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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
hat a ride! Again I come into a faction of the 40K universe that I am incredibly unfamiliar with, and again I am blown away. Dembeski-Bowden provides us with an action-packed borderline-political-intrigue opening to his trilogy following Talos, of the Night Lords, a heretical faction of Astartes as they plunge into a now-familiar story of unreliable leadership, surprising level of mortal-empathy, and a fantastic cast of supporting characters.
I really enjoyed his writing style, which kept the pace at a decided clip without losing out on the juicy pain of internal conflict and individual turmoil within his crew. Corruption is common among the heretics, but somehow Dembski-Bowden keeps the disgust and terror fresh for the reader. Themes of unreliable leaders is incredibly common in 40K novels but I truly do not seem to tire of the complications and interest that particular trope provides.
Surprisingly not as gory as I was prepared for—the Night Lords are among the more brutal and violent legions—but the horror and brutality battle scenes were still present (and tbh I don’t like gore much, so I prefer this).
The supporting cast, especially the mortal supporting cast, were especially well fleshed-out. I am so endeared to Septimus and Octavia, and their relationship with Talos, that I hope they feature frequently in the next two installments.
And the ENDING!!! Gah I love it when even the Worse-Bad-Guys (they’re all bad guys, let’s be real) do something unexpected. I am so PUMPED to see what the aftermath of this campaign will bring.
I really enjoyed his writing style, which kept the pace at a decided clip without losing out on the juicy pain of internal conflict and individual turmoil within his crew. Corruption is common among the heretics, but somehow Dembski-Bowden keeps the disgust and terror fresh for the reader. Themes of unreliable leaders is incredibly common in 40K novels but I truly do not seem to tire of the complications and interest that particular trope provides.
Surprisingly not as gory as I was prepared for—the Night Lords are among the more brutal and violent legions—but the horror and brutality battle scenes were still present (and tbh I don’t like gore much, so I prefer this).
The supporting cast, especially the mortal supporting cast, were especially well fleshed-out. I am so endeared to Septimus and Octavia, and their relationship with Talos, that I hope they feature frequently in the next two installments.
And the ENDING!!! Gah I love it when even the Worse-Bad-Guys (they’re all bad guys, let’s be real) do something unexpected. I am so PUMPED to see what the aftermath of this campaign will bring.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
So, ummm, Night Lords care about their servants and sacrifice their own lives to save them? They don’t use fear and terror and only fight when provoked? ADB seems determined to make Chaos into “the good guys”, but they end up just being “the bland guys”. Not even the antiheroes.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes