[Joyrock]

Now don't get me wrong, Erikson isn't a bad author at all. Some of the scenes have been incredible and great reads. But his writing is so inconsistent; contrasting some of those scenes are some dull and sometimes outright senseless scenes that really make the books suffer, and make it that much harder to get through them. He makes me think of a child prodigy - Brilliant yet unrefined. Does this problem get solved with the later books?

Either way, I will probably finish the series, because as I said it's not a bad read as is. I just might give priorities to some other books I've had for awhile and have yet to read, like Codex Alera, The Talisman, and A Feast for Crow.

[Seak]

I recently finished Reaper's Gale. The mmpb is 1260 pages and I would say that about 4-500 pages were about a people that didn't actually matter in the end. It was still action-packed and good reading, but proved pointless in the end.

In other words, nope, it never stops at least up through book 7.

[Evil Agent]

Erikson pumps out novels at an amazing speed (nearly one per year, as opposed to GRRM taking five years per book). This is great in some ways, but unfortunately the books also suffer to a certain degree. Erikson has said that he doesn't write second drafts, and doesn't do much revising or rewriting. He basically just hammers out the novel, and then it gets published. This is probably what accounts for most of the flaws.

I have to agree that if there was a bit more editing, and the books were roughly 700 pages instead of 1200 pages, I think they would be much stronger on the whole. Oh well.

[Slynt]

I gave up on Gardens of the Moon once.
A few years later I managed to struggle through it,trying to discern the appeal.
Then I continued with Deadhouse Gates.About halfway through, I wondered whether it was worth it.
Then came some incredible scenes near the end.
I continued with Memories of Ice.
And things began to make more sense (not much!); and there's some great stuff in there.
Now, at the very end of said third book in the series, I am kind of hooked and ready for House of Chains.
Small fragments of the overall story come together at various points, but there are always new questions.
I have, somehow, come to like this epic mess.

[Electronic6]

Like someone said, it's a big mess. It could use a strong editor and maybe(maybe) 1+year of work in each book, but all in all it's very enjoyable and a fun series.

It has amazing set pieces and the worldbuilding is quite good and solid(ish). It's worth getting through the "runaway wagon" bits. Just remember not to pay attention to the timeline for more than 30 seconds in the next books. It gets...complicated.

[End Of Disc One]

When I read Deadhouse Gates I was wondering what all the fuss was about. But then Memories of Ice totally blew me away, and I've been loving the series ever since (about to start book 9).

Everyone has a different favorite book in the series though. If you're not hating it might as well continue.

[metalprof]

I'd echo some previous posters. After Gardens of the Moon, I was ambivalent. After Deadhouse Gates, I saw improvement, but was not wholly engrossed in the series yet. It was the tipping point - either Memories of Ice would win me over, or convince me not to proceed any more.

I'm happy to report that after Memories of Ice, I'm completely on board and will start reading House of Chains in another week or two.

Ken

[Joyrock]

Well good to know I'm not the only one feeling completely lost with the series. I'll at least continue it through Memories of Ice, since I own it up to that one. Thanks for the input :D

Now to decide whether to finish Furies of Calderon or not XD

[Michigan]

those who are just finishing MOI are in for some serious confusion come House of Chains. the first third or so follows a brand new character in a new setting. Then the fifth book puts you in yet another totally different story seemingly unrelated to anything else at the time. confusing but worth it IMO.

[krm0915]

I continued with Memories of Ice.
And things began to make more sense (not much!); and there's some great stuff in there.
Now, at the very end of said third book in the series, I am kind of hooked and ready for House of Chains.

When I read Deadhouse Gates I was wondering what all the fuss was about. But then Memories of Ice totally blew me away, and I've been loving the series ever since (about to start book 9).

I'm happy to report that after Memories of Ice, I'm completely on board and will start reading House of Chains in another week or two.

This seems a common occurrence. I suppose I should give Deadhouse Gates another shot at some point.