A fantasy series recommendation, for those interested.

tendingthehearth:

The Malazan Book of the Fallen - Steven Erikson

I am on the third book in this series, and I adore it. It has fantastical, rich plots and amazing places. The first book is largely considered the worst because the writing is poor and characters are underdeveloped, but if you stick with it past that first book it becomes AMAZING. 

Here’s why I love it and moreover, why I felt it necessary to recommend it here:

• PoC as numerous and normalised as you’d expect from a, y’know… logical world: and not in a token ‘oh hey one guy over there is black because he’s from an exotic land’ kinda way either. Up to where I am in the books, the narrative has taken us on and across three continents. Erikson understands that three continents worth of people will not look, act or speak the same, and as a result there are a shit ton of different races featured. We follow some of the campaigns of the malazan empire. An empire spanning three continents is going to contain many enlisted men and officials from all over the place and he acknowledges that. We have numerous PoC heroes (all the quick Ben love <3 omfg), PoC villains, and PoC extras/civilians/red shirts.
• Strong female characters, and a general lack of the misogyny that plagues fantasy : Possibly my favourite aspect of his narrative. Steven Erikson has chosen to create a world in which women are treated equally. He doesn’t make a big point of this…it just IS and that’s awesome. There are numerous women in positions of power and leadership (the empress of the malazans and her adjunct for example), and a lot of the main characters are female (and they aren’t a misogynist’s dream). The malazan empire allows female soldiers, and in one book some stats are given to give you an idea of how numerous women occupying roles equal to men are: Of 10,000 elite marines in one contingent, something like 4,000 were women. 
• The many and varied non-human races: Some of them are fucking awesome, and a lot of imagination has gone into them. At times he hints about their evolutionary biology and as a nerdy scientist, I love that. I like to imagine that the different races interact in a similar way that we would with other human species (like Neanderthals etc.) if they weren’t extinct.
• The gods and spirits
• His descriptions of magic and other realms.
• Gay people are a thing: And they aren’t fetishized!! There is very little in the way of romance or sex in these books, the subject matter doesn’t really allow for it. But when there is; quite a few of the characters are unashamedly bisexual and a number of homosexual relationships are referenced.

Seriously, I cannot recommend this series highly enough. Every time I see one of those posts about ‘how to include group X in fantasy’, it makes me think of this series because he does it well! It’s an entertaining, well written series with all the drama and all of the feels without the bigotry that plagues this genre. Highly recommend.

If you care not for any of the issues above (you probably shouldn’t follow me but…meh), but just want a new fantasy fix; then I recommend this series just for the entertainment value alone. I’m hooked!

you really don’t know emotional pain from literature until you’ve read malazan

lessonsfromfantasy:

“The heart of wisdom is tolerance.” (From ‘Memories of Ice’ by Steven Erikson)

http://www.lessonsfromfantasy.com/

jimtheviking replied to your post: jimtheviking replied to your post:   We live in an…

Erikson solves everything, I find. At least from a moral and philosophical point of view :P

“To close, I’ll return briefly to that diabolical matter, to assure my readers that while I am entirely and absolutely engaged in manipulating your emotions through the stories I write, I won’t do it to lie to you. Ever. I am a believer in Aristotle’s argument on the value of catharsis in tragedy. We need to feel to be reminded of what feeling is like. Now more than ever. My novels are an invitation to compassion, for what that’s worth. And finally, I can’t make you feel anything unless I feel it first.”

He truly does solve things for me, and this quote right here embodies the reason I find such consolation in his writing. It makes me scared to thing he’ll one day stop writing, one day I’ll run out of things to read…

I made a Karsa Orlong and Aramala

These are the sorts of things that appeal to the worldbuilder in me, both the anthropologist and the gamer. I like anthropological hypotheses played out in fiction. Fantasy is a place where philosophy can really spread its wings. Forge of Darkness is, in many ways, Erikson’s thought experiment. A world where he sets up the conditionals and then lets the chips fall where they may.

Mordicai Knode, reviewing Steven Erikson’s Forge of Darkness.

Which I’m halfway through at the moment, and loving it.

(via ekkolalia)

I am dying to read it

why I’m loving Erikson more by the page

celesticides:

tigerofsummer:

Something completely and utterly unique about the Malazan fantasy series is that sexism and racism in Genabackis seem to be completely nonexistent, as if Erikson refuses to even hint at any such stupid and ignorant problems such as cultural inequality between the sexes and peoples due to their biology in his fantastical world that he created. In Erikson’s world, the people are smart enough to realize the ignorance of sexism and racism to the point where they don’t even address such things in anyway because they are nonexistent.For example, the armies are made up of as much women as men, and it’s not uncommon for a woman to be Commander of the Claw or Empress or Adjunct. Erikson is a genius in this way because he portrays all of these women and people in general with all these different phenotypes working in high-ranking, respected positions and making it not a problem at all by anyone around them. It’s the norm in Genabackis and what a beautiful example that sets for it’s readers.

Read More

totally old stuff but whatever, I am digging through the Malazan tag here and ahhh, this is one of those huge things I love about this series.

And I’m going to go one further to say another thing that doesn’t seem to exist in Wu is homo/bi-phobia — nor are characters stunted emotionally by ‘no homo’ mindsets.  I was pretty sure Mappo and Icarium Were A Thing the first time through because the magic four-letter ‘l’ word was dropped, but that was before I realized I could really trust SE in a way I really don’t feel I can with just about any author.

But seriously, there are quite a number of powerful — mentally, physically and politically — LGBTQ characters in this series, and no one is looked down on for it.  Sexuality, in all its forms, just isn’t a thing.  Strong, manly men make the occasional joke about cross-dressing and drunken fooling around and no fucks are given — no christian side-hugs, no excuses for moments of emotion and love on a deep platonic level.  Lead characters are identified and nothing is made for it — in fact, I can only remember one particular instance of a man looking at a lesbian and making any sort of jab at men missing out, and he ends up being such a massive asshole that it’s just one more drop in the douche bucket.  The only even remotely notably ‘flamboyant’ character that gets joked about has a surprisingly compelling story, and the joke isn’t so much on him as the clueless lady that wants in his pants.  (I’d really love to elaborate on some of these, but I have people new to the series and I’m trying hard to keep them spoiler-free ♥)

SE handles the complexities of sexuality with the same grace, wit, and love that he handles many other sensitive topics often done poorly — take Beak.  Take Chaur.  When was the last time you read a take on mental illness in a fantasy novel that wasn’t condescending or cliche?  ’They are not broken, only different’ has never been so heart-wrenching or eye-opening; I cried myself sick over Beak, and still do every time I read that book.  

But for all this gushing, it’s never a sole identifier, or even an important one.  You will never hear these characters referred to as ‘the lesbian general’ or ‘the flaming marine with the scimitars’ or anything of that nature — no fanfare is announced.  SE doesn’t lay out these characters like he should be patted on the back for being so ~liberal and open-minded~ in a traditionally-conservative genre.  It’s not man-kink lesbian action; both the men and the ladies get comparable numbers on the board.  Sometimes, you’ll miss it completely; it took me three times through to catch the line about Deryg, because SE holds to the same standards in his work as in his world: these are not the important things. Characters — people — are not, and should not be defined by the shapes of the bodies they like rubbing against, if they’re into that sort of thing at all.

And that’s awesome.

Reason #98509 to read the Malazan Book of the Fallen series.  He’ll curb-stomp your feelings into a million teeny unrecoverable pieces, but he will neverpiss you off with the usual array of -isms.

/ollies out

reblogging again as I see more and more people criticizing and questioning GRRM’s writing when it comes to female characters and a friendly reminder that this is what i’ve been trying to say all along ok pce

The notion that a writer can just leave the work at the end of the day is nonsense: writing is all about being haunted, without respite, until the tale is told. This series has haunted me for about twenty years, all told. I’m still numb with the sudden silence.

Steven Erikson, author of The Malazan Book of the Fallen (via ekkolalia)

(Source: fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com)

why I’m loving Erikson more by the page

celesticides:

tigerofsummer:

Something completely and utterly unique about the Malazan fantasy series is that sexism and racism in Genabackis seem to be completely nonexistent, as if Erikson refuses to even hint at any such stupid and ignorant problems such as cultural inequality between the sexes and peoples due to their biology in his fantastical world that he created. In Erikson’s world, the people are smart enough to realize the ignorance of sexism and racism to the point where they don’t even address such things in anyway because they are nonexistent.For example, the armies are made up of as much women as men, and it’s not uncommon for a woman to be Commander of the Claw or Empress or Adjunct. Erikson is a genius in this way because he portrays all of these women and people in general with all these different phenotypes working in high-ranking, respected positions and making it not a problem at all by anyone around them. It’s the norm in Genabackis and what a beautiful example that sets for it’s readers.

Read More

totally old stuff but whatever, I am digging through the Malazan tag here and ahhh, this is one of those huge things I love about this series.

And I’m going to go one further to say another thing that doesn’t seem to exist in Wu is homo/bi-phobia — nor are characters stunted emotionally by ‘no homo’ mindsets.  I was pretty sure Mappo and Icarium Were A Thing the first time through because the magic four-letter ‘l’ word was dropped, but that was before I realized I could really trust SE in a way I really don’t feel I can with just about any author.

But seriously, there are quite a number of powerful — mentally, physically and politically — LGBTQ characters in this series, and no one is looked down on for it.  Sexuality, in all its forms, just isn’t a thing.  Strong, manly men make the occasional joke about cross-dressing and drunken fooling around and no fucks are given — no christian side-hugs, no excuses for moments of emotion and love on a deep platonic level.  Lead characters are identified and nothing is made for it — in fact, I can only remember one particular instance of a man looking at a lesbian and making any sort of jab at men missing out, and he ends up being such a massive asshole that it’s just one more drop in the douche bucket.  The only even remotely notably ‘flamboyant’ character that gets joked about has a surprisingly compelling story, and the joke isn’t so much on him as the clueless lady that wants in his pants.  (I’d really love to elaborate on some of these, but I have people new to the series and I’m trying hard to keep them spoiler-free ♥)

SE handles the complexities of sexuality with the same grace, wit, and love that he handles many other sensitive topics often done poorly — take Beak.  Take Chaur.  When was the last time you read a take on mental illness in a fantasy novel that wasn’t condescending or cliche?  ’They are not broken, only different’ has never been so heart-wrenching or eye-opening; I cried myself sick over Beak, and still do every time I read that book.  

But for all this gushing, it’s never a sole identifier, or even an important one.  You will never hear these characters referred to as ‘the lesbian general’ or ‘the flaming marine with the scimitars’ or anything of that nature — no fanfare is announced.  SE doesn’t lay out these characters like he should be patted on the back for being so ~liberal and open-minded~ in a traditionally-conservative genre.  It’s not man-kink lesbian action; both the men and the ladies get comparable numbers on the board.  Sometimes, you’ll miss it completely; it took me three times through to catch the line about Deryg, because SE holds to the same standards in his work as in his world: these are not the important things. Characters — people — are not, and should not be defined by the shapes of the bodies they like rubbing against, if they’re into that sort of thing at all.

And that’s awesome.

Reason #98509 to read the Malazan Book of the Fallen series.  He’ll curb-stomp your feelings into a million teeny unrecoverable pieces, but he will neverpiss you off with the usual array of -isms.

/ollies out

bless

‘Memories of Ice’

I just finished sobbing my way through Chapter 25 and the epilogue. Lord have mercy. I have never cried so hard while reading a book ever in my life. I feel like I just went on a long journey on a roller coaster of emotions. I cannot even fathom the amount of tears shed over that ending… Memories of Ice. Steven Erikson is a king.

Now, I’m going to torture myself all over again and go through all the bookmarks I made while reading and describe what it was I was thinking and feeling at that moment and why these sections were bookmarked in the first place. Here we go:

Read More

The notion that a writer can just leave the work at the end of the day is nonsense: writing is all about being haunted, without respite, until the tale is told. This series has haunted me for about twenty years, all told. I’m still numb with the sudden silence.

Steven Erikson, author of The Malazan Book of the Fallen (via ekkolalia) —

Your Brain on Fiction

“Dr. Oatley and Dr. Mar, in collaboration with several other scientists, reported in two studies, published in 2006 and 2009, that individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and see the world from their perspective. This relationship persisted even after the researchers accounted for the possibility that more empathetic individuals might prefer reading novels.”

Ages unveiled the Holy Desert.
Raraku was once an ochre sea.
She stood in the wind
on the pride of a spire
and saw ancient fleets -
ships of bone, sails of bleached
hair, charging the crest
to where the waters slipped
beneath the sands
of the desert to come.

The Holy Desert, Steven Erikson, Deadhouse Gates (via rustandruin) —

I have walked old roads
This day
That became ghosts with
Coming night
And were gone to my eyes
With dawn.
Such was my journey
Leagues across centuries
In one blink of the sun.

Steven Erikson, Deadhouse Gates (via rustandruin) —