Deadhouse Gates

The thrilling novel of war, intrigue and dark, uncontrollable magic that confirmed Steven Erikson as a new master of epic fantasy.The second book in 'arguably the best fantasy series ever written' FANTASY BOOK REVIEWThe Malazan Empire teeters on the brink of anarchy. In Seven Cities - in the Holy Desert Raraku - a seer named Sha'ik gathers an army around her in preparation for a long-prophesied uprising. Unprecedented in its size and savagery, it will prove to be a maelstrom of fanaticism and bloodlust that will shape destinies and give birth to legends . . . In the Otataral mines, a young woman dreams of revenge against the sister who sentenced her to a life of slavery. Escape leads her to Raraku, where her soul will be reborn and her future made clear. And the now-outlawed Bridgeburners, Fiddler and the assassin Kalam, had vowed to return the once god-possessed Apsalar to her homeland, and to confront and kill the Empress Laseen, but events will overtake them too. Meanwhile, Coltaine, charismatic commander of the Malaz 7th Army, will lead his battered, war-weary troops in a last, valiant battle to save the lives of thirty thousand refugees. Together they will secure an illustrious place in the Empire's chequered history. And into this blighted land come two ancient wanderers, Mappo and his half-Jaghut companion Icarium, bearers of a devastating secret that threatens to break free of its chains...Set in a brilliantly-realized world ravaged by anarchy and dark, uncontrollable magic, Deadhouse Gates is the thrilling, brutal second chapter in the Malazan Book of the Fallen.