I have read the full Book of the Fallen series three times. For huge fans of the series who only read it once - I highly recommend doing it a second time.

This video finally pushed me to start Malazan, which I've wanted to do for years. Five months later and halfway through midnight tides and I'm a full blown addict! These books are fantastic! For anyone intimidated by the length, these books move at a great pace and don't feel padded at all. I've been reading one a month and taking 2-3 week breaks after each to avoid burn out. Strategy working really well. Thanks for finally pushing me to start the series!

The best fantasy series ever written, in my humble opinion. Feels like a huge world, fleshed out and adult. A breath of fresh, if complicated, air 😂

This is my favorite fantasy series ever. Thank you for bringing your signature positivity to it! Man, I love watching your videos.

I’m on book three and have been using the tor summaries and commentary to help understand each chapter after I’ve read it. I’m enjoying the book but still feel confused at least half the time. It’s definitely worth the extra effort but it’s not the relaxing reading experience I’m used to. I will say character development and humour has vastly improved since book one.

The fact that the Malazan book of the fallen treats the reader like an intelligent person capable of thinking for themself is in and of itself one of the best parts of the series. I remember going though my first ready of Gardens of the Moon and being able to figure out through context (and sometimes the glossary) how the magical system more or less worked. My one big disagreement is that the second novel doesn't obviously follow the first. Again, the first book sets up Mappo and Iccarum, as well as the whirlwind rebellion and gives you existing characters in which to take you through the journey with. Just like the first book, if you paid attention, it was all there from the beginning. I had the book recommended to me by a friend who actually knew Erikson as a family friend back in Alberta and one of the interesting details they shared was that Erikson (and maybe Esslemont as well) table gamed a lot of the events of the books, D&D style. It allowed for the flow of the stories to have that random chaotic factor that feels so fluid and present throughout the story. You can see where Erikson wants to go sometimes but knowing that detail, you can also see that the dice didn't align and instead characters die, unexpected events occur, and the grand heroics that are more common in other books are sometimes muted by the critical failures that tug on your heartstrings as much as any success might have. Overall, the series is truly a masterpiece. I've read the wheel of time, game of thrones, the stormlight archive, earthsea, mistborn, and many others and Erikson's books are just so underrated that it hurts. I hope one day the wider public sees the genius in these books. Edit: if anyone is looking for a great underrated series; try the Dune Prequel books [Sisterhood of Dune | Mentats of Dune | Navigators of Dune] by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. They are standalone (if you haven't read Dune or its sequels), and dance brilliantly around the themes of power and extremist beliefs. If anyone likes Sci-fi and hasn't tried them, they were so much better than I could have expected.

This helped so much. I've been working my way through the first book. It's dense and I like finding resources to understand. But no one had explained "the point" of the series like this. Thanks!

I really love watching these book guide videos. You do such a great job building hype and describing these series. I’m convinced you’ll convince me to read every fantasy series you post about

I have very recently finished the 3rd novel - 'Memories of Ice', and I can definitely say that this series is well and truly EPIC, and Steven Erikson is a genius. If you haven't yet read it or are planning to do so, I would highly recommend it without a shadow of a doubt. It is a little confusing at the start, and new readers might take some time getting used to it, but oh boy, once you get a hang of it, you're in for a ride... an experience like no other, believe it or not. JUST GO FOR IT! Mate, just found out your channel through this vid, and I must say that you've done a pretty good job of explaining what the series is all about. 'The World' section was very nicely done in particular. I would like to thank you for spreading the word about Malazan in such a great way. Subscribed, and will be checking other stuff on your channel too. Cheers!

the way i literally have malazan in my cart right now and this video just dropped and i opened youtube at the exact second it did

Only just started and I wanted to say that its mad Malazan has only sold 3 million copies. In youtube land it is literally in every video I see, and I had never heard of it. Now I know why! Because no one else outside of booktube reads it! Thanks for explaining how popular a series is, as it gives a lot of context as to why I have never heard of this book series

You rock! Every video you make, makes me more excited to start reading a series. I'm now less intimidated for reading Malazan. First finishing WoT (starting with book 10 soon) and perhaps then I'll give Gardens of the Moon a go.

Traveling right now (near your neck of the woods 😊) and have this video saved! I'm so excited to watch it!

Thank you, I've been bracing myself for this for a while and this video makes me finally feel ready.

Thanks so much for this! I'm late to Malazan but I'm slowly making my way through Gardens of the Moon and loving it. Your explanations are clear and cogent, and I loved your enthusiasm. I look forward to watching more videos!

I’m a veteran like you who’s read 17 of the books so far-what a fantastic overview! It’s nuts to me that there’s still so much to dig into with the prequel series and novellas

I’m so excited to read this series!! I just finished Way of Kings, and half way done with wheel of time. I’m studying up before I dive into this series though I know it’s a different ball game! 😊😅

Here’s the thing. I have read a ton of fantasy over 25 yrs. I’m 40 now. I don’t gravitate to easy books but ones that tend to be deeper & more of a challenge but Malazan annoyed me. It felt like it was a non stop info dump with nothing really connecting it but a world & a war & all those people who kept being tossed in. It wasn’t fun it felt like a slog. I have never needed an author to hold my hand or explain it all. I have even read books sci fi/fantasy heavily speaking about physics or medicine & I am not in either of those fields nor are concept of physics easy for me to understand. Someone told me “oh in order for any of this info dump to mean anything you need to get through book 4ish. Why should I have to push myself through 800 some page books, cramming & trying to pay attention to every aspect of info dumping hoping it will connect & be enjoyable by book 4ish. I have even read books that threw you in the deep end- I never got hung up on needing to know every bit of the world, or magic system, or character nor even felt the need to use the name & place indexes some put at the end of the book to help the reader- I’ve never used them. To me I read & eventually it will fall into place during the book as long as I’m enjoying the ride. Malazan felt pretentious like “I’m going to make this a very miry murky challenge where if you put up with the info dump long enough & pay attention long enough it may pay off by book 4ish or later. But if you don’t get it you’re obviously not paying attention & need your hand held. So this challenge is not for you.” I go to books to not just challenge myself but to have fun/enjoyment. And making it through 2 Malazan books I was not enjoying it, pushing through just because, and feeling annoyed/fatigued like I barely slugged through. I liked some characters but it was just one character & situation after the other, random convos u have to remember, etc. but will never connect in this book maybe the next maybe not. I even read those 2 book three times trying to get myself to see why these books are loved to get myself to push through to get to the next book. When I asked for a summary of those who did make it through they even struggled to do so. I watched KZfaq vids, I watched chapter discussions. Believe me I did it all trying to see this book as anything but a slog through names & events that will hopefully connect at some point. Aaaaand Here I am again clicking on vids trying to get my brain to see a reason to continue with this series. I am glad some enjoy it truly! I feel that Erickson could have had a very challenging book without needing to go this far. I don’t get the love for this series. I don’t. But maybe this vid out of the many I have already watched will help me want to move forward. Or maybe I should just wave the white flag & have to take the stamp. “You’re not smart enough to get it, you didn’t pay attention enough, you must need your hand held when reading books/series. This isn’t for you.” Because whenever I have these discussions, my struggle with it, that’s usually the response I’m met with. Let’s see if this 32 min vid & a few others will be able to help me. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.

What an awesome video. I will definitely rewatch this when I am about to start Malazan for the first time

Perfect timing! I am currently almost finished with Book 9 on my first read through. Love the two videos you’ve posted so far. Keep up the good work. Btw, I’m loving the little clips you toss in the middle of your videos. Definitely got the right kind of humor. Between that and your fam making you the picture of the book spines, I’ll def be watching more of your stuff!

Came for wanting to know more about the series I've seen referenced so often and in a way that sparked my curiosity. Stayed for the humor. Lol

I am currently reading GotM. I have watched dozens of lore videos, read dozens of articles and THIS VIDEO has been the BEST at making things clear and making this digestible. THANK YOU! Been reading GotM for a month and a half and only half way through. This helped a ton!

LOL i didn't even notice the books were a printout until you pointed it out. And then once you pointed it out I feel dumb for not seeing how obviously fake that is.

This video helped a lot. So far I haven't read the series. And hey, I don't have a problem with long books or long series, but I've been constantly pushing those further down my TBR. Waiting for your next video with a lot of curiosity. Congratulations on the channel.

Love this! Just finished Memories of Ice and this video makes me even more excited to continue

I saw all your videos, I liked them all but I resisted the urge to subscribe to a booktube channel. You are in my recommendations and I watch every new videos rightaway. And today, after Blackadder and Frasier I am officially subscribed, I cannot resist anymore. I like a bunch of booktubers but only you made the impression that we could be friends. Actually you remind me a lot of a friend of mine back in university 🙂

I found your channel yesterday and thoroughly enjoying the content you make. Keep up the good work. 😊

What a great video! No other video on this topic is as good as yours, trust me I watched all of them lol. Your video is the one which gave me the push to start it yesterday and I am already 25% through the first book! It's so good!

I finished Malazan a few months ago with my only previous fantasy experience being video games, TV, and reading LotR and the Hobbit. I encourage anyone who likes fantasy and darker stories to at least try this series. I know for a 100% fact that it will forever remain the best thing I’ve ever read

My favourite series I've read. By far. I can definitely see why some people would bounce off of it though. Drops you into the middle of a world and slowly gives you info through characters' perspectives

As someone who has tried more than once to start the Malazan series, thank you very much for this intro! It's super helpful and will help me to continue, knowing that the first books are almost completely unconnected from one another! Thanks for doing this!

Other than Malazan and wheel of time being in the same genre they really aren’t comparable. Malazan is every bit as good as the wheel of time. There isn’t an argument to be had about it. For anyone who hasn’t read it yet, I can help you out. There are alot of characters ALOT. Every single one is either an immovable object or an unstoppable force and they are constantly at odds and Death is just another rebirth.

I read book 1 early this year and because everyone says it's so complex I started taking notes. By the middle of the book I just forgot to keep the notes and devour it. I loved it. Can't wait to read the rest of the series. And my confusion was mostly because I didn't understand why everyone said it was confusing 😅 Now, watching this video, maybe I'll be glad for those notes when I read the other ones

Excellent video, thanks! I'm glad I ran across it. It took me quite some time years ago to get through the main 10 book series, but a couple years ago re-read the entire series including the Esslemont books and the prequels and the novellas, but not the incomplete sequels. The second time through was so much more fun and enjoyable having an understanding of what was going on, and I did it without reading any other books in between, yes it took a long time. Definitely my favorite book series.

Bravo! This is such a good video! It's well-explained and clear. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I will read Malazan!

Great video! I've read books 1 & 2 and I quite liked Gardens a lot but got a bit burned out with Deadhouse Gates. But everytime I watch a video about Malazan I want to try it again. Haha.

Malazan is criminally underrated. It’s my favorite epic fantasy by far. I wish there were multiple different prints and leather bound editions for it because this series deserves it by far. I bounced off the first book at first because this series doesn’t hold your hand at all, it trusts your intelligence. And I was more used to handholding in the fantasy genre at that point, but I’m so glad I gave it another shot. Malazan is written so well that I don’t have to perfectly understand everything that’s going on or how the world/magic works. Somehow it gives just enough and withholds enough to stimulate my imagination and keep me invested, all the while its prose is doing it in an entertaining and interesting way, while also having deep meaning behind its stories and characters, which sends me through a rollercoaster of emotions. Not many epic fantasy series’ can juggle and balance all these acts, yet in my opinion, Steven Erikson is the best at it in the epic fantasy genre.

Omg just started and love the pictures of the books instead of the actual books! That could be an amazing way to add to your book shelf lol

I started reading this series around 2005-2006. I got up to book 6 and stopped there. I have the remaining 4 books on my self but its probably been over a decade since I read book 6 that I think I need to start from the beginning. With the rate I read books and the sheer size of each novel I think it will take me approx 3 years + to get through all ten! 😮

The best breakdown of malazan I have ever seen. I am halfway through book 1 and was just trying to understand the larger scope. A small part of me was considering DNFing it even though I knew it had to be amazing and your video convinced me to push along. It also helped me to get a much better understanding of the plot lines and the larger world happenings. You rock.

Thanks for doing this mate. Great effort. I reckon I will get stuck into it.

Man the series only gets better I am currently reading house of chains It's unbelievable The sheer scale and number of races This book even being 4th is still setting it up And it's very much fun I am having a great time reading malazan series

Funny enough, I just finished Gardens of The Moon of the first time, and I LOVED IT. So if it's only up from here, then I'm in for a long journey!

Todd here. Over a year ago I tried reading the Malazan series. I read the first three books, and had no idea what was going on. I was confused on which character was speaking, and where they were on the map. I gave the series up. I want to try it again. This video was very helpful. Have a happy Autumn!

I'been drown to this series, intrigued by It so much time... But at the same time taken aback for it's lenght and complexity that I'd never though of reading it at some point. Despiste of this, your video has made me change the perspectiv and might finnaly give It a chance 😂

Great video! So helpful and I’ve just started book 1. I’m committing to at least the first three and so far so good.

Really appreciated the video and all the work done you nailed it ! You made a very good analysis on the the series, and I hope through your video many of you will jump into this superbe fantasy world ! Even if it’s intimidating at first it’s so rewarding going through the books and piece by piece making the puzzle to understand the complexity of the story ! Currently at book 5 all the new characters are exciting to discover ! Keep up the quality work man 👏

I started reading gardens of the moon and I am absolutely addicted. The writing is so well done

Great video, great vibes and great edits😂 subscribed, cheers

Just started reading the first book, this video was really helpful, cheers!

Possibly 1 of the most original stories, and a completely unique magic system,. Amazing hardcore fantasy world/universe concepts so new that will make it hard for people to identify with. There is almost/ possibly nothing like it in any world. Think the author and a friend have created a roll playing universe that they have played for years. This fills out the universe and established the history, politics, military, religion, and just about everything. Worth the time and worth looking into the background.

As always great video 🌻

Dude your plot summary is so good. 👏

I'm so glad I discovered your work.

I've read the whole series and still found this helpful。

The explanation of the regions that each of the books take place in was really helpful! I’ve always heard vaguely that Malazan is notoriously hard to get started with, and now I understand why. Erickson’s computer dying 🤯 I had never heard that before

Anyone that wants to start Malazan and struggles with Gardens of the Moon just read Paths to Ascendency by esstlemont. Introduces the world, magic, characters on a lot more conventional fantasy story level. Makes starting the main 10 a lot easier. Novels of the Malazan empire completes the storyline for multiple arcs in the main 10 and adds further world building and lore. Recommend straight after finishing the main series. Kharkanas will make you question everything you know about the series so maybe first chronologically but absolutely leave till last.

Man, I DNFed "Deadhouse Gates" three times. Now I'm in the mood to start again 🙃

I wanted to read Malazan and started Gardens of the Moon and I thought that I had started book two of the series Man it was so confusing that I just gave up After watching you explain I might give it another try You have become my favourite KZfaqr Thank you

almost done with gardens of the moon. Have 4 chapters left. bought on audible doing the audiobook. i listen at work. The man who reads the book does a phenomenal job. For me this was an easy to get into book. I think the word most people miss when talking about this book(all though they say the series is tough). Is the word Dense.e. Its just a dense book that the read is def dropped into. I think it starts absolutely perfect. The fall of pale and intro of characters worked for me. the magic system had me hooked but again its dense with 0 handholding. I will also say that after listening to a couple chapters at work at the end of the day id jump on the wiki and read the summery of what i had listened to and I always got it. If you are looking for an adventure this is it. I have also heard some say they didnt like the character work but I quite did. Tatersail,Paran,Kalim,Kruppe(this is my guy lol),Loran,Hairlock(fucking evil wizard puppet yo come on so cool) Quick ben, etc I loved them. I remeber distenictly the scene with quick ben and kalim exchanging looks behind whiskeyjacks back and like thats the character work . so for this is a 10 for me

Amazing summary! Thank you!

I've read the first 3 books twice and I understood more about whats going on from this video than from reading the actual story

Lovely Explanation about understanding the plot. I hope u do another one on the Kharkanas Trilogy, at least two of books

As someone who has finished book 3 and is currently reading book 4, I must be an outlier when I say this but Malazan doesn't feel very confusing to me at all, I am picking up a lot of the plotlines and recognising hints that will be totally revealed later on. I see a lot of people say it's very all over the place as the main criticism but for me I just recognised that it's a very different type of story. Before Malazan, I mainly read Sanderson and my advice to new readers is to remove your preconceptions and expectations for what a fantasy novel is supposed to be. Let the Malazan present itself to you don't try to subconsciously box it in to what you wish it was. If you do this, Malazan becomes way more enjoyable. Sometimes it just takes a little shift in perspective.

I just finished Gardens of the Moon and I honestly didn't think it was overly difficult to keep up with, but I did do it in smaller bites. This video makes me feel so much more prepared for what's to come though so thank you!

I'm close to finishing the first book. I think I'm gonna love this series.

Very nice breakdown. My favorite fantasy series, reread through several times. The complexity is its draw for me as well as the adult themes and the dry humor. I also enjoy less complex fantasy also but that is as you said, a way to just relax and be entertained. So I hope a potential reader is not put off by a sense that Malazan fans are somehow disdainful when we say it is a can be a challenging read. A stand alone book by Patrica McKillip, say "Od Magic', is great fantasy writing also.

What a great video! I need to get back into it. Just let the Malaz empire wash over me.

So glad I found this. Been reading book one post-WoT and have been so confused 😂

New sub - why? Required Monty Python reference deployed! Yep, only that....oh, and I guess your presentation style is engaging - somewhat. lol :) *races off to Amazon for a first copy of the Malazan series*

When I see what’s looks like metal head enthusiastically talking about books, I’m in. I like your vibe dude😊

I bought the series last year, but only started reading it in July (because I was writing my thesis at the time). It's such a good series, I'm now at Midnight Tides and I just love the characters, different stories, complexity and proze. And I really dig (pun intended) the inspirations from our own past, such as the Ice Ages, ancient civilisations dissapearing due to climate changes etc. It's even better because Erikson is an archaeologist (and I'm also one now) and he really understands all these phenomena, which makes it even better.

Prospective readers keep in mind that the series is meant to be re-read. At the end of book 10 you will know exactly what this was all about and the re-read is a lot of fun.

Lol even in the author intro for gardens of the moon, Erickson straight up said he got rejected from multiple publishers because he didn’t want to lower the scope of the story. And I’m glad he held out lol

I’m almost done with Reaper’s Gale and I already know this is my favorite book series ever. I just randomly happened to see Gardens of the Moon in a used bookstore and the owner told me I had to read it. He’s my hero!

"Memories of Ice" is brilliant literature. Also - the Karsa Orlong line is completely badass and unexpectedly emotional.

Malazan is the best, and therefore I strongly support this video.

Finally seeing someone else with The Demon Cycles on their book shelf makes me happy.

Just came to left my Like. I had to stop the video cuz I'm on Book 2 and don't want spoilers, I'm not English native and it's already complicated to read; I enjoyed Game of Thrones but seems like this is the peak of the iceberg!!

About 150 pages into Gotm and im completely hooked. Im a huge fan of Dark Souls and Bloodborne and its definitely scratching that itch. I LOVE puzzling out story and motivations and alien worlds. So far i feel like i know what's going on... but with the feeling that some understandings and presumptions are going to be subverted which im excited for!

TLDR, after your first read through you will have no idea what happened. After your tenth read through, you will still have no idea what happened. I't's a great series full of interesting characters, but you will never know what happened.

I rather like complex stories. I find it interesting that there is no one main character. Okay but I am scared of major character deaths. blue is a wonderful color. I don't know if I'll read these books even self edited because I'd be afraid I missed something. great video, your work is amazing!

I’m reading wheel of time now but once I’m done I’m def reading this series

Wait Malazan has only sold 3mil copies??? Thats insane. God its so good. I've read the series 10 times and it never gets old because there's truly nothing else like it. I really wish people didnt make it sound so intimidating. Sure it's a lot, but its not THAT confusing. People treat Malazan like its ergodic literature but it's not that hard. Like if you can read Game of Thrones or Stormlight or Wheel of Time, you can read Malazan. I never had to take notes or read summaries, I just loved the puzzle aspect of the series. It's definitely not very everyone but I wish at least more people would try it and find out if it's for them or not, instead of just being too scared to even try it.

I don't know why but among the nearly infinite memorable scenes in the series, the one that always comes to mind is when the Heavies held the unexpected retreat against the Che'Malle

SO I have watched both of your recent Malazan videos and it was precisely at the 24:38 mark that I realised the "shelf" with all the books in the series IS FAKE. Not too proud of how long it took me to realise, but I thought it was funny to share. Great videos by the way, I am looking to jump into the series soon :)

This is my favorite fantasy series ever... EVER ....EVER

What I really like about Malazan is that you never know what you will get in a scene. There are so many scenes, where in any other series the hero would swoop in and save the day to just ... not and they just die. But there is also scenes where literal divine intervention is what keeps a characters head attached to their shoulders. You never know if somebody makes it out of a dangerous situation alive or not.

I've put off reading Malazan for ages because I kept seeing other people saying how confusing it was, well, I just finished Gardens of the Moon and I can say it's one of the best books I've ever read, I inhaled it. Yes there are lots of things/plots going and lots left not 100% answered or hinted at, but it never felt confusing, just rich and real and intriguing, and in a future re-read I bet there are tons of things that seem clear on re-read and I love that too....about to sink into the other 9 books...I may be some time...

Great introduction! I have bought the first book but kind of been having issues getting in the mood to read lately. However, I have been listening to Audiobooks lately and tempted on maybe trying it on Audio instead of reading it. Seems like a book I would rather read though.

Im currently reading the series for the second time after about 20 years... my 2nd favourite series after the name of the wind. And Ive read a lot of fantasy.

All you need to know is the characters are awesome. Stick with it to find out what happens to them and you'll make it through. Then you'll reread it to pick up on what you skimmed over. It's like watching an epic movie series in your head. It's like The Hobbit if Bilbo was a master assassin, the Dwarves used explosives to ambush armies, and Gandalf blew mountains apart with sorcery just because someone disturbed his nap. And some doggies appeared out of thin air once in a while to play.

Best series Evah! The depth in these books .. gah

I just started the first book, and the madness i was in for set in, when each of the Hound-beast things in the opening chapter were separately named in the Glossary

I’m reading (well, listening) to Book 1 rn, and what u said about how many readers will take notes reminded me of when I was reading Game of Thrones books. I actually printed out family genealogy charts for all the main families, a map of Westeros (actually a map of the theorized world that included Essos all the way to Asshai)-I actually folded it in half and laminated it and made it my bookmark! How big brained is THAT!? and at the end of every chapter I’d read an online summary and jot down notes…so I guess I’ll have to do the same with this!

I'm currently halfway through deadhouse gates and I've heard the ending holds such a lasting impact that you don't want to read anything else for a while... And I don't think I'm ready for it😢

I feel better. I thought I was the crazy one because I watch summaries of the book (chapter summaries) before I read, then read the book then read the chapter summaries in the wiki lol

I'm getting back into the Malazan books ! 2024 project ! The wiki is life saving, I remember reading Garden of the moon, I crushed that thing in 24hrs non stop reading! It was like crack but the wiki saved it for sure !

I would suggest to make a TikTok for of this (even break to series) if you don’t have, because it’s needed; they fear more than KZfaq. Also it helps if you have booktok in your book too. While this is a help, booktok. Can easily hype up a book with one viral video to the roof. And authors now tend to show up there, even Brandon Sanderson comments to videos personally.

I was surprised when i saw in Amerika and England how looks the books of Ericson and Jordan. They are more fat and pretty than my country. In my country have the book mafia. I think to buy them from Amazon. Great work man! Thank you! I look in the your left corner the Wheel of time. Amazing man! In my country the books are poor newpapers and are not cheap. You have great books man. Can i come in your home just for one book? I have coffe! The Malazan and The Wheel of time looks great!