhaps cultivate us as a source of food? May it not be that all wood grows so that it can be set ablaze, and that men and women are born to kindle fires?"
―Gene Wolfe, The Citadel of the Autarch

#38 Fist Gamet

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Posted 24 April 2010 - 08:52 PM

HoC is currently the least favourite? What? Ok, MoI was the best but HoC was much better than DoD or MT (which got my vote for least fav, easily). Without a reread I can't be too specific but I know that I really enjoyed it. In fact, my enjoyment of the whole series only dipped in MT then, imho, the series recovered well...mostly. Kinda sad that MoI remains the high point. I can only hope that the final book blows me away.

Victory is mine!