Saturday, August 2, 2008

Hammer of Daemons by Ben Counter




Vital Stats:
Page Count: 415
Era: 40k (no specified year - presume M41.999 - 13th Black Crusade)
Perspective: Grey Knights (Justicar Alaric)
Major Characters: [Inquisitor-text]Justicar Alaric, Duke Venalitor (Khorne), Lord Ebondrake (Khorne), Raezazel the Cunning (Tzeentch)
Special Guest Stars: [Inquisitor-text]Disembodied Voice - presumably Tzeentch
Locations: [Inquisitor-text]Sarthis Majoris, Drakaasi



One Sentence Review: 40k meets Sparatacus.
A Few Musings: I have been a fan of this series by Ben Counter. I don't think it is the best Space Marine series, but it the best of the different Chamber Militant books (Deathwatch series and Faith and Fire being the others). The book opens [Inquisitor-text]with a large engagement and then continues with Justicar Alaric (the star of the series) becoming a gladiator on a Khorne world. Some of the characters are unique for 40k fiction ([Inquisitor-text]Lord Ebondrake - who is literally an ebon drake). The action is well described. When you discover [Inquisitor-text]what the Hammer of Daemons is (beyond the catchecism) it is a good reveal. My biggest criticism of Black Library books is that I usually feel that the author runs out of pagecount and quickly deus ex machinas the ending. This ending was very smooth and well conceived.



A positive to the book is that unlike the last two Grey Knights novels [Inquisitor-text]this one is only about Alaric. The Epilogue suggests an interesting turn for the series and where it is suggested that Counter will go is something I am hoping he skips as there are already enough series covering that topic as is. Personally I would like to see more of the Grey Knights fighting Chaos in all of its forms.



Bolters (Out of Five): Three

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About This Website/Spoiler Policy

The purpose of this blog is to review Black Library books in the Warhammer 40k setting. Since November 2005 I have read nearly every Black Library novel (and short story) published in the 40k universe. Since Black Library has published many books (good and bad), I have done a lot of reading. The books are compelling and does credit to the incredible setting of Warhammer 40k. This blog is to chronicle my thoughts and my reviews of Warhammer 40k fiction.

My reviews are organized by giving a short synopis. I follow this with a one sentence review. This is kind of a "pitch" to you the reader as to why you would read the book. This is followed by some "musings" of mine of what I liked and disliked about the book. The final "grade" is a number of bolters. This is a general outline of how I felt about the book. Here are some examples,

Five Bolters - Exceptional 40k novel, would be considered great in any genre - Storm of Iron, Sabbat Martyr

Four Bolters - Very good 40k novel, any fan of 40k would enjoy - Ravenor, Horus Rising

Three Bolters - Good 40k novel, occassional Black Library readers should pick it up - The Traitor's Hand, Fifteen Hours

Two Bolters - Average to Below Average 40k novel, die hard Black Library fans will want to read - Rebel Winter, Dead Sky, Black Sun

One Bolter - Poor 40k book, everyone should avoid - Inquisition War, Lord of Night

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