Midnight Tides

by Steven Erikson

Paperback, 960 pages

English language

Published Feb. 28, 2005 by BANTAM PAPERBACKS (T.

ISBN:: 978-0-553-81314-2

(40 reviews)

The fifth awesome tale in Erikson's epic Malazan Book of the Fallen fantasy sequence.After decades of warfare, the tribes of the Tiste Edur have at last united under the rule of the Warlock King. But peace has been exacted at a terrible price - a pact made with a hidden power whose motives are at best suspect, at worst deadly.To the south, the expansionist kingdom of Lether has devoured all of its less-civilised neighbours with rapacious hunger. All save one - the Tiste Edur. But Lether is approaching a long-prophesied renaissance - from kingdom and lost colony to Empire reborn - and has fixed its gaze on the rich lands of the Tiste Edur. It seems inevitable that the tribes will surrender, either to the suffocating weight of gold, or to slaughter at the edge of a sword. Or so Destiny has decreed.A pivotal treaty between the two sides nears - but unknown ancient forces are awakening. For the impending struggle between these two peoples is but a pale reflection of an altogether more profound, primal battle - a confrontation with the still-raw wound of betrayal and the craving for vengeance at its heart. War and confrontation, magic and myth collide in this, the stunning fifth chapter in Steven Erikson's magnificent 'Malazan Book of the Fallen' sequence, hailed as an epic of the imagination and a fantasy classic in the making.

2 editions

zatoichi8086 reviewed Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)

midnight tides

5 stars

yes. even more is better

Yashima reviewed Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)

Review of 'Midnight Tides' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Review 2012 (1st read) This one tells the story of Trull Sengar and is actually - at least so it seems - a prequel to what is happening to Trull in the House of Chains (#4). Again seemingly unconnected to the rest and yet the Crippled God makes his appearance again. Again wonderful new characters. My favorites this time? Brys, the King's Champion, Iron Bars and of course Tehol and Bugg.

A little bit of critique is necessary however: this time there are too many new characters that are introduced without so much as the tiniest explanation and it seems to me all the time that I should remember Iron Bars for example. I think it's time I visit Wikipedia before all this gets too confusing.

There were a few unnecessary deaths in my eyes at the end. They did neither do much for the plot nor much else. They just obliterated a few open ends.

Anyway the plot is intricate as always the characters vivid and there is yet another convergence of
different paths into one fulminant finale.

Updated Review 2016 (2nd Read): Re-reading the series this one has been the toughest book to get through, despite my love for Tehol, Bugg, Shurq and Brys... I had trouble finishing the story. I was listening to the audio most of the time and probably missed a few of the details. At some point I was wondering why I didn't skip the book during this re-read and find myself a summary. As opposed to the other books where I was looking forward to certain epic--often tragic--events, in this one I just wanted to get to the end which I already knew... The most fascinating part of the re-read are the obvious political allusions Letheras provides the reader with. I found them even more pronounced this time. Without naming names... one can't escape the obvious criticisms of the thoroughly gruesome capitalism in Letheras.

RxBrad reviewed Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)

Review of 'Midnight Tides' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

So, the first four Malazan books... This one dumps everything you've read. It takes place before the first book with a completely new plotline and completely new characters (save for one minor character from Book 4).

On the bright side, it's a good book with plenty of interesting characters. Time travel does get briefly mentioned in this book, so I suspect that some of these characters will make it into the main storyline in the next book or two.

Sean Gursky reviewed Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)

Review of 'Midnight Tides' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

New characters. New continent. New everything. This made the story very difficult to get in to. As a stand alone book, with barely any connections to the previous four, this was a solid read. You are introduced to two groups on a continent and as they brace for battle against each other, you learn more about each side.

Despite the challenge in the beginning, this story was probably the best one to introduce a reader to this world, Gods, Warrens and some of the history of the cultures that have lived here and on Malazan. How will the characters and stories from this book tie in to the rest? I'm actually curious to know and am starting to enjoy this story (or what I can understand of it).

Strakul reviewed Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #5)

Review of 'Midnight Tides' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Another great addition to the Malazan universe. The reason I give it 4 rather than 5 stars is that at times it felt a bit more like a side story or otherwise disconnected from the rest of the action in the prior books. Near the end, however, it redeems itself and we realize that this is indeed just one aspect of the greater tapestry being woven in the Malazan Book of the Fallen.

A more detail is available here: strakul.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-midnight-tides-by-steven.html