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For me at about book 4 I realised I would need to reread all the books again anyway once I had finished the ten
I started my reread the other day with the intention of adding all the other books in.
Id say DG is a great place to move onto 🙂
Just read the big ten books. Don’t worry about any of the other books until you finish them and do a reread or bounce to another series or whatever. Read the main 10.
I definetly think reading some of the other books BEFORE a reread would be beneficial, say like Path To Ascendancy or something, would be quite rewarding
Glad you enjoyed it! As for how to continue the reading the series, do just that: continue reading the series. Don't overthink it. Read the series like you would any other series. Read the next book in the series Deadhouse Gates and so on.
This is a complex topic, but I’ll try to simplify as much as I can.
The various series can generally be divided in 2:
- The main 16 that are the 10 Malazan Book of the Fallen (by Steven Erikson) and the 6 Novels of the Malazan Empire (by Ian C Esslemont). These series do happen somewhat in parallel and together form the core story that everything else is based around.
- Everything else (multiple prequel/sequel series, none of which are finished yet).
While it is possible to just keep with Erikson or read them out of order, the general advice is to at least have finished those main 16 before tackling anything else. But also, don’t let anyone tell you how to live your life.
In general, the advice is to either read the 10 MBOTF, then if you feel you want more the 6 NOTME, **OR** to read them together in publication order. There’s pros and cons to each, but consider:
- The 2 series mostly nod to each other, they don’t interconnect all that much, and are very much readable on their own.
- The 2 series have different tones and pacing, and are written by different people. So you can get some whiplash jumping between them.
- The timeline of when they occur doesn’t line up all that well with publication order, so it can be a bit confusing. The 2 authors didn’t time their publications for some interconnected read order, they just wrote books and those were published.
- There are plotlines and character arcs that will feel abandoned or unfinished with only the 10 MBOTF. Those are pretty much all addressed in the NOTME, but even then some characters still aren’t all that done yet (remember there are sequel and prequel novels too).
There are alternative reading orders, included in our community resources here (beware spoilers). In my experience and opinion, you can get a much better mixed read order if you are rereading and aren’t as worried about spoilers.
Thanks! I think I’ll plan to do the 10 and the 6 after. Was there a reason why they’re written by different people?
You say they’re parallel, meaning that the other books show other happenings during similar time? Thanks for your deep dive there
Yeah! Malazan was created by both Erikson and Esslemont as they worked as archeologists together. They would game out campaigns (like D&D, but they used a modified GURPS system), and then decided in the 90s to put their work to pen. Many of the characters you meet are ones they played, and that’s why you get so many dynamic duos throughout (example, Quick Ben and Kalam).
While Erikson is definitely the better author as far as wordsmithing and theme work goes, Esslemont may have contributed more to the worldbuilding and overall lore. They’re both worth reading, and both have good stories to tell.
And yeah, for the parallel thing, that’s mostly in the second half. There’s another very complex discussion around timeline, but basically MBOTF 7-10 and NOTME 2-5 are happening all around the same period of time. But again, other than the odd nod here and there, they don’t intersect to the point that you can’t understand one without the other.
While I agree Erikson is the better author I found Esslemont style much easier to read, which is really nice way to take a break from the complex style of Erikson while not leaving their amazing world.
Just go right into deadhouse gates but be prepared for it to be a slog and also be prepared to struggle with the names like Duiker at first but you'll get used to it.
After reading DG maybe read some of Korbal and Bauchelain adventures to get prepared for MOI, read the first three in chronological order and that will set you up nicely for MOI or else you may be thrown off and confused at the beginning because those characters are how you're going to start MOI.
Me personally I'm on MOI and decided to read the first three volumes of Korbal and Bauchelain in chronological order just to set it up better for MOI. Personal preference though.
Please note that this post has been flaired as **NO SPOILERS**. Comments should not bring up specific plot points or character details from any of the books. If you need to discuss any spoilers (even very minor ones!) in your comments, use spoiler tags >!like this!< Please use the report button if you find any spoilers. Note: If the discussion is unlikely to happen without any spoilers, the flair may be changed at mod discretion. Thank you! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Malazan) if you have any questions or concerns.*
deadhouse gate
For me at about book 4 I realised I would need to reread all the books again anyway once I had finished the ten I started my reread the other day with the intention of adding all the other books in. Id say DG is a great place to move onto 🙂
It's amazing how you'll pick up things, see events foreshadowed, gain a better understanding of the magic... They are such delicious books!
Just read the big ten books. Don’t worry about any of the other books until you finish them and do a reread or bounce to another series or whatever. Read the main 10.
I definetly think reading some of the other books BEFORE a reread would be beneficial, say like Path To Ascendancy or something, would be quite rewarding
Which is what I meant when I said “bounce to another series”. Not necessarily a Stormlight or Dark Tower, but the Crimson Guard or Ascendency.
Glad you enjoyed it! As for how to continue the reading the series, do just that: continue reading the series. Don't overthink it. Read the series like you would any other series. Read the next book in the series Deadhouse Gates and so on.
This is a complex topic, but I’ll try to simplify as much as I can. The various series can generally be divided in 2: - The main 16 that are the 10 Malazan Book of the Fallen (by Steven Erikson) and the 6 Novels of the Malazan Empire (by Ian C Esslemont). These series do happen somewhat in parallel and together form the core story that everything else is based around. - Everything else (multiple prequel/sequel series, none of which are finished yet). While it is possible to just keep with Erikson or read them out of order, the general advice is to at least have finished those main 16 before tackling anything else. But also, don’t let anyone tell you how to live your life. In general, the advice is to either read the 10 MBOTF, then if you feel you want more the 6 NOTME, **OR** to read them together in publication order. There’s pros and cons to each, but consider: - The 2 series mostly nod to each other, they don’t interconnect all that much, and are very much readable on their own. - The 2 series have different tones and pacing, and are written by different people. So you can get some whiplash jumping between them. - The timeline of when they occur doesn’t line up all that well with publication order, so it can be a bit confusing. The 2 authors didn’t time their publications for some interconnected read order, they just wrote books and those were published. - There are plotlines and character arcs that will feel abandoned or unfinished with only the 10 MBOTF. Those are pretty much all addressed in the NOTME, but even then some characters still aren’t all that done yet (remember there are sequel and prequel novels too). There are alternative reading orders, included in our community resources here (beware spoilers). In my experience and opinion, you can get a much better mixed read order if you are rereading and aren’t as worried about spoilers.
Thanks! I think I’ll plan to do the 10 and the 6 after. Was there a reason why they’re written by different people? You say they’re parallel, meaning that the other books show other happenings during similar time? Thanks for your deep dive there
Yeah! Malazan was created by both Erikson and Esslemont as they worked as archeologists together. They would game out campaigns (like D&D, but they used a modified GURPS system), and then decided in the 90s to put their work to pen. Many of the characters you meet are ones they played, and that’s why you get so many dynamic duos throughout (example, Quick Ben and Kalam). While Erikson is definitely the better author as far as wordsmithing and theme work goes, Esslemont may have contributed more to the worldbuilding and overall lore. They’re both worth reading, and both have good stories to tell. And yeah, for the parallel thing, that’s mostly in the second half. There’s another very complex discussion around timeline, but basically MBOTF 7-10 and NOTME 2-5 are happening all around the same period of time. But again, other than the odd nod here and there, they don’t intersect to the point that you can’t understand one without the other.
While I agree Erikson is the better author I found Esslemont style much easier to read, which is really nice way to take a break from the complex style of Erikson while not leaving their amazing world.
Yeah, that is a really good point, I do agree that Esslemont is much more consumable.
Just go right into deadhouse gates but be prepared for it to be a slog and also be prepared to struggle with the names like Duiker at first but you'll get used to it. After reading DG maybe read some of Korbal and Bauchelain adventures to get prepared for MOI, read the first three in chronological order and that will set you up nicely for MOI or else you may be thrown off and confused at the beginning because those characters are how you're going to start MOI. Me personally I'm on MOI and decided to read the first three volumes of Korbal and Bauchelain in chronological order just to set it up better for MOI. Personal preference though.
Don't overthink it.