Well, I think somebody needs to just take out my heart, wrap a bow around it, and mail it to Steven Erikson.

The Bonehunters is book six in Erikson’s acclaimed Malazan series. Chances are, if you’ve read the previous 5,000 pages in the story, you’ve got a pretty good idea of what you’re in for here.

Unparalleled worldbuilding. Marines. A complex story with way more layers than an onion. The usual.

But I still can’t help but be enthralled by these works. The Bonehunters clocks in at something like 1200 pages, but I still felt like it was a page turner. This book has some of the most intense set-pieces to date in the series, and by now, if you don’t have an emotional attachment to many of the characters, you’re in trouble.

And there’s something else worth mentioning: Erikson has a lot to say in these books. He presents varied viewpoints on war, betrayal, love, economics, and far more. I find myself highlighting little bits and pieces all over the place.

These books aren’t for everyone. They are dark, violent, and incredibly complex. But they’ve seized hold of me in a way no other series has. I’m excited to continue and see where this epic leads.

2019 is nearing to a close, and I’ve made it half-way through Malazan’s original ten books. I’d planned to read the whole series this year, but I think I’m glad I decided to slow down and read the books whenever the spirit moves me. In my mind, these are books to be savored.

Midnight Tides is an enormous tome that reads like a much smaller novel. Steven Erikson continues to amaze and delight. For as long as this book is, I feel like I powered through it quickly, always eager to learn what was on the next page. Even though this book has much of the typical Malazan complexity, it feels more straightforward than other entries in the series.

If you’ve gotten to this point in the series, you already know what to expect: tremendous world building, a large cast of memorable characters, and a pervading darkness throughout the story. All are present here. Bugg and Tehol, in particular, are two characters that made me laugh more than any other book I’ve read recently.

Midnight Tides didn’t make me quite as emotional as some of the previous works in the world, but that isn’t a slight in the least. This is an excellent book, and I remain eager to dive deeper into the series.

I don’t like to think that I cry that easily.

But Steven Erikson seems determined to prove me wrong.

In my journey to finish the Complete Malazan series this year, I just finished the novel Memories of Ice. 

It was one of the very best fantasy books that I have read this year.

Incredibly complex world building. Deeply layered and fascinating characters. A mysterious plot. Friendship, redemption, betrayal, and failure all have their day in the sun here. In my mind, these books represent some of the best fantasy has to offer, and in my opinion, that’s doubly true of the sub-genre of dark fantasy.

For a book that is nearly a thousand pages, I felt like I flew through it, always eager to return for more. It’s one of the rare enormous fantasy stories that I don’t think I would hesitate to read again.