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Malazan Book of Fallen 8: Toll the Hounds | 
| Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Press
Category: Book
New (5) Used (2) from £20.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  22 reviews
Sales Rank: 332139
Media: Paperback
Edition: Airports/Ireland/Export ed
Pages: 896
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.7
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 6 x 2
ISBN: 0593046382
EAN: 9780593046388
ASIN: 0593046382
Publication Date: June 30, 2008
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| Customer Reviews: Read 17 more reviews...
 Toil of the Hounds November 11, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
The story itself, was as usual from Steven Erikson, was excellent. However I must comment on the writing style which was hugely disappointing to me. I found some of it so dull I thought I was reading one of the Wheel of Time books, dying to get through the next page before sleep overtook me.
The Mazalan series of books if one of the finest fantasy books, I only hope the Erikson doesnt spoil it now
 My take October 25, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Myself, I thought this was an excellent addition to the series: lots of new and interesting revelations on the history and background of the world (ESPECIALLY the Jagut), new characters that we'd seen referred to before but I never really expected to encounter (Gothos, Fisher, etc), the return of Kruppe, BIG events that will have huge future ripples, etc. I'm also a fan of Terry Pratchett, and the lighter tone of some of the sections where, seemingly, Kruppe was speaking to the reader, was fun (if slightly confusing because, well, Kruppe IS slightly confusing).
Is this Memories of Ice (my current favorite of the series)? No. But it's now moved into the spot previously held by The Bonehunters for second place on my listing of the series.
I'm not sure, in reference to the timeline issue raised by another reviewer, that the timeline's blown. IF the new minor characters the reviewer's referring to are the daughters I think they're referring to, it's not at all clear to me just exactly how long their father's journey from his home has been. There's potentially a serious gap between when he could have fathered them and when we as readers first encounter him in the story.
Better than some make out October 22, 2008
Starting off, there is NO WAY this book deserves 1 or 2 stars.
If you are a fan of this series, the incredible finale will blow you away in terms of what it portends for the rest of the series.
I find Darujhistan boring, and I am no fan of Kruppe, particularly as a narrator - the grand verbose paragraphs are mind numbing and a real struggle - and I hope this isn't repeated!
On the other hand, there are some great characters in this book and the plot, although a little steady over the first three books, comes to a fabulous crescendo - although this is probably prevailing trend in all these books.
If this is your first time in to the Malazan book of the fallen, I suggest you go back to Gardens of the Moon; you will not have a clue what is going on. However, if you are clinging on for every episode of this series, this is a good continuation and sets us up nicely for the last two.
The bell tolls for Erikson August 28, 2008
7 out of 14 found this review helpful
I'm an enormous Erikson fan, and read all seven of his previous novels with relish. I was eagerly awaiting the release of 'Toll the Hounds.'
Sadly, this novel is a significant fall for Erikson from the ranks of the fantasy mighty.
The novel is largely set in Dariujistan, where the entire cast of characters ultimately converge, including Cutter, Iskaral Pust and the beligerant Karsa Orlong. The city is also the setting for such notables as Anomander Rake and the broken remnants of the Bridgeburners.
Darujistan itself is cloaked in a darkness, and Anomander Rake broods within; in short, his usual enigmatic self.
Effectively, the plot builds upon the basis that a Tyrant is prophesised to conquer Darujistan. As the characters and plot slowly converge upon this single thread, Erikson uses the opportunity to explore the characters motivations and personalities in depth. This is where the novel fundamentally differs from those previous, in that this is what dominates the novel - motivations and character development and frankly random dialogue and theorisation on the part of the characters, that ultimately leads nowhere. Unusually for Erikson novels, there is very little that actually happens in this book in terms of plot. The characters thoughts and even dialogue therefore seem like so much padding.
There is also a truly huge cast of characters covering perhaps eight broad groups of people. Erikson has a frustrating tendancy to write just a couple of pages on each group and then flit to the next group. This technique pevades the whole book and gives the whole plot a sense of randomness and lack of co-ordination that I've not seen in his novels before. Erikson also fails to join up many of the diverse plotlines, and it is unclear, even at the end of the novel what value or contribution they really made.
The novel is truly epic in size (though for Erikson quite normal) at 900+ pages. The real action only begins after some 600 pages though, and only there does it start to make any sense. So, it takes considerable patience to get that far. The final 300 pages, without spoiling it, are not as dramatic or even original as we are used to from Erikson.
In summary, 'Toll the Hounds' falls well short of the standard that we have come to expect from the genius that is Erikson. It's probably a novel for his most devout fans, others can happily (and sadly) pass it by.
 Toll the Hounds Rings the Bell August 24, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
Erikson does a masterful job with this newest installment of the tale of the Fallen. Particularly intriguing is the careful development of characters from past novels, and how they have matured since the first installment. This is good stuff. A number of seemingly invicible characters from earlier novels are now a step slower, fatally in some cases. I rated the last book at 4/5 stars which was probably overly harsh, and was hoping that this one would hit the high standard set by Memories of Ice (my personal favorite). Tolls the Hound is a fantastic read, advancing many of the intricate plots set in motion in Gardens of the Moon. Bravo Steven Erikson, you have done it again!
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