25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perhaps the best in the series, May 29, 2007
Midnight Tides is the fifth book of Steven Erikson's 10-volume series The Malazan Book of the Fallen. Unlike other multi-volume big-book fantasy writers, Erikson's production has been consistent: about a volume per year and he has completed 7, of which five are available through his US publisher, Tor.
This book is somewhat different in tone and feel from the first four. This is partly because it introduces the third main story thread of the series after the Genabackis and Seven Cities plotlines from previous books. There are other major differences.
First, the action occurs before the events of volumes 1-4. Second, the characters, other than one from book four, House of Chains, are entirely new. Third, the story focuses on a distinct conflict between two peoples -- the Tiste Edur of the northlands and the human empire Letheras that seeks to expand and conquer. Fourth, the two sides are shown through two major families, the four Sengar brothers (Fear the elder, Trull the dutiful, Binadas the mysterious, Rhulad the covetous) of the Edur, and the three human Beddict brothers (Hull, who has been broken by his past; Tehol, who is an eccentric genius; and Brys the King's champion). Erikson displays family relations, political alignments within the two societies, bonds between brothers and the separate societies through these two lenses. This is one of the most emotionally charged books of the series.
Unlike Gardens of the Moon, which basically started after a cataclysmic event and revealed details of the situation later, Midnight Tides has a set beginning -- the Warlock King who has united the Edur tribes seeks a powerful talisman to maintain control, while the Letheras empire threatens to conquer the whole continent. Within this background are the numerous story threads in each Erikson book: political intrigue, gods and monsters interacting with "normal" people and references to the overall arc of the story which Erikson started to divulge in book 3. And of course, there's plenty of action: from small parties fighting in the arctic wilderness to major military battles.
This book is also flat-out funny -- the interaction between Tehol and his amazingly resourceful manservant Bugg is among the best comic relief in any major fantasy series and it enlivens book 7, Reaper's Gale (available in the UK and Canada) too.
The detractions are standard for the genre -- the books are long and completion is years away. All of the volumes except the first are more than 600 pages in trade paperback and they're getting longer -- book 7 is more than 900! But the quality of Erikson's work hasn't diminished, unlike so many other major "doorstopper" fantasy writers. And his publishing pace is good: it takes him 8 months to write each volume and he's hitting a one-per-year rate for new books (Tor is publishing US versions of previous UK editions every 8-9 months). So making the commitment is more rewarding than it is for some other works.
Overall, the series, and especially this volume, is highly recommended
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Build a nest...Tear it down!, May 8, 2007
This review is from: Midnight Tides : A Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen (Hardcover)
At first I couldn't get into this book of the Malazan Series. It started off with new characters and new plot lines. But, as you read you realize how it all ties in together with the other books, just like Karsa's story in House of Chains. In the end, I loved this book. The humor is more evident, especially between Tehol and Bugg. Their conversations can't help but make you smile and laugh! I tried to place this book in order of which books out of the series I liked best and I couldn't. It was right up there with Memories of Ice and House of Chains! If you've liked this series so far, you will not be disappointed with this one!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
How does he do it?, June 12, 2004
For the third time in the series, Erikson starts off a book with characters, setting, and history completely new to the reader. As deep into the series as book five, this would be considered taboo for most writers. Yet somehow, I came to enjoy each and every one of the new characters. The story is again epic, yet it seems extremely well managed and simple, as if Erikson is getting even more comfortable with his complex and broad scope of storytelling.
Despite the fact the story tells of a tragedy spanning two empires, humour is abundant in this book. The amusing exchanges between Tehol Bennedict and pretty much anyone he meets keeps the mood light in the face of the dark nature of the novel as a whole. The book starts slow since the reader is unfamiliar with many of the characters, but like all the preceding books, it takes off a quarter of the way in, and builds to an incredible climactic ending which pulls together threads spanning a continent.
Within the scope of the series, the only book I enjoyed more was Book 3, Memories of Ice. Within the scope of the entire fantasy genre, I'd still say the same. Including Tolkein, Jordan, Goodkind, Martin, Donaldson, Feist, and about 15 others I've read. Erikson is by far the best and brightest author to come into the fantasy scene since Martin (and better than Martin anyway).
Warning however, to those who don't enjoy complexity in plots and ambivilant characterization in their main characters, for that is here. And that's why I'm going to stay here right until the end.
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