I give in!!

[Junomidge]

Whiskeyjack, Gruntle, Itkovian and Toc the Younger makes it all worthwhile.

I did/do find Tattersail a bit annoying, but I do like Paran quite a lot. Through him, I think that Erikson is trying to give a bit of a background on how Whiskeyjack and Dujek got to be the way they are.

[dredd i knight]

i had a lot fun reading your comments (sparks) as you got further into the book. i really enjoyed gotm and didnt encounter the problems that many others did when reading it; i found the ideas and the greyness of the characters a refreshing change, although i admit the pacing is uneven.... i loved the way tho that the last 1/4 of the book picks up speed, and how the plotlines all start converging to the shattering climax.
if you continue with erikson i envy (pun!) you your journey; the next 2 books take the way the plotlines converged in the 1st book and ramp it up to levels of emotion and visceral action that only very few authors can equal in my opinion. and then you have the luxury of being able to read up to book 7 before having to wait for the next 1, although maybe 6 more erikson books in a row might become a little heavy for even the most ardent of fans.

[Barristan the Bold]

I struggled thru the first half of GotM too, but it got good enough to encourage me to read on.
Erikson's attraction for me is his epic style supported by the type of writing and character development he uses; his dialogue is excellent too. He doesn't always give things to the reader easily. I can't tell you how many times I ran across something during my second reading of the series which resulted in a "oh, that's why" thought or "OMG, how did I miss that?" as I reread the 1st 6 books.
So far, Erikson has written a very tight story, and given the story's scale; this is a feat in itself (GotMism's notwithstanding). I've found that virtually everything written is there for a reason; becoming evident later in the story. This is appealing to me as a reader. I've had few books which required me to engage to such a degree. Maybe that's why you see a lot of "stick with it" comments in this thread.
But for those who find Erikson not to their liking, well, to each his own. I like to emmerse myself in his books, they're almost addicting. And really, I found my second reading at least as enjoyable as the first, sometimes actually better (eg GotM). You don't get overwhelmed by the number of characters, and can focus on the many subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) sub-plots and twists going on; or the expressions of personalities through their dialogue and actions.
Sorry for the long post, I shoulda just written "patience, stick with it, I believe it's worth it".