Deadhouse Gates

In the arid reaches of the Holy Desert Raraku, the prophet Sha'ik ignites a holy rebellion, gathering fervent followers for the fated uprising known as the Whirlwind. Concurrently, Felisin Paran, stripped of her noble status and enslaved in the brutal Otataral mines, plots a vengeful escape against those who wronged her house. Far across the continent, the disgraced Bridgeburners, Fiddler and Kalam, embark on a perilous journey to assassinate Empress Laseen, navigating a treacherous landscape where gods and mortals alike scheme and betray. Meanwhile, Commander Coltaine leads the beleaguered Malazan 7th Army and thirty thousand refugees on a desperate, death-defying march across a blighted continent, pursued relentlessly by the rising Whirlwind. As ancient, enigmatic warriors bearing a devastating secret emerge, war, magic, and political intrigue violently collide, shaping destinies and forging legends in this monumental second chapter of the Malazan saga.