Blood and Bone
A Novel of the Malazan Empire
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4.4 • 63 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Ian Esslemont thrills again with another gripping entry into the New York Times bestselling Malazan World in Blood and Bone.
In the western sky the bright emerald banner of the Visitor descends like a portent of annihilation. On the continent of Jacuruku, the Thaumaturgs have mounted yet another expedition to tame the neighboring wild jungle. Yet this is no normal wilderness. It is called Himatan, and it is said to be half of the spirit realm and half of the earth. And it is said to be ruled by a powerful entity whom some name the Queen of Witches, and some a goddess: the ancient Ardata.
Saeng grew up knowing only the rule of the magus Thaumaturgs—but it was the voices out of that land's forgotten past that she listened to. And when her rulers mount an invasion of the neighboring jungle, those voices send her and her brother on a desperate mission.
To the south, the desert tribes are united by the arrival of a foreign warleader, a veteran commander in battered ashen mail whom his men call the Grey Ghost. This warleader takes the tribes on a raid like none other, deep into the heart of Thaumaturg lands. Meanwhile word comes to K'azz, and mercenary company the Crimson Guard, of a contract in Jacuruku. And their employer...none other than Ardata herself.
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Customer Reviews
I really wanted to like it ...
As big a fan as I am for the Empire of Malaz series of stories told by Erickson & Esslemont, I am increasingly distressed by the noticeable difference between the two authors. Erickson's Malazan Book of the Fallen, a brilliant epic work, has set a standard that Esslemont has repeatedly failed to meet.
*** SPOILER WARNING ***
Esslemont writes a decent tale but it is totally predictable. In the case of this novel, even though he made no mention of the Warleader's identity, it was completely obvious that he was High King Kallor very early in the story. Couple that lack of mystery with a trite and overly simplistic epilogue, add an absolutely horrid job of proofreading and editing, and you get a novel that isn't worth $10.
To Esslemont's credit he does employ a "string tying" technique that explains events that occurred in his previous books and he makes a tie-in to the end of The Malazan Book of the Fallen when he references the death of the Crippled God. This was nice for all of us who may have wondered about the timelines of the different sets of novels.
As a fan of the story of the Empire of Malaz, this is a "must read". But, having read it, I can't say that I'm a fan of Esslemont or his editor.