So we begin again...
Finishing tCG left me with more questions than answers. I had to come here and ask, wonder, browse... did the author do a bad job? Am I more of a space cadet than I thought? Or does the simple fact that I, the reader, am not omniscient in this world, hold some measure of attraction?
I talked about it at length to people who never read the books. I proselytized to people who DNF the series, trying to convey the life-changing impact they were leaving on the table.
I moved onto Mark Lawrence, Barbara Kingsolver, and more.
At the airport, waiting for a flight, I flipped through Dungeon Crawler Carl, it piqued my interest. Didn't buy it yet.
Instead, I spent the next 3 days re-reading GotM with all the fervour of a kid. Flipping each page looking to catch references, looking to see connections. Is... is this addiction?
A quarter of the way through DG and I wonder why I didn't read the other books, Kharkanas etc. I should, shouldn't I? But I can't stop the re-read. I know what's coming and I cannot wait to get back to it.
What I've gleaned from this re-read thus far:
- Largely, everyone sucks. Many folks redeem themselves but the amount of collateral damage for the purposes of amassing power or blocking it are wild. I wonder what peace would look like on Planet Malazan. Is "the law of convergence" just too powerful biologically for them to ever overcome?
- I can't yet piece together when Tavore knew her endgame, or the supporting cast. If they're winding their way to the conclusion already, I'm not seeing the connections.
- I understand Rake's eventual sacrifice for the most part, but maybe I've forgotten the significance of Mother Dark returning, if that impacted the climactic tCG plot or was unrelated. He was listless for song long, it makes sense that he wanted to give his people purpose and he knew he was a poor substitute for their Mother.
- I wish Kallor had met a gruesome end, but alas, MBotF is not one for tidy happy endings.
- I can't fully decide the perspective of Dancer and Kellanved. It seems mostly fuzzy. I almost want to like them, want to admire them, but then they go and do things that are horrific or seemingly self-serving. Their motivations sometimes seem contradictory, or perhaps its just that they see everyone as cannon fodder for achieving their goals, even as the goals shift and can sometimes be noble.