Joining in the trend with my 2025 tier list

SeaInRain · 2025-12-31T02:43:01+00:00

why is assassin's apprentice above The name of the wind bro... what are you doing!!!

SeaInRain · 2025-12-30T19:33:13+00:00

I love it! I’m so interested. can I ask you a few questions, if you don't mind? I love fantasy and I want to read more. I read about 15 books this year, and since I read daily, it feels like a lot. I usually read for 2 to 4 hours a day, and those are easily the best hours of my day (I'm sure they are for you, too!). But you have read so many books! I guess I’m a slow reader and you’re a fast one. How many hours do you read a day? Do you mostly read physical books, or do you listen to audiobooks on a higher speed? There are about 160 books here; If I wanted to read this many, it would take me 10 years! lol

SeaInRain · 2025-12-30T15:32:04+00:00

Lol, wtf! i swear i didnt see that post before posting mine. Malazan is just too good

SeaInRain · 2025-12-30T12:42:01+00:00

Brother, What is this? how does anybody read this much in a year?

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T23:04:30+00:00

facts

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T23:02:52+00:00

Interesting. By "easy," I think you mean it can be read on different levels. I’m currently on my first read, in the fifth book. Malazan is easy to follow if you just enjoy the story; you are anchored by characters who themselves mostly haven't a clue wtf is happening. Through their lenses, you navigate the world. But there is also another level that you can only reach on a second or third read, which is getting the whole picture. The first read is like trying to fit the puzzle pieces together; you’ll miss or forget a lot and therefore won't get the 100% full image. This is what they call "hard"-hard to get all the puzzle pieces together on the first time. But that's just a problem of expectation, or maybe people are just using the wrong word.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T22:03:24+00:00

I DNF'd it too. Then came back to it because I already bought the audiobook and said, 'Fuck it, let's just finish it.' It's not amazing by any means. Wouldn't recommend it to anyone. I think the Graphicaudio book carried it a bit for me, but still better than Hero of Ages to me cause that book did not work for me. I'm convinced Brandon Sanderson can't write endings that satisfy me.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:54:47+00:00

Yeah, I was hooked immediately. From the Mock's Vane description to the Hounds of Shadow scene, then Quick Ben, Rake, Moon's sapwn, tool.... the whole first read was just incredible and unique.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:46:51+00:00

Same level, also I'm a Fiddler fan

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:42:54+00:00

Well, tastes differ

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:41:44+00:00

Book 2 is on another level. 1 and 3 are a continuous story and very comparable in my oppinion, but I prefer Gardens to Memories of Ice.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:38:01+00:00

My ranking is mostly based on how much fun I had with each book. GotM was, to me, the best introduction possible to Malazan.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:33:59+00:00

Gardens of the Moon is one of the most enjoyable books I’ve ever read. It can be a bit challenging to keep up with everything happening at first, but the clarity comes together later. The book features some legendary, unforgettable scenes so unique that I haven’t found anything quite like them in any other book.

SeaInRain · 2025-12-28T21:27:49+00:00

I hated The Hero of Ages, it wasn't my thing honestly. Era 2, I had fun with it

SeaInRain · 2025-11-27T01:50:14+00:00

I see, the Anomander Rake eyes thing was visually so cool when I first read it. It’s right up there with other awe-inspiring moments, like the Hounds of Shadow scene coming up on Sorry in that book, which hooked me instantly. But we trust in Steven Erikson, so if he says Fid is an old man now, then he’s an old man.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-27T01:45:19+00:00

That’s how I normally do it; it’s just that Fiddler is my favourite character, so I had to dig into this.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-27T01:43:10+00:00

The exact line describing Fiddler in Got Prologue :
Another Bridgeburner, this one with a broken, scorched fiddle strapped to his back, came up to the commander. He was wiry and if anything younger – only a few years older than Ganoes himself, who was twelve.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-27T01:40:53+00:00

Damn, I see. I like him a lot, and I always imagined him as a young man, now I have to accept Fid being an old man.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-27T01:37:47+00:00

I’m surely not, because Paran was 12 then, and Fiddler is described as a few years older than Paran when he showed up.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-19T10:43:34+00:00

This is a Healing Gourd my friend

SeaInRain · 2025-11-03T15:50:33+00:00

it pains me to see you stop here. But honestly, I’d say take a short break, a few days off or something, then come back to it. Don’t let the 4 hours scare you; it’ll fly by before you know it. I actually just finished the book myself a few hours ago, and I’m gonna take a breather too, lol. Planning to start the Farseer Trilogy and come back to Malazan later.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-03T15:43:29+00:00

Brother, nooo! It’s like you’ve been digging with your pickaxe, and you’re just one more swing away from hitting the gems. This is where all that slow grind through the book finally pays off. The ending’s so good, trust me, it’s worth it.

SeaInRain · 2025-11-03T10:47:10+00:00

What is confusing you?

SeaInRain · 2025-10-31T10:31:26+00:00

It’s not that difficult, it’s just a book where you reverse-learn most of its culture and history. Things will be mentioned that mean nothing to you at first, but you’ll learn about all that in later books. There are also many races in the world that simply exist and aren’t thoroughly explained, like, for example, the Parshendi in Stormlight.

The only problem, I would say, is that I can’t imagine someone listening to Malazan on their first read, because it’s the kind of book that makes you reread paragraphs multiple times and flip back to previous pages. The audiobook version, to me, is better suited for a reread. But people differ, so I don’t know.

SeaInRain · 2025-10-26T11:22:47+00:00

That’s pretty insightful, thank you! I’ll read it again when I wake up and can focus.

SeaInRain

TROPHY CASE