Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson

Gardens of the Moon

By Steven Erikson

  • Release Date: 2004-06-01
  • Genre: Epic Fantasy
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 793 Ratings

Description

The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting and bloody confrontations with the formidable Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii, ancient and implacable sorcerers. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the bloodshed, yearn for some respite. Yet Empress Laseen's rule remains absolute, enforced by her dread Claw assassins.

For Sergeant Whiskeyjack and his squad of Bridgeburners, and for Tattersail, surviving cadre mage of the Second Legion, the aftermath of the siege of Pale should have been a time to mourn the many dead. But Darujhistan, last of the Free Cities of Genabackis, yet holds out. It is to this ancient citadel that Laseen turns her predatory gaze.

However, it would appear that the Empire is not alone in this great game. Sinister, shadowbound forces are gathering as the gods themselves prepare to play their hand...

Conceived and written on a panoramic scale, Gardens of the Moon is epic fantasy of the highest order--an enthralling adventure by an outstanding new voice.

At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.

Reviews

  • Getting better

    4
    By TigersJC86
    I’ve read this book 3 times now and it does get better with each read. I think the thing that amazes me most is the magic. It’s certainly powerful but it’s not so fantastic it overwhelms the story. It is a very bleak story and my one complaint is it feels like you’re not sure ho you’re rooting for or have a full understanding of the players involved. That being said I’ll continue to read and hopefully get a better understanding.
  • Best in Class, Best in Show

    5
    By Unpaid Reviewist
    Nobody writes fantasy as well as Erikson, and nobody in fantasy writes politics, economics,magic, dragons, monsters, ecology, archaeology OR human nature as well as Eriskon. Pick any of them and he’s the pinnacle. What you end up with is the best fictional work of asymmetric warfare ever written. With zero spoonfeeding, no class, philosophy or religious type is spared the lash of historical comeuppance. Readers looking for affirmation of any kind will find his work to be “lacking character develpment”, “lacking explanation” and with “an unclear plot direction”. Everyone else will think it’s close to the best fantasy out there, or just the best fantasy period. There’s Tolkein, Erickson, and everyone else.
  • An Unbearable Slog

    1
    By Windupferrari
    Gardens of the Moon is, I can only assume, an attempt to create a fantasy epic that mimicked the feeling of trying to read a textbook that’s missing every other chapter. There’s so much being glossed over and so many names and places thrown out without context that I stopped several times to double check that I hadn’t picked a book in the middle of the series by accident, and I constantly had to reread passages after losing focus. Maybe I could’ve gotten past that if the POV characters were engaging, but for me they elicited apathy at best, and loathing at worst. I really tried, but this was the first and only fantasy novel I’ve ever started that I couldn’t force myself to finish.
  • Fantastic

    5
    By Sdzzzz
    Depth, action, originality. An incredible story!
  • Terrific

    5
    By Hawktale
    Hang in there. It took me a couple tries as it's very different than a lot of fantasy I've read, especially G.O.T.M. But...when you "get it" these books become impossible to set down. A truly impressive world.
  • Dear Publishers Weekly

    5
    By QuikBen
    Oh, How you have Fallen to the wayside. . . No depth? . . NO DEPTH? Don't make me piddle in my pants! Your review of Erickson's first book in his masterwork series makes me want to bang my head against a wall, repeatedly. . .
  • Excellent.

    5
    By HourGlass1995
    If you are negative about this series, or this book, you really have no idea about what's going on. This series takes place on an epic scale, involving countless characters, and a whole bunch of different kingdoms and empires. This is the most epic series available today, and I just can't see how people don't like that.
  • Entertaining..... yet

    1
    By Valandil2009
    The story has much intrigue and promise. However, the author seems to have focused so much on creating a grandiose universe and neglected cohesion and character development. I read it to end hoping it would get better, it never did. Great story from the outside, no substance on the inside.
  • Slow beginning--decent mid--great ending

    5
    By Dubstepping
    The world building takes awhile, but the book starts getting pretty good in the middle. Erikson has an odd style in this book where he just continues on as if you know all the terms he uses. Some may like it; some may not. Honestly it was a bit frustrating throughout the beginning--not knowing what he was talking about, but as you read on the picture becomes clearer. Some of the fight scenes were pretty awesome, though they were a bit short: still good. I enjoyed the book and have even higher hopes for the rest of the series now that I've finished the foundation. Definitely worth reading.
  • Yes, it's hard. Yes, it is worth it.

    5
    By Chorok1c
    Finishing this series was the most rewarding literary journey I have ever undertaken. After Game of Thrones reawakened my love of fantasy fiction, I have since read almost all the modern epics --Wheel of Time, Farseer, Acacia, Amber, etc. And every time I took one up, I would try to read Gardens of the Moon first, and could not get past the prologue and first chapter. I mean literally must have been half a dozen times. Too slow, too jumbled, too much this too little that... Until my last foray. I persevered and trudged through, like a Bonehunter, never quite understanding what the hell was going on, but rejoicing in what tidbits of glory I could gain here and there, laughing and crying and bleeding the whole time through. This is a hard book. Erikson not only does not spoon feed you the answers to the million questions you'll have as you go, he actually doesn't even endeavor to try to answer most of them. I mean, for the majority of the whole series, I had no idea what the hell was really going on, but whatever it was, I was ecstatic to be part of it. Like a high fist, Erikson expects you to just do your job and march through the story, btch and moan and jest and kill to your fullest, live it to the fullest, whether you are intelligent enough to follow all the webs, or are just content enough not to get too tangled in them. And if you do just that, maybe you'll see the glory that awaits you when that job is done. And if not, at least you would have made some friends, gained some wisdom, killed some demons, and saved some gods. And of course, WITNESSED.