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Malazan Book of the Fallen

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Malazan Book of the Fallen /məˈlæzən/[1] is a series of epic fantasy novels written by the Canadian author Steven Erikson. The series, published by Bantam Books in the U.K. and Tor Books in the U.S., consists of ten volumes, beginning with Gardens of the Moon (1999) and concluding with The Crippled God (2011). Erikson's series presents the narratives of a large cast of characters spanning thousands of years across multiple continents.[2][3][4][5]

Malazan Book of the Fallen
Ebook cover of the series
AuthorSteven Erikson
LanguageEnglish
GenreHigh fantasy
PublisherTor Books (US)
Bantam Press (UK)
Subterranean Press (Limited Edition)
Published1 April 1999 – present
Media typePrint
Digital
No. of books10
Followed by

His stories present complicated series of events in the world upon which the Malazan Empire is located. Each of the first five novels is relatively self-contained, in that each resolves its respective primary conflict; however, many underlying characters and events are interwoven throughout the works of the series, binding it together. The Malazan world was co-created by Steven Erikson and Ian Cameron Esslemont in the early 1980s as a backdrop to their GURPS roleplaying campaign.[6] In 2005, Esslemont began publishing his own series of six novels set in the same world, beginning with Night of Knives. Although Esslemont's books are published under a different series title – Novels of the Malazan Empire – Esslemont and Erikson collaborated on the storyline for the entire sixteen-book project and Esslemont's novels are considered to be as canonical and integral to the series' mythos as Erikson's own.

The series has received widespread critical acclaim, with reviewers praising the epic scope, plot complexity and characterizations, and fellow authors such as Glen Cook (The Black Company) and Stephen R. Donaldson (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant) hailing it as a masterwork of the imagination, and comparing Erikson to the likes of Joseph Conrad, Henry James, William Faulkner, and Fyodor Dostoevsky.[7][8][9]

Books

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List

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Erikson and Esslemont recommend reading the books in order of publication.[10] Tor.com published a reading order based on the approximate chronological order of events in the series,[11] which the authors did not consider suitable as a reading order for a first-time reader.[10]

# Title Series Approximate Word Count[12] 1st Publication
1 Gardens of the Moon Malazan Book of the Fallen #1 205k 1 April 1999
2 Deadhouse Gates Malazan Book of the Fallen #2 264k 1 September 2000
3 Memories of Ice Malazan Book of the Fallen #3 346k 6 December 2001
4 House of Chains Malazan Book of the Fallen #4 298k 2 December 2002
5 Midnight Tides Malazan Book of the Fallen #5 265k 1 March 2004
6 Night of Knives Novels of the Malazan Empire #1 92k 1 September 2004
7 The Bonehunters Malazan Book of the Fallen #6 355k 1 March 2006
8 The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, Volume 1 The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach #1-3 68k 15 September 2009
9 Reaper's Gale Malazan Book of the Fallen #7 378k 7 May 2007
10 Toll The Hounds Malazan Book of the Fallen #8 391k 30 June 2008
11 Return of the Crimson Guard Novels of the Malazan Empire #2 273k 15 August 2008
12 Dust of Dreams Malazan Book of the Fallen #9 371k 18 August 2009
13 Stonewielder Novels of the Malazan Empire #3 233k 25 November 2010
14 The Crippled God Malazan Book of the Fallen #10 376k 15 February 2011
15 Orb Sceptre Throne Novels of the Malazan Empire #4 217k 20 February 2012
16 Blood and Bone Novels of the Malazan Empire #5 227k 22 November 2012
17 Forge of Darkness The Kharkanas Trilogy #1 292k 2 August 2012
18 Assail Novels of the Malazan Empire #6 207k 5 August 2014
19 Fall of Light The Kharkanas Trilogy #2 355k 26 April 2016
20 Dancer's Lament Path to Ascendancy #1 144k 25 February 2016
21 The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, Volume 2 The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach #4-6 123k 20 September 2018
22 Deadhouse Landing Path to Ascendancy #2 130k 15 November 2017
23 Kellanved's Reach Path to Ascendancy #3 112k 19 February 2019
24 Upon a Dark of Evil Overlords The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach #7 31 October 2020
25 The God is Not Willing The Witness #1 191k 1 July 2021
26 Forge of the High Mage Path to Ascendancy #4 151k 6 April 2023
TBA Walk in Shadow The Kharkanas Trilogy #3 TBA
TBA No Life Forsaken[13] The Witness #2 TBA
TBA Unnamed Path to Ascendancy #5 TBA
TBA Unnamed Path to Ascendancy #6 TBA
TBA Time's Cursed Cartwheel The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach #8 TBA

Malazan Book of the Fallen

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This is the main series, written by Steven Erikson, and commenced, in terms of publication order, before any of the other series. This first novel, Gardens of the Moon, was shortlisted for a World Fantasy Award. The second novel, Deadhouse Gates, was voted one of the ten best fantasy novels of 2000 by SF Site.[14] See the structure section below for more information.

The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach

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The first three novellas were published together as The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, Volume 1. The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, Volume 2 includes the second three novellas.

Novels of the Malazan Empire

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Novels of the Malazan Empire is a six-part novel series written by Ian Cameron Esslemont. The novels cover events simultaneous with the Book of the Fallen, like the mystery of the Crimson Guard, the succession of the Malazan Empire, the situation on Korel and Jacuruku and the mystery of Assail.

The Kharkanas Trilogy

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Main article: The Kharkanas Trilogy

The Kharkanas Trilogy is a prequel series written by Steven Erikson after the completion of the main series. The series deals with the Tiste before their split into darkness, light and shadow. It sheds light on the events that are often hinted at in the background of Malazan Book of the Fallen. Many of the important Tiste characters from the Malazan Book of the Fallen make an appearance like Anomander Rake, Draconus, Spinnock Durav and Andarist.

Path to Ascendancy

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The Path to Ascendancy is a prequel series set in the world of Malazan, written by Ian Cameron Esslemont.[15] The stories deal with the early adventures of Dancer and Kellanved (Dorin and Wu, in this series) and their eventual rise to power on Quon Tali.

The Witness

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The Witness is a series written by Steven Erikson as a sequel to the main series featuring Karsa Orlong and his quest to destroy civilization.

In July 2024, Erikson stated that the series would now be four novels instead of the planned trilogy, as the second novel needed to be split in two.[16]

Conception

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Subterranean Press Numbered Edition
 
Steven Erikson's Signature in Deadhouse Gates, Sub Press Edition

The Malazan world was originally created by Steven Erikson and Ian Cameron Esslemont in 1982 as a backdrop for role-playing games using a modified version of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.[17] By 1986, when the GURPS system had been adopted by Erikson and Esslemont,[6] the world had become much larger and more complex, approaching its current scope. It was then developed into a movie script entitled Gardens of the Moon. When this was not successful in finding interest, the two writers agreed to each write a series set in their shared world.[17] Steven Erikson wrote Gardens of the Moon as a novel in the period 1991-92 but it was not published until 1999. In the meantime, he wrote several non-fantasy novels. When he sold Gardens of the Moon, he agreed to a contract for an additional nine volumes in the series. The contract with Bantam UK was worth £675,000 [18] making it "among the largest fees ever paid for a fantasy series".[19]

Ian Cameron Esslemont wrote the Novels series from 2004 to 2014.

After finishing the two main series, Erikson and Esslemont continued on to further projects in the Malazan universe. While writing the last novels in The Malazan Book of the Fallen, Erikson decided that his next project, The Kharkanas Trilogy, would be a "trilogy traditional in form," saying the following: "If the Malazan series emphasized a postmodern critique of the subgenre of epic fantasy, paying subtle homage all the while, the Kharkanas Trilogy subsumes the critical aspects and focuses instead on the homage."[20]

At one point, Steven Erikson indicated that the two authors would collaborate on The Encyclopedia Malaz, an extensive guide to the series, which was to be published following the last novel in the main sequence.[21] In an interview on a later date, however, he mentioned talks underway with an RPG 20D group to produce a game adapted from the Malazan universe, in which case the maps and notes created by Erikson and Esslemont would be released through installments or expansions rather than through the publishing of an encyclopedia.[22]

The Malazan world has no official unified name, although Steven Erikson has jokingly called it Wu.[23]

In an interview with a Spanish fantasy blog, Erikson said that the hand-drawn version of the Malazan world which he had at home was too large to be photocopied; however, he also said that the maps created by fans were coming close.[24]

Influences

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In a general review of The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature, edited by Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn, Erikson fired a shot across the bow of "the state of scholarship in the fantastic as it pertains to epic fantasy,"[25] taking particularly to task James's opening lines in Chapter 5 of that volume. Erikson uses a handful of words from that chapter as an epigraph for a quasi-autobiographical essay in The New York Review of Science Fiction. James's sentences read in full:

J. R. R. Tolkien said that the phrase 'In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit' came to his unconscious mind while marking examination papers; he wrote it on a blank page in an answer book. From that short sentence, one might claim, much of the modern fantasy genre emerged. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (1954–5) (henceforth LOTR) looms over all the fantasy written in English—and in many other languages—since its publication; most subsequent writers of fantasy are either imitating him or else desperately trying to escape his influence.[26]

Erikson writes, "But epic fantasy has moved on, something critics have failed to notice." He goes on,

One example of this can be gleaned from my own beginnings as a writer of fantasy, which I suspect was commonplace among my colleagues. In my youth, I sidestepped Tolkien entirely, finding my inspiration and pleasure in the genre through Howard, Burroughs, and Leiber. And as with many of my fellow epic fantasy writers, our first experience of the Tolkien tropes of epic fantasy came not from books, but from Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying games ... As my own gaming experience advanced, it was not long before I abandoned those tropes ... Accordingly, my influences in terms of fiction are post-Tolkien, and they came from conscious responses to Tolkien (Donaldson's Thomas Covenant series) and unconscious responses to Tolkien (Cook's Dread Empire and Black Company series).[25]

Erikson concludes, "So, Professor James, when you say 'since [Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings]... most subsequent writers of fantasy are either imitating him or else desperately trying to escape his influence'—sorry. You're flat-out wrong."

Themes

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The Malazan series contains many themes around socio-economic inequality and social injustice throughout such as gender equality with Erikson stating "It occurred to us that it would create a culture without gender bias so there would be no gender-based hierarchies of power. It became a world without sexism and that was very interesting to explore."[27] as well as the inevitability of and role of art in civilizational collapse[28] and many other themes rooted in a postmodernist and post-structuralist deconstruction of the fantasy genre and magical realism.[29][30]

Critical reception

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The series was positively received by critics, who praised the epic scope, plot complexity and the introspective nature of the characterization, which serve as social commentary. Fellow author Glen Cook has called the series a masterwork of the imagination that may be the high water mark of the epic fantasy genre. In his treatise written for The New York Review of Science Fiction, fellow author Stephen R. Donaldson has also praised Erikson for his approach to the fantasy genre, the subversion of classical tropes, the complex characterizations, the social commentary — pointing explicitly to parallels between the fictional Letheras Economy and the US Economy — and has compared him to the likes of Joseph Conrad, Henry James, William Faulkner, and Fyodor Dostoevsky.[31][32][33]

Reviewing for SF Site, Dominic Cilli says, The Malazan Book of the Fallen raises "the bar for fantasy literature", that the world building and the writing are exceptional.[34] Cilli claims the series is written for the "most advanced readers out there.", going on to state that "Even they will have to make two passes through all ten books to fully comprehend the myriad of plotlines, characters and various settings that Erickson presents to us." Reading Erikson's "The Malazan Book of the Fallen" might be "the most challenging literary trial" a reader has ever tried, yet "the payoff is too enormous to ignore and well worth taking on the endeavor. Steven Erikson doesn't spoon feed his readers. He forces you to question and think on a level that very few authors would even dare for fear of finding and perhaps losing an audience."[34]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Malazan is an adjective meaning "of Malaz" /məˈlæz/. For the pronunciation: Erikson, Steven (28 October 2020). "Steven Erikson Talks Building Malazan, Facebook Post, & MORE!" (Interview). Interviewed by Daniel Greene. YouTube. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  2. ^ Bangs, Arthur (14 May 2006). "The Bonehunters by Steven Erikson". SFFWorld.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  3. ^ "What I'm Reading #22 - GARDENS OF THE MOON by Steven Erikson". The Alexandrian. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  4. ^ "Steven Erikson's TOLL THE HOUNDS cover art". Pat's Fantasy Hotlist. 16 January 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  5. ^ Floresiensis. "Reviews - Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson". Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  6. ^ a b Erikson, Steven (2007). "Preface to the Gardens of the Moon redux". Gardens of the Moon. Bantam Books. pp. xii–xiv. ISBN 978-0-553-81957-1.
  7. ^ "Stephen R. Donaldson: Epic Fantasy: Necessary Literature". The New York Review of Science Fiction. 18 March 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  8. ^ "Episode 264: Glen Cook and Steven Erikson". The Coode Podcast, Discussion and digression on science fiction and fantasy with Gary Wolfe and Jonathan Strahan. 14 January 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  9. ^ "Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson". macmillan.com. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  10. ^ a b SageOfTheWise (5 December 2017). "I asked Erikson about that new Tor reading order article". Reddit.com. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  11. ^ "The Malazan Authors' Suggested Reading Order for the Series Is Not What You Would Expect". Tor.com. 21 November 2017. Archived from the original on 23 November 2017.
  12. ^ Wordcount based on Kobo Listings.
  13. ^ Barman, Marc (16 May 2022). "Steven Erikson starts work on sequel to THE GOD IS NOT WILLING". The News Dairy. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson". macmillan.com. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  15. ^ "Dancer's Lament | Ian C. Esslemont". Macmillan. Archived from the original on 9 January 2016. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  16. ^ Steven Erikson at Delfi Knjižara SKC, Belgrade. Nightflier's Bookspace. Event occurs at 9:20 – via YouTube.
  17. ^ a b Introduction to Gardens of the Moon, Special Edition
  18. ^ Moss, Stephen (14 October 1999). "Malazans and megabucks". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  19. ^ Interview with Steven Erikson in SFX Magazine issue #99, Christmas 2002.
  20. ^ "An Introduction to Forge of Darkness For Readers Old and New Alike". Tor.com. 26 July 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  21. ^ "Interview: Malazan Book of the Fallen author Steven Erikson | The Void Magazine". the-void.co.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  22. ^ "Steven Erikson Answers Your Dust of Dreams Questions!". Tor.com. 11 June 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  23. ^ Q and A with malazanempire No 1 (2003)
  24. ^ http://caballerodelarbolsonriente.blogspot.co.uk/2017/12/steven-erikson-no-hay-nada-para.html Interview with El Caballero del Arbol Sonriente, December 2017
  25. ^ a b Erikson, Steven (May 2012). "Not Your Grandmother's Epic Fantasy: A Fantasy Author's Thoughts Upon Reading The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature". The New York Review of Science Fiction. 24 (9). Pleasantville, NY: Dragon Press: 1, 4–5.
  26. ^ James, Edward (26 January 2012). "Tolkien, Lewis and the explosion of genre fantasy". The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature. Cambridge Collections Online. ISBN 9780521728737.
  27. ^ Bandstra, Matt (22 October 2018). "Diversity and Equality Are Foundational Concepts in Malazan Book of the Fallen". Tor.com. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  28. ^ Galaxy, Geek's Guide to the (28 November 2012). "Steven Erikson: I'm Not Competing With George R. R. Martin". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  29. ^ Canavan, A.P. "Steven Erikson: More Than Meets the Eye". Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts. 29 (1).
  30. ^ Malazan: A Postmodern Critique of the Fantasy Genre, retrieved 18 March 2021. Archive - "I've waited over twenty years for a postmodern/poststructural analytical discussion of my series. In fact, I'd just about given up hope that these elements would ever be noticed (how many students of philosophy read Epic Fantasy? Well, at least one!). I was lucky in that my initial foray into fiction writing (a Creative Writing program at the University of Victoria) was in the midst of the Magic Realist movement in literature, which as you know is explicitly deconstructed in terms of narrative reliability, while also openly challenging notions of objective reality. Magic Realism of course is deeply connected, philosophically, with Existentialism (made metamorphic beneath tyrannical polities), and all of this led, in a roundabout way, to metafiction. Alas, most metafiction struck me as too obvious, and I remembered wondering, way back then, if there was a way to make metafiction subtle. Then I began to wonder if one could make metafiction a hidden meta-narrative embracing a postmodern, poststructural story. Turns out, the answer is yes, as epitomized in the Malazan Book of the Fallen (the cipher unlocking the metafictional element to the series is found in Toll the Hounds). But for me, all of that was just me grappling with a growing uncertainty regarding almost everything, making the process of writing the series a kind of dialectic, not only between me and myself, but also between realities: ours here on Earth, and that other one being a made-up Malazan world."
  31. ^ "Stephen R. Donaldson: Epic Fantasy: Necessary Literature". The New York Review of Science Fiction. 18 March 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  32. ^ "Episode 264: Glen Cook and Steven Erikson". The Coode Podcast, Discussion and digression on science fiction and fantasy with Gary Wolfe and Jonathan Strahan. 14 January 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  33. ^ "Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson". macmillan.com. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  34. ^ a b Cilli, Dominic (2011). "The Malazan Book of the Fallen". SF Site. Retrieved 13 August 2012.

References

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