Like many fans of Steven Erikson’s amazing fantasy series The Malazan Book of the Fallen (now up to eight volumes of a projected ten), I was by turns intrigued and concerned when I learned that he was being joined by an accomplice in crafting novels set in the richly imagined and complex world of Malaz. As Erikson’s foreword to Night of Knives makes clear, Ian Cameron Esslemont was as much involved in the creation of the world of Malaz as he was, initially as a backdrop for role-playing games, then as a screenplay, and it was always the intention that they would both write novels set there – it’s just that Erikson has, for various reasons, enjoyed a considerable head-start. So this is not fan fiction, it’s not some kind of franchising operation; it’s a legitimate extension of the work started by Erikson when Gardens of the Moon was first published. Putting all that aside, the question must be: is it any good?

The answer is a qualified ‘yes’ – it represents a very readable addition to the Malazan canon. Readers of Gardens of the Moon will be aware of the complex back-story that unfolded before them as they read that book – the usurpation of the founder of the Malazan Empire, the Emperor Kellanved, and his assassin companion Dancer, by the Imperial Regent Surly, who claims the throne as Empress Lasseen. It quickly emerges that Kellanved and Dancer aren’t dead, but Ascended, having managed to assume rulership of one of the ethereal domains known as Warrens – they now rule Meanas, the Warren of Shadow. Effectively a prequel to Gardens of the Moon, Night of Knives takes place largely across one night, the night of the Shadow Moon, on Malaz Island, which is where the Empire began and from where it takes its name, but is now an irrelevant backwater. The challenge for Esslemont is that committed readers of the series will work out fairly early on which night this is, and thus know the outcome – so he has to find other ways to keep things interesting.

To be fair, he has plenty of things to show and tell that are new and intriguing: the threat of the Storm Riders, non-human, iceberg herding, perhaps repitilian beings that take the opportunity of the Shadow Moon to threaten the island of Malaz; the story of Temper, a Malazan Army veteran and former bodyguard of the First Sword of the Empire, Daseem Ultor, which gives us plenty of new insights in to Daseem’s fate; we meet Kiska, a young thief and amateur spy for the governor of Malaz Island; and although we know the outcome, it is fascinating to get some proper details of the night that the rule of the Empire formally fell on to the deadly assassin Surly, as well as some more background on the Empire’s genesis.

Esslemont is not the writer that Erikson is; his prose is more accessible, though at times it feels like a lesser imitation of Erikson’s style, which is perhaps an understandable consequence of Erikson having such a headstart. Nevertheless, this is an enjoyable book and a welcome addition to the canon. As Esslemont continues to develop his own voice, hopefully his work will step out of the shadow of Erikson’s and take its place as a core part of the Malazan legend. I shall certainly be checking out his next offering, The Return of the Crimson Guard.

Bookmark to