Memories of Ice - Epic Fantasy Novel by Steven Erikson | Best-Selling Book for Fantasy Lovers | Perfect for Reading, Book Clubs & Gifts

The book itself is phenomenal, the series puts most modern fantasy to shame, and memories of ice is where the series really starts to gain speed. Terrific series and terrific book. My one gripe with the series is this….DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT purchase this series in mass market paperback formatting. It’s nearly impossible to read. Have zero idea why they stopped printing/ limited printed the 9 inch trade paperback, which is the intended formatting for this series. At 6 inches, it turns an 800 page 9 inch book, into a 1300 page table thumping, binding snapping, read once and toss in the garbage, flaming dumpster fire. Also have zero idea why they went away with the 1st edition real artwork, to digital looking out of context art. The new “Viking” style artwork and font on the front covers makes ZERO sense because there is literally NOTHING about Vikings in this series. The characters aren’t even remotely Viking-ish in appearance or mannerism. Really stupid art direction by the publisher, and I’m not happy with owning half a series in one font and art, with another half in a different font with different art. So one star lost of that.This was a great book, and worthy of high praise.But come on, fix the typos. So many in this eBook, and they’re terribly blatant. Kindle needs to bring back the report typos feature.I don’t know if I’m becoming a more acquainted with Steven Erickson’s writing and thus I understood more of this book OR this book was just more readable than the first 2.Finally stuff is making more and more sense to me. But there is so much that happens in this book that it is really hard to sum it up in a review.However this is what I’ve now learned from Steven Erickson in this series:❶ - My favorite Character will die. Seriously 3 books and in each one the character I liked the most ended up dead. Whether they die a true death OR simply ascend to something else is yet to be seen.❷- Someone will backstab someone else at a most inopportune time and get a lot of people killed. You would think that would go with #1 but it is its own thing.❸ - Someone from the past will show up with a completely different name and you will have to try to figure out who they are. Sometimes it is easy and other times you really have to work for it.❹ - A character that you used to like will probably do something that turns you against them or at least makes you question why you ever liked them.❺ - Someone will make a sacrifice that is devastating.❻ - The one relationship that you root for in the book will be torn apart or never really get any tractionThere are many other things I’ve learned but those are the main bits.Dujek, Whiskeyjack and the Bridgeburners were always one of my favorites from Gardens of the Moon and so I was happy to be with them again. I will say that there are some crazy things going on in this book like women from the Pannion Domin raping men who are dying on the battlefield because it is supposed to make a child born from that a seer.Alomander Rake is back with Moonspawn and that cursed blade. I loved that we get some history on how that blade was forged and that Alomander Rake was not the first to wield it.Paran actually has a really interesting arc going on and some unexpected changes in him. While I don’t get everything that his new ‘position’ entails I think it means that he will be a big player at the end. I was really excited for him to be reunited with Tattersail in the form of SIlverfox but alas that actually ended up being one of my least favorite parts of the story….again see #6.Best new character award goes to Gruntle. I love that guy (that means he is doomed in the future > eyes #1 suspiciously ). I wasn’t really sure what to think of him at the beginning but his story actually ended up being my favorite for this book. I love that he doesn’t care for the houses or the gods in them one bit and yet now he is attached to one. He probably isn’t what that god wanted but he was in the right place at the wrong time and as the strips are with him forever now. Of course he was the person that I really was hoping would get a good relationship going with Stoney but alas again I was thwarted by #6. I love them together though.The end to this was chalked full of action and it was so sad. I am really heartbroken that things played out as they did. I’m still not sure how I feel, accept I feel like I lost a good friend at the end of this. It is sometimes hard to believe that some of the characters in this book are not real people. There were deaths in the other books I was upset by but there is one in this that totally gutted me and we are only at book 3 so I’m not sure my tender notions are going to survive this series.But on to House of Chains and the new heartache that is sure to come with it.Brought everything to conclusion and in such away that it didn’t ruin any parts of the story. Looking forward to reading more from this author.Should be a classicIf you've made it this far you're hooked. Erikson has done it again with this 3rd installment of Malazan Book of the Fallen. It's both awe inspiring and heartbreaking. Enjoy!I reviewed the first two books separately. I happen to like this one the best, and I've yet to read book four, which I will do in time. I would rate this one a 4.5 but alas, i cannot give half stars.Positives:Like the second book, Deadhouse Gates, the character development is far better now that we have gotten to know most of the main characters in this story through book one, Gardens of the Moon.Quick Ben and Paran team up to become a solid pair of characters to can really root for in this one. Loved the attention given to picker, and loved how Kruppe emerges as a character you can laugh at and appreciate as possibly Erikson's best creation of the series so far. Whiskeyjack becomes an icon in this one and you can begin to see why he's so beloved rather than simply being told he is. I liked finally getting to know Brood and Rake somewhat. In the end Erikson wins me over with his character development by shear volume of words. What some authors accomplish in 300-500 pages, it only took Erikson 1700 pages to accomplish.In all 3 of the books I've read, Erikson has been very good at dialog. I do enjoy reading his dialog, and wish there were more of it.We begin to understand the complexities of deities, ascendants, who they are, what they are, how they got where they are, and all that stuff, a lot better now because of our familiarity with the series, the characters, and more histories are given, and Erikson, thank God, is finally giving us better explanations of how things work in this rich and complex world!The complexity of the storyline is well received and appreciated in book three, whereas in book one it simply puzzled the reader, and likely lost fans who would have very much enjoyed this installment. The reason why it works here is it's brilliant in how Erikson ties things together by the end. Small details you thought were irrelevant suddenly become 'oh wow!" moments.The emotional tug in this one is not a tug like in book two, it's jarring, and that means the author succeeded in pulling the reader into his story.Negatives:As I mentioned in my review of Deadhouse Gates, the length of this book is fine, but I feel that it is only this long because 100 or more pages were given to dreams and characters having long conversations with themselves. This isn't bad in and of itself, but Erikson waxes eloquent for page after page and really out thinks the room here. I found myself having to re-read those sections and still not being able to really grasp the meaning or point. It prolongs, and simply halts forward momentum of the story. I understand that there was a point, that there was meaning, but he shrouds it in poetry to the point of frustration, not because he does it, but because he does it so often and for so long. A little goes along way.Oddly, I found the word "muttered" used quite often in this book. I did not notice it so frequently used in the previous books.Wow, have just finished this mega volume. Large in scale, in drama, in feeling. Erikson is a deeply flawed writer and some of his work is difficult to take: either in its lack of clarity, its gruesomeness or its sometimes poor pacing. So why have I given it five stars, which is very rare for me? Because in spite of all its faults it really is an amazing, gripping story with a plethora of quite wonderful characters. I finished it two days ago but still feel stunned and have been thinking about it ever since. I will go on to the next volume once I've recovered a bit!If anyone thought that the Book of the Fallen could not get any better after the first two more than impressive installments, Memories of Ice proves them gloriously wrong.We're back on Genabackis, and rejoin the Bridgeburners as they form one part of a very shaky alliance. Many favourite characters make a welcome return, and we meet new faces that are just as interesting.Among other new developments, Erikson introduces us to the seemingly unstoppable Seguleh, a great creation and very cool. And yet they are just one facet of a widening tapestry that includes undead dinosaurs with swords for hands, comedically theatrical necromancers and newborn tiger gods.The story is fast-paced, with highlights including the monstrous siege of Capustan and the climactic battle against an insane cult leader.Those who found the last book heartbreaking be warned: the Bridgeburners themselves, and particularly new chaaracter Itkovian, give the final moments of the book a deep and tragic emotional resonance.After a work of such brilliance, the only problem now is that Erikson can't possibly top it this time...Although still confused I love these books. Slowly but surely I am unravelling the plots and stories and have become quite close to some of the characters (particularly Kruppe). Memories of Ice has taken me over a year to read as I tend to dip into it, get distracted, then dip back in again, but I will finish the decology eventually. So far, I think this has been the best book and I will read the next instalment in due course. A word of warning, which is probably too late now it's the third instalment but... Do not daydream. I have done this several times whilst reading these books and by the time I've re-focused I don't know what the hell is going on and have had to re-read that part. It is fast and exciting and most of all, a must!Sometimes you think things can't get better but this series of books improves with each book. MOI flowed from chapter to chapter, battle to battle and adventure to adventure. The characters were so believable you just didn't want to leave them behind. The descriptive narrative was mindblowing. Can it be improved on? We will see. Now we move on to Book 4. New characters and new adventures. See you on the other side.There are already tons of reviews on this book, so I wont go into the narrative. Rather I will say I too thought this book was the best of the entire series. I loved getting to know more about Anomandaris, and also understanding Whiskeyjacks and Dujeks friendship a little better. I think Toc the Younger finally got some well deserved story time, and I loved the unravelling of Parans role as Master of the deck and what that entails. I think the houses and warrens, Gods and especially Kruls role was revealed in much needed detail. It was also a relief to find some closure to the clans of the T'lan imass who had opted for the ritual. All in all a fantastic read. I recommend the whole series to anyone needing a good injection of intelligent fantasy. This book will demand some solid thinking and time of you, but it will pay it back 10fold.