It was because of your videos that I started Gardens of the Moon in 08/2023, but it wasn’t until Deadhouse Gates and after walking the chain of dogs did I realize this is something special. I’m currently in Reaper’s Gale (slow reader here) and fervently place this series on my Mt Rushmore of epic fantasies. Thanks for the suggestion and am excited to keep going.
I’m finishing memories of ice right now on my first read through of Malazan. So far it’s shaping up to be one of my favorite series so far. I also haven’t really found it to be as confusing as everyone has said. I also loved Deadhouse gates. Mappos my favorite so far.
I finished my reread of this series last month (started October '23). I did this completely on audio. It was a different experiene on a reread. So many characters that I forgot about, events that look different, etc. I picked up so much more on the reread. I anticipate the next time I feel the need to revisit this world.
DHG alerted me to the fact that I was reading a series like no other, and what would become one of the best works of spec lit ever written. I'll be starting my reread of Toll thr Hounds soon. The callback epilogue to Memories of Ice still breaks my heart...
I can't wait for your Toll the Hounds and Dust of Dreams reread reviews. TtH being my favorite of the series, and want to know what others who's favorite series is Malazan think about a book that is unique to even something as unique as Malazan. I am feeling a new sense of appeal towards DoD and I reread parts of it before I even got to the book in my first reread. There is something special about it. Love to hear your thoughts!
I can't wait to get books 1-3 from the broken binding. I made it up to the bonehunters about 14 years ago and stopped. I don't know why but its been haunting me for a while now lol. I gotta finish this series.
Matt! It is thanks to you that I dove into the Malazan series 2 months ago. I really liked G of the Moon but I’m loving Deadhouse Gate. I am 40 pages from the last word: I had to take a breathing after « Coltaine » scene and decided to write this comment so I can decompress. What a journey! Seared into my heart and mind! I think this series will join my top favorites… I will need an interlude, a breather, before plunging into the next chapter. What would you recommend? A standalone on the cozier side maybe? Anyway, see you in the next video!
I just finished Deadhouse Gates for the first time via audiobook last night and I am now out looking for answers/plot explanations. I understand that is not what this video is about so I will avoid posting spoilers down here but I did have a few comments. Firstly, I think Malazan is the first series I have come across where listening to it via audiobook might be somewhat ruining the experience. The narrator is great so its not his fault, but it is so hard to keep track of all these characters already and I heard that gets even more difficult. I did enjoy Felisin's arc and found myself understanding her brazen attitude towards those around her. If I had to give a quick, unfair summary of what this book felt like it would be this. A few different groups of people, some we know kind of well from the previous book, others that are totally new, even different races that are hard to imagine, spend almost the entire book travelling around the continent. Every few hours something kind of exciting happens but its very hard to wrap my head around things entirely so its a bit mushy. The ending was very iconic though...I could picture the scene very well and I enjoyed it a lot. I trust you, and others who have spoke so highly of this series that I will keep going and will be starting the third one later today. Still going to go get some plot explanations before I do that though!
So far (five books in) this has been my favorite. Something about the chain of dogs just really clicked and Duiker’s entire journey. Same thing goes for the rise of the Whirlwind and the ark that she goes on (and in hindsight where it goes in HoC) just something so absolutely fantastically heart rending that draws me to this book
I'm currently reading this book. I wish I could enjoy it half as much as you. Just don't find myself caring about anything in the story. I heard that this book wasn't meant to be written. The author had written 300 pages of a sequel to Gardens of the Moon but he lost it when his computer died. As a writer, I can't even imagine how crushing that would be. Rather than try to recreate that book, he apparently decided to start a totally different book, resulting in this one. If true, I guess it worked out pretty well.
Stick with it. I thought it was a little slow in the middle but the end was so heartbreaking and well written it was incredibly moving. I've never felt so many emotions about a sequence as I did in this book.
Started reading Malazan with Matt's Gardens of the Moon readalong back in April. Just finished Memories of Ice and loving it! Can definitely be a slog in parts, though, so I'm taking a bit of a mental break before heading into House of Chains by reading Oathbringer.. 😂
Just read the first three Malazan books for the first time and have some hot takes 😬: GotM was great, DG was a masterpiece from start to finish, MoI was a slooog and by far my least favorite so far… am I alone in this?? It had some great moments but it was the only one that I almost DNFd several times throughout.
The chain of dogs when coltaine finds out their guides are eating children made me sick to my core. It felt like gore pron levels of excessive but still a good over all story
This author speaks to my soul! I know everyone has different sensibilities and different things work for them, but he, Janny Wurts, Shakespeare and Robert Jordan just pluck all the right notes for me, viscerally... Interesting, I really dislike Felicin! She is my least liked character of the whole series! Different strokes, as i was saying 😊
It was because of your videos that I started Gardens of the Moon in 08/2023, but it wasn’t until Deadhouse Gates and after walking the chain of dogs did I realize this is something special. I’m currently in Reaper’s Gale (slow reader here) and fervently place this series on my Mt Rushmore of epic fantasies. Thanks for the suggestion and am excited to keep going.
I’m finishing memories of ice right now on my first read through of Malazan. So far it’s shaping up to be one of my favorite series so far. I also haven’t really found it to be as confusing as everyone has said. I also loved Deadhouse gates. Mappos my favorite so far.
This book introduces some absolute inspirational characters. Coltaine, Mapo, Duiker, Fiddler, just so good.
This book blew my mind. I felt physically ill at the end, hadn’t been so moved by a story for some time.
Deadhouse Gates is one of the books I'm most excited to re-read one day. It's definitely one of my favorite Malazan books.
I wished the rest of the series continued to feel like the first 2-3. DHG is fantastic.
I finished my reread of this series last month (started October '23). I did this completely on audio. It was a different experiene on a reread. So many characters that I forgot about, events that look different, etc. I picked up so much more on the reread. I anticipate the next time I feel the need to revisit this world.
DHG alerted me to the fact that I was reading a series like no other, and what would become one of the best works of spec lit ever written. I'll be starting my reread of Toll thr Hounds soon.
The callback epilogue to Memories of Ice still breaks my heart...
I can't wait for your Toll the Hounds and Dust of Dreams reread reviews.
TtH being my favorite of the series, and want to know what others who's favorite series is Malazan think about a book that is unique to even something as unique as Malazan.
I am feeling a new sense of appeal towards DoD and I reread parts of it before I even got to the book in my first reread. There is something special about it.
Love to hear your thoughts!
Yeah, I would LOVE a discussion between you and Erikson
This and Memories of Ice back to back are the greatest two fantasy books ever written
I can't wait to get books 1-3 from the broken binding. I made it up to the bonehunters about 14 years ago and stopped. I don't know why but its been haunting me for a while now lol. I gotta finish this series.
Matt!
It is thanks to you that I dove into the Malazan series 2 months ago. I really liked G of the Moon but I’m loving Deadhouse Gate.
I am 40 pages from the last word: I had to take a breathing after « Coltaine » scene and decided to write this comment so I can decompress.
What a journey! Seared into my heart and mind!
I think this series will join my top favorites…
I will need an interlude, a breather, before plunging into the next chapter. What would you recommend? A standalone on the cozier side maybe?
Anyway, see you in the next video!
I'm 8 books in and this is definitely still my favourite
I just finished Deadhouse Gates for the first time via audiobook last night and I am now out looking for answers/plot explanations. I understand that is not what this video is about so I will avoid posting spoilers down here but I did have a few comments. Firstly, I think Malazan is the first series I have come across where listening to it via audiobook might be somewhat ruining the experience. The narrator is great so its not his fault, but it is so hard to keep track of all these characters already and I heard that gets even more difficult. I did enjoy Felisin's arc and found myself understanding her brazen attitude towards those around her. If I had to give a quick, unfair summary of what this book felt like it would be this. A few different groups of people, some we know kind of well from the previous book, others that are totally new, even different races that are hard to imagine, spend almost the entire book travelling around the continent. Every few hours something kind of exciting happens but its very hard to wrap my head around things entirely so its a bit mushy. The ending was very iconic though...I could picture the scene very well and I enjoyed it a lot. I trust you, and others who have spoke so highly of this series that I will keep going and will be starting the third one later today. Still going to go get some plot explanations before I do that though!
This is forever tied with Memories of Ice to be my favorite Book of all time.
The book that locked me in to the series. That run through the Deadhouse at the end blew me away.
Really enjoying my re-read so far. This was the book that sold me on the series that became (and so far remains) my favourite completed Fantasy series
So far (five books in) this has been my favorite. Something about the chain of dogs just really clicked and Duiker’s entire journey. Same thing goes for the rise of the Whirlwind and the ark that she goes on (and in hindsight where it goes in HoC) just something so absolutely fantastically heart rending that draws me to this book
I'm currently reading this book. I wish I could enjoy it half as much as you. Just don't find myself caring about anything in the story.
I heard that this book wasn't meant to be written. The author had written 300 pages of a sequel to Gardens of the Moon but he lost it when his computer died. As a writer, I can't even imagine how crushing that would be. Rather than try to recreate that book, he apparently decided to start a totally different book, resulting in this one. If true, I guess it worked out pretty well.
Stick with it. I thought it was a little slow in the middle but the end was so heartbreaking and well written it was incredibly moving. I've never felt so many emotions about a sequence as I did in this book.
Hi Matt, you're looking great. I look forward to re-reading Malazan. I'm just finishing up Fall of Light (Kharkanas #2).
Great review! The chain of dogs had such an amazing ending. I think this is the book that shows if you will enjoy the rest of the series.
Still the best book in the Malazan series imo. Reading through the Coltaine, the Wickans and 7th journey was just something else.
It is up there, but you'll never pry Itkovian's scenes in Memories of Ice from my mind. #MemoriesOfIceBros
This book was so good
Been WAITING for this one!!
Great book. Thanks for getting me into Malazan. I'm currently on Reaper's Gale and plan to finish the whole shebang one day, but I am very slow.
Deadhouse Gates is the book that made me commit to the series.
Started reading Malazan with Matt's Gardens of the Moon readalong back in April. Just finished Memories of Ice and loving it! Can definitely be a slog in parts, though, so I'm taking a bit of a mental break before heading into House of Chains by reading Oathbringer.. 😂
Were you using guides/wikis/community read alongs during your first read through of the series?
First time reading yes, second time no
The Chain of dogs is sooooo heart rending...victory and defeat at once
I only made it halfway through book 4. But yeah DHG its pretty awesome.
Ayyyyy been waiting for this almost done with the warrior prophet after the comp❤
I had a hard time connecting with the chain of dogs plotline in this book, but if I hadn't, I would have loved it
Oh it’s so good. Had hands coming out of the sand … crucified dragons 🐉 👀.
I’ve always pronounced Duiker as “day-cur”… reason is that in South Africa there is a small antelope called a duiker and pronounced like that
hehehe guess what book jus arrived in my mail box :) perfect timing! Will start this after I'm done w Assassin's Quest probably :DD
Awesome, hope you enjoy!!
Just wondering when you’re gonna do the next top 100 books video?
Ideally filming tonight.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews lets go!
Just read the first three Malazan books for the first time and have some hot takes 😬: GotM was great, DG was a masterpiece from start to finish, MoI was a slooog and by far my least favorite so far… am I alone in this?? It had some great moments but it was the only one that I almost DNFd several times throughout.
DG > MOI is the better opinion (not the popular one).
Unfortunately, this book made me feel like I was pushing through the infamous Wheel of Time slog again :(
Wait, he doesn’t draft? Like he doesn’t do first, second, third…?
This book is an all-timer
My man Coltaine...
The chain of dogs when coltaine finds out their guides are eating children made me sick to my core. It felt like gore pron levels of excessive but still a good over all story
This author speaks to my soul! I know everyone has different sensibilities and different things work for them, but he, Janny Wurts, Shakespeare and Robert Jordan just pluck all the right notes for me, viscerally...
Interesting, I really dislike Felicin! She is my least liked character of the whole series! Different strokes, as i was saying 😊
You definitely have a particular style that appeals to you. Explains a lot.
Not gonna lie, this book disappointed me…gotm was LEAGUES better
I'm sorry your opinion is objective incorrect 😔