[frostfiresvk]

Hi guys,

I'm new here and it is very-well possible that question I'm going to ask has already been asked numerous times here but I'm just terrified of even smallest spoilers because I'm really enjoying the book so far and that is why I don't really feel like searching through this forum. So I hope you will excuse me.

Thing is, I've read like 220 pages of the first novel and (as probably everyone in my position) I have no idea what f*ck is going on . Not that I don't get what characters are doing, but I'm kind of missing that "super-structure" or how should I call it (I'm certain that book veterans know what I'm talking about). Also, I have read on the internet that it is very recommended to re-read this series to get a much better grasp of the story. Is this true? And if so, would you recommend me to re-read each individual book (like read first book twice and then move to the second one etc.) or to read entire series of 10 books once and then start again from the first one?

I hope I wasn't being too complicated as I tend to be sometimes.

Thanks.

[Esa1996]

frostfiresvk, on 21 August 2015 - 09:28 PM, said:

Hi guys,

I'm new here and it is very-well possible that question I'm going to ask has already been asked numerous times here but I'm just terrified of even smallest spoilers because I'm really enjoying the book so far and that is why I don't really feel like searching through this forum. So I hope you will excuse me.

Thing is, I've read like 220 pages of the first novel and (as probably everyone in my position) I have no idea what f*ck is going on . Not that I don't get what characters are doing, but I'm kind of missing that "super-structure" or how should I call it (I'm certain that book veterans know what I'm talking about). Also, I have read on the internet that it is very recommended to re-read this series to get a much better grasp of the story. Is this true? And if so, would you recommend me to re-read each individual book (like read first book twice and then move to the second one etc.) or to read entire series of 10 books once and then start again from the first one?

I hope I wasn't being too complicated as I tend to be sometimes.

Thanks.

It's normal to be lost at the point where you are now. The super structure in Malazan is very shady and will take some time to understand. Don't re-read books until you've read them all. Also, I recommend reading ICE's novels in between Erikson's books as they tell many things that Erikson doesn't.

Here's the recommended reading order from the Wiki with tiny tweaks of my own:


Gardens of the Moon
Deadhouse Gates
Memories of Ice
House of Chains
Midnight Tides
Night of Knives
The Bonehunters
Reaper's Gale
Return of the Crimson Guard
Toll the Hounds
Dust of Dreams
Stonewielder
The Crippled God
Orb Sceptre Throne
Blood and Bone
Assail


This order includes only the main series Malazan books from both ICE and SE. The short stories can be read whenever you wish to read them. I'd recommend reading Stonewielder after The Crippled God, just to make it easier for you, and reading any Kharkanas books only after finishing the 16 books in the main series.

[frostfiresvk]

Esa1996, on 21 August 2015 - 10:23 PM, said:

frostfiresvk, on 21 August 2015 - 09:28 PM, said:

Hi guys,

I'm new here and it is very-well possible that question I'm going to ask has already been asked numerous times here but I'm just terrified of even smallest spoilers because I'm really enjoying the book so far and that is why I don't really feel like searching through this forum. So I hope you will excuse me.

Thing is, I've read like 220 pages of the first novel and (as probably everyone in my position) I have no idea what f*ck is going on . Not that I don't get what characters are doing, but I'm kind of missing that "super-structure" or how should I call it (I'm certain that book veterans know what I'm talking about). Also, I have read on the internet that it is very recommended to re-read this series to get a much better grasp of the story. Is this true? And if so, would you recommend me to re-read each individual book (like read first book twice and then move to the second one etc.) or to read entire series of 10 books once and then start again from the first one?

I hope I wasn't being too complicated as I tend to be sometimes.

Thanks.

It's normal to be lost at the point where you are now. The super structure in Malazan is very shady and will take some time to understand. Don't re-read books until you've read them all. Also, I recommend reading ICE's novels in between Erikson's books as they tell many things that Erikson doesn't.

Here's the recommended reading order from the Wiki with tiny tweaks of my own:


Gardens of the Moon
Deadhouse Gates
Memories of Ice
House of Chains
Midnight Tides
Night of Knives
The Bonehunters
Reaper's Gale
Return of the Crimson Guard
Toll the Hounds
Dust of Dreams
Stonewielder
The Crippled God
Orb Sceptre Throne
Blood and Bone
Assail


This order includes only the main series Malazan books from both ICE and SE. The short stories can be read whenever you wish to read them. I'd recommend reading Stonewielder after The Crippled God, just to make it easier for you, and reading any Kharkanas books only after finishing the 16 books in the main series.

thank you very much, you've been a great help

[Andorion]

Also don't worry about things not making sense. That is Erikson's basic philosophy of writing. He doesn't spoonfeed you the information but distributes it throughout the book. Also Erikson likes to overthrow established fantasy storytelling conventions. So in the first book we dont follow a new character who is learning about the world gradually and thus learn about the world through him. Instead we are thrown into the middle of an already happening story and have to make sense of things by ourselves. Finish each book and post what question you have in that books forum. We will explain if possible, but in most cases the answers will lie in subsequent books.

Once all the books are done then you can reread and that is one of the most incredibly rewarding experiences ever.

[frostfiresvk]

Andorion, on 22 August 2015 - 01:15 AM, said:

Also don't worry about things not making sense. That is Erikson's basic philosophy of writing. He doesn't spoonfeed you the information but distributes it throughout the book. Also Erikson likes to overthrow established fantasy storytelling conventions. So in the first book we dont follow a new character who is learning about the world gradually and thus learn about the world through him. Instead we are thrown into the middle of an already happening story and have to make sense of things by ourselves. Finish each book and post what question you have in that books forum. We will explain if possible, but in most cases the answers will lie in subsequent books.

Once all the books are done then you can reread and that is one of the most incredibly rewarding experiences ever.

Thanks a lot

[Egwene]

Well, I don't think that re-reading the book straight away does any harm. It is exactly what I did and years later, here I am, still totally hooked on the Malazan series

I only re-read the first one immediately but that gave me a really good grounding for the rest of the series.

By now I have lost count of how many times I have read some of the books... I love every moment of it!

[Traveller]

I wouldn't necessarily read ICEs books until you finish the main series. SE has a particular style which develops and evolves with each book; and themes that run through the series flow nicely. This would be broken up by inserting another authors own work in between imo.

Esslemont is a whole different style and writing experience, which means that although he's writing in the same world, is different enough to have put me off even picking up his latest ones.

Personal opinion, anyway. Also, as I read them as he wrote, from MOI onwards I'd re-read previous books while I was waiting for the next one to come out - I got a lot more out of it and appreciated it all the more for it.

This post has been edited by Traveller: 23 August 2015 - 06:17 AM

[Itwæs Nom]

Maybe youre reading it wrong. Under Gardens of the Moon section there is spoilerless thread called "How dou you read GotM?", where tempered book veterans suggest and discuss the most superior ways of reading it.

[Esa1996]

Charlie Nom, on 23 August 2015 - 11:20 AM, said:

Maybe youre reading it wrong. Under Gardens of the Moon section there is spoilerless thread called "How dou you read GotM?", where tempered book veterans suggest and discuss the most superior ways of reading it.

Yeah, everyone should definitely read that thread. Very useful for people who haven't really been reading much before.

[Gredfallan Ale]

On a serious note, I did a full re-read before TCG. I only got around reading TCG two years after its release, so I wanted to refresh my memory. It was an enlightening experience for me. I thought that I was quite good at noticing things, but a reread showed me that I must have been blind or senile, or both, as I missed, well, a lot.