Rating: 
Summary: Sadness... not Madness
Review: As I feared after finishing the Horribly written First Novel in this lamentable series, Clan Novel Malkavian is even WORSE than Wieck's first foray (Clan Novel Toreador). This book is completely incomprehendable. The style is neither clever, nor insightful... it's just BAD. This may very well be the single worst book I have ever had the displeasure to read. The saddest part of this is that, in general, I had begun to enjoy this series. Parts 4 and 8 by Kathleen Ryan rose to such heights of excellence that I had hoped (vainly) that there was finally some plot to this plodding embarrassment of a series... Alas... it seems I was wrong.
Rating: 
Summary: Closer to Closure
Review: At the end of "Nosferatu," the last of the thirteen clan novels, there is a promise of a further volume that would tie up some of the countless loose threads left dangling. "Anthology" is that volume. It contains 13 tales, one again for each clan, written primarily by the authors of the original volumes. The tales do indeed shed light on some of the mysteries of the original volumes, especially the end game and the strangeness below New Your City. About a third of the stories cover the aftermath of the capture of New York, and make a bit of sense of events. All of the other stories are set elsewhere. Several cover events before the clan novels but most are also post-capture. Don't, however, expect everything to be made clear. The are still enough mysteries and opportunities for many more additions to the series. I was surprised how much better these tales are written compared to the novels themselves. The shorter format seems more accessible for many of the writers. Don't expect true short stories, though, these are really little vignettes and pastiches and make little sense if read without the experience of the first thirteen volumes. I'm not a fan of short stories, but I found myself enjoying these. Readers of the clan novels with find that this volume brings the series into tighter focus. I particularly enjoyed Kathleen Ryan's efforts ("Embarkation" and "Selfless") and Eric Griffen's "Flesh of my Flesh." For most readers, the final four stories, by Gherbod Fleming, Justin Achilli, and Stewart Wieck will be the gems of the collection. These are all set in and below New York City and go the furthest to explain the events in the novels. If the original novels left you a bit unsatisfied, I think you will find the "Anthology" helps to close the gap. All Vampire: The Masquerade fans will find much to like.
Rating:
Summary: Closer to Closure
Review: At the end of "Nosferatu," the last of the thirteen clan novels, there is a promise of a further volume that would tie up some of the countless loose threads left dangling. "Anthology" is that volume. It contains 13 tales, one again for each clan, written primarily by the authors of the original volumes. The tales do indeed shed light on some of the mysteries of the original volumes, especially the end game and the strangeness below New Your City. About a third of the stories cover the aftermath of the capture of New York, and make a bit of sense of events. All of the other stories are set elsewhere. Several cover events before the clan novels but most are also post-capture. Don't, however, expect everything to be made clear. The are still enough mysteries and opportunities for many more additions to the series. I was surprised how much better these tales are written compared to the novels themselves. The shorter format seems more accessible for many of the writers. Don't expect true short stories, though, these are really little vignettes and pastiches and make little sense if read without the experience of the first thirteen volumes. I'm not a fan of short stories, but I found myself enjoying these. Readers of the clan novels with find that this volume brings the series into tighter focus. I particularly enjoyed Kathleen Ryan's efforts ("Embarkation" and "Selfless") and Eric Griffen's "Flesh of my Flesh." For most readers, the final four stories, by Gherbod Fleming, Justin Achilli, and Stewart Wieck will be the gems of the collection. These are all set in and below New York City and go the furthest to explain the events in the novels. If the original novels left you a bit unsatisfied, I think you will find the "Anthology" helps to close the gap. All Vampire: The Masquerade fans will find much to like.
Rating:
Summary: I was really looking forward to this book
Review: but after only 18 pages, I had to give up. I love clan Malkavian, mostly because it is a rare person who can truly play one. A subtle clan to comprehend. I saw only one great Malk character in the novels so far, and he got killed in the first book (which tells me it's a rare author who can truly write a Malkavian). But this story is told in first person, which breaks the entire feel of the series, and of course, the teller is a mad man. I couldn't understand what he was talking about, or even how one sentence related to the next. Such an incomprehendable waste.
Rating:
Summary: I was really looking forward to this book
Review: but after only 18 pages, I had to give up. I love clan Malkavian, mostly because it is a rare person who can truly play one. A subtle clan to comprehend. I saw only one great Malk character in the novels so far, and he got killed in the first book (which tells me it's a rare author who can truly write a Malkavian). But this story is told in first person, which breaks the entire feel of the series, and of course, the teller is a mad man. I couldn't understand what he was talking about, or even how one sentence related to the next. Such an incomprehendable waste.
Rating:
Summary: It wasn't that bad.
Review: First impression I had for the first part of the book....'disorienting'. No one denies that the writer sure mad malkavians mad. However, I am sad to say that the writer lost me in it. Things never mad sense...okay they are malkavian they are not supposed to make sense. I think the disorienting part of it is that you have no clue when his hallucinations are occuring compared to the rest. You gotta pay close attention to the dates of the chapters and the dates on previous events in the previous clan novels. The best part by far of the book is the end....the author seriously excels during that part and finally you start to make _some_ (some not fully) sense of the story.
Rating:
Summary: Clan Novel : Malkavian
Review: I am an avid reader of all things Vampire, I have read all the Clan novels as they are released. This latest entry into the series is the first one I felt was just not very good. I understand that Malkavians are all mad but this book is enough to drive you over the edge. The story line was not advanced in this piece except to kill off a few more characters. Perhaps I'm missing something but you could of told this story in two pages, the rest of the book was just a wordy jumble of confused prose written in the first person then switching over to dialog between an ego and his ulterego. I know this is fantasy but give me a break, this series has been so good what has happened? I hope the last four novels in the series are as good as the previous eight, I guess thirteen great novels was just too much to ask.
Rating:
Summary: Barely worth reading, if at all!
Review: I thought that this was the worst book I have read in a while. While true the Malkavian are hard to figure out and understand, did the book have to be page after page of gibberish? You have to fight to even care what is in this book in the hopes that it makes sence later. It doesnt... Other than a few, VERY few parts that are even understandable it was not worth the paper it was printed on. Oh yea, and those few parts... they dealt with non-Malkavian topics. I read this book hoping to get someting for the series out of it, but if you skipped it, you would not miss anything. I think that the idea that to be Malkavian, you had to write pages that could not be understood was a terrible idea. This is tragic considering how much I LOVED every other book in the series!
Rating: 
Summary: Why?
Review: If you are a fan of the fictional world created by White Wolf in connection with the role-playing game Vampire the Masquerade and the failed Kindred TV-series, you have probably read the previous books in this series. As the last books in this series are not yet out, I am not giving this book a one star just in case in some way this book serves some function in advancing the thirteen novel series. At first read, this novel is only loosely connected with the other novels. As a stand alone novel, this novel is a complete jumble. While I guess it is supposed to reflect the madness of the Malkavian mind, this does not make for an enjoyable read. Nothing in this book makes sense separate from a vague connection with the previous novels.
Rating:
Summary: Looking through the eyes of a Prophet ...
Review: Knowing this book was about a clan known for their mental instability, I approached it with more of an open mind and with a larger reserve of tolerance and patience. Unlike the book 'Catcher in the Rye', I made it through to the conclusion of this story. The entire story follows the disjointed musings of the Prophet of Gehenna as he goes from one place to another in search of something even he doesn't truly know. Often times the same scene will be replayed from a different perspective to lend a more understandable vision of what has transpired within the story. If these weren't included, I doubt I would've had the literary fortitude to complete the book. If it were the author's intent to illustrate the World of Darkness through the stereotypical perception of a Malkavian who is also held captive by his own prophetic visions, then it was a well articulated piece of work. There's really no other way to come away from this book with anything less than a feeling of total confusion. If anything, reading this book will challenge your ability to decipher prophecy and translate that which is not communicated with a commonly expected level of elucidation. If you are looking for a straight-forward ...the commonly expected plot, action, and demonstration of WoD mechanics, et cetera - than you might want to take a look at Clanbook:Malkavian FIRST before reading Clan Novel:Malkavian. If you understand, accept, and actually favour the inner workings of the Malkavian mind - get this book.
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