Tor Books Deadhouse Gates

Easily one of the most fun reads. This book made me pick up next two books in the series. Even as a standalone I enjoyed it. Only two other books in the series, book 4 and 5 were in my personal opinion better than this. The books was packed well and was new in great condition.

I had to sit on the book for a while, after having finished reading, to fully comprehend my feelings towards it. “The Deadhouse Gates” is completely different from the first installment of the series both in scope and execution. If in “Gardens of the Moon”, I was under the impression that the main focus of Steven Erikson was the plot, here - at the very core of the book - lay the characters. I am not saying that in the first novel the author did not develop great characters (and, from this standpoint, GOTM is better than TDG, in my opinion), but just that here the attention of the reader must stay on their journey: a journey which is both physical and emotional. Had I to describe “The Deadhouse Gates” with a few words, I would use “tragic” and “epic”. The former comes from the tone of the narration as Steven Erikson deeply reflects on the consequences of war and the social, human and cultural impact that conflicts have on humankind. The book is definitely an intense one and it distinguishes itself by highlighting the emotional burden of the characters. On the other end, the epic angle relates to the embracement of the events of an entire continent, swept by rebellion and the winds of war. With this second novel, we leave behind the scheming and plotting of Darujhistan to know more about the story of peoples conquered and oppressed by the Malazan Empire. I must admit that, especially towards the end, the book felt a little longer than it should have been. The parts dedicated to the Chain of Dogs - even if emotionally engaging - seemed to follow the same outline, repeated several times, whereas following Kalam’s journey on the ship was a real drag… However, all in all, “The Deadhouse Gates” adds an important piece to the jigsaw of the Malazan series, sharing with the reader some important revelations and laying the groundwork for further developments within the saga.

I read Garden of The Moon last month and liked it engouh to try the second novel in the series. But. If the world created by Steven Erickson is rich and full and perfect for any fantasy lover, his way of presenting it and his writing style makes it hard to enjoy the read. It’s only when closing the book that you say “wow, so many ideas, no many nuances, it’s great”. But when you’re reading it … It’s too elliptic (“wait … Why is he saying that ?” and five minutes of relfection later “ok maybe because of that”), and too dense to have the time to enjoy everything : every new element or new name is barely explained. While I very much appreciate being told a story of a different world as if I was of that world (it makes me feel intelligent, that the author doesn’t have to explain ten times every news weird element), he does that to the point that you lose all your interest in everything new, rendering the story pretty flat : ok he found that or did that, but who cares since I don’t even remember what race he’s from and his story is ? It’s a good try at insisting on the realistic dimension of fantasy (by concentrating only on actions and dialogues of the characters, and relinduishing descriptions and static information to a minimum), even though the poetic dimension if non-existent, and the characters are pushed so much into a sort of material realism and scientifically presented that you’re surprised they have sometimes strong feelings. I liked Felisin because she seemed to hate a lot of people, and the only one expressing any kind kind of emotion helping you shaping some sort of lasting visual of her character. As for the others, they give a blurry impression : too many details but nothing standing out enough to differentiate them a lot from the others (even if they’re from different races or tribes … Since you don’t know anything about it anyway, it doesn’t even help). They all seem interesting and complex, more of less going with the flow of the story, but … Contrary to many other fantasy books, I wouldn’t be able to draw the picture I have in mind of each of them, simply because I don’t have one and the book didn’t let me have one. This book makes you feel like you’re reading an awful lot of nuances and details and interesting small things that might be potentially significant and enjoyable, but you miss the point because the big picture is reduced to a minimum. Only details, lost in a sea of other details, in a world that is very rich and complex. Quite frustrating. I need a big picture and grand things and epic stuff to value the small things. Maybe if I read a second time it’ll be better. I wonder if the third book gets improvements on that …

I love it!

Leves desconchamientos, algún doblez típico del transporte. Pero lo que es el contenido del libro, las páginas están en buena condición, perfectas.