Weakened by events in Darujhistan, the Malazan Empire teeters on the brink of anarchy. In the vast dominion of Seven Cities, in the Holy Desert Raraku, the seer Sha’ik gathers an army around her in preparation for the long-prophesied uprising named the Whirlwind. Unprecedented in its size and savagery, it will embroil in one of the bloodiest conflicts it has ever known: a maelstrom of fanaticism and bloodlust that will shape destinies and give birth to legends…

In the Otataral mines, Felisin, youngest daughter of the disgraced House of Paran, dreams of revenge against the sister who sentenced her to a life of slavery. Escape leads her to raraku, where her soul will be reborn and her future made clear. The now-outlawed Bridgeburners, Fiddler and the assassin Kalam, have vowed to return the once god-possessed Apsalar to her homeland, and to confront and kill the Empress Laseen, but events will overtake them too. Meanwhile, Coltaine, the charismatic commander of the Malaz 7th Army, will lead his battered, war-weary troops in a last, valient running battle to save the lives of thirty thousand refugees and, in so doing, secure an illustrious place in the Empire’s chequered history. And into this blighted land come two ancient wanderers, Mappo and his half-Jaghut companion Icarium, bearers of a devastating secret that threatens to break free of its chains…

Set in a brilliantly-realized world ravaged by anarchy and dark, uncontrollable magic, Deadhouse Gates is the thrilling, brutal second chapter in the Malazan Book of the Fallen. A powerful novel of war, intrigue and betrayal, it confirms Steven Erikson as a storyteller of breathtaking skill, imagination and originality—a new master of epic fantasy.

If you’re looking for a low calorie dish of light fantasy, this ain’t it. If you’re looking for a nine-course riot of taste and texture, exotically spiced to make your eyes water, your heart pump faster and your brain do cartwheels inside your cranium, I know a great little Thai place. Or, if you want something analogous to that in your reading, stop at the ‘Es’ and pick up the latest from Steven Erikson…I can safely say that Deadhouse Gates is one of the best fantasy novels of 2000.

—NEIL WALSH, SF SITE

Erikson afflicts me with awe…his work does something that only the rarest of books can manage: it alters the reader’s perceptions of reality’

—STEPHEN R DONALDSON
 


Bantam/Transworld (UK)  •  London (2000)  •  trade paperback  •  ISBN: 0-593-04622-6

Bantam (UK)  •  London (2001)  •  paperback  •  ISBN: 0-553-81311-0
 

 

Tor Books Tor Books

In the vast dominion of Seven Cities, in the Holy Desert Raraku, the seer Sha’ik and her followers prepare for the long-prophesied uprising known as the Whirlwind. Unprecedented in size and savagery, this maelstrom of fanaticism and bloodlust will embroil the Malazan Empire in one of the bloodiest conflicts it has ever known, shaping destinies and giving birth to legends . . .

Set in a brilliantly realized world ravaged by dark, uncontrollable magic, this thrilling novel of war, intrigue and betrayal confirms Steven Erikson as a storyteller of breathtaking skill, imagination and originality–the author who has written the first great fantasy epic of the new millennium.

One of the best fantasy novels of the year.

—SF SITE

Rare is the writer who so fluidly combines a sense of mythic power and depth of world, with fully realized characters and thrilling action, but Steven Erikson manages it spectacularly. The books are reminiscent of Tolkein’s scope, Zelazny’s cleverness and wit, and Donaldson’s brooding atmospherics; yet all combined with dazzling talent into a narrative flow that keeps the reader turning pages. Some writers open windows on worlds, Erikson opens worlds and makes them so real, so magical, you’re not sure if you can escape-and I don’t want to.

—MICHAEL A. STACKPOLE

Such is the impact of the first book in Erikson’s monumental Malazan saga, Gardens of the Moon, that the achievement of this sequel is doubly surprising. Not only is the vigour and sweep of the earlier book effortlessly captured, the complex plot is simultaneously deepened and accelerated, with a grasp of tempo that has the reader inexorably gripped . . . Roll on, book three!”

—THE GOOD BOOK GUIDE
 


Tor Books  •  New York (2005)  •  hard cover  •  ISBN: 0-765-31002-3

Tor Books  •  New York (2005)  •  trade paperback  •  ISBN: 0-765-31429-0

Tor Books  •  New York (2006)  •  paperback  •  ISBN: 0-765-34879-9