Ian Cameron Esslemont Scores one for Malazan

Excellent news for fans of Steven Erikson’s Malazan Tale of the Fallen series, the co-creator, Ian Cameron Esslemont, has just gotten a two book deal from Bantam. The book deal includes a full release for Night of Knives, which has been previously published by PS Publishing, and The Return of the Crimson Guard, which begins shortly after events in The Bonehunters by Erikson.

I enjoyed the short novel, Night of Knives, quite a bit. It takes place in the course of just one night in Malaz City – the night that the Emperor Kellenved and Dancer are assassinated by Surly (or as we now know her, Empress Lasseen). Through flashbacks, we also see the ‘death’ of the Empire’s First Sword, Dassem Ultor. It was a great novel, with the same caliber of characters that Erikson has created for this world (a few cameos are found in The Bonehunters). The convergence that takes place in Night of Knives has yet to be surpassed in the Malazan world. The novel could have benefited from another good round of editing, which it will hopefully get before upcoming publishing runs by PS Publishing and Bantam.

Pat over at Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist should have a new interview with Esslemont soon – hopefully we’ll get more details.