Totally agree. Eddings, Feist and Gemmel are fantastic authors - never feels like a chore to read their books which can't be said about Malazan & GoT.
Malazan Book of the Fallen: Is it worth it?
- Thread starter Supercow
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Soldato
I would counter that by saying Gemmel/Eddings/Feist are pretty basic and one dimensional and boring to read.
It's around personal preference and these books ask a lot of you which (unsurprisingly) isn't for everyone.
It's around personal preference and these books ask a lot of you which (unsurprisingly) isn't for everyone.
Might want to spoiler some of that no?
They are easy going and very entertaining fantasy I agree but I have the reading maturity of a 14year old so they suit me perfectly
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Haha
Soldato
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My take is that they're better as stand alone novels, and the earlier books are better especially 1-5 IMO, I think unless you're a committed total anorak and will read around the books, and research etc you're never going to hold everything in your head.
The basic problem is there's just too much going on, too many threads, too many characters, too little is explained and I think he lost his way a bit somewhere. He set out deliberately to hand hold but he took that too far. There's some really good stuff in the series, some brilliant chapters and really good books, but there's also way too much meandering and switching of focus for it to hold to together as a consistently engrossing tale over 10 books. I initially loved it and i'm now struggling to finish the last two books, when really at this stage the reader should be rabid. Trying to keep track of every characters motives and intentions is really difficult.
He really fired these books out too, and i've read him state he had to produce doorstoppers every time. If the series had been 7-8 books and every book a third shorter, and the scope narrowed down it would have been so much better.
I haven't read the Kharkanas trilogy (2 out so far) i'm hoping that's tighter, but i'm not getting my hopes up.
6.5/10 - A missed opportunity.
The basic problem is there's just too much going on, too many threads, too many characters, too little is explained and I think he lost his way a bit somewhere. He set out deliberately to hand hold but he took that too far. There's some really good stuff in the series, some brilliant chapters and really good books, but there's also way too much meandering and switching of focus for it to hold to together as a consistently engrossing tale over 10 books. I initially loved it and i'm now struggling to finish the last two books, when really at this stage the reader should be rabid. Trying to keep track of every characters motives and intentions is really difficult.
He really fired these books out too, and i've read him state he had to produce doorstoppers every time. If the series had been 7-8 books and every book a third shorter, and the scope narrowed down it would have been so much better.
I haven't read the Kharkanas trilogy (2 out so far) i'm hoping that's tighter, but i'm not getting my hopes up.
6.5/10 - A missed opportunity.
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Soldato
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All that said I did enjoy 1-5 enough to re-read them all.
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I've got 1 chapter left and I have thoroughly enjoyed it.
Best bit for me has been Esselmont giving up (trying and failing) writing like Erikson and has instead stuck to his own skills of good prose and tight narrative/descriptive work.
The fact that he isn't playing so heavily in Eriksons backyard in that he is (mostly) creating as opposed to interpreting has really freed him up and I have really enjoyed it compared to travesties like Assail.
He still his annoying idiosyncrasies around repeating the same phrase again and again which narks but all in all a good book and a good addition to the series. I'll never rate him as highly as Erikson and never forgive some of his brutalising of the main arc but this is a great read.
Also nice to see some strings from the main arc being tidied away and clarified a little. Such as;
I'll post a little more after the last 50 or so pages as I'm expecting some decent stuff to happen.
Best bit for me has been Esselmont giving up (trying and failing) writing like Erikson and has instead stuck to his own skills of good prose and tight narrative/descriptive work.
The fact that he isn't playing so heavily in Eriksons backyard in that he is (mostly) creating as opposed to interpreting has really freed him up and I have really enjoyed it compared to travesties like Assail.
He still his annoying idiosyncrasies around repeating the same phrase again and again which narks but all in all a good book and a good addition to the series. I'll never rate him as highly as Erikson and never forgive some of his brutalising of the main arc but this is a great read.
Also nice to see some strings from the main arc being tidied away and clarified a little. Such as;
Nightchill origins whilst not a huge shock it is good to see some concrete on the theories
I'll post a little more after the last 50 or so pages as I'm expecting some decent stuff to happen.
Soldato
So finished the book. Great read, my main enjoyment came from Esselmont sticking to his strengths and it rewards you with a good read without him trying to emulate Eriksons unique style.
It's not a spoiler saying this book is about Dancer and Ammanas, Ammanas was perfectly pitched and exactly what I was hoping for, Dancer not so much.
Fantastic read and great addition to the series, I'll spoiler my few other points;
It's not a spoiler saying this book is about Dancer and Ammanas, Ammanas was perfectly pitched and exactly what I was hoping for, Dancer not so much.
Fantastic read and great addition to the series, I'll spoiler my few other points;
the book was actually rather understated and the ending a very soft one and not what I expected, however you look at the title of this arc "path to ascendancy" and an almost perfect last paragraph when Dorin assumes the Dancer moniker then it is actually very well written and an introduction to the two characters as grasping, ambitious youngsters as opposed to the hardened ascendets they later become. It works perfectly and be interesting to see where they are next picked up, it will be a shame if it jumps too far and loses the character development opportunities.
Seeing Nightchill, Baudin, Mara, Smokey, Shimmer all in their early days was interesting too.
The interplay between Dorin/Wu was amazing, worked perfectly and the growing grudging respect from complete disdain is a great journey.
Roll on the next instalment and hopefully Surly/Tattersail/Whiskeyjack/Dujek and the rest.
Oh and Daseem is hardcore!
Seeing Nightchill, Baudin, Mara, Smokey, Shimmer all in their early days was interesting too.
The interplay between Dorin/Wu was amazing, worked perfectly and the growing grudging respect from complete disdain is a great journey.
Roll on the next instalment and hopefully Surly/Tattersail/Whiskeyjack/Dujek and the rest.
Oh and Daseem is hardcore!
Soldato
99p is an amazing price.
Soldato
Fall of the Light, book 2 in the Tiste pre-series is released next Thursday. About to start a re-read of Forge of Darkness to prepare. Blurb below;