[Gordon]

I'm at the exact point kogs was in his original post. I don't feel the same level of confusion, but I closed my eyes and focused on Ganoes when I opened the book and saw the list of dramatis personae.

Just wanted to say it's nice to see people who've been around 10+ years so willing to help us noobs.

[Hazmandoo]

Keep going mate!

It took me a few pick ups and put downs to get through the first half or so of Gardens of the Moon, but ever since then I'm been reading every chance I get. Just started book 9, it's been a hell of a journey so far and I still get confused from time to time

[Egwene]

Keep reading and don't expect to understand everything straight away. You are supposed to be confused. It's partly what makes the books so fantastic. It gives the reader a real sense of the lack of information that many of the characters are dealing with in the story. You'll almost feel part of the Bridgeburners... beavering away without the authorities letting you in on the why and where. Until you get glimpses of those command decisions...

Best thing I did was to do an immediate re-read of the first book when I finished it. It was fantastic to understand so much more the second time round... and the third... I still re-read it and find nuggets of missed clues... Love it!!

Think of it as an onion which you peel layer by layer

[Abyss]

Gordon, on 23 April 2014 - 10:10 PM, said:

...
Just wanted to say it's nice to see people who've been around 10+ years so willing to help us noobs.

These books tend to inspire that level of loyalty... they aren't everyone's cup of ale, but for the right fantasy lit fan, the hooks go deep and sharing it is a big bloody chunk of the fun.

Egwene, on 24 April 2014 - 01:35 PM, said:

Keep reading and don't expect to understand everything straight away. You are supposed to be confused. It's partly what makes the books so fantastic. It gives the reader a real sense of the lack of information that many of the characters are dealing with in the story. You'll almost feel part of the Bridgeburners... beavering away without the authorities letting you in on the why and where. Until you get glimpses of those command decisions...

Best thing I did was to do an immediate re-read of the first book when I finished it. It was fantastic to understand so much more the second time round... and the third... I still re-read it and find nuggets of missed clues... Love it!!

Think of it as an onion which you peel layer by layer

Agreed on all points. I started the series when bk 4 was just out, finished it, went back, reread 1-4, was blown away and continue to be.
I suspect if i was starting the series now i would read it thru (with my usual habit of finishing a great book and flipping back to reread the best bits), get to the end of the 10 MBF / 6 ME books, and start again.

[Stormcat]

I just recently finished Toll the Hounds and something from Gardens of the Moon finally clicked. SE is playing the long game with this series right from the start. Just remember everything will fall into place eventually.

[Muley]

Yeah I put down GotM for a while. Now I'm finished SE books and started on ICE. Keep it up and you won't regret it.

This post has been edited by Muley: 25 April 2014 - 04:27 AM

[Gordon]

Egwene, on 24 April 2014 - 01:35 PM, said:

Keep reading and don't expect to understand everything straight away. You are supposed to be confused. It's partly what makes the books so fantastic. It gives the reader a real sense of the lack of information that many of the characters are dealing with in the story. You'll almost feel part of the Bridgeburners... beavering away without the authorities letting you in on the why and where. Until you get glimpses of those command decisions...

I get what he was going for but can't help feel it's also poor writing in places. Oh no! Not a Kelrhyll'ah demon! Wait, what the hell is that? And the town is destroyed because... magic rained down upon them!

Quote

Best thing I did was to do an immediate re-read of the first book when I finished it. It was fantastic to understand so much more the second time round... and the third... I still re-read it and find nuggets of missed clues... Love it!!

Think of it as an onion which you peel layer by layer

This part I agree with completely. "Man, I'm gonna need to do a re-read at some point" was one of my first reactions. You can see the wisdom of the intro to the revised edition, where he says he decided against training wheels because people either give up a third of the way into their first book or end up like you lot.

I'm not sure how far I'll get before I set it down for a while. The Crimson Campaign (sequel to Promise of Blood) is due out soon, which will make for a nice distraction when the time comes.

[Gothos]

I started a few months before MoI was released. At first I put GotM down after about 100 pages. A few weeks later I gave it another go, and went striaight to DHG and screamed for more. The series takes a while to sink in, but once it does it's unmatched in scope. I've re-read most of the books several times across the years (I'm even re-reading GotM now that my gf got me a new copy due to old one being lost for years). It's amazing that once you know more, the older books make more sense - the author knew what he was doing from the start, and didn't just make shit up on the go. It's a rare and tremendously impressive feat.

[Cain Ikari]

Trust me, I think we all started out the same way bro. "WTF IS GOING ON!?" Was my question for the first half of the first book, and every now and then....every single book thereafter. Haha. But trust me. There is nothing better out there, I tell everyone who tries to come at me about the merits of ASoIF how this series destroys it hands down.

Remember this however, deciphering what is happening in this series is a majority of the fun.

[Dwolf63]

I first read Gardens of the Moon and Deadhouse Gates back in 2002. I still have those copies. They were the Bantam Books editions that had only the UK and Canadian pricing on the back.

I remember struggling with maybe the first 100 to 200 pages of Gardens. It wasn't really anything wrong with the book, it just wasn't meant for casual reading. It required sustained attention. So much is packed into every sentence that blink, and you miss a potential plot point.

I remember restarting after the first hundred something pages, and then reading it all the way through from there. I was intrigued with the story from the outset, and got really invested about when the scene shifts to Darujistan. The scene where Crokus is chased across the rooftops was classic.

As I met more and more of the characters, I remember thinking how Erickson must have read a lot of the same fantasy novels I had growing up. I picked up on the Black Company vibe right off too.

The only "problem" I had with the book, and that diminished over the years of rereads, was I'd get so caught up in one story line I'd rush through another part just to get back to those characters. It was the rushing forward that caused most of my problems.




To this day I see critiques of Erickson that make me want to bitch slap the reviewers. There's absolutely nothing wrong with his writing that couldn't be cured by giving the readers an attention span slightly longer than that of a gnat on amphetamines. Erickson is not meant to be speed read. You can if you absolutely have to, but you only really grok the work (deliberately seeing which of the people reading this date themselves by recognizing that term) by savouring his work and paying attention to detail.

I think this is another reason rereads work so well. Not only do you catch things the second time around because they mean more in the context of what happens later in the book, and in later volumes. You catch more things because knowing now how the book ends, you don't want to speed through to the convergence of plot paths so badly that you miss all the sign posts and side roads along the way.

This post has been edited by Dwolf63: 04 May 2014 - 03:59 PM

[worry]

I got exactly what you meant. Grok was my cavedad's name.

[Mykar Blackheart]

I wont lie, You're probably gonna feel lost for a while but don't give up! I was there too, most if not all of us were.

I just decided that I would at least try to clear 200 pages before giving up. It does get better, you brain will start to subconsciously piece things together. If you stick with it, you will read some seriously awesome stuff. Don't give up!!!

[Kanese S's]

kogs, on 07 April 2014 - 03:46 AM, said:

Hi all, I just finished the first 2 chapters of Gardens of the Moon, including the prologue. I can honestly say I am completely lost. I feel like I am just going through the motions of reading the words. I can't even tell who the narrator is. Is this written in an omniscient point of view? I have read that some people feel it is better to read book 2 before book 1. Should I stop now and go onto book 2 first or continue trudging along?

Good question.

And NO. It is NOT an omniscient point of vew.

[Andorion]

Briar King, on 26 April 2017 - 11:00 PM, said:

Got a ? here. Is "Words of Power" a GotMism for mages?

Where are Words of Power mentioned? Don't remember at all.

[worry]

Yah it's a GOTMism. In later books he calls them "Words of Radiance".

[Andorion]

Briar King, on 27 April 2017 - 02:09 AM, said:

Andorion, on 27 April 2017 - 01:33 AM, said:

Briar King, on 26 April 2017 - 11:00 PM, said:

Got a ? here. Is "Words of Power" a GotMism for mages?

Where are Words of Power mentioned? Don't remember at all.

During Pale assault. Tattersail and other mages chain words of power to cast spells.

Sounds like a GotMism to me.

[Joyful Onion]

His writing gets better and better as the series progresses too. The psychology and philosophy come more to the fore. The inner monologues are great.

[Kruppe of Darujhistan]

I'm enjoying GotM quite a bit more than in the past. Of course, part of that is already knowing what is to come, but another part is taking note of the GotMisms and seeing what evolved, what withered on the vine, etc. Rake seems much more raw, emotional, and volatile here than in later books.

Even Kruppe is different. In later books his hijinks come off (to the reader) as a coldly calculated facade.Still hilarious, but the reader knows it's an act. In GotM, some of his bufoonery seems like genuine and innocent buffoonery.

[BridgeBurner2003]

I totally agree, it is hard to follow but once you get used to it its very interesting!