"Gardens of the Moon"
Apr. 9th, 2006 10:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stoutfellowSteven Erikson's Gardens of the Moon is the first of a projected four-volume series. (It was published in 1999; I'm not sure how many volumes have appeared since.) It was drawn to my attention by a review in either Analog or Asimov's, and I think I'll give it a qualified thumbs-up.
The book belongs to a dark subgenre of fantasy which also includes, for instance, the Black Company novels of Glen Cook. They are typically set in a dense world: dense socially - much of the action takes place in populous and socially stratified cities; dense historically - the drivers of action stretch back to events decades, centuries, millennia in the past; dense metaphysically - the world is crowded with spirits, deities, and other nonhuman intelligences. Frequently the action is seen through the eyes of hard-bitten soldiers, clinging to a truncated ethic of loyalty to one's comrades and due service to one's employers. The world is indifferent or even inimical to humanity - not Lovecraftian, but at a closer point in that direction.
I don't generally care much for this brand of fantasy. I followed the Black Company novels to, or nearly to, their conclusion out of a sort of sick fascination, despite their deterioration in quality after the first three books. Erikson, however, appears to be better at this than Cook; he juggles multiple viewpoints with greater skill, and several quite different POV characters garner some sympathy from the reader. (Cook doesn't really achieve much in the way of different voices; Erikson does.)
The backdrop of the story is one of war. The Malazan Empire is expanding across a continent, conquering an assortment of city-states with a combination of frontal assault, wizardry, and assassination. The current Empress, having murdered her predecessor (and husband), faces opposition within as well as without, and is moving to purge her internal foes without alienating too many valuable adherents; there is - unrelated, but unleashed by her actions - strife among her wizards and officers; and her external enemies are scrambling to forge a strong enough coalition to stop her - including some allies who may be equally dangerous. We see multiple schemes unroll (some of which never become clear, at least on a first reading, and the book is long and dense enough to discourage an immediate reread) and collide; the schemers, each partially ignorant concerning the aims and even identities of the other plotters, repeatedly face unexpected dilemmas; and matters are, of course, only partially resolved at the end of the volume.
It took me quite a while to warm to the book. I was slogging through it out of sheer bloody-mindedness, and was nearly halfway through when I realized that I had actually become interested. Characters who, till then, had seemed to be malevolences of unclear motive suddenly (it seemed) acquired depth and sympathy. (Some remained incomprehensible; one in particular was conveniently identified as having gone mad, which at least made his incomprehensibility comprehensible.) I found myself, before the end, sympathizing with characters on several opposing sides...
None of the characters is admirable. Some seem to be "stumbling around in the dark... smashing into things and wondering why it hurts". Some have had their jadedness challenged, and are having to face what they have become and what it is they have been serving. Some have been playing little games, unaware of any larger struggle until it is forced upon them. An apprentice thief, facing a personal crossroads; a millennia-old, nonhuman sorceror, driven finally to commit to battle against horrifying evil; a youngish sorceress, caught on the wrong side of a faction fight, finally recognizing that she can no longer obey orders; a grizzled veteran, following the Empress' commands to the letter while planning to sabotage her when the time is right; a young officer who becomes a pawn of a god - each of these is, eventually, a compelling character.
It's a longish book, and not an altogether pleasant one, but Erikson has engaged my interest enough that I will at least consider continuing with the series.
The book belongs to a dark subgenre of fantasy which also includes, for instance, the Black Company novels of Glen Cook. They are typically set in a dense world: dense socially - much of the action takes place in populous and socially stratified cities; dense historically - the drivers of action stretch back to events decades, centuries, millennia in the past; dense metaphysically - the world is crowded with spirits, deities, and other nonhuman intelligences. Frequently the action is seen through the eyes of hard-bitten soldiers, clinging to a truncated ethic of loyalty to one's comrades and due service to one's employers. The world is indifferent or even inimical to humanity - not Lovecraftian, but at a closer point in that direction.
I don't generally care much for this brand of fantasy. I followed the Black Company novels to, or nearly to, their conclusion out of a sort of sick fascination, despite their deterioration in quality after the first three books. Erikson, however, appears to be better at this than Cook; he juggles multiple viewpoints with greater skill, and several quite different POV characters garner some sympathy from the reader. (Cook doesn't really achieve much in the way of different voices; Erikson does.)
The backdrop of the story is one of war. The Malazan Empire is expanding across a continent, conquering an assortment of city-states with a combination of frontal assault, wizardry, and assassination. The current Empress, having murdered her predecessor (and husband), faces opposition within as well as without, and is moving to purge her internal foes without alienating too many valuable adherents; there is - unrelated, but unleashed by her actions - strife among her wizards and officers; and her external enemies are scrambling to forge a strong enough coalition to stop her - including some allies who may be equally dangerous. We see multiple schemes unroll (some of which never become clear, at least on a first reading, and the book is long and dense enough to discourage an immediate reread) and collide; the schemers, each partially ignorant concerning the aims and even identities of the other plotters, repeatedly face unexpected dilemmas; and matters are, of course, only partially resolved at the end of the volume.
It took me quite a while to warm to the book. I was slogging through it out of sheer bloody-mindedness, and was nearly halfway through when I realized that I had actually become interested. Characters who, till then, had seemed to be malevolences of unclear motive suddenly (it seemed) acquired depth and sympathy. (Some remained incomprehensible; one in particular was conveniently identified as having gone mad, which at least made his incomprehensibility comprehensible.) I found myself, before the end, sympathizing with characters on several opposing sides...
None of the characters is admirable. Some seem to be "stumbling around in the dark... smashing into things and wondering why it hurts". Some have had their jadedness challenged, and are having to face what they have become and what it is they have been serving. Some have been playing little games, unaware of any larger struggle until it is forced upon them. An apprentice thief, facing a personal crossroads; a millennia-old, nonhuman sorceror, driven finally to commit to battle against horrifying evil; a youngish sorceress, caught on the wrong side of a faction fight, finally recognizing that she can no longer obey orders; a grizzled veteran, following the Empress' commands to the letter while planning to sabotage her when the time is right; a young officer who becomes a pawn of a god - each of these is, eventually, a compelling character.
It's a longish book, and not an altogether pleasant one, but Erikson has engaged my interest enough that I will at least consider continuing with the series.
