I like Steven Eriksons books even though I have only read GotM and DHG. I enjoyed both quite a bit but I got seriously lost in DHG with the happenings.
biodroid, I've also only read these first two books. I may just be arguing semantics with you, but I never got lost. By that, I mean that I never felt that I could not grasp and keep track of the various characters and plots. But that does not mean that I knew what was going on! On a micro level, i.e. the individual characters' stories, I followed the author very well. On a macro level, i.e. the cosmology, divine intervention, the history of magic, and inter-continental politics, I was and still am flummoxed. I often
felt lost, but I never
got lost... if you take my meaning.
I enjoyed the books even though I usually avoid stories where magic is that rampant. I did not understand the magic, but it's potency and it's real applications seemed well balanced to me. I also liked the way the author mentioned how non-magic users at times had persecuted magicians.
In GOTM and DG, I found that Rallick Nom and Duiker, respectively, were the consciences of the books. Erickson writes about some nasty things done by psychopaths, zealots, and decent people. He writes about horrible events and then forces his characters to deal with the consequences. Rallick Nom and Duiker are the characters trying to balance doing the right thing, staying alive, and being able to live with themselves afterwards.
I just don't know if I could make the mental effort to continue the series or if I want to emotionally descend any further into the violence and villainy of Malazan.
