If [a:Steven Erikson|31232|Steven Erikson|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1219169436p2/31232.jpg] had a dime for every time someone "scowled" in his 700+ pages of a brick, titled "[b:Gardens of the Moon|850960|Gardens of the Moon (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)|Steven Erikson|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178900712s/850960.jpg|2646042]", he'd be a very rich man. But then again, since he managed to avoid being just another Tolkien interpreter and instead write an epic fantasy novel that feels both original and fresh, I can decide to live with that.
I can also decide to live with the stereotypical character gallery, the overcomplicated storyline (I'm still not entirely sure what the book was about and wether the abundance of loose threads will be addressed in the following books of the series - I can only make an educated guess/hope that they will) and the lack of descriptions - especially of the non-human peoples. I still can't visualise a T'lan Imass in a way that might resemble how I think they're supposed to look, and as to their origins, there have only been hints given in the form of half-answers or -questions. Actually, there are lots of literary issues that could easily sink this massive vessel. Simply put, Steven Erikson doesn't tell the story very well.
But it's not how it's told that matters in this case. Neither is what is told. So please disregard the above critisism and bear with me for a little while longer.
It seems that Erikson's world was intended to become a campaign for a roleplaying game. This has undoubtedly created a strong foundation for the story. There's probably 700 pages of rules and descriptions of how magic works in this world, laying around somewhere in his house. The same probably accounts for the various peoples of this world along with a world history and anything that might have relevance as background data. One must also remember that Erikson (real name Steve Rune Lundin) himself has a background as an archaeologist and anthropologist, which obviously has affected the creation of this foundation.
There are sides to this background in roleplay, though. Sometimes while reading I sense the characters acting "roleplayish", finding themselves in so many strange situations and sometimes act so very strange that the only thing I can think of is that these situations actually took place during actual sessions of playing this prototypical RPG, and that Erikson promptly chronicled these happenings. I'm probably wrong about this, but it still feels that way. There are people wielding magical swords as it's the most normal thing to do, they defy godlike entities without flinching (but most likely scowling every now and then) and rub strange powders into their skin, despite warnings from people who should know what they're talking about. And who - other than some I've-been-awake-72-hours-straight-playing-Steven-Erikson's-GURPS-campaign-about-the-Malazan-empire-and-my brain-just-melted-from-all-the-Coca-Cola-and-Pringles-I've-eaten-since-we-started-so-I-tend-to-do-crazy-and-irresponsible-things-even-though-I'm-supposed-to-be-a-hero roleplayer would release a demon capable of destroying a big city just to divert a couple of mage assassins? It just doesn't make sense sometimes. But on the other hand, it's damned entertaining!
One notable thing is Erikson's use of female characters. There are lots of'em, and though there are one or two "classic" femme fatale's, the majority of women are equal to the men in all possible ways. They hold powerful positions in society and know how to kick major ass, both physically and using magic. And the greatest thing about it is that as a reader, I'm oblivious to wether they're men or women. It all comes natural - or rather; they all come out natural. Or neutral. No matter what sex they may be, they all are equally important to the story. This is a hard passage to write, because it feels like I'm trying to make a big thing of something that works just because it hasn't been made into a big thing by Erikson. Sex, nor gender, seem to be an issue with this writer.
Overall - come to think of it - the strength of this (from a literary point of view) very flawed book mainly lies in what it's not:
It's not - as I mentioned intitially - another Tolkien wannabe writing a LotR variation (although, come to think of it, it has a coinbearer). There are so many out there that I've been afraid to look at the fantasy shelf at the library for a long time. This experience has shown me that there is more to this genre that what I might have thought.
It's not - as I've also mentioned before - a straightforward story about a band of good guys ridding the world of the bad guys. Instead the characters, no matter that they're stereotypically presented (the young, romantically inclined thief, the skilled assassin, the mad wizard, the renegade war hero...) are all somewhat "cracked" in one way or another. Their actions sometimes contradict each other, but always in a way that adds to their complex personalities. This said, there are more subplots and conspiracies and twists and turns in this book, that in one season of 'Lost'. And it's harder to keep up with all these, since they interfere and intersect with each other throughout the book, as does the enormous gallery of main characters. And to introduce "new" characters (although he'd been mentioned before, Caladan Brood suddenly turns out to be more important than the previous 600 pages has indicated) to the plot during the last 100 pages of the book is really frustrating!
It's not great literature, but it's great anyways. It's entertainment, but still forces you to use your brain.Overall, it's ambitious as hell!
For a book as blatantly flawed and complicated as this one, I surprised myself by liking it so much I gave it a well deserved four stars (which translates as "I really liked it") at Goodreads.com. I've already started reading book #2, "[b:Deadhouse Gates|1277615|Deadhouse Gates (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)|Steven Erikson|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182450612s/1277615.jpg|3898716]" and I think I'll like this one just as much as the first one (although one of the main characters just scowled). My hopes lie with the notion that every chain of events set moving in this first "tale of the Malazan book of the Fallen", will ultimately be followed up - one way or another - in the following nine novels, the last still awaiting release.
I mean, what will happen to Tattersail? What about the releasing of the two Hounds? Will Quick Ben manage to stay clear of Shadowthrone? What happened to Rallick? Will we meet Tool again? There are more questions.
But as far at this review is concerned, one question stands out: What the heck does the title, "Gardens of the moon", refer to? How can that be interpreted into the happenings of the novel? Please help me, because that is beyond my understanding...
