Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson

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I usually like to write my own synopsis of each book that I review, but in the case of Gardens of the Moon I’m not even going to try it.

So here is the blurb from the book’s back cover:

The Malazan empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, infighting and bloody confrontations with Anomander Rake, Lord of Moon’s Spawn, and his Tiste Andii. Even the imperial legions yearn for some respite. Yet Empress Lasseen’s rule – enforced by her feared Claw assassins – remains absolute.
For Sergeant Whiskeyjack and his squad of Bridgeburners, and for Tattersail, surviving sorceress of the Second Legion, the aftermath of the siege of Pale should have been a time to pause, to mourn the many dead. But the imperial gaze has fallen upon the ancient citadel of Darujhistan. This, the last of the Free Cities of Genabackis, yet dares to hold out.
However, the empire is not alone in this great game. Sinister, shadowbound forces gather as the gods themselves prepare to play their hand.

I will admit from the start that Gardens of the Moon was not an easy book for me to read. The first time that I had tried to read it I only got through a couple of chapters before putting it aside. I would probably not have given the book another chance if I didn’t keep seeing it praised by so many other book bloggers, and referenced frequently in fantasy book reviews. It took me two more tries, and even an attempt at the audio version, before I finally succeeded in reading the whole book.

The main obstacle for me, in reading Gardens of the Moon, is that I’m not a very patient reader. When I start a book I like to be immediately caught up in the story, and if takes me too long to understand what is transpiring then my attention drifts and I lose interest in the book. But Gardens of the Moon is a book that requires patience, as it slowly weaves together the story, one thread at a time, and it’s not until almost halfway through that I was able to see the tapestry that was being created. There is also a very large cast of characters, with each character being gradually added into the mix, but it takes a while for it to become clear what role each of them plays.

Another reason that I struggled with Gardens of the Moon is because of the strong focus on political plots and military campaigning, two subjects that I have no interest in at all. I usually avoid books with these themes, which makes Gardens of the Moon a very unlikely book for me. The fact that there were so many different characters involved only intensified my confusion, though eventually I did come to understand enough of what was taking place to relax into the story.

Though when I did finally manage to get a good grasp on what was going on (at least to the extent that it was possible) I found that I had become completely riveted by the story and its characters, without even noticing it.

Although Gardens of the Moon was not the easiest book for me to read, I have to say that Erikson did a brilliant job in creating a vast and intricate world and an elaborate labyrinth of a story. While it was difficult to really get to know any individual character particularly well, because there were so many of them, each one still came across as unique and compelling, and very real. The reader gets the opportunity to see the story unfold from the perspective of each character, thereby getting an understanding of the motive of every player involved. In this way, the reader comes to relate in some way to each of the characters, including those who appear at times to be the villains of the tale .

I admit that I had pushed myself to read Gardens of the Moon because “everyone was doing it” and I was curious as to what the appeal of this book was. But I ended up being really glad that I had made the effort and read this book, which is so far outside of my comfort zone, because I did come to enjoy it, and I hope it will help open me up to other books which I might have otherwise shied away from. Plus, I too can now pepper my reviews with references to Erikson and his books (well, at least one, so far), which will help give my reviews some real authority.