Night of Knives: Novels of the Malazan Empire, Book 1

I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't this, and I'm pleasantly surprised. I am a reader of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series. When I got 120 pages into Dust of Dreams, it occurred to me that I may be missing out on something with that Esslemont guy's novels. I took my concern to the Malazan Empire page on FaceBook. There, readers mostly advised me to carry on and finish Steven Erikson's series and worry about Esslemont later. Esslemont's books, in most of the opinions I've read where some how less than Erikson's. Few, however did state I may spoil a plot or two. Intriguing. The clincher was the reading order Adam Whitehead published on his blog The Wertzone. My OCD kicked in and settled the matter. I put Dust of Dreams down and picked up Night of the Knives. I am glad I did.A short novel, Night of the Knives was a sparse 270 sum odd pages. Compared to Erikson's tomes of 1000 plus, it was like reading a short story. At first Esslemont's story lagged a bit, his prose a little forced and awkward. I persevered and found my self pulled into his story and rushing along with his character to the end of the night. Esselmont is not Erikson. They may share the Malazan world but not writing styles. Erikson has a wonderful flair for witty dialoge which I personally love most about his books. Esslemont's writing is linear to the point and personal. Think Glen Cook guest writing in the Malazan world. That was my honest impression after four days spent engrossed in Night of the Knives. As a fan of Erikson and Cook, I was thrilled.I gave this book 4 stars. I only give 5 stars if a book makes me laugh, cry or gives me goose bumps. Esselmont did capture my imagination and took me along for a night of adventure leaving me wanting more.

Having read all of Erikson I was ecstatic to find out that Esslemont co-created the Malazan world and that he had two books released already! I had to get my hands on his two books, even though they weren't published in the US yet. At first I was a little disappointed, but then all my expectations were met.The book itself all takes place on one night, so you are limited in the epic scale that is usually present. Esslemont seemed to focus more on the individual players, most of which had no special ability or powers. They were your regular civilian. What was disappointing in the beginning was that Esslemont hinted at the Malazan world, but we never saw it. There were no ascendants. There were no gods. There were no larger than life characters that made Erikson's world so vivid and complex. It was slow going.It wasn't until a little over half way that the characters began to come to life, starting with Temper. It wasn't until we learned his background, his story, that we were started to be drawn in to the complex world of constantly shifting powers that made the Malazans so interesting. Throw in to that two ascendants vying for power, a power struggle for the empire, and a power struggle between assassin guilds, and we begin to have a convergence of powers. The story really picked up.Overall I think Esslemont showed that he too could create a vivid picture of the Malazan world. It was hard separating the two, since Erikson has already written 8 books in that world, but eventually Esslemont showed why he and Erikson are co-creators. I would recommend to Malazan readers and fantasy readers alike.4 stars.

I enjoyed getting more insight into how a lot of shi* started, esp. as to the importance of Malaz City and the Shadow Moon (sounds kinda cheezy i know, but whatever Shadow makes everything better :P)I was kinda hoping for more with Kiska since she was pretty cool at first, but just seemed kinda childish/weak towards the end, i guess she was supposed to have learned from all the dangerous experiences she had or something, but it just didnt work for me. I'm sure i would've been like a kid in a candy store in her situation as well, but still...Sure there's a lot of 'powerful' characters but the point is that the Stormriders made it so that there was need for them... i mean seriously, Stormriders! And they still made a mess of things... What seems to happen a lot with the other author, Erikson's powerful convergences... a lot of lesser characters engage each other and kind of cancel each other out of being involved in the main goings-on. They get tied up while missing the real important stuff, and that pattern seems to continue here.The fisherman and his blind wife and some other characters could have used some more dimension to them, but I guess they weren't a priority.It was nice to see more of some old characters including a little bit of the stormriders.I'll definitely be reading the next one when i get it.

I found this to be a challenging novel to read, both because of the style of writing, and because of the content, which while interesting, left me confused at times as to what something was or why an event was occurring.Temper and Kiska are the main characters of the story, but unfortunately, the plot focused more on the events taking place than on the character's personalities.On the whole, it's a book that has done just enough to intrigue me to read the next in the series in the hopes that it will get better.

This is a very good book!Following two main character point of views. One being Temper - an old school elite yet uncredited serviceman for the Malazan empire and Kiska - a youth urchin spy with 'the talent' of magic somewhere within her. Kiska was very mysterious - a bit whiney and kept getting caught by people throughout her sneaking antics - but I think she was an omnipotent device to show the unfolding events. Temper was just a no fu*ks given veteran. The best parts for Temper was his lack of desire for recognition for the extraordinary feats that had been/ are accomplished by him - but also his flash back sections with Dassem Ultor (who people will know from the main series)Some people do not rate this book compared to the Malazan: Book of the Fallen. I think if you miss this out then you are missing so many crucial layers that make the world the best envisaged in fantasy. I understand how it can knock Malazan die-hards off balance as they are used to going from 900+ page epics following 40+ point of views to a more linear story revolving around one chaotic night.The mystique created by Dancer and Kellevand frequents throughout this novel and is truly fascinating. It is the story about one night, where magic, worlds, accession and races all discombobulate and at the same time collide. Hounds, warrens, zombies, storm-riders etc... This is a fast paced book. Well written. It might not showcase the linguistic acrobatics that Erikson sometimes presents - but does Erikson really know what all those complex synonyms and semantical equivalent words mean anyway?I actually think if prior fans hadn't already ascertained the diamond tinted loving of; and egotistical disgust of anything that isn't Erikson Malazon - they may enjoy this story more as a new-comer.Esslemont has recently released Dancer's Lament which is revelled by all Malazan fans and carries on with the structural devices initiated here. I think this is a great first book from Esslemont and can't wait to read the rest. He works the Malazan world well and creates wonder - lets hope it continues. Peace x [...]

The first few times I did a Malazan reread, I stuck with Erikson, thinking that the books by Esslemont were unnecessary. Plus, it felt a bit mean to be picking up a book, that someone has worked hard to produce, and being completely certain that it would be an average read, or worse. Though I suppose the fact that I consider me Erikson to be best there is in fantasy writing means everybody comes worse off in comparison.It's a relatively short book, and easy to read. It only took me half a day. And no, Esslemont isn't Erikson (I'm pretty sure he's sick of people pointing this out). Of course I was aware that there would be differences in style, but the fact that Esslemont explains things was a serious shock to the system. There would be a comment about something mysterious like the Shadow Moon or the Return, and i'd stop reading, tip my head back, close my eyes and try to remember if it had come up before in this book, or in Erikson's. What connections could be made? What could it be? What does it mean? Maybe the TOR reread will pick up something I didn't. Once i'd thought it through, i'd return to the book. Then....next paragraph...the answer. WHAT IS THIS SORCERY? Are you telling me what's going on? Now, I realise it is a bizarre situation when a reader is complaining about their questions being answered. But it's precisely what I like about Erikson's work- I use it as a kind of brain training exercise.Yet for all that, I enjoyed the book. There were some great characters. Temper reads very much like the quintessential Malazan soldier so vital to this world, and he made a welcome break from Kiska's teen angst. The representations of characters already well known from Erikson were handled well, they were part of the action but still retained mystery.While I didn't love it, it was good enough to make me read the next. Hardly an enthusiastic review, I know, but I see the potential for improvement. And next time, I'll know better what to expect.

It's been a long time coming, but we finally get a look at the world seen in the Malazan Book of the Fallen from another angle; that of the world's cocreator, Ian Esslemont.He chooses to begin with a look at what really happened the night the old emperor disappeared, and does a damn fine job of it.Taking place largely in one place and over one night, this is certainly a more streamlined piece than Erikson's sprawling tomes, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.The two main characters, Kiska and Temper, are both engaging and well written, and the plot zips along with enough sorcery and skullduggery to satisfy even the most ardent fan of the sister series.More importantly for them, the book delves in detail into the backstory of Kellanved and also Dassem Ultor, making explicit what has previously only been hinted at.Esslemont's writing is not quite as polished or multilayered as his colleague's, but based on this first effort, he is sure to become a major writing voie in his own right.

I really enjoyed the Malazan books, came to them late, with a short wait for the conclusion. So moved on to Esslemonts with a very fresh memory of his "esteemed co-developers" books of the Fallen. I was pretty shocked really, and feedback is a little mixed. i genunily enjoyed this and the next two just as much.They really flow, with great characterisation in the same Erikson achieved in his books. I didnt always like the way he took the guard..... but was gripped with what would happen next, the greater detail about "The Vow" was also very interesting, adding real depth to the characters. I've moved on to the next books and just a good so far.If you like the genre, 100% worth a read. You wont be disappointed.