“There is no struggle too vast, no odds too overwhelming, for even should we fail - should we fall - we will know that we have lived.” —Anomander Rake

From Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen.

Definitely takes some time to get used to his style. The writing quality definitely improves though, Gardens of the Moon is widely considered to be a rough start to the series. His characters also get better but the way he writes them is also a deliberate choice. I believe you can find a short essay he wrote online somewhere explaining why he chose to write them the way he did.

Overall though Malazan is a wild ride. The scope of the story just keeps expanding and it still somehow manages to stick the landing by the end. Never read anything else like it.