Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson

Book 3 of the Malazan Book of the Fallen

Rating: 4.5 out of 5


It's only his third book of a planned ten-part Malazan Book of the Fallen series but Steven Erikson is redefining the word 'epic'. One can only begin to realize that this is really only the proverbial "tip of the iceberg" that the readers are seeing at this point of the story. It's a marvel to witness the uncovering of his imagination and realize the depth of what he has created. Erikson has created a world that probably surpasses any other fantasy world that ever existed and he has yet seven more books in which he can allow his readers to explore.

In Memories of Ice, he returns to the continent of Genebackis, the setting of his first book, Gardens of the Moon. The Malazan army of Genebackis have now gone renegade under the leadership of Dujek Onearm and Whiskeyjack are trying forge an alliance with their former enemies led by Caladan Brood and Anomander Rake. They would need to find a way to come across a common ground and forget their differences because a new enemy is coming from another direction. The new empire of the Pannion Domin is flexing its muscle and it is a threat more terrible and horrifying than anything they have ever seen before. The first target of the Domin's armies would be the free city of Capustan, and it seems nothing can stop its hordes from overrunning the it. Armies are being formed. Armies that would include the undead, cannibals and beasts. They would however soon realize that this would only be a part of an even larger war. A war that has been going on for hundreds of thousands of years. A war between gods and demi-gods and everybody is being sucked in towards it.

There would be new players in the scene. There will be the caravan bodyguard captain, Gruntle, who escorts his client towards the beleaguered city and finds himself trapped in a desperate siege unknowing of the large part he is going to play in the whole war. There will be Itkovian, one of the leaders of the army hired by Capustan's leaders to defend the city, as he and his group of paladin-knights prepare themselves on what they think what would be their last act in life. There will be Silverfox of the Rhivi, a girl who is much more than she seems growing into adulthood in days instead of years.

Of course, there would be the returning characters from Gardens of the Moon like the aforementioned four war leaders, the irrepresible and enigmatic Kruppe, and Ganoes Paran, Quick Ben and the Bridgeburners (Malazan's own version of Special Forces) with the part they are going to play in these War of the Gods.

As with his previous books, Erikson has a huge cast and a huge plot, and he handles them well. In fact, a distinct improvement from his previous work can be noticed. As before, Erikson structures his plot with having separate story threads, but this time the threads are more cohesive and doesn't make the reader feel like being tossed from one place or another. Each plot thread is now handled smoothly as they ease their way towards the end of the book.

Also, here in Memories of Ice, Erikson's characters become more alive now. They become personalities. Maybe because the readers have already gotten to know them through the first book, but one can now feel being able to identify with each character, even the minor ones. So real have they become, that some readers might find themselves shedding a tear for some of them by the end of the book.

That is not to say that Erikson has already found the perfect formula for his style. Old flaws from the first two books still emerge every now and then. The story starts out slow and doesn't pick up until the second third of the book. It is also still possible for the reader to get confused at the happenings of the plot. And Erikson still doesn't take time to explain things. But these problems become less of a hindrance here in the third book than it was in the first two.

There is one area, though, where Steven Erikson has established himself in the top echelon, probably more any other fantasy writer before him. He has become a master in writing military fantasy. His battle scenes are glorious, exciting, viceral, terrifying and tragic. He doesn't shy away from the gore. However, at the same time, he emphasizes the dreadful emotions one feels on having to fight for one's life and having to take the life of another. He doesn't glorify battle. In fact, he presents it in all its tragedy for what it really is: that despite the circumstances that sometimes make it a necessity, it is still an act of mass murder. That's what makes his battle scenes compelling, and in this book he gifts his readers with not one, but two extraordinary scenes of battle that is heart-pounding and edge-of-your-seat, and one of the best-written. It even includes a sort of "covert ops insertion mission" that would probably make techno-thriller author Tom Clancy sit up and take notice.

With Memories of Ice, Steven Erikson has come to stay. His imagination is boundless and the world-building he executed to bring to life this Malazan world is nothing short of genius on par of J.R.R. Tolkien. It is a vast amazing world that is full of amazing beings that would surely become imprinted in the minds of those fortunate enough to read their story.

Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

Rating: 4 out of 5

It has been twelve years since the Battle of Arakeen at the end of the first book, Dune. Since then, Paul Atreides's Fremen warriors have burst out of the planet Arrakis Dune and have waged Holy War or Jihad against the Imperium bringing everyone to their knees and resulting in the mass slaughter of millions of lives. And now Paul has not only established himself the absolute ruler of the known universe, but also as the leader of a powerful religion: the religion of Muad'Dib, of which his sister Alia is the High Priestess. Having finally established some kind of order, there can be hope of peace, at last.

Or is there? Factions are plotting against Paul, but they do not wish to eliminate him. Instead forces are seeking to control the most powerful man in history. The Bene Gesserit wish to take back their Kwisatz Haderach. The Spacing Guild wish to take back control of the Spice. The Princess Irulan, wife of the Emperor only on paper, wishes to take what she thinks is hers by right. Further, the shape-shifting Bene Tleilax are entering the power games arena, but their purposes are as mysterious as their race. And the key to everyone's plan is a recreated human made from the cells of someone long-dead. In this case, that particular someone was once a beloved mentor who gave up his life for the sake of Paul and his mother.

That is only a small glimpse of the complexities woven by the masterful hand of Frank Herbert as he continues the saga of Dune. In Dune Messiah, Herbert continues the story of Paul Atreides, a man trapped in his own prophesy which he is trying hard to escape. But if one expected to have an idea of where the story was going after reading the first book, they're in for a surprise. Frank Herbert throws dozens of curve balls into the plot and while characters from Dune make their return, none are quite so familiar anymore. Events of the past twelve years have taken their effect on all of them and it is not sure what their motives are anymore.

Furthermore, Frank Herbert takes the book into a different writing style, moving away from the emphasis on action towards a more cerebral and philosophical story-telling. In effect, Dune Messiah serves to finally explain away the motives and events of the first book, and takes each of the characters to their real conclusions. This departure from the previous style, though it might possibly chase away some readers who are expecting the same space opera-type, fantasy feel that was felt in Dune, elevates the story from what was already a spectacular epic, evolving it into something with more depth and soul and complexity that would become the basis of the colossal storyline that would span seven books (cut short, unfortunately by the untimely death of the great novelist). If Dune is the main dish of the series, Dune Messiah is the (forgive the pun) spice that would give it its lasting taste.

In it, Frank Herbert continues to explore his deep themes. He looks at the dangers of combining religion and government and the effects of each towards each other throughout the course of human history. Herbert dares to ask the question: "What manner of weapon is religion when it becomes the government?" And some people may not like his answer. He continues his exposition on leadership, fanaticism and hero worship. And it is in this story that he introduces one of his enduring creations, a concept that would become one of the major plotpoints, and be the main character in all the suceeding books (in a weird kind of way only Frank Herbert could imagine): the ghola of Duncan Idaho. And it is, ironically, through this cloned human, Frank Herbert examines what it means to be alive.

The problem with sequels is that it places in the reader an expectation of what the succeeding stories would be like setting it up for to possibly become a disappointment for its fans. It is only through the genius of Frank Herbert that he was able to pull of a great book that goes against what was expected of it, both in literary style and the course of the plot. Frank Herbert concludes the story of Paul Atreides in a way nobody expects and does it way that is exhilirating and satisfying, but tragic and bittersweet at the same time.

It is possible that one might read the first book, Dune, love it fiercely, pick up the second book, put it down and stop right there and just be satisfied with adoring the original story. But for those who throw away all expectations, absorb the beauty and artistry of Dune Messiah, one might just find himself lost in the universe that revolves around that haunting desert planet, wanting the stay to never end.

Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey

Book 1 of Dragonriders of Pern

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Some time in the far future, mankind has conquered space and colonized planets, one of these planets being Pern. Having made lives for themselves away from their home planet, the people of Pern lost contact with Earth along with most of the technological advancements that helped them reach their new home such that humans have settled in a way of life similar to that of the time of Earth’s High Middle Ages.

But Pern has a secret, undiscovered by the first colonizers that came to the planet. She has a sister, the Red Star, whose orbit brings her close to Pern approximately every 200 years. It is during this period that the Red Star’s inhabitants, in the form of silvery “Threads” make the journey to the more fertile Pern where they cause death and destruction in anything that comes across their path. However, Pern’s inhabitants have an answer. One of the technological knowledge that was not lost was the science of genetics with which humans used to evolve small native flying lizards into what would be called dragons. These dragons would telepathically bond with one young human as soon as they hatched from their eggs and forge a bond that would last a lifetime. It is from this partnership that the dragonfolk would emerge and which would make them the masters of Pern. They would be the main defense against the Threads invasion, a cycle that would last millennia.

However, at the start of the book Dragonflight, the Red Star has not come for 400 years and most people, including some of the dragonfolk have begun to think that the Threads will never ever return and becoming lost in the shadows of Pern’s history. Normal folk now have begun to ignore old traditions. They began to see dragonfolk as tyrants living off the people’s tributes and livestock when they have no use anymore. What’s worse, of the six dragonfolk Weyrs (realms), five of the six have been abandoned and the last one remains underpopulated.

Some of the minor lords like the ruthless Fax have become ambitious and began grab and consolidate power for him conquering neighboring kingdoms including the mountain Hold of Ruatha, of whom Fax destroyed and killed off the ruling family. Unknown to him, one daughter, Lessa, has escaped and is hiding among Ruatha’s common folk plotting to have her revenge one day.

Meanwhile, one person believes that the Threads will come back and that time is closing. F’lar of the dragonfolk knows in his heart that the Red Star is nearing and is hatching a plan of his own to prepare his badly outnumbered kin. He has to find ways to convince people of the reality of the approaching menace, suppress the rising rebellion among the other lords of the land, and find a way to combat the dangerous Threads with what he has. And Lessa has a part to play in that plan.

Dragonflight, though set in a world that is similar to fantasy, is actually a science fiction story. McCaffrey’s dragons do not have the mystical quality of their fantastical counterparts. They have been genetically engineered from small lizard-like reptiles. They chew something called “firerock”, which the dragonriders carry in sacks, to enable them to breathe fire. They can teleport between spaces and also between times. The latter ability would have a very important role in the story. And the bond between rider and dragon is a psychic bond, not a magical bond, and is something similar to how ducklings or goslings bond to their mother as soon as they hatch.

McCaffrey’s writing in Dragonflight itself is easy reading, though doesn’t have the depth of Herbert or Tolkien. Still it is an entertaining tale and there has been no other like it. And it is good enough to attract its own dedicated followers that the Dragonriders of Pern series, of which it the first chapter, has become one of the most beloved stories in speculative fiction, and whose tale is still on-going at this point of time.