Midnight Tides

Malazan Book of the Fallen Series, Book 5

De: Steven Erikson

Narrado por: Michael Page

After decades of internecine warfare, the tribes of the Tiste Edur have at last united under the Warlock King of the Hiroth. There is peace - but it has been exacted at a terrible price: a pact made with a hidden power whose motives are at best suspect, at worst, deadly.

To the south, the expansionist kingdom of Lether, eager to fulfill its long-prophesized renaissance as an Empire reborn, has enslved all its less-civilized neighbors with rapacious hunger. All, that is, save one - the Tiste Edur. And it must be only a matter of time before they too fall - either beneath the suffocating weight of gold, or by slaughter at the edge of a sword. Or so destiny has decreed.

Yet as the two sides gather for a pivotal treaty neither truly wants, ancient forces are awakening. For the impending struggle between these two peoples is but a pale reflection of a far more profound, primal battle - a confrontation with the still-raw wound of an old betrayal and the craving for revenge at its seething heart.

"This novel and all others in the Malazan Book of the Fallen series follow my own pronunciations of 'Malazan' words and names. My thanks to Michael and Jane and everyone at Brilliance Audio." -Steven Erikson, Victoria, B.C. Canada, January, 2014

©2004 Steven Erikson (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Erikson does it again...

Another amazing epic fantasy saga all contained in one book, with a climax as epic as that in Memories of Ice and House of Chains.

That he can weave yet another story of this magnitude, set on an entirely different continent with entirely different characters, is astounding. Erikson is the real deal when it comes to writing epic fantasy. And I believe that this may be his most approachable book yet in the series.

In fact, this wouldn't be a bad place to start the series from. It's an excellent standalone story, and although it helps to have 4 more books under your belt, I think most fantasy fans would be able to take this one by itself. It is also not quite as dark as the other books before it, which could help newcomers as well. There is more humor in this book, too, much of it dry, but for the first time I found myself laughing out loud while listening. The banter between characters, especially Tehol and Bugg, is great and deliciously builds upon itself with each new iteration.

In Midnight Tides, Erikson shows he can follow a tighter storyline and (relatively) fewer players, which enables the characters in this book to have more depth as we spend more time with them. And what amazing characters they are. Many of them stand out so uniquely and richly in my mind and I know I will not soon forget them. Trull Sengar, Rhulad, Udinaas, Kettle, Tehol and Bugg, Shurq Ellale, Iron Bars... There are SO MANY great characters and I enjoyed spending time with all of them. And we get introduced to so many fascinating characters as well.

There is almost no drag in this story, especially after the first quarter or so. This is a poignant story of two families and the brothers on both sides have rich personalities and you will find yourself caring for each of them. Yet this story contains so much more... A vast tale of war, but somehow Erikson is able to portray it both on the grand scale and the personal level. And the depth of plotting and foreshadowing is simply incredible... The climax of the story brings together so many threads, while dropping hints of things that are to come and give us glimpses of a MUCH broader landscape. The Malazan series is truly the most broadly epic fantasy series out there. I cannot wait for the next volume to be released on Audible.

A note on the narration: I agree with everyone else, that the change from Ralph Lister was definitely a step in the wrong direction. This despite the fact that Erikson went out of his way to write a note here essentially saying "I approve this choice". The thing is, in this case THE LISTENERS ARE ALWAYS RIGHT. If you don't want to listen to us, then you may not find us buying your books on audio anymore. You need to make good marketing decisions and make your customers happy, rather than sticking dogmatically to your own preferences. After all, we can always read these books in printed form.

There's nothing wrong with Michael Page's pronunciation or diction, for me; it's the fact that he can't differentiate the voices of the characters enough. Because of the dark setting and the plethora of large, hulking, inhuman characters, he tends to use his "growling" voice almost 50% of the time. This not only gets old and makes it hard to distinguish characters,, but cheapens the effect of using the growl in the first place.

Still, despite all this, I don't agree with people giving the book poor ratings because of the narrator. Keep the ratings separate between the two - that's what it's for. You can give the narration 1 star, but give the book the 5 overall stars it deserves.

amazing

this series is one of my favorite and I love the reading. I will be starting over every time I end

Steven Erikson is the GOAT

This guy is my favorite fantasy author hands down and this is my #1 most favorite book in the series, so I had to review it.
The Empire of Lether beautifully represents a kind of modern capitalist, neoliberal imperialism. I read this once before years ago and just read it again in the middle of this crazy covid pandemic uprising as an American in my 30s and its taken on new meaning. Rhulad is also one of my favorite characters but I dont want to spoil anything. Give this one a good look.

" The world falls to tyranny with a whisper. The frightened are ever keen to bow to a perceived necessity, in the belief that necessity forces conformity, and conformity a certain stability. In a world shaped into conformity, dissidents stand out, are easily branded and dealt with. There is no multitude of perspectives, no dialogue. The victim assumes the face of the tyrant, self-righteous and intransigent, and wars breed like vermin. "

Not what I expected, but best one so far!

The story here was so rich and while it seems divergent from the previous books, there is much more going on with the larger narrative.

Intermission time

A good break from the main story line . A new word world to read about and enjoy .A genuine delight , humor abounds!

Great book!

I had a hard time getting into the story as the outset if completely separate from the previous books, but as you get into it, Erikson's writing just captivates you. There are so many new characters I look forward to learning more about now!

Amazing characters in an overall grand epic

Of all the books in the Malazan series, this one pulls at my funny bone the most. It also has such an insightful view of humanity with all of its cravings (greed, lust, procrastination, vengeance, hunger, …). I’m absolutely enamored by it and have listened to the Tehol/Bugg adventure dozens of times. I’ve found very few books that adequately and realistically depict a genius. Honestly, I can’t recommend this book enough, even stand alone.

Great book ok read

Absolutely fantastic writing. Beautiful vivid pictures painted throughout, haunting and enchanting. The narration as usual had about 6 distinct voices that make it incredibly difficult at times to tell who is speaking until something like "Trall said". get past that and it is wonderful.

New, strange, and strong

This book experiments. A lot. And I think the reader starts to hit his stride. I really enjoyed this book, maybe more than any others in the series so far.

Another great entry in the malazan series.

I loved this book. The narrator is excellent. The story is captivating. Another great book by Steven Erikson.