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Title:
Return of the Crimson Guard
Series:
Malazan Empire #2
Author:
Ian Esslemont
Rating:
4 of 5 Stars
Genre:
SFF
Pages:
732
Format:
Digital Edition
|
Synopsis: |
I believe I counted Double Digit story threads going on, so I'm going to simply mention the overall highlights/plots.
The Crimson Guard vowed to fight the
Malazan Empire and the Duke K'Azz was their leader. Due to the nature
of their vow, the “Avowed” [the Guards who actually took the vow]
cannot die of old age and are becoming superhuman. Once they do die,
their ghosts stick around and act as messengers. The Guard was
scattered after one particular encounter with the Malazans. Now they
are beginning to come back together. The Duke is missing, so the next
in command, Skinner, has taken command. But he's apparently in thrall
to the Broken God and so has his own agenda that subverts the Guards
Vow. The Guard is split between those who follow Skinner and those
who remain faithful to the original intent of the Vow.
This is all happening because various
commanders and top dogs from the Malazan empire are sick of Laseen's
rule and are pulling away and allying themselves with local
nationals. A splintering of the Empire that Kellenved began. Laseen
comes to the continent with all the hosts she can muster to oppose
the nationals. The Guard uses this to plan an attack on her to wipe
her out. A phracking huge battle ensues.
A mad mage ends up opening a gate to
Chaos and everybody comes together [sing it with me!] to stop him
before the whole world is consumed. Laseen dies and Mallick Rel,
introduced in Deadhouse Gates, becomes
emperor. Treaties and peace negotians ensue and everyone is properly
maudlin.
|
My Thoughts:
|
That synopsis was the shortest I could make it, honest.
This
takes place several books later, chronologically, in the Malazan
Book of the Fallen series by
Erikson. However, characters from it, specifically, Mallick Rel,
Korbolo Dom, Nil & Nether and even the reborn Coltaine, were
relatively fresh in my mind from my read of Deadhouse
Gates. That made connections
MUCH easier to remember. Sadly, the reborn Coltaine gets just a
couple of paragraphs before being sent back into literary oblivion.
Lets
deal with my gripes first.
Once
again, the deliberate with-holding of information about who a
character is from the reader. It is not as simple as not telling us,
but in several cases characters are thinking/talking about Mysterious
Character X and it goes something like this:
“No, it couldn't be. He's dead!”A veiled glance from Mystery Character X to the character talking...“It IS him!”Mystery Character X nods and walks away into the distance. Talking character is left in jaw dropping awe.
That
makes me want to scream. It makes me feel like Esslemont is dancing
in front of me going “Nyah, nyah, nyah! I know something you don't
know!” It is frustrating and probably my biggest gripe with both
Esslemont and Erikson. They seem to revel in spitting in my face with
hidden knowledge. Since this whole series is a re-read, I know this
will keep on happening. But I don't have to like it and I don't.
On
to the good stuff.
If you want complex
plots filled with political, personal, religious and psychological
threads, this is the schizzle. Like I said in the Synopsis, double
digit threads being woven. Pay attention or you'll get lost. Near the
end, I DID get lost. Who was fighting who against who all became
tangled up as new threats emerged and groups split and groups came
together. Because there were Malazans on almost every side, it wasn't
even a Malazan Against Others story. It was a big messy group
dynamics story.
I couldn't race
through this. I am finding that I need to slow down my reading to
appreciate what I am reading at the moment instead of thinking about
what I'm going to read next. This book was like walking through a
mucky swamp; each step was an effort and you had to look right in
front of you without looking at those distant mountains or you'd fall
into a pit and never get out.
The munitions
group, that coalesces around a Sergeant Jumpy is great. It made me
laugh. It was a much needed comedic break because almost all the
other story lines are of the Grimmest, Darkest Import. Everything
else is weighed down by its own Self Importance. Just how they act
and think is fun and I wish there had been a touch or two more of
them.
Overall, I am
satisfied with this re-read.
I had a lot more to
say about this book this time around than I did back in '10. Probably
getting a bit garrulous in my declining years.
★★★★☆
