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Night Of Knives (A Novel Of Malaz) by Ian Cameron Esslemont
01/08/2005 . Source: Tom Lloyd-Williams 
pub: PS Publishing. 284 page limited edition book. Delux Slipcovered Hardback: Price: £60.00 (UK), $90.00 (US). ISBN: 1-904-619-19-3. Hardback: Price: £35.00 (UK), $50.00 (US). ISBN: 1-904-619-18-5. Buy from Amazon US - Buy from Amazon UK
nb: US titles may only be available from Amazon US, and UK titles from Amazon UK. check out website: www.pspublishing.co.uk
As a huge fan of Steven Erikson's 'Malazan Book Of The Fallen' series, I was filled with trepidation by this book. Could I risk missing out on any part of it? Could I risk discovering this was nothing more than fan-fic rubbish? What decided it for me was the price. Yes, I've not had a spasm while typing, £35 is as cheap as it gets.
So to the book itself. Sensibly, it starts off with an introduction by Steven Erikson who explains that he's known the author for years and that Mr Esselmont had a significant hand in the development of the Malaz world. Well that's my fears of fan-fic rubbish dealt with. Now I could get down to enjoying a book in the best fantasy series I've ever read. Once I'd reached chapter one, there had been two prologues. One being the death of innocents by supernatural means The other being a glimpse of a strange and eternally doomed creature. 'Aha!' I cackled maniacally, 'this even reads like Steven Erikson's work!'
'Night Of Knives' deals with the events of just one night, one occasionally hinted at in the 'Book Of The Fallen' novels but only as a way of explaining historical events. The serious readers of Erikson's work (who are the only ones likely to fork out £35 for a 200 page book - OK, I'll shut up about that now) already know what's going to happen and Esselmont doesn't waste any time trying to play up the suspense. Kellanved and Dancer are returning to try to take the Shadow Throne and Surly intends to kill them both. Knowing how it ends doesn't diminish the enjoyment derived from seeing it all come about as long as you can give a damn about someone in the book and that's something that is easy to provide to readers who are already well-disposed toward the book.
The action comes from the perspective of the two main characters: Temper, who is a typical hard-bitten Malazan soldier only more so, and Kiska, a local girl looking to move up in the world who has decided the darker side of Imperial Service is the place to do it. With greatly differing motivations, both get in way over their heads as demons of Shadow, a High Mage and several Claw teams roam the island, while the mysterious Riders circle ever closer around it. The equally mysterious Deadhouse seems to be somewhat less than deserted or dead for that matter.
With only one night to work in and a far smaller word count, Esselmont has given himself a stiff challenge to produce something that can sit next to the massive and wonderful tomes Erikson has produced. It was a delight to discover that he managed it. We get good helpings of most the things that make the Erikson books so enjoyable. Grim and cynical soldiers, much demon mayhem, strange dreamy scenes and nasty deeds in the shadows, all told with either wry humour or great intensity. In my opinion, Esselmont has got the balance of the book exactly right and produced an excellent supporting work for the Malazan world. My only complaint is that price, stemming from the fact that this is a limited edition work. The fact that a novel's been signed by someone I had never heard of doesn't compel me to fork out for a limited edition. I don't know the reasons behind this all, but if I was working at Transworld and TOR, I'd be trying to snap up the paperback rights. To my mind, anyone awaiting release of 'The Bonehunters' would also want to read this so why this wasn't released as a normal novel mystifies me. But such is life.
Tom Lloyd-Williams
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