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The Lees of Laughter's End

The Lees of Laughter's End

Dark FantasyFantasy
Pages
128
Published
2007
Language
English

Synopsis

At sea aboard a ship called Suncurl, Bauchelain, Korbal Broach, and the long-suffering Emancipor Reese find themselves passengers on a voyage plagued by reanimated dead, murderous crew, and the particular kind of maritime horror that results when a necromancer is at sea with nothing to occupy his talents. Lees of Laughter's End is the most nautical of the B&KB novellas: a claustrophobic horror-comedy set entirely on a ship, where escape is impossible and Korbal Broach's interests are given entirely too many opportunities to manifest.

Prose complexity
4/10

Vibe

DarkAtmosphericFunnyGritty
Morally GreyAnti-HeroSurvivalVillain Protagonist

Genres

Dark Fantasy Fantasy Horror Epic Fantasy Science Fiction

About the author

S
Steven Erikson

Steven Erikson was born Steve Rune Lundin in Toronto in 1959 and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He trained as an archaeologist and anthropologist — completing fieldwork on Indigenous sites in the Canadian Shield — before earning a graduate degree through the Iowa Writers' Workshop. He writes under a pen name adopted to avoid confusion with the American novelist Steve Erickson. The world of the Malazan Book of the Fallen has its origins not in a manuscript but in a tabletop roleplaying campaign....

Characters

BauchelainProtagonist

Bringing his customary competence and indifference to a maritime horror scenario entirely of his own creation.

Korbal BroachProtagonist

Whose hobbies are uniquely well-suited to a ship full of fresh corpses.

Emancipor ReeseProtagonist

Trapped at sea with nowhere to hide, as always.

All characters in The Lees of Laughter's End

Frequently asked questions

  • Is The Lees of Laughter's End a standalone story?

    This novella is part of the Bauchelain and Korbal Broach series, which features recurring characters but generally presents self-contained adventures that can be enjoyed independently.

  • How does this book compare to Steven Erikson's Malazan series?

    The Lees of Laughter's End, like other Bauchelain and Korbal Broach novellas, offers a more focused and darkly humorous narrative compared to the epic scope and intricate world-building of the Malazan Book of the Fallen.

  • Is this a good entry point to the B&KB series?

    No — start with Blood Follows. The novellas have a loose reading order and this one benefits from knowing the characters first.

  • How scary is it compared to the others?

    More claustrophobic than most — the ship setting removes any possibility of escape, which makes Korbal Broach's activities considerably more horrifying.