Gardens of the Moon

The Malazan Book of the Fallen, Book 1

By: Steven Erikson

Narrated by: Ralph Lister

Length: 26 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

Vast legions of gods, mages, humans, dragons and all manner of creatures play out the fate of the Malazan Empire in this first book in a major epic fantasy series

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.

©1999 by Steven Erikson. (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Erikson is an extraordinary writer. My advice to anyone who might listen to me is, Treat yourself to Gardens of the Moon. And my entirely selfish advice to Steven Erikson is, write faster." --Stephen R. Donaldson

"I stand slack-jawed in awe of The Malazan Book of the Fallen. This masterwork of imagination may be the high water mark of epic fantasy. This marathon of ambition has a depth and breadth and sense of vast reaches of inimical time unlike anything else available today. The Black Company, Zelazny's Amber, Vance's Dying Earth, and other mighty drumbeats are but foreshadowings of this dark dragon's hoard." --Glen Cook

"A world that is both absorbing on a human level and full of magical sublimity...a wonderfully grand conception...splendidly written...fiendishly readable." --Adam Roberts

Better transition from book to audio than imagined

Any additional comments?

First off as a caveat I am an avid fan of Steven Erikson and have read the Malazan Book of the Fallen series complete, twice. There are many things about the Audio version that I loved but to be honest what astonished me the most was the sudden realazation as I was half way through that the Audio version of Gardens of the Moon was so much easier to follow than reading the book.

Anyone who has read the series will tell you that Gardens of the Moon is good book but in contrast to the rest of the series pales in comparison. Its more disjointed, has an incredible steep learning curve and REQUIRES complete focus and attention to understand what is going on. It is no supprise that many many people have a hard time finishing the book and are dejected at the idea of continuing on. But I say this for the feint of heart, if you are one of those people who have trepidation of reading the book because of said issues above then pick up the Audio book and give it a go instead.

It is in my opinion so much easier to follow all of the different threads and plot points listening to this begining of one of the most epic tales to be told in modern fantasy. Now you may be saying to your self "well of course it was easy for you, you have read the series, twice!" and yes that is true. But in answer to that statement I will tell you this! Every time I have read this series, in every book I finish I know that I have learned more, caught on to more threads of the story that I missed before and that I finish the book feeling that there is still more that I have missed. Following the listening of the Audio book I have walked away feeling that I missed nothing and that I was able to capture and become immersed in all the intracy, plot threads and ground work that has been laid down in this story. Take that for what it is worth and start your listen on this fantastic story.

Steven Erikson is a King among story tellers

I have read the Malazan Book of the Fallen series in paperback. I enjoyed them so much that I plan to listen to each of the audio books as they are made available.

Thank you so much Audible.com for making Erikson part of my audio library.

First audio book that I just couldn't finish... :(

Any additional comments?

I guess I am in the minority here. I just never felt invested in any of the characters enough to care what happened to them. I listened to 16 hours of it but just found myself daydreaming too often. The writing is fairly good, but the plot is too buried for my liking, if there is one. The story begins from too many distant strains and just never seemed to really merge. I'm sure they end up together, but I just never could get into it.

Great Story

I have to admit that this was a difficult listen for me. the story is deep and it was confusing for me at times. I did a lot of rewinding trying to follow the story and keep up with the volume of characters. I was not a fan, and quite often frustrated, until about 1/3 way through the story when it clicked.

The characters are deep and the story is vast. I do not regret this buy at all.

I purchased the book first, played hell trying to follow it, then purchased the audible hoping that would make things better and was glad I did.

The performance was spot on! The number of characters required to voice seemed effortless, all with their own easily distinguishable voices. Fantastic performance.

Great read and great reader!

I read the print version of this book over 10 years ago. I remember enjoying it, but for various reasons had to read it in bits and pieces and lost track of the story. I decided to come back to it again and am so glad I did. The story is compelling and the narrator helps to make the already intriguing characters come to life. Thoroughly enjoyed this listen! Just waiting for DeadHouse Gates now. How about it Audible?? I hope Ralph Lister is working on it.

Loved the characters & complex world

Written for adults, this book has rich and deep characters. The world is complex and weaves an interesting network of layered machinations upon machinations.

However, given the great maturity in writing style and characters I kept waiting for a more meaningful and develop story arc. Instead it felt like every event and conflict resolved through deus ex machina---which may have been the point, but it left me wanting a story line to get invested in. I may listen to the second book, but I'm not highly motivated to do so as I don't really care what will happen to these characters (that may also have been the point).

Do you like history, but are bored of this world?

** If you have ever wanted to read a history book about another world, I think this is your book.

The chances of you caring what happens to the characters in this book are low. So low. This is partly due to the fact that the author doesn't outright demonize one side or the other, and partly due to the fact there are so many characters you will have a hard time keeping them straight.

** If you ever wanted to read a book that is confusing and dragging the first time but makes more sense each time you read it, I think this is your book.

Most of the time you have a hard time following what is going on. It's hard to understand what the characters are trying to accomplish half the time. The author LOVES to write confusing scenes that will likely keep you from realizing he is talking about one of the main characters. In fact, he seems to go out of his way to keep you from realizing he is talking about someone you know. One way he does this is with sudden viewpoint shifts in new scenes to people that don't know the main characters.

The author LOVES to obscure the significance of a scene so that chapters later you go... Ahhh... okay now that makes sense. The downside to this is, you say that, but you couldn't care less that it happens because there was no promise of it happening.

** If you like unneeded violence that leaves you numb and uncaring about a world filled with brutality, this book is for you. The author LOVES to spell out intricate details about a person's pain in this book.

** If you want a long fantasy series to follow, give it the first book. DON'T go to the second book if you didn't like this one. It's more of the same. In my opinion the second has a weaker plot than this one. I stopped the series on the third one when the audible app malfunctioned and sent me chapters forward (like it does from time to time) and I didn't notice for 30 minutes of audible book. Really? I can advance 30 minutes in the plot and not even notice. Hardly a cohesive plot that has a gradual progression.

**** In summary... I hated this book and series. I really wanted a new fantasy series to follow so I gave it three books. It's all the same. If you want a better choice, try Wheel of Time, Mistborn, Way of Kings... those are better in my opinion.

disjointed and confusing but great premise

it was very hard to follow probably easier to undersrand and follow a written copy

Well Written But With Two Minor Problems

What did you love best about Gardens of the Moon?

I enjoyed how the characters end up intertwining and the characters themselves and the overall story arch.

Who was your favorite character and why?

While I'm interested in Quick Ben, I'd have to say my favorite ended up being Cropper. Lots of personality, at times the character made me smirk and some surprises made him even better.

Have you listened to any of Ralph Lister’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not, however he did very well.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I'd have to say Croakus's (probably spelled the name incorrectly) love interests were a touch moving.

Any additional comments?

The only minor problems I found was that until about half way through the book, the constant adding on of all sorts of characters made it hard to keep track and even focus with the book, also it's the kind of book that very abruptly changes over to another characters story or continuation there of. There are a LOT of characters in the book. I got used to it after a long while, but it was frustrating at first. Otherwise the book is beautifully written.

An Ambitious, Promising Beginning

Gardens of the Moon is an ambitious novel that's not so linear in plot. It's not really something that can be narrowed down plot-wise. You're dropped into this world and left to piece together what's going on through the narrative with very little hand-holding. Some may dislike that and find the story jarring and disorienting while trying to figure out what's going on, and it can be. Personally, I found it exciting to start the story in medias res without all the padding. However, you're either going to go into the book with a broader view of the story or you're not. There's nothing wrong with either view, but if you have a hard time reconciling yourself with the haziness of the story, you may find it going to your DNF pile. However, things do start to become clearer as you near the end of the book.

This is a complex, dense story. Not something I'd recommend everyone listen to, especially if you have a hard time keeping up with characters and factions without a visual. I found myself having to rewind sections to listen to again to make sure that I fully comprehended what I'd read/listened to. I also had the Kindle book, so immersive reading became my best friend with this book. This book demands your full attention, and it's easy to lose track of things if you let your mind get off track too often. If you still decide to go audiobook route, Lister's performance will not disappoint. He's an excellent narrator. Some of his characters can sound a bit too similar, but not so much that I disliked his narration. My only personal complaint rests in some of the voices he used for characters were not voices I'd attribute to them, such as Kalam who read as if he'd have a much deeper voice that the one Lister used for him. However, his Kruppe is sure to keep listeners amused.

Layers upon layers of story are heaped on here. However, from the beginning, you can see different seeds being sown for future events. You have an empress, a usurper who betrayed the former emperor of Malazan, moving across the lands in an attempt to consolidate her power. Only one city remains after the defeat of the city Pale, a large city named Darujhistan. While her reign seems absolute, cracks begin to stress her goals. Darujhistan fears for itself after the fall of Pale, but there is also a political struggle happening on the local level that is being manipulated by a ragtag bunch of players that includes an alchemist, a playboy, and an assassin. Finally, the gods have decided to play their hand and turn this story over even more. Weaved around these things are numerous characters, factions, motivations, and side stories. More than a few people have some investment in the outcome of the empire.

Erikson really took a chance writing a book that could've turned many off to the story. This seems as if it will be the kind of book that will become clearer in retrospect as you move through the series, the kind of book where you'll remember it as the book where certain threads began. I think, while this story may confuse some, there's just enough intrigue shining through to keep people hanging on for the next story.