Category: Throwback Thursday

Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Extended Universe, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Throwback Thursday3 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Random (Audiobook – 1993)

Series: Discworld – Book 15/City Watch – Book Two

Length: 12 hours and 58 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

After yet another re-read, the classic fantasy satire novel, Men at Arms remains as one of my favourite Discworld novels by the late, great Terry Pratchett, especially as its new audiobook version breaths fresh life into the always impressive novel.

Readers of this blog will have noticed that I have been on a real Discworld rampage lately, having re-read several books from my absolute favourite fantasy series.  Much of this is due to the recent release of a cool new audiobook version of all the Discworld books, featuring an awesome array of new narrators and vocal talents.  This new format has proven particularly awesome for books like Pyramids, Moving Pictures and Small Gods, and I have been eager to see how some of the books in my favourite Discworld sub-series, the City Watch books, come across with the new narrators.

While I have a lot of love for all the books in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, my absolute favourites come from the City Watch sub-series.  Following the unlikely members of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, a rag-tag team of guards generally looked down upon by the entire city, the City Watch books features an exceptional combination of fantasy and crime fiction elements, wrapped up in Pratchett’s usual satirical humour, as the protagonists investigate a series of dastardly crimes in the supernatural Discworld.  The series started perfectly with the awesome novel Guards! Guards!, which I reviewed last year, and Pratchett did an outstanding job following this up with the brilliant sequel, Men at Arms.

After saving the sprawling and eternally crime-ridden city of Ankh-Morpork from a fire-breathing dragon, the men of the Night Watch are still at work protecting the city, even though most of the city wishes they didn’t exist.  Despite their previous escapades, it’s a bad time to be a copper in Ankh-Morpork, with species tension between the dwarfs and the trolls at boiling point, while the powerful guilds disregard the Watch’s non-existent authority.  Worse, the Night Watch has been forced to accept three diversity hires, and must now contend with a mad dwarf, a thick troll and a woman (gasp) amongst their ranks.

Despite this, when an explosion at the Assassin’s Guild literally rocks the city, it falls to Captain Samuel Vimes and his small squad to investigate the heist hidden by the blast, despite the deliberate orders of the city’s tyrannical ruler to stop.  Determined to wrap up the case before his impending marriage and retirement, Vimes is soon forced to contend with a series of unusual, but seemingly linked murders, many of which have been caused by a lethal weapon never seen on the Disc.

With riots on the streets, and assassins and fools dodging their questions, all the members of the watch, including their contentious recruits, will need to work together to solve the murders before the city descends into chaos.  But how will they fare when going up against the most dangerous criminal mind the city has ever seen, one determined to bring back the Ankh-Morpork’s ancient kings, while wielding a dangerous new weapon that could change the entire Disc forever?

Even after many, many re-reads, Men at Arms continues to shine as one of Pratchett’s better books.  Featuring an epic crime fiction narrative, loaded with impressive characters, fantastic humour and great use of Pratchett’s iconic Discworld setting, Men at Arms is a complex, emotionally charged and deeply moving read that I could honestly read 100 times and still not get bored with.  A brilliant novel that unsurprisingly gets an instant five-star rating from me.

Pratchett wrote some exceptional narratives throughout his career, but few stand up to Men at Arms in terms of complexity, cleverness and emotional impact.  Expertly reintroducing the cast of Guards! Guards!, while also bringing in some impressive new support characters, Men at Arms starts off an excellent pace, as Pratchett cleverly examines the changes to the characters, sets up the new case, while also showcasing the motivations of the apparent main antagonist.  From there, it doesn’t take long for a dark series of crimes to take place, with Vimes and his squad investigating despite the apathy of the rest of the city.  Pratchett does a lot of excellent set up in the early part of the book, and the reader soon becomes invested in the investigation, especially as the book begins to follow a series of deaths, some of which were caused by a particularly deadly weapon that modern readers will be all-too familiar with.  Some great character arcs are also introduced here, as the extended cast all hit their own various problems they are forced to overcome, with Vimes dreading his eventual retirement, Carrot feeling the added responsibility, the fun buddy-cop arc between Detritus and Cuddy, and Angua dealing with her own problems.  The author sets up and expands on these arcs throughout the book perfectly, providing additional emotional impact, as well as some interesting side angles on the main storyline.

While the first half of the novel sets everything up perfectly, it is in its second half where Men at Arms truly shines.  Pratchett keeps raising the stakes of the story, with more victims, run-ins with the shadowy antagonist, and the Watch characters attempting to understand the nature of the weapon that has been turned against the city.  The author throws in some interesting wrinkles to the case, which shadow who the true villain is, while other events throw emotional shade across several of the characters.  The various connected character arcs start to come together perfectly as the book continues, and you go into the final stretch with a range of emotions around you.  While ostensibly a comedy, Pratchett chooses to hit the tragedy element of the plot really hard in the lead up to the finale, with some big moments that will leave you speechless.  The big end reveal and confrontation is exceptional, and I loved how well all the storylines and cleverly setup plot points came together.  Everything leads up to a very desperate struggle that helps to define some of the main characters in some very powerful ways.  Pratchett chooses to leave the book on a hopeful note that sets the expanded course for the future City Watch books, while also providing some interesting insights into one of the main characters and his role in the city.  An overall epic narrative that twists, turns and keeps you guessing, while constantly entertaining and emotionally charged.

As with his other books, Pratchett perfectly sets out Men at Arms with impeccable writing, and I loved how this complex novel came about.  Featuring his usual impressive blend of fantasy and humour elements at its base, Men at Arms is both intriguing and quite funny in equal measures, and I love the subtle comedy that runs through it.  Many of these scenarios involve classic fantasy scenarios being seen through the eyes of self-aware characters, allowing the situation to be taken up to an 11, with sarcastic commentary from the witnesses.  This humour is well enhanced by several of its best characters, including a fantastic new buddy cop routine, with members of two separate and historically antagonistic species forced to work together and eventually becoming friends.  Some of the other hilarious moments in the book include unlikely members of the city’s population being conscripted into the Watch, unfunny clowns, unconventional investigation methods, and other subtle humour.  You also have to love the brilliant footnotes that seek to enhance the story and showcase just how ridiculous the Discworld is by providing additional details about the universe and the people within it.  All this results in a brilliant and highly entertaining fantasy read, and that’s before you even get to the great crime fiction elements of the story.

As with Guards! Guards!, Men at Arms stands out from the rest of the Discworld series due to the way that Pratchett provides a complex and compelling crime fiction narrative.  Focused on an explosive heist that eventually results in a series of brutal murders, Men at Arms tries to envision how firearms would disrupt the Discworld.  This allows for quite a captivating crime fiction narrative, which I feel was a much better mystery than Guards! Guards!.  Advancing more into police procedural territory than its predecessor, the mystery of Men at Arms proves to be top rate, with the protagonists going after an already known villain for much of the book.  Much of the early story involves the protagonists trying to unfurl the antagonist’s plan and discover how he committed the crime, which allows for some great scenes as the Watch inexpertly investigate.  Pratchett cleverly twists the fact that think you know who the antagonist is towards the end of the book, and I love how well he switched this key story element, especially as the implied true villain of the story is far more sinister than just evil humans.  I really enjoyed how well Pratchett sets up this mystery in Men at Arms, and even after so many re-reads there are still additional subtle clues and foreshadowing that I’m only just picking up on.  The police procedural elements of the story are also extremely well handled, with a lot of humour focused around three very unlikely recruits joining the already scruffy outsiders who make up the Watch.  All these elements come together extremely perfectly and allow for readers of various genres to come into Men at Arms and have an incredible time.

Due to Pratchett’s excellent writing style, Men at Arms does work quite well as a standalone novel, and new readers can generally enjoy this book without any prior knowledge of the Discworld series, especially once they get caught up in the cool story and amazing humour.  However, I do feel that to get the best experience with Men at Arms, readers really do need to have checked out Guards! Guards! first.  The continuing storylines, history of the city and character arcs all come into play extremely well in Men at Arms, and you get a much more complete experience viewing all City Watch novels in order.  There is also a continuation of some character arcs from the standalone novel, Moving Pictures, especially as a few major characters from there get a recurring role in this new sub-series.  As such, I would say that Men at Arms is a novel more aimed towards Pratchett’s established fans, with those who loved Guards! Guards! guaranteed to enjoy its impressive sequel and the compelling direction Pratchett starts to take the City Watch books in.  It helps that the author continued to explore the crumbling and crime-ridden city that is Ankh-Morpork in this Men at Arms, providing even more details about its governance, mindset and people.  This includes really expanding on the species tension between the dwarfs and trolls and showcasing it as a major plot point while also paralleling real-life racial tensions.  This focus on dwarf and troll conflict becomes a major plot point of the Discworld going forward (especially in the later City Watch books), and its setup here was spectacular.  Combine that with the changes that happen to the Watch at the end of the book, and Men at Arms is an important entry in the wider Discworld context, especially as so many key City Watch storylines start here.

While there are so many amazing writing elements to Men at Arms, few things top the exceptional character work that ensured that this novel was far more than just a funny fantasy novel with crime fiction elements.  Instead, the complex and heartfelt dives into its extensive main cast ensured that Men at Arms was one of the more powerful and emotionally charged entries in the Discworld (a very impressive feat).  The combination of returning protagonists from previous books, as well as a few outstanding new characters, allows for a range of different plot perspectives and personal storylines, and Pratchett effortlessly works to make you invested in all these character arcs before hitting you with intense tragedy and powerful moments.

At the centre of the plot lies main character Captain Samuel Vimes, the cynical veteran leader of the Night Watch, who has finally found happiness and romance in his life.  Now on course to retire and become a man of leisure, Vimes must deal with the horror of becoming the thing he hates most: a rich civilian.  Dealing with it by diving into one last investigation, Vimes finds himself facing everything he hates about his job, including bureaucracy and the whims of powerful people, resulting in some brilliantly chaotic scenes.  While it does seem that Vimes’s role in this story is slightly diminished compared to in other City Watch books, especially in the centre, he is still a major part of the book, and Pratchett writes some excellent storylines around him being the dogged and worn-down investigator pushing against authority and trying to solve one more crime.  The focus on his identity as a copper, the sacrifices he makes for his fellow officers, as well as the horror at having to give up the job are major parts of his character arc, and there are some truly heartbreaking moments when he realises he must give it all up.  This is well balanced with his heartwarming romance with his unlikely partner, Lady Sybil Ramkin, whose well-meaning support and determination help to make Vimes a better person.  However, it is the major sequence when Vimes finally encounters the antagonist which really provides the best look at the character.  Forced to decide between being a good cop or a figure of vengeance (a battle that rears its ugly head for Vimes many times during the series), Vimes truly hits his mental and moral limit as he faces down his adversary, and it is one of the most powerful scenes in the entire Discworld series.

While Vimes is the main character of the City Watch series, the focus of Men at Arms is a little more skewed more towards Corporal Carrot Ironfoundersson, as Pratchett expands on his excellent introduction in Guards! Guards!.  Now firmly a part of Ankh-Morpork society, Carrot has evolved from naïve newcomer to a seasoned police officer who knows literally everyone in the city.  Fully utilising his natural charisma, Carrot proves to be a major force for law and order in the city.  I loved how much Pratchett enhanced Carrot in this sequel, as his personality evolves due to his role and responsibility, and despite still appearing quite naïve and obedient, Carrot showcases some impressive intelligence driving much of the investigation.  I especially appreciated the various scenes where Carrot managed to outfox many of the city’s more dangerous figures who fall for the dumb copper routine.  Despite his new confidence and ability to bring out loyalty in others, Pratchett makes sure to show that Carrot isn’t infallible, and you see some vulnerability at times. Carrot also serves as the moral centre of the book, bringing out the best in the other members of the Watch.  His interactions with Vimes in the final confrontation were very heartfelt, especially as he keeps the man he admires most from doing the wrong thing, while the way he handles the antagonists goes to show that he is truly a good man, who you better pray you never face.  I also think that his talk with Vetinari at the end of the book was one of the best scenes in Men at Arms, especially as he truly surprises the Patrician, while also dancing around the tricky subject of Carrot’s potential position as heir to the throne.  His decision to refuse power and ensure that Vimes will be there instead really helps you keep faith in the good of people, and this was frankly Carrot’s best book.

I also have to highlight the fantastic and fun duo that was the newly instated watchmen, Cuddy and Detritus, the later of whom previously appeared in Moving Pictures.  An unusual dwarf and the thickest of trolls, the two make for a particularly unlikely and chaotic duo, which Pratchett uses to full effect as the book continues.  Thanks to the enmity that exists between their respective species, Cuddy and Detritus spend much of the early part of Men at Arms bickering with each other, including in one scene in the middle of a riot.  However, after being forced to work together, the two form a grudging bond, especially when Cuddy stops seeing Detritus as a dumb troll.  I loved how well Pratchett took the classic odd-couple police partner trope and twisted it around the compelling species-rivalry theme of the book, and the fun dynamic that forms between the new friends is a major highlight of the book.  The various sequences that follow the big scene that defines these two partners are some of the most powerful in the entire Discworld.

Following on the heels of Cuddy and Detritus is Angua, the other new recruit to the Night Watch.  Angua is an interesting figure in the story, mainly because she’s one of the few people able to see how ridiculous the entire Night Watch is.  The subsequent storylines surrounding her potentially doomed romance with Carrot and her desire to keep her status as a werewolf secret from everyone, add some excellent alternate perspectives to the plot, and Pratchett did an outstanding job setting her up as a compelling figure for the rest of the series.  It helped that for this first book she worked as a bit of a double act with the small talking street dog, Gaspode, who also previously appeared in Moving Pictures.  Gaspode proves to be a fantastic wise-cracking counterpoint to Angua, and it was hilarious to watch him mess with the various human characters who refuse to believe he can talk.  Their resulting storylines about investigating the crime as canines, as well as the unlikely dog rebellion brewing within the city, works well with the other character focused arcs, and it was fun to get a little more closure on Gaspode’s story after his previous appearance.

Other great supporting characters in Men at Arms includes the returning members of the City Watch, Sergeant Colon and Corporal Nobbs.  While not as well utilised in this book as the rest of the City Watch series, they still prove to be a fantastic addition to the supporting cast.  Entertaining backers to the various other character-driven storylines, both show interesting depths in this book, whether it’s Colon acting as a put-upon drill sergeant, or Nobby’s use of his quartermaster past to obtain a collection of weapons.  Other members of the city also prove to extremely entertaining, with the tyrannical Lord Vetinari being the highlight.  The way in which Vetinari manipulates Vimes throughout the entire novel, while also understanding the true nature of most of the city’s residents is highly impressive, and I love that he stayed on as a major character after Guards! Guards!.  Throw in a complex arrangement of well-hidden antagonists, including an idea of violence that takes on a familiar form, and the cast of Men at Arms proves quite exceptional.  I really cannot emphasise just how much these carefully written character arcs and complex personal storylines increased the impact and emotional power of this novel, and you will come away loving everything about them.

I doubt anyone will be too surprised that I am about to write several paragraphs about Men at Arms’s epic audiobook formats, which I have long described as the very best way to enjoy Pratchett’s stories.  I honestly love all the Discworld audiobooks and luckily for connoisseurs, there are two outstanding versions of the Men at Arms audiobook that you can check out.

The first of these is the classic edition that was released back in 1996 and which is read by Nigel Planer.  Planer, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators, lent his voice to most of the early Discworld novels, and is a key reason why I love Discworld books in this audio format.  Planer unsurprisingly does an amazing job with Men at Arms, especially as he perfectly captures Pratchett’s complex humour and intense story arcs with his brilliant narration, with every element of the book coming across in an exceptional and addictive manner.  This includes the brilliant characters, many of whom Planer previously voiced in other Discworld books.  Planner does an amazing job once again diving into these unique characters throughout Men at Arms, and the way he effortlessly portrays each character and shows their full personality and emotional range is just amazing.  He frankly provides the definitive portrayal for all the City Watch characters, and I honestly love the passion he brings to the Men at Arms audiobook. 

While the Nigel Planer audiobook version is always going to be a favourite of mine, I also have come to deeply appreciate the latest Men at Arms audiobook.  Part of a newly released collection of Disworld audiobooks that feature an interesting array of British talents bringing their vocal skills to Pratchett’s classic tales, this new Men at Arms audiobook is very impressive and is just as easy to get lost in at the classic Planer version.  Featuring the amazing cast of Jon Culshaw, Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy, this Men at Arms audiobooks has a runtime just short of 13 hours, which is a few hours longer than Planer version.  However, the excellent array of narrators really makes it worth a listen.

The heart of this new Men at Arms’ audiobook is British radio and television personality Jon Culshaw, who dove into this role in a very impressive manner.  Culshaw really makes the story his own with his take on the novel and the characters, resulting in a very different feel that fans of the original Planer version will really appreciate.  Part of the reason why it was so good was that Culshaw brought back the excellent character voices and tones he previously used in Guards! Guards!, many of which provide great and often gritty new takes on some classic characters.  This includes a much rougher and despair filled Vimes, which fits the darker places Pratchett took the character in Men at Arms, especially when he goes up against the system.  His voice for Carrot captures the same keenness and naiveté that we saw in the previous book, however Culshaw’s vocal work also backed up Carrot’s excellent character development as the protagonist came into his own.  His voices for Lord Vetinari and Nobby Nobbs were also a ton of fun, with the dark and insister tones of Vetinari stealing every scene he is in, while Culshaw’s Nobby voices sounded appropriately similar to David Bradley or Jon Pertwee, which is just hilarious.  Culshaw also did an excellent job with several newly introduced City Watch characters, and I felt he got ever new additional cast members’ voice down perfectly.  My favourite was probably the troll Detritus, as Culshaw worked hard to showcase his massive and rocky troll nature, as well as his serious and slow personality.  This excellent vocal work from Culshaw ensured that the core of this Men at Arms audiobook was extremely impressive, and I really could listen to Culshaw’s take on these epic characters all day long.

As with all books in this new collection of Discworld audiobook’s, Culshaw’s main narration was perfectly backed up by recuring voices of Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz. Both play key parts in this audiobook, with Nighy providing the narration for the footnotes, while Serafinowicz was the voice of Death whenever he appeared. These performances were once again perfect, and I especially loved Nighy’s excellent work with the vital, comedic footnotes.  Nighy really enhances the impact and value of these footnotes with his calm and impressive voices, and I especially loved his take on some of the more entertaining footnotes, including one where he partially sings a bad folk song.  Serafinowicz’s role in Men at Arms is also very fun, as he brings the fan-favourite character of Death to life.  Death has several great appearances in Men at Arms, and hearing Serafinowicz’s excellent voice suddenly appear amongst the general narration really increases the impact of the character.  Both Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz’s inclusions were extremely fun, and I felt that they were combined with Culshaw’s main narration in a very impressive way.  These three brilliant British talents ensured that the new version of Men at Arms was particularly impressive, and while the original audiobook will always remain one of my favourite ways to enjoy Men at Arms, this new version is very much worth a listen and will likely inspire a new generation of Discworld fans.

Well, I think that my above excessive ramblings have probably made the point by now that I deeply enjoyed Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett.  One of the best Discworld and City Watch novels, Men at Arms was a glorious, captivating and moving read that perfectly blended crime fiction, fantasy and satire into one truly addictive and impactful book.  Clever, sharp and loaded with truly exceptional characters, Men at Arms was Pratchett at his very best, and I cannot recommend this book enough, especially on audiobook.  I can think of no higher praise for Men at Arms than to once again state that I will never get bored with this exceptional book, and it inspired me to continue the series and re-listen the next City Watch book, Feet of Clay.

Amazon

Warhammer 40,000: The Emperor’s Finest by Sandy Mitchell

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer4 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 7 December 2010)

Series: Ciaphas Cain – Book Seven

Length: 10 hours and 14 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Dive once again into the crazy adventures of the Warhammer 40,000 universe’s most undeserving hero, with the awesome Ciaphas Cain novel, The Emperor’s Finest by Sandy Mitchell.

I was recently in the mood for something familiar and fun to enjoy during a gap in my audiobook listening schedule, and the first thing that came to mind was another entry in the highly entertaining and addictive Ciaphas Cain series by Sandy Mitchell (a pseudonym of author Alex Stewart).  One of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 series, the Ciaphas Cain books chronicle the adventures of the dashing and doubtful hero of the Imperium of Man, Commissar Ciaphas Cain, a man who sensibly seeks to avoid the many, many terrifying dangers of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, but who constantly finds himself dragged into the deadliest of situations, often because of his vastly inflated legend.  I have had a wonderful time making my way through the series, with books like For the Emperor, Caves of Ice, The Traitor’s Hand, Death or Glory, Duty Calls and Cain’s Last Stand, proving to be extremely compelling and highly entertaining.  As such, I knew well in advance of reading The Emperor’s Finest that I was going to have a brilliant time with it, and Mitchell did not disappoint.  The seventh entry in this outstanding series, The Emperor’s Finest, had an outrageous and fantastic plot behind it that throws you into the action right away.

A dangerous and terrible foe stalks several human worlds in the galaxy, and only one man is unlucky enough to face it: Commissar Ciaphas Cain.  Despite being relatively early in his illustrious career, Cain has already gained a reputation for heroics and bravery, a combination that conspires to get the Commissar into far more trouble than he wants.  However, one of his most dangerous adventures occurs when he is surrounded by the finest warriors humanity has to defend them.

Rescued from an exploding Necron ship, Cain finds himself in the care of Space Marines of the Reclaimers chapter and soon becomes their Imperial Guard liaison as part of a new campaign.  Assigned to supress a civil war on the important agricultural world of Viridia, the Reclaimers are keen to engage the enemy, and Cain finds himself reluctantly dragged in their wake, forced to once again play the rousing hero and bring the loyalists of Viridia into line.  However, as the Reclaimers begin their bloody work, it soon becomes apparent that the traitors of Viridia are far more deadly than expected, when a nefarious genestealer cult is revealed at the heart of the warring factions.

As the Space Marines engage the genestealers, the defenders of Viridia determine that they must have snuck into the system when a massive, drifting space hulk briefly appeared.  Determined to eradicate the source of this unholy threat to the Imperium, the Reclaimers lead an ambitious expedition into the warp to track down the space hulk and obtain its secrets, and Cain is naturally required to follow along.  With murderous genestealers and ravaging orks in front of him, and the far more terrifying threat of an ambitious husband-seeking noblewoman at his back, Cain and his trusty aide, Jurgen, are flung once again into the fray and must find a way to extricate themselves from the new dangers all around them.  But if anyone can survive the oncoming terrors of the space hulk, it’s the soon to be legend of the Imperium.

Sandy Mitchell continues to delightfully show just how ridiculous and entertaining the Warhammer 40,000 universe can be with this outstanding entry in his Ciaphas Cain series.  Featuring an intense plot loaded with some fantastic characters, The Emperor’s Finest takes Cain on a grand adventure filled with action, questionable heroics, and boundless fun.

As with the rest of the books in the Ciaphas Cain series, The Emperor’s Finest features a brilliant and highly entertaining story loaded with funny coincidences, complex characters and highly dangerous situations.  Following on from the immediate aftermath of the Ciaphas Cain short story, Echoes of the Tomb, the initial story sees Cain once again thrust into danger, this time supporting the Reclaimers’ attempts to wipe out a genestealer-led revolution on the planet of Viridia.  This first part of The Emperor’s Finest is a somewhat typical Ciaphas Cain narrative, with the reluctant Cain dragged into a dangerous situation thanks to his own inflated reputation.  This ensures a ton of excellent action and over-the-top scenarios, as Cain jumps from danger to danger, with many of his decisions to avoid trouble resulting in him finding an even worse scenario.  Mitchell enhances this fun by also forcing Cain to contend with supporting character, Mira DuPanya, whose entertaining exploits, foppish nature, aristocratic arrogance, and determination to stick with Cain leads to some great moments, including an unlikely romantic subplot with the protagonist.

While this was a great introduction, the plot focus of The Emperor’s Finest changes about a third of the way through into a space adventure, when the Reclaimers set out to find and cleanse the space hulk that initially corrupted Viridia, and Cain is dragged along.  This allows for some excellent space adventures, especially when Cain and the Space Marines burst out into ork space, resulting in a great boarding action sequence.  Mitchell really leans into some fun interpersonal clashes between the book’s three main characters here, especially as Cain and the always dependable Jurgen find themselves at their wits end with Mira, who continues to be a real highlight of the plot.  All this leads to the excellent final third of The Emperor’s Finest, which sees Cain and Jurgen trapped alone aboard the space hulk, facing off against genestealers and orks.  A frenetic and fast-paced extended sequence, the space hulk scenes feature some of the book’s best action, and it was fun to see Cain and Jurgen working as an effective team to achieve Cain’s goal of not dying.  Mitchell plunks in some really awesome, fast-paced sequences here, and the reader is left hanging on until the end as they wait to see how Cain escapes this time.  Everything wraps up with some final fun moments, with Cain once again coming out on top through happy accident, and I was thoroughly entertained with how the self-contained storylines around Mira came to an end.

Unsurprisingly, Mitchell continued to utilise the same writing style that made the rest of the Ciaphas Cain series so entertaining, with the main narrative primarily told in a journal format, written by an older Cain.  Filled with self-deprecating humour and his own narrow insights into events, the novel paints a rather compelling and frank picture of events, which Mitchell ensures is loaded with action, adventure, and a certain level of ridiculousness.  This main narration is cleverly interspersed with entertaining footnotes, commentary and in-universe texts provided by the account’s editor, Inquisitor Amberly Vail, which ensures that the story becomes even more cynical and humorous, abet with some excellent additional insights into the Warhammer 40,000 universe.  I personally found The Emperor’s Finest to be one of the funnier Ciaphas Cian novels, and I chuckled my way through several scenes, especially those where Cain’s greatest threat proves to be an ambitious and heavily armed love interest.  I really love Mitchell’s great writing style for these books, which are honestly some of the more light-hearted entries in the larger Warhammer 40,000 canon, and I felt that it helped to turn the already awesome action story of The Emperor’s Finest into a truly entertaining narrative.  While the overall general adventure narrative is relatively basic, especially after some of the preceding books that had a little more depth, this was still a great read, and those in the mood for comedy, action and amusing characters in the always grim dark Warhammer 40,000 universe are going to have fun with this seventh Ciaphas Cain book.

As with the rest of the series, The Emperor’s Finest works extremely well as a standalone novel, with no prior knowledge of the rest of the Ciaphas Cain series needed to enjoy this cool narrative.  Indeed, as The Emperor’s Finest is set relatively early in the character’s personal chronology, only a couple of the previous books are referenced or mentioned, although the short story, Echoes of the Tomb, set directly before the events of this novel, is discussed a few times.  As such, The Emperor’s Children could potentially be used as a good entry point into the larger series, especially as you get some great comedic moments and interactions in this book.  While The Emperor’s Finest does suffer from some repetition issues due to Mitchell reusing some phrases, descriptions and broad story arcs, I feel that there were enough unique elements in this book to make it stand out from the rest of the series.  This includes the inclusion of Space Marines characters for the first time in a Ciaphas Cain book, as well as the inclusion of some fun new supporting figures who add a lot of humour to the plot.  As such, I felt that The Emperor’s Finest was an outstanding addition to the overall series, and one that will appeal to both new readers and established fans of the series.

An always amazing highlight of the Ciaphas Cain novels are the great characters, and The Emperor’s Finest is an excellent example of this, featuring a fun cast of outrageous figures.  This includes protagonist and main point-of-view character, Commissar Ciaphas Cain, who is a particularly complex figure in the Warhammer 40,000 canon.  Always described by the protagonist himself as a coward and a false hero, Cain spends most of the book trying to come up with ways to avoid combat and survive the inevitable danger his reputation and own bad lack force him to participate in.  Written in a very cynical and self-deprecating manner, Mitchell always tries to emulate classic figures like Flashman or Blackadder with his depictions of Cain.  However, despite Cain’s own constant assurances that he is no hero, he often proves to be quite a skilled fighter and leader, routinely defeating the enemy through clever strategies or natural talents, and you soon figure out that the character is actually a good Commissar, even if he doesn’t believe it.  As such, Cain is a brilliantly contrary character, and it always fun to see him in action, especially in these earlier adventures where even he isn’t sure whether he’s brave or a hero.  Throw in the protagonist’s usual witty humour, sarcastic comments and overall cynical nature, which throws some entertaining shade on the entire Warhammer 40,000 universe, and Cain is a brilliant and surprisingly likeable central character that is so much fun to follow.

Aside from Cain, The Emperor’s Finest features some excellent supporting characters, including some recurring figures from the main series.  This includes Cain’s faithful aide Jurgen, a seemingly gormless and thoroughly unsanitary soldier, who is also an effective and lethal sidekick and in many ways is the true hero of the series.  While some elements of his nature are hidden due to this book being set early in the series’ timeline, Jurgen still has several moments to shine in The Emperor’s Finest, and I love how well he plays off Cian.  Another great recurring figure is Inquisitor Amberly Vail, who serves the essential role as the overarching narrator of the book as well as the person behind the footnotes.  Despite not physically appearing as a character in The Emperor’s Finest, Vail’s impact on the overarching book is undeniable, and I love hearing her commentary on Cain’s exploits while also calling out all his lies and mistakes.  Mitchell also features several stoic Space Marine characters, whose surly presence adds some interesting colour to proceedings, and whose apparently inability to see through Cain is quite amusing.

While Jurgen and Vail are great in their roles as always, I think that new character Mira DuPanya honestly stole the show in The Emperor’s Finest.  The spoiled daughter of Viridia’s governor, Mira is shown to be an early thorn in Cain’s side as she decides to accompany him into battle with her troops, despite being unqualified to lead anyone.  The early conflict between the two quickly turns into an unconventional romance, which Cain humorously regrets the entire way through, especially when Mira’s true intentions are revealed.  Mitchell honestly did a masterful job of portraying Mira in the most spoiled and foppish light, and for once Cain isn’t the most selfish character in the plot.  The hilarious interactions that occur between Mira and several of the recurring cast is often comedic gold, and I felt that this character’s presence alone helped to make The Emperor’s Finest one of the funnier books in the series.  An overall amazing cast of characters that I couldn’t get enough of.

I almost don’t need to say it at this point, but I of course checked out The Emperor’s Finest on audiobook, which frankly is the very best way to enjoy a Ciaphas Cain/Warhammer 40,000 novel.  Once again featuring an impressive cast of entertaining narrators, The Emperor’s Finest had a brisk run time of just over 10 hours, which I honestly flew through because I was having such a fun time with this audiobook.  The multiple narrators really help to capture the entertaining and crazy nature of the narrative, with Stephen Perring doing his usual exceptional job leading the narration.  His voice work in the main story, as told from Cain’s perspective, is very entertaining, and I love the extremely fitting voices that once again accompany the recurring protagonists of Cain and Jurgen, with Jurgen’s sticky tones being particularly fun.  Thanks to its compelling cast, Perring also had some additional interesting voices to feature in The Emperor’s Children, including a group of Space Marines, who Perring gives an appropriately intimidating and booming voice. However, Perring’s most entertaining, if ridiculous voice, belonged to Cain’s new love interest, Mira, upon whom Perring bestows a very grating and overly aristocratic voice, that really fits the spoiled princess persona the character had.  I honestly chuckled my way through some of the outrageous dialogue between the two, especially with Perring’s tones making them even more ridiculous.

In addition to Perring, the voice cast of The Emperor’s Finest also features the returning Penelope Rawlins, as well as additional narrators Andrew James Spooner and Helen McAlphine.  Rawlins once again does an amazing job voicing Inquisitor Vail’s notes on Cain’s account of this mission, and I loved the sarcastic yet informative tone that Rawlins has long attributed to this compelling figure.  Rawlins’s inclusions work perfectly alongside the main narration of Perring, and the way that her subtle and comedic comments are inserted into the flow of the story in this format is always extremely fun.  Throw in some excellent work from Spooner and McAlphine, who bring the contextual articles, interviews and exerts from in-universe texts to life in an amusing and striking fashion, and The Emperor’s Finest once again features some outstanding narration that really enhances Mitchell’s already awesome story.  I have so much love for how the Ciaphas Cain novels come across on audiobook, and The Emperor’s Finest once again shows why this is the very best way to enjoy this series.

Seven books in and the always fun Ciaphas Cain series remains one of the best Warhammer 40,000 series.  Sandy Mitchell did an outstanding job continuing the series with The Emperor’s Finest, which provides even more great action, fantastic comedy, and amazing character interactions.  An excellent and captivating read from start to finish, The Emperor’s Finest comes highly recommended, and I can’t wait to dive even further into the series when I get a chance.

Amazon

Pyramids by Terry Pratchett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Throwback Thursday5 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Audio (Audiobook – 1989)

Series: Discworld – Book Seven

Length: 9 hours and 8 minutes (Planer version)/9 hours and 53 minutes (Enoch version)

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

After having an amazing time checking out the new audiobook versions of Guards! Guards!, Small Gods and Moving Pictures, I continue my latest revisit to Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.  This time, I examine another one of my favourites with the deeply entertaining seventh novel in the overall series, Pyramids.  An outstanding standalone Discworld novel, Pyramids is a brilliant read that sees a young king go forth and then return to the insanity of his kingdom in a fun satire of ancient Egypt and its perception in Western media.

There are many mysterious realms on the magical Discworld, which travels on the back of four giant elephants standing on the back of a giant turtle.  However, few are more ancient than the tiny river kingdom of Djelibeybi.  Formerly a great empire that ruled over an entire continent, Djelibeybi is a mere shadow of its former self, its wealth drained away by the pyramids constructed to house its dead kings.  Nothing ever changes in Djelibeybi, that is until its young prince decides to get an education.

Prince Pteppicymon (Teppic), future ruler of the kingdom, has been sent away to the Assassins Guild of Ankh-Morpork, both to get the finest education on the Disc, and to learn a way to finally make his kingdom some money.  However, upon graduating, Teppic is forced to return to home when his father suddenly dies in embarrassing circumstances.

Now the god king of Djelibeybi, Teppic hopes to modernise his kingdom and introduce the comforts of the outside world.  However, Teppic has returned to a strange land he no longer understands and finds his desire for modernisation stymied by the controlling high priest Dios, whose intense love of tradition has long restricted Djelibeybi.  However, despite the best attempts of Dios, change is coming to the old kingdom, as a dark figure in the finest black stalks the city, while a massive new pyramid begins to mess with reality.  When disaster strikes, the people of Djelibeybi find themselves beset by both their gods and their dead, and only their king can save them.  But first, Teppic will need to work out how to find his kingdom again.

Pyramids continues to stand the test of time as one of my favourite Terry Pratchett books, as this compelling and wildly entertaining Discworld novel takes you on a wild ride through ancient kingdoms and eternal tradition, and every dangerous thing that comes with them.  An outstanding addition to the series that keeps you laughing the entire way through, Pyramids was peak Pratchett and gets another easy five-star rating from me.

I love the outstanding narrative that Pratchett came up with for Pyramids, which tells a fun adventure tale in an entertaining ancient Egypt facsimile.  While the narrative structure of Pyramids is slightly more basic than some of Pratchett’s other books, I think it is still quite a compelling story that keeps the reader entertained from start to finish.  Broken into several sections, Pyramids starts with an excellent introduction that showcases Teppic attempting to take his final exam at the Assassin’s Guild.  This proves to be a great fun opener, and I loved how Pratchett interspersed the over-the-top test with multiple flashbacks that showcase both Teppic’s childhood in Djelibeybi and his early days at the guild.  This works to set up a lot of key early story elements, while also serving as a memorable start, as the cool scenes of assassin testing are some of my favourites in the entire book.  This first section of Pyramids ends with Teppic finding out his father has died through an unlikely divine messenger, and he returns to Djelibeybi to take the throne.

Pratchett follows up this impressive introduction with a good central part of the story as you return to Djelibeybi proper and Teppic learns the downside to being a king.  Pratchett really works to explore the downsides of the kingdom, as Teppic begins to realise he is just a puppet with the high priest Dios truly in control.  There are some hilarious moments here, especially when it comes to the ridiculous traditions and history of Djelibeybi, and Teppic works well as a great outsider character who finally sees how silly everything is, although he is still bullied into constructing the biggest pyramid ever.  Pratchett also takes the time to introduces a colourful array of supporting characters with some compelling story arcs, including two ambitious embalmers, a disfunction family of pyramid builders, and the handmaiden Ptraci, who Teppic accidentally sentences to death.  His desire to save her leads to many of these issues coming to a head, with Teppic forced to flee from Dios, only to find himself trapped outside of the kingdom when the Great Pyramid goes off and splits Djelibeybi into its own reality.

This brings Pyramids into a compelling interim phase, as Teppic and Ptraci find sanctuary in Ephebe, while the trapped kingdom goes to madness, as all their many beliefs come to life, although not in the way they’d hoped.  I liked the fantastic contrast between the supernatural craziness going on in Djelibeybi and the more human-based chaos Teppic encounters in Ephebe as he tries to get answers out of the philosophers, before finally returning to the kingdom to save the day.  Eventually able to return thanks to a thirsty camel and an easily confused sphinx, Teppic works to destroy the Great Pyramid.  At the same time, several of the ongoing Djelibeybi storylines come together nicely, as the dead of the kingdom, including Teppic’s father, discover the truth about why they were mummified, and this leads to an outstanding and eventually explosive concluding sequence.  Pratchett wraps this up nicely with all the key characters getting the ending they deserve, and he leaves this story on yet another hopeful note that hints at an interesting future for the characters and the kingdom.

As with all the Discworld books, Pratchett does a wonderful job of telling a fun and compelling story in Pyramids that hooks you early with its fantastic elements, entertaining plot, complex satire, and great characters.  An interesting standalone entry in the Discworld series, Pyramids has a more straightforward story that is well split amongst an interesting cast of figures, each of whom find their role in the kingdom altered in some way, and I loved the chaotic plot that emerged.  Pratchett has a lot of fun exploring some great themes in Pyramids, including people attempting to break free of tradition (literally), and finding yourself.  The critique of unnecessary and restricting tradition works well as a central story element, and Pratchett leans into it heavily, showcasing how it can styme progress and lead to a slow death of a culture.  Thanks to that author’s great use of humour, you really begin to appreciate just how damaging or ridiculous some traditions can be, and I always get a chuckle at the hilarious sequences where Teppic’s over-long title is repeatedly read out again and again.

While there is some focus on death and assassination, for the most part Pyramids is a really light-hearted entry in the series, especially as Pratchett leans into the examination of ancient Egypt with its doppelganger in Djelibeybi and resulting satirisation of how ancient Egypt is portrayed in modern culture brings much of the book’s laughs.  Most of this becomes really apparent thanks to Teppic’s newly found modern sensibilities, but Pratchett also throws in some puns and lines that people with some knowledge of ancient Egypt will appreciate, and frankly I find a fun new joke every time I read this amazing book.  Many of Pratchett’s more modern takes on some of more well-known elements of Egyptian culture are very fun, with a lot of jokes about mummies, the economics of pyramid building, and what handmaidens do, proved to be really entertaining.

Much of the rest of the major jokes of Pyramids revolved around the varied reactions to the crazy events that seem to occur everywhere in the Discworld.  I personally laugh myself silly at the spontaneous football commentary that emerges when the various gods of Djelibeybi start to fight over the sun, and the resulting moments of theological debate end in a funny and snappy way.  The sequence with the Sphinx also makes for quite an entertaining inclusion, and Teppic’s assessment and rewriting of the classic riddle into a much more correct metaphor proves to be a lot of fun.  Finally, the opening assassin’s examination sequence is both tense and funny, and there is something about Pratchett imagining undergraduate assassins getting tested in a similar manner to student drivers that really shows off the inherent silliness of this series.  Throw in Pratchett’s usual array of clever puns, well-placed footnotes and witty dialogue, and Pyramids turns into a particularly funny read that still makes me laugh after all these years.

Out of all the amazing Discworld novels, Pyramids might be one of the best entries for a reader to start to explore this amazing series.  The very first standalone Discworld novel, Pyramids can be easily read without any knowledge of any of the previous books, and you really get a good sense of the larger setting and Pratchett’s ability to craft elaborate parodies of certain cultures or genres in a brilliant, self-contained manner.  While some of the elements of Pyramids are reutilised in some of the later books (the philosopher-filled city of Ephebe for one), for the most part none of the characters or storylines here are ever revisited, and you can really dive into Pyramids at any point of your Discworld reading experience.  The opening extended sequence set around Teppic’s exams and flashbacks does provide one of the best examinations of the Assassin’s Guild, a fun institution in the Discworld series, and it was really fun to see them in action here, even if the assassins do get slightly nerfed in some of the future books (especially the City Watch ones).  I do personally think that Pyramids was one of his true early classics, and this book lays at the start of a very big run of some of Pratchett’s best works, especially as he fully finalised his preferred style here.  As such, this is a great read for Discworld readers of all experiences, especially those looking to dip their toe into this amazing universe, and this is a very impressive example of Pratchett’s style and humour.

I do have to also provide a quick shoutout the fantastic array of characters featured within Pyramids, whose compelling storylines and well-thought-out story arcs really compliment the main narrative and help Pratchett explore his intricate central themes.  The main character, Teppic, serves as a great central figure for Pyramids, and his unlikely outsiders perspective allows for much of the plot change and chaotic moments.  Ptraci’s journey from passive handmaiden to unstoppable force of nature was very well handled, and I loved how Pratchett showcased just how much impact a suddenly confident woman can have on the world.  I also always find it quite hilarious that the previous king, Pteppicymon XXVII, only truly finds himself in death, and his later interactions with the embalmers Dil and Gurn lead to some truly heartwarming moments.  The Ptaclusp dynasty of pyramid builders added some fun family chaos to the mix, and their representation of the new generation taking over from the old was quite entertaining, even if the brothers (Ptaclusp IIa and Ptaclusp IIb) had differing views on what the future should be.  Teppic’s classmates from the Assassin’s Guild also added some excellent colour, especially the overconfident Chidder, although I felt that it was a shame that most of those great characters introduced in the opening part of the book where never utilised again.

Out of all the characters featured within the book, my favourite was probably Dios, who can probably be considered the antagonist of Pyramids.  The High Priest of Djelibeybi, Dios is the main administrator of the country, who strictly adheres to tradition and ritual and doesn’t allow Teppic to make any changes or independent decisions.  A strict and rigid person capable of bending anyone to his will, Dios is restricting tradition personified, and the lengths he goes to keep Djelibeybi the same is quite fascinating, while his struggles to keep Teppic in line lead to some amusing moments.  I honestly feel that Dios was one of Pratchett’s more compelling antagonists, as while he does some bad things he’s not actually a bad person; instead he’s someone stuck in the trap of always doing things a specific way and is incapable of thinking any other way.  You honestly feel a little sympathetic for him at times, especially when the full scope of his service is revealed, and while he continues to make the wrong decisions for the future of Djelibeybi, you can kind of understand why he is the way he is.  The final fate of Dios was really well written, if a little horrifying if you actually stop to think about it, although it fulfills his wish of everything staying the same.  A truly complex figure who plays off the rest of the outrageous and outgoing characters extremely well, Dios really tied this book together and I loved how well Pratchett featured him in Pyramids.

Unsurprisingly to anyone who has read my other rambling Discworld reviews, I have a lot to say about Pyramids on audiobook.  Audiobooks are my favourite way to enjoy any book, with the Discworld audiobooks being an exceptionally good example of how this format can make an already awesome novel even better.  Like the rest of the series, Pyramids has two really good unabridged audiobook versions, both of which come really recommended by me as brilliant ways to check out a classic book from Pratchett.

The first of these audiobook formats is the old-school version narrated by the legendary Nigel Planer.  I have mentioned Planer a few times over the years due to his exceptional work voicing over half the unabridged Discworld audiobooks and he remains one of my favourite audiobook narrators as a result.  His ability to come up with new character voices for every single audiobook was just incredible, and I love all his cool vocal choices, especially in Pyramids.  His take on the various characters was quite inspired, and you really get all the characters’ unique personalities, including Teppic’s modern spirit, Dios’s controlling reliance on tradition, the exasperation of the dead former king, and the overpowering personality of Ptraci.  Planer also perfectly showcases all the best jokes in Pyramids, including the fantastic over-the-top sequences where Dios repeats Teppic’s title, or the hilarious scene where the priest provides commentary for the divine fight for the sun.  I have so much love for all of Planer’s original Discworld work, and Pyramids is a particular favourite of mine as he takes that verbal gags that Pratchett sets up and makes them his own.

While the Planer version of Pyramids was the one that I grew up with, I have also had the pleasure of listening to the newer Pyramids audiobook that provides a fresh take on the story.  Part of the same Discworld audiobook series I have recently enjoyed for Guards! Guards!, Moving Pictures and Small Gods, this new version of Pyramids was also extremely good with some great voice work and a compelling pace.  Featuring a runtime just shy of 10 hours, this new audiobook is slightly longer than the Planer version and features the amazing voice work of Alfred Enoch, Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz, with Enoch acting as the main narrator.

Enoch, who is probably best known for his role in the Harry Potter films, did an outstanding job as the main narrator for Pyramids, and I really appreciate his take on the compelling story.  His more youthful voice gave this version of Pyramids some additional energy, and you really move through the main story extremely quickly as a result.  I also really enjoyed how some of the protagonists turned out in this version of Pyramids, and while Enoch lacks the full range of fun character voices that Planer had, he still provides some impressive and fitting tones that expertly captures the various characters.  I felt that his voice for Teppic was especially well done, with his hopeful personality really shining through, while his voice for Dios had the commanding and controlling edge that it needed.  I felt that Dios was probably Enoch’s best voice, especially when it comes to the repetitive gag of having to intone Teppic’s full title.  I also actually quite like the voice he used for Ptraci, which was markedly different to the voice that Planer utilised in his version.  Enoch’s Ptraci voice was a little more curious and confident at times, and I got a much different personality vibe in this version which was quite interesting.  Enoch also ensured that his version of Pyramids stood out by pronouncing some of the character names in a different manner to Planer, mainly because he kept the P silent when it appears at some of the names (for example, Ptraci becomes Traci).  While this was a noticeable difference from the Planer version, I really liked it, as it actually captured Pratchett’s intended pronunciation based on how P is used in ancient Egyptian.  This ended up being an exceptional performance from Enoch, and one that I had a lot of fun with.

On top of Enoch’s main narration, this version of Pyramids also featured the voices of Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz, who have the same roles in every audiobook of this new run.  Both play key parts in this audiobook, with Nighy voicing the various footnotes, while Serafinowicz was the voice of Death whenever he appeared.  Both provided an exceptional performance here, with Nighy in particular giving some excellent gravitas to the essential and humour-laden footnotes.  Serafinowicz’s role in Pyramids was a little more limited, mainly because Death only appeared a couple of scenes, but he really captured this awesome anthropomorphic personification perfectly when he did appear, providing a booming and impactful Death voice that was a lot of fun to hear.  Both Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz’s inclusions were worked into Enoch’s overarching narration extremely well, and I felt that the three complemented each other nicely throughout the audiobook.  This ended up being an overall impressive take on Pyramids, and the new narrators really knew what they were doing here.  As such, this version also comes recommended, and while the Nigel Planer version is still living in my head rent free, this new take on Pyramids was very fun and I enjoyed hearing some new voices take it on.

Overall, Pyramids proved to be quite an awesome book, and I really think it was one of Terry Pratchett’s better early Discworld novels.  Featuring an outstanding story with some fantastic humour, Pyramids is an absolute joy to read, and I loved seeing the author’s distinctive parody of ancient Egypt.  Clever and loaded with complex comedic gold, Pyramids still cracks me up every time I read it, and I cannot recommend this book enough to anyone interested in checking out the exceptional Discworld books, especially in either of its epic audiobook formats.

Amazon

Small Gods by Terry Pratchett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Throwback Thursday5 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Audio (Audiobook – 1993)

Series: Discworld – Book 13

Length: 9 hours and 55 minutes (Planer version)/11 hours and 38 minutes (Serkis version)

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Thanks to an excellent road trip, I managed to revisit several awesome entries from the iconic Discworld series by the legendary Terry Pratchett, and it is time to highlight one of the very best books that Pratchett wrote, Small Gods.

I have never made any secret of the fact that I love all things Terry Pratchett, as the Discworld books were the formative series of my youth.  A massively popular collection of loosely connected novels set on a flat world carried through space on the back of four elephants atop a giant turtle, the Discworld books present a range of unique fantasy adventures backed with exceptional comedy and satire.  This series is so much fun, and I honestly love every single Discworld book, having read them all multiple times, usually while laughing myself silly.  Indeed, I am such a big fan of this series that I named my blog after a location in the universe.  Despite my overwhelming love for all things Discworld, I haven’t reviewed too many of the books on this blog, with Moving Pictures and The Last Continent previously being the only exception.  However, thanks to some great road trips giving me opportunities for revisiting some classics, I have recently published reviews for Guards! Guards! and an additional review for Moving Pictures.  I also recently re-listened to the impressive and thoughtful 13th entry in the series, Small Gods. An outstanding standalone novel that seeks to blend religious commentary with Pratchett’s strong humour and complex satire, Small Gods is one of the more thoughtful and moving Discworld books and is a must read for all fans of the franchise.

Floating through space on the back of a giant turtle, the Discworld is a place of magic, wonders, strange creatures and, unfortunately for the mortals just trying to live their lives, gods.  Instead of the wise and beatific beings we hope them to be, the gods of the Disc are a capricious and vain lot, empowered by the belief of their human worshippers.  But what happens when a mighty god loses his believers?

The militant nation of Omnia is an empire dedicated to the fervent worship of the Great God Om, an all-powerful being who knows all, sees all and is the only true god in the world.  The problem is none of that is true.  Instead, Om is a self-obsessed god among many, who barely pays attention to the people fighting in his name.  More importantly, he is currently residing in the body of a tortoise, stripped of nearly all his divine power, and the only person who can hear him is a simple novice, Brutha, who isn’t fully convinced that the talking tortoise smiting him with tiny thunderbolts is his god.

Determined to get back on top and find out why he lost his power, Om recruits Brutha as his unlikely prophet.  However, Brutha has his own problems as the sinister head of Omnia’s Quisition, Vorbis, has taken an interest in him.  Forced to accompany Vorbis on a diplomatic mission, Brutha soon begins to understand that the world is a far bigger place than he realised, and that there is something very wrong at the heart of his nation.

As the tides of history take Brutha and Om into strange new places, the two find themselves encountering unexpected dangers, including dangerous ideas, sinister eagles, rebels determined to prove that the world isn’t round, deranged philosophers and the small gods that lurk in the dark places.  To survive, Brutha will need to have faith in his god, but more importantly, Om will need to have faith in Brutha, especially when his own religion is turned against them.

After yet another re-read, Small Gods remains one of my favourite Discworld novels, and this is one of the very best examples of Terry Pratchett’s unique style and imagination.  A hilarious, yet thought-provoking read that cleverly dissects religion, divinity and people’s beliefs, Small Gods quickly grabs your full attention and refuses to let go until it’s powerful, terminal end.

I have so much love for the outstanding narrative that Pratchett pulled together for Small Gods, which tells one of the more unique standalone tales in the Discworld series.  I must admit, even after many reads, I am still very impressed that Pratchett decided to examine the nature of religion and belief through the lens of a hilarious odd-couple story that evolves into a road trip narrative.  Starting off on a very entertaining note with the unsuspecting new prophet of Om, Brutha, encountering his god in the form of a small, battered tortoise, Pratchett does a good job of introducing the nation of Omnia and its place in the wider setting.  This proves to be an effective start to the book, and a lot of the early themes and wider issues surrounding the nation of Omnia are well set-up.  You also get a great examination of the book’s three main characters, and their compelling early interactions in Omnia sets up a lot of the book’s character-driven narratives.  After this excellent introduction, Small Gods’ plot then moves to the bordering nation of Ephebe, which proves to be an intriguing centre of the novel, not only because it has some of the more entertaining sequences, but also because it begins to expand on some of the ideas from the front of Small Gods and you are given a good understanding of both Om’s situation and Brutha’s growth as a character.

The plot of Small Gods takes a powerful turn around halfway through, when Brutha helps further Vorbis’s schemes, only to then attempt to flee and do the right thing.  However, thanks to the influence of a rival god and unexpected technology, Brutha and Om are inadvertently stranded in the desert with a helpless Vorbis.  The following extensive scenes in the desert are probably the best parts of Small Gods, especially as Brutha begins to think for himself, and the philosophical clashes he has with Om set him up as the protagonist both the reader and the Omnians need.  Pratchett really dives into what it is to be human and divine in this section of the book, and I deeply appreciate the rich character development featured within these sections of the plot.  These desert scenes become even more impactful when Pratchett throws in a major obstacle for Brutha that threatens to push him over the edge into despair.  You really feel for Brutha as he has his crisis of faith, only to maintain his humanity in the last confrontation with Vorbis.  The subsequent scene on the metal turtle was very tense, and while I know some people dislike the end of Vorbis, I thought it was a very clever sequence, especially as Pratchett set up the hunting eagle perfectly.  Pratchett continues to wrap up the rest of the narrative in a very satisfying way, and while the war sequence might have been a little unnecessary, it allowed some great character arcs to come together and showed how much Om had grown as a god.  The final scene with Brutha once again showing his humanity no matter what, ended the book on satisfying and heart-felt note, I appreciated the hopeful tone Pratchett concluded his brilliant story on.  An overall impactful and moving narrative that brought together a lot of complex plotlines and character moments and ensured you were hooked the entire way through.

I have always believed that Small Gods was one of Pratchett’s better written books, as he effortlessly blended a complex fantasy narrative that examined religion with his typically brilliant humour and some outstanding characters.  Featuring one of his most complex and thought-provoking plots, Pratchett achieves so much with his intriguing inclusions, all without slowing down the speed of the book and keeping the tension and emotional charge of the book on high.  Introducing a cool new setting, Small Gods works well as a standalone entry in the larger series that cleverly expands on some previously introduced features, such as the selfish and somewhat stupid gods of the Disc, as well as cool locations like Ephebe (which was previously featured in Pyramids).  Due to its lack of major connections to the other entries in the Discworld series, Small Gods is a rather excellent introduction to Pratchett’s style and ability to dive into heavy topics with comedic content.  Like all of Pratchett’s books, Small Gods is hilarious, and I love the many different levels of humour contained with the book, that range from obvious jokes at over-the-top situations, subtle witticisms often contain within well-placed footnotes, to clever word or name gags.  Some of this humour is so subtle that it often goes over the reader’s head the first time, and you honestly need multiple readings to full appreciate every single joke or gag that Pratchett thought up (I still discover new jokes I previously missed every time I read a Pratchett novel).

However, the thing that ensures Small Gods stands out amongst the other brilliant Discworld novels is the author’s clever and insightful breakdown of religion and godhood on the Disc, which is both fascinating and entertaining.  A lot of the book’s powerful messaging, complex themes and some of the best humour, comes out of the exploration of the divine and how it relates to both this crazy fantasy setting and the real world.  While Pratchett does provide a lot of jokes about religion throughout the ages, he does it in a very intelligent and delicate way that makes the reader think.  Rather than simply dunking on religions and focussing on the negatives, Pratchett instead subtly satirises the institutions, manipulative leaders and unthinking traditions that can often complicate or weaponise religion.  A large amount of the plot revolves around Vorbis and the Omnian church violently trying the repress the idea that the world is flat and on the back of a giant turtle.  While this is primarily a fun parody of the Catholic church’s suppression of Galileo’s claims about the Earth orbiting the sun (and which is now both funnier and sadder, thanks to flat earthers), it also examines how some people utilise religion as an excuse for violent action and manipulate faith for their own ends, which is a powerful recurring them throughout the book.

At the same time, Pratchett also focuses on a compelling central character with true faith who explores the meaning of religion and how it impacts his people.  Seeing a likable character like Brutha recognise the problems in his nation allows readers to reflect and see the flaws in the organised religions Pratchett is parodying, while also appreciating the messages that these religions should strive for.  The various complex discussions, personal revelations and jokes within Small Gods allow for a very insightful read that reportedly resonates with both atheists and pro-religious figures (Pratchett apparently received a lot of fan mail from both groups who thought Small Gods was written for them).  I personally think that Pratchett’s thoughts and messages were extremely perceptive and layered with a great understand of humanity, and indeed many his compelling criticism or organised religion and how it is weaponised are more relevant now than when Small Gods was written, especially as it could also apply to other traditional institutions that are being abused.

Pratchett perfectly rounds out this incredible writing by featuring some of his very best characters, including several very complex figures who mature and evolve throughout the course of the book’s plot.  This includes the main protagonist, Brutha, a simple novice who finds himself the only person left who can hear Om due to his genuine belief in the god rather than in the institutions that surround the religious practices.  While initially portrayed as a somewhat dull and unthinking novice, you soon begin to realise that there is much greater complexity within Brutha, as well as the fact that he is a genuinely nice person held back by his simple ideas of life and faith.  Thanks to his interactions with Om, who provides greater clarity to his religious beliefs, as well as his experiences outside his insular nation, Brutha begins to evolve quickly as a person, gaining a greater appreciation for the wider world, as well as beginning the understand that the world isn’t quite as black and white as he believed.  It was fascinating to see Brutha develop as the book continues, especially as he begins to doubt his faith and rebel against the church and the god that had been his entire life.  His interactions with Om were quite entertaining, as the two eventually become a fun duo of equals, although Brutha does get the upper hand over his god in quite an entertaining and refreshing manner.  Brutha was also well defined by his relationship with the book’s antagonist, Vorbis, and their discussions about truth prove to be quite defining for Brutha as an inspiration for his rebellion.  However, unlike the rest of the cast, Brutha resists becoming the monster that Vorbis wants him to be, and his subsequent demonstrations of faith, reason and humanity, really set him up as one of Pratchett’s best and most likeable central protagonists.

Brutha is well matched by his god, Om, who honestly is one of the best deities featured in the Discworld series.  Formerly an all-powerful and arrogant god who didn’t care about his believers, Om finds himself suddenly trapped as a helpless tortoise who must desperately cling to Brutha to survive.  Om proves to be quite a fascinating and entertaining figure in Small Gods, especially as Pratchett perfectly portrays him as formerly powerful being who must now rely on the mercy of others.  His initial arrogance is very entertaining, and his subsequent wheedling manipulation of Brutha was a great follow-up that worked to keep him in the story.  However, it was his eventual co-evolution with Brutha that turned Om into a particularly compelling protagonist.  Despite his resistance, his bond to Brutha shapes him and forces him to see the world through human eyes, and the subsequent discourse on philosophy, life and how religion should be as they wander the dessert impacts Om just as much as Brutha.  This eventually causes them to reach an interesting and heartfelt religious partnership, and it was fascinating to see the previously selfish Om risk it all to save Brutha, especially when he is confronted by other gods who act the same way he used to.  I loved seeing this powerful and positive development in a divine figure, and Om really ended up being a compelling secondary protagonist with some of the best jokes.

While Brutha and Om are the heart and soul of Small Gods, this book would not be as impactful without its brilliant villain, Vorbis.  A cruel and unflinching figure, Vorbis is probably Pratchett’s most ruthless antagonist, who utilises the mechanisms of the church to achieve his goals.  However, rather than being a purely evil figure, Vorbis is shown to be simply someone who understands human nature and uses this knowledge to achieve his self-determined goals, which in some ways is worse than an obvious villain.  Pratchett does an outstanding job showcasing Vorbis’s dark, insular nature, and you come to really appreciate just how sinister he is, especially as his actions inspire other people to do evil things to try and match him.  He becomes even more immoral when compared to the very innocent Brutha, the only person that Vorbis occasionally sees as a real threat to his plans due to his legitimate belief, and their various interactions and discussion about the true nature of the world are quite powerful.  Pratchett features Vorbis perfectly throughout the book, and his final appearances, where he finally understands his own nature, are very satisfying to behold.

The rest of the cast of Small Gods are also quite impactful in their own way.  The blind philosopher, Didactylos, proves to be a fantastic voice of reason in the story, especially compared to the rest of the insane philosophers of Ephebe, and his very simple philosophy and viewpoint on life and truth give the characters, and the readers, much to think about amongst the discussions on religion.  Didactylos’s nephew, Urn, came across perfectly as a machine-obsessed proto engineer, whose storylines go in some interesting philosophical directions, especially when he realises what his inventions will be used for.  I had a very fun chuckle at the inclusion of Cut-Me-Own-Hand-Off Dhblah, a fun Omnian equivalent to the always entertaining Ankh-Morpork native, Cut-Me-Own-Throat Dibbler, while the Sweeper, Lu Tze, gets a great introduction as a secret history monk who occasionally changes events for the better.  Finally, the zealous Sergeant Simony, who leads the internal Omnian revolution against Vorbis, proves to be a very impressive figure who, despite being a fervent misotheist (someone who hates one specific god), has a belief in freedom and the turtle that matches Brutha’s faith in Om.  Simony serves as a very good example of just how far Vorbis can drive someone trying to do the wrong thing to achieve their goals, and I felt that he matched the fervour and faith of the other major characters in some fascinating ways.  This cast of characters was overall superb, and I really appreciated how well they complimented each other’s story arcs, as well as the intelligent themes Pratchett was trying to get across.

As with all the Discworld novels, I have enjoyed Small Gods as both a physical novel and an audiobook, and frankly this epic story comes across extremely well in all formats.  However, I have a very special place in my heart for the Discworld audiobooks, and the outstanding stories, elaborate characters and impressive and clever humour always comes across extremely well in this format.  I have had the great pleasure of listening to Small Gods multiple times over the years, and I want to highlight the two different unabridged version of Small Gods.

The first audiobook version of Small Gods is the original production narrated by Nigel Planer.  Small Gods was a particularly impressive example of Planer’s voice work, as he had to come up with unique voices for a range of unusual characters.  The Planer version of Small Gods is the one that I grew up with, and it is engrained in my mind as a result, especially as the narrator effortlessly moves through Pratchett’s many complex ideas and plots and brings them out in a fantastic and humours manner.  Planer provides all the voices in his version of Small Gods, and he perfectly encapsulated all the key figures of the book with his exceptional narrations.  You really get the full range of these character’s personalities and emotions through Planer’s voice work, and I loved his clever takes on Pratchett’s distinctive cast.  As such, the Planer version of Small Gods is probably the gold standard for all Discworld fans, and it will always have a very special place in my heart.

There is also a recently released version of Small Gods that is narrated by three brilliant British talents, and which was the version I most recently enjoyed.  This new Small Gods audiobook features a runtime of around 12 hours, which is a little longer than the roughly 10-hour long Planer version and provides an interesting new take on the novel.  I really enjoyed the voice cast for this new audiobook, as not only do we once again get Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy in their recurring roles, but it also features the primary narration of actor Andy Serkis.

Serkis, who has also narrated a recent version of The Lord of the Rings books that is worth checking out, does an exceptional job in Small Gods, ensuring a very fun experience for all listeners.  While there are some tonal shifts in this audiobook that fans of the Planer version may find a little surprising or jarring, for the most part I think Serkis matches and even occasionally exceeds Nigel Planer’s performance, and I very much enjoyed his take on the book.  His basic narration of Small Gods matches Pratchett’s style and humour extremely well, and I love how effectively he moves the story along, perfectly capturing the complex tone and energy of the plot.  However, it is Serkis’s entertaining voices that were the highlight of this version of Small Gods, as the characters are each given unique tones that fit their personalities in some fantastic ways.  His voice for Brutha, the central character, was extremely good, and I loved how well Serkis captured Brutha’s transformative journey and complex personality.  Utilising a fitting rural voice for the protagonist, Serkis successfully showcases Brutha’s changing mentality and deep moral roots with his narration, and you can honestly imagine this intriguing figure every time the narrator voices him.

In comparison to Brutha, the voices for Vorbis and the Great God Om were a lot more elaborate by necessity, and I really appreciated the fantastic tones that Serkis choice for these entertaining figures.  My favourite was probably the voice used for Vorbis, as the narrator gifted this antagonist a deep, rich and lingering voice that honestly put me in mind of Tony Jay or Alan Rickman with some added oily sinisterness.  This impactful voice perfectly fit Vorbis’ menacing personality, and whenever the listener hears the voice, you know bad stuff is about to go down for the rest of the cast.  As for Om, Serkis provides him with an unrefined and laddish voice with a Liverpool accent.  This interesting voice choice matched Om’s uncaring and selfish personality extremely well, and I liked how well Serkis’s chosen tone for this divine figure played into the overarching theme that gods on the Discworld aren’t as sophisticated as everyone assumes they are.  Most of the rest of the voices in Small Gods work extremely well, with Sergeant Simony and Cut-Me-Own-Hand-Off Dhblah having memorable voices as a result.  However, I felt that the strong American accents that Serkis assigned to Didactylos and Urn really didn’t work, and failed to match the tone of the rest of the audiobook.  While Serkis was probably trying to distinguish these two from the other Ephebian philosophers, their voices honestly grated on me, and I really wish he’d have tried something else.  Still, the rest of Serkis’ voice work was amazing, and I cannot emphasise how incredible most of his narration of Small Gods turned out to be.

Serkis’s main narration was perfectly enhanced with the inclusion of Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy in their recurring roles from the new Discworld audiobooks.  Serafinowicz provides the voice of Death whenever he appears in this audiobook, which is a lot of fun as Serafinowicz has an extremely entertaining Death voice that captures the anthropomorphic personification in all his skeletal glory.  His multiple appearances in Small Gods, leading key character towards the desert of judgement, were very awesome, and I loved hearing Serafinowicz converse with the other characters as Death.  The audiobook production team does an excellent job sliding the Death voice into Serkis’s main narration seamlessly, and I love it when Serafinowicz’s voice suddenly appears during dangerous scenes, heralding that someone is about to die, and ensuring there is some great tension as you watch the other characters slowly realise something is very wrong.  Nighy, on the other hand, narrates the various footnotes that Pratchett included in his text, providing an extra layer of humour.  While there are relatively few footnotes in Small Gods, it is a key role that Nighy perfectly fulfils, and his calm, consistent tones, echoing Peter Jones’s similar role in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy radio and TV editions really highlighted the subtle comedy of these footnotes. These three exceptional actors come together perfectly and provide an outstanding overall performance that I could not get enough of.  This was a truly exceptional audiobook that I think is on par with the previous Planer version, and I would strongly recommend both audiobooks as an amazing way to enjoy Small Gods, especially if you need to listen to something while travelling.

Well, as I am currently just getting to the end of page seven of my review for Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, I think it is a safe assumption to say that I love this amazing book.  Easily one of my favourite Discworld novels, Small Gods perfectly blends a brilliant story and amazing characters with Pratchett’s amazing wit and his uncanny insights into compelling real-world issues.  An incredible and addictive read from start to finish, Small Gods comes extremely highly recommended and can easily be enjoyed by anyone wanting a clever, funny and heartfelt read, especially on its two audiobook formats.

Amazon

Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 15: Grasscutter II- Journey to Atsuta Shrine by Stan Sakai

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Comics/Manga, Five-Star Books, Throwback Thursday1 Comment

Publisher: Dark Horse Comics (Paperback – 1 February 2002)

Series: Usagi Yojimbo – Volume 15

Length: 184 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

The classic adventures of Usagi Yojimbo continue as I look back at the 15th brilliant volume, Grasscutter II – Journey to Atsuta Shrine, one of Stan Sakai’s more ambitious and powerful comics, which sees the protagonist and his friends caught up in the tides of fate and history.

Ever since I read the recently released 40th volume of Stan Sakai’s iconic Usagi Yojimbo comic series, The Crow, I have been in a major Usagi Yojimbo mood, so I decided to go back and continue reviewing the older volumes of this classic comic, which follows a rabbit ronin in a version of Feudal Japan populated with anthropomorphised animals.  I reviewed the first 14th volumes during COVID lockdown, and had a lot of fun doing so, especially as Usagi Yojimbo is one of my favourite comic series.  I have been meaning to restart reviewing the older comics for a while, and I’m not going to throw away this sudden surge of creative energy, so this is the perfect time to bring out my review for the 15th volume in the series, Grasscutter II.

Grasscutter II is one of Sakai’s most impressive comics in the series.  Featuring issues #39-45 of the first Dark Horse Comics run on the Usagi Yojimbo series, Grasscutter II serves as the gripping sequel and conclusion to the intense and pivotal story contained in the 12th volume, Grasscutter.  This previous volume saw Usagi and his friends become embroiled in the recovery of the legendary sword Kusanagi and the foiling of a major plot to rebel against the Shogun.  A dark and compelling entry in the series, Grasscutter featured an amazing story with major implications for the Usagi Yojimbo series.  This was such a key volume, and it is interesting to see how Sakai follows it up here, especially as he needed to make Grasscutter II’s story in just as epic, if not more impressive.

Following dark events of magic and death, few people are aware that the legendary Imperial sword Kusanagi has been recovered from the sea.  Forged by the gods and wielded as a symbol of Imperial authority for generations, Kusanagi, or the Grasscutter sword has the potential to reshape the power structure of Japan, as whoever holds it could rally all the country to their cause, bringing war and destruction to a currently peaceful nation. 

Hidden at a small temple, the sword is currently guarded by the honourable samurai Miyamoto Usagi, the irrepressible bounty hunter Gen, and the head priest Sanshobo.  However, the three know that they cannot keep the sword hidden for long, with dangerous foes seeking to uncover its secrets.  The only place that the sword will be truly safe and out of the hands of those who would use it for political gain is the sacred shrine of Atsuta, where a replica of the sword currently rests.

Embarking on a noble quest, Usagi, Gen and Sanshobo hope to sneak the sword to the shrine before anyone knows they have it.  However, the road to safety is long, and it soon becomes apparent that dangerous foes know exactly what they are carrying.  Pursued by two rival ninja clans who will stop at nothing to possess the sword as fuel for their own dark ambitions, Usagi and his comrades will need to fight tooth and nail to survive and keep the sword out of their hands.  But with old friends and new bitter rivals revealing themselves, can even Usagi and his skilled companions avoid the tragedy that stalks them?

Grasscutter II was an epic and captivating classic entry in one of the best ongoing comic series.  Serving as an effective follow up to the bloody events of Grasscutter, Grasscutter II blended together a ton of outstanding action with some great character moments to create a memorable and beautifully drawn addition to the series that gets a very easy five-star rating from me.

This 15th volume of the Usagi Yojimbo series has a very gripping and intense storyline that seeks to combine Japanese history and mythology with the author’s action-packed style.  Starting with a beautifully drawn prologue that gives some interesting historical and mythological context to the sacred shrine of Atsuta, Sakai quickly moves into the main story, with Usagi, Gen and Sanshobo starting their journey to the shrine after being forced to protect the sword in the previous volume, Demon Mask.  At the same time, two rival bands of ninja, the Komori ninja and Neko ninja, discover that the existence of the sword and move quickly to intercept the companions, hoping to claim it for their own conflicting reasons.  The Neko ninja, led by Chizu, who has a complicated history with Usagi, catch up to the protagonists around the same time as the Komori ninja, leading to a wild three-way brawl.  Forced to work together, Chizu joins Usagi and his friends to recover the sword, which raises some interesting conflicts and issues, especially as Chizu has very different plans for the Kusanagi sword.

The second half of Grasscutter II is epic the entire way through, as Sakai continues to feature impressive action, while also allowing several character arcs to develop and conclude in tragic ways.  This includes the companions meeting up with the excellent supporting character Ikeda, who had such a great redemption arc in the previous Grasscutter volume.  Following some initial betrayal from Chizu, Usagi, Gen and Sanshobo follow her and enter battle with the Komori ninja, which ends in a dark moment of honour and loyalty from another interesting supporting figure.  While this initially seems to wrap up the main story, a fun twist ensures that Grasscutter II enters a fantastic concluding arc that sees that protagonists enter one last battle before achieving their goal.  This big battle is one of the most brutal and intense in the entire volume, and results in the book’s final tragic moment, which proves to be a fitting end to one amazing figure.  Loaded with powerful emotion, sacrifice and grief, this ending to Grasscutter II wraps up the entire story perfectly and ensures you are hooked all the way to the final blow.

This was another great volume from Sakai that successfully pushes the overall narrative of the series onwards and results in some intriguing changes to the comics, both in this book and the future.  As with all of Sakai’s work, Grasscutter II features a great combination of action, intrigue, character work and beautiful art that comes together perfectly to create an exceptional comic that is impossible not to finish in one sitting.  There are some truly great moments in Grasscutter II that help to make it stand out amongst Sakai’s other outstanding work, including the cool battle sequences.  The various scenes that feature the protagonists caught between two different schools of ninja were the best, and Sakai had fun showcasing the scary fighting ability of the blade-winged Komori ninja, as well as the established tricks of the Neko ninja.  This fantastic clash of styles allowed for some brilliant sequences, which were so damn epic to see unfold.  While I had a lot of fun with Grasscutter II, I must say that it probably isn’t the best volume of Usagi Yojimbo to start the comic on.  While Sakai does a good job revisiting some of the key plotlines and characters, you probably should read the previous Grasscutter volume to fully appreciate the plot, as well as some of the other earlier volumes to understand some of the character arcs.  Still, this is a very impressive Usagi Yojimbo entry, and a key read for established fans of the series who will have an exceptional time with Grasscutter II.

While fans will probably enjoy Grasscutter II’s exceptional action the most, I personally thought that it was some of the great character work in this volume that helped to make it particularly good.  Thanks to the volume featuring one extended storyline, Sakai takes his time to set up some outstanding character moments that work perfectly alongside the complex narrative and cool artwork.  While Usagi and Gen are their usual fun selves (there opposing views on honour, duty and what is right is always fun), I thought it was several returning supporting characters who really stole the show in Grasscutter II, especially as Sakai wove some great storylines around each of them.  This includes the former samurai turned monk Sanshobo, who has been an excellent recurring figure since his introduction in the series’ 10th volume, The Brink of Life and Death.  Not only does he mesh well with Usagi and Gen, acting as a voice of reason between the two strong-willed characters, but Sakai also brings one of his main character arcs full circle when he encounters his former lord.  Sanshobo has some great moments in Grasscutter II, especially his grief at the end, and I liked how Sakai utilised him as part of the main trio.

Another impressive character in Grasscutter II is Ikeda, who Sakai has built up as a wonderful figure.  Introduced in the moving story, The Patience of the Spider (contained in the 11th volume, Seasons) and expanded on in the first Grasscutter story, Ikeda is a former lord and general who learned to enjoy the quiet life of a peasant after his defeat.  Reunited by chance here with his former retainer Sanshobo, Ikeda proves to be an interesting addition to the cast.  Not only do his insights into the Neko ninja, who he greatly distrusts due to his history with them, result in a key plot point, but he is also once again tempted to achieve power, something he decides against in a great continuation of his storyline.  However, it is in the final sequence where Ikeda’s full character is revealed, where he serves as a willing rearguard to the companions to ensure the Neko ninja don’t get the Grasscutter sword.  His big battle sequence is very well portrayed, especially with how Sakai features his old war wound, and his final scene is one of the most badass inclusions in any Usagi Yojimbo comic.  An extremely well-written and complex character who is used to his full potential in this last appearance.

The final characters I want to mention are the various members of the Neko ninja who appear in this volume, primarily as antagonists.  Long-time opponents of Usagi, the Neko ninja represent the more classic ninja styles in the Usagi Yojimbo universe and prove to be great foils to the protagonist’s samurai style.  This includes their leader, Chizu, who has a long and complicated history with Usagi.  Simultaneously serving as both an alternate protagonist, antagonist and potential love interest to Usagi, Chizu has a lot of storylines in Grasscutter II, which Sakai makes full use of.  Forced to hunt for the Grasscutter sword against her better judgement, Chizu desires nothing more than to throw the sword back into the ocean to keep it out of anyone’s hands, and will betray anyone, including Usagi for that goal.  This results in some intriguing personal issues amongst the protagonists, especially as Usagi tries to see the best in her, while Gen forms an instant, mutual dislike of her.  Chizu’s inner conflicts become a key part of the plot, and her appearance here will have major impacts for her storyline going forward, especially when it comes to her ambitious number two, Kagemaru, who has been angling for power for several volumes now.  Kagemaru proves to be a ruthless alternate antagonist in Grasscutter II, and I liked how well Sakai set him up as both a physical and political threat going forward.  The final Neko ninja character I should mention is Saru, a former member of the clan betrayed by Kagemaru in the previous volume.  Seeking revenge on Chizu, who Saru believes was behind the betrayal, Saru stalks Chizu for much of the volume, resulting in some excellent sequences of ninja-on-ninja violence.  A compelling figure, Saru ends up redeeming herself in a particularly moving sequence and makes an impact despite her relatively short appearance.  These great ninja characters, and indeed the entire case of Grasscutter II, deeply enhanced the impact of the comic’s narrative, and I had an outstanding time seeing their arcs unfold.

As with all the Usagi Yojimbo comics I review, I must highlight the outstanding artwork that is such a brilliant feature of Grasscutter II.  Featuring Sakai’s classic pre-colour style of drawing, Grasscutter II’s art is very visually impactful, and I loved the fantastic black-and-white panels that cleanly show the complex actions and characters.  Every panel is extremely striking, and I love how effectively Sakai showcases everything in such detail, including the actions of his many characters.  I am always impressed with how well Sakai implies movement and activity with his drawings, and you really get the flow the scene from his panels.  I particularly appreciate how well the intense fight sequences come across in Grasscutter II, especially as there are so many scenes of carnage that occur within this volume.  The various battles, which usually involve a range of ninja, are so well drawn, and I loved the complex array of combat that flitters along the pages.  Some of these scenes are quite elaborate, and I loved seeing all the multiple black-clad figures moving around the established cast, especially in some of the bigger fight sequences.

In addition to great fights, Sakai does a great job capturing the emotive nature of his cast with his fantastic drawings of the major characters.  The intense reactions of many of his characters help to make the scene pop, and I love how well Sakai showcases the emotional range that the story elicits.  Highlights include the final face of one badass warrior while the grief of another usually calm figure really hammers home the seriousness of the moment.  All this amazing action and great character drawings is perfectly supported by Sakai’s trademark drawings of the picturesque Japanese landscapes, towns and temples that serve as an amazing backdrop to the main story.  Sakai has some real talent of showcasing Feudal Japan with his artwork, and you can often feel the world through which the characters are trapsing.  I particularly appreciated Sakai’s portrayals of a wild oceans beneath a ragged cliff, which was a setting for several of the volume’s more visually powerful panels.  The harsh waves striking around the combatants was especially impactful, and you could almost feel the wave’s strength as the characters fight at their edge.  Throw in Sakai’s interesting take on a classic Japanese legend at the very start of the volume in the prologue and Grasscutter II’s art comes together in a truly perfect manner, especially as this volume features some of the artist’s most ambitious fight sequences.

Based on my rambling paragraphs above, I think it is safe to say that I had an amazing time reading the 15th Usagi Yojimbo volume, Grasscutter II.  Featuring the exceptional storytelling and artwork of the legendary Stan Sakai, Grasscutter II achieves so much with its ambitious plot, long-term, character driven storytelling, and amazing sequences of combat and chaos.  A brilliant, classic addition to a truly incredible comic series, Grasscutter II comes highly recommend, and I had such a great time getting through it yet again.

Amazon

Warhammer 40,000: Titanicus by Dan Abnett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer3 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 September 2008)

Series: Warhammer 40,000/Sabbat Worlds Crusade

Length: 13 hours and 38 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

The Titans walk to war in this brutal and captivating Warhammer 40,000 novel from the legendary Dan Abnett, Titanicus.

Of the many great Warhammer 40,000 authors out there, few are as impressive as Dan Abnett, who has envisioned an incredible number of awesome battlefields and unique character-focused war stories across the Warhammer universe.  Abnett has written a ton of exceptional and powerful books around the franchise, including several series considered to be the seminal texts of the extended universe.  This includes his brilliant Eisenhorn trilogy (Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus), and he has multiple entries in my favourite Warhammer 40,000 books list.  However, his best-known series is the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, which I am currently in the middle of reading.

The Gaunt’s Ghosts books are a key series of Warhammer 40,000 fiction that follows the frontline human soldier of this grimdark universe.  Set in an extended multi-planet campaign, known as the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, the Gaunt’s Ghosts books follow a ragged regiment of soldiers as they attempt to survive the dark servants of Chaos coming for them.  I am having an exceptional time reading the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, with books like First and Only, Ghostmaker, Necropolis, Honour Guard, The Guns of Tanith, Straight Silver and Sabbat Martyr, really impressing me with the complex stories and intense action.  While I need to read more of the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, I have taken a quick break to read some of the spin-off novels Abnett wrote around his main series.  Also set around the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, these spin-off novels follow other campaigns in this massive sector spanning war and provide Warhammer fans with a more in-depth view of these battles.  These spin-offs include the exceptional Double Eagle, which I had the great pleasure of reading last year, and which featured so many awesome duels between flyers.  Titanicus was another spectacular book shows a new and highly destructive battlefront of the crusade by focusing on the iconic Titan Legions of the Adeptus Mechanicus.

As war rage across the stars, the forces of Chaos constantly seek a way to disrupt the vital Sabbat World Crusade and destroy the human forces fighting to bring new worlds into the Imperium of Man.  To that end, the archenemy launches an ambitious and devastating surprise assault on the vital forge world of Orestes, whose under-strength defenders find themselves under mass attack from Chaos Titan war engines.  With both the citizens of the Imperium of Man and the forges of the Adeptus Mechanicus under threat, the planet appeals for help and soon finds its prayers answered from the stars in dramatic fashion.

Fresh from their own wars and heading out to join the crusade, the Titans of the Legio Invicta arrive on Orestes, determined to help their Mechanicus brethren.  Finding the forces of Orestes severely outwatched, the Invicta Titans stride to war, causing everything to tremble at the god-machines wrath.  Soon the world is engulfed in an engine war, with both sides wielding enough firepower to crack the planet and the entire population of Orestes caught in the conflict.

But as the war continues, a far more insidious threat arises that could impact far more than just the war on Orestes.  Deep secrets from within Orestes Forge soon begin to spill out, risking a schism between the Imperium of Man and the Adeptus Mechanicus.  With the planet trembling under the battling machines and enemy forces growing by the day, can Legio Invicta overcome the peril growing within their brotherhood before Orestes and the entire galaxy is put to the flame?

Dan Abnett presets another brilliant war story that is epic in every definition of the word.  Successfully presenting the awesome power of the Titans, Titanicus is a deeply compelling and impressive Warhammer 40,000 novel that I honestly could not get enough of.  Intense, exciting and so darn cool, Titanicus gets an easy five-star rating from me, as Abnett once again shows just how talented he is.

Titanicus had a particularly awesome and multi-layered standalone war narrative behind it that hooked me thanks to the author’s nuanced take on the destructive conflicts of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.  Starting off with some dark death to hammer home how grim the situation is, you are soon thrust into the main story as the planet of Orestes comes under attack and the defenders are pushed to the limit.  However, hope soon arrives with the landing of Legio Invicta, who back up Orestes’s existing Titans and defenders with their own engines and troops.  Abnett quickly and effectively sets up multiple character specific storylines as the book progresses that show various alternative viewpoints of the war.  The author works hard to showcase multiple levels of the conflict, from the top commanders all the way to the lowliest of soldiers, and I really enjoyed some of the intriguing storylines that emerged.  This includes desperate tales of survival by following human troops caught behind enemy lines and pursued by mechanical monsters, compelling dives into the minds of the Titan pilots, looks at the various political forces on Orestes, and even some fascinating storylines inside the Adeptus Mechanicus forge.  Abnett did an amazing job highlighting the desperate strife and the complex conflicts these figures endured, and you get a fantastic overarching look at the machine war that proves hard to look away from. 

As the plot of Titanicus continues, the various storylines go in some interesting directions, as you follow each of the characters or groups on their own unique journeys.  Abnett did a really good job of ensuring these unique storylines effectively played off each other as the book continues, and the way characters reacted to events from other plotlines was quite clever and helped to produce a cohesive and intense overarching narrative.  The introduction of a compelling storyline around intrigue and dissent amongst the Adeptus Mechanicus characters provides some extra drama and character conflicts, which added some interesting complexity to the plot, especially as it gave you an alternative group of antagonists which worked well alongside the menacing forces of Chaos, whose perspective you don’t see.  I appreciated how well Abnett set this storyline up in advance, and there are some clever hints to this, and other big events, earlier in the plot.

The final third of Titanicus is particularly impressive and intense, as the author brings together his various storylines extremely well.  I especially enjoyed some of the massive action sequences, while the resolution of the Adeptus Mechanicus storyline was powerful and full of drama as big personalities try to overcome mistrust and dissent.  While I would have liked to have seen the final battle in full, I think Abnett’s effective summary worked pretty well, and I understand that spending another few hours in combat would have watered down the author’s main message.  Each major character’s arc is resolved in a very satisfying manner, and there is an excellent blend of dramatic moments and intense action to keep the reader hooked.  I appreciated how a couple of these conclusions were more depressing, rather than being uniformly happy, which fits both the grimdark nature of Warhammer 40,000 as well as Abnett’s overarching themes that war has no true winners.  This story really came together well, and I deeply enjoyed the complex standalone narrative that Abnett came up with.

This was another insanely well written novel from Abnett, who excels at telling dark, deeply personal war stories from multiple perspectives.  The author provides the perfect balance of excitement, deep intrigue and fantastic character growth in Titanicus, all expertly set within the amazing Warhammer 40,000 universe, and it proves to be such an addictive read.  I personally became engrossed in the various character-driven storylines that emerged throughout the plot, especially the long-running storylines that lasted the entire book.  However, even the more minor character arcs, such as the occasional scene from a normal citizen living in the city to an extended look at the crew of a doomed machine, was hard hitting and Abnett really gets you invested in these personal tales.  As I mentioned above, these often-separate storylines worked extremely well in concert with each other, and Abnett did such a good job pulling them together into a brilliant, overarching narrative. 

Of course, you can’t talk about Titanicus’s writing without going into how incredible the action sequences are.  Abnett crafts together so many deeply intense and powerful battle scenes throughout Titanicus that constantly had the blood pumping as you watched your favourite characters brave the dark gauntlet of battle time and time again.  The author had a lot of fun envisioning war on multiple fronts, and I loved how we got to see infantry fights, tank battles and entertaining skirmishes between various augmented foes as the story continued.  However, easily the most awesome thing about Titanicus is the Titans themselves.  Insanely massive and powerful walking war machines, the Titans steal any scene they are in, and there are so many great reactions as the normal human characters see the Titans fight, especially when the despoiled enemy machines advance on them.  However, it is the sequences shown from the perspective of the Titan pilots themselves that are the best, as you become fully immersed into the battles in the scenes as the machines rain down destruction and depth.  You can honestly feel the insane powerful and destructive ability of the Titans as you move throughout Titanicus, and every single battle involving one of these massive walkers is epic on so many levels. 

As with the rest of Abnett’s books, Titanicus proved to be a particularly strong entry in the Warhammer 40,000 canon.  Serving as a companion piece to the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, Titanicus is a must-read to anyone who has enjoyed Abnett’s main series and the overarching campaign it is a part of.  However, as there are no overlapping characters or major storylines, Titanicus can also be easily read as a standalone novel, and indeed would be a great introduction to Abnett’s writing style and his ability to write awesome war stories.  Titanicus would also be the perfect entry novel to anyone interested in exploring Warhammer 40,000 fiction, especially science fiction readers who love the idea of giant piloted war machines.  The cool action, complex character arcs and fantastic standalone narrative ensures that anyone can really dive into Titanicus and have a brilliant time, and I honestly think this book would appeal to a wide range of different readers.

However, as with most books in the franchise, Titanicus will mostly appeal to those established Warhammer 40,000 fans who will love Abnett’s dive into some unique aspects of the universe.  Naturally, this is primarily going to be around the Titans, who are a very awesome part of the Warhammer 40,000 setting that are often underutilised in fiction due to being too overpowered (or getting badly nerfed when they do appear).  I think Abnett did these war machines perfect justice in Titanicus, and you really come away appreciating every aspect of them, including their raw power, their powerful spirit, and the love the crews have for them.  However, Abnett also dives into the dark side of the machine, and some of the sequences that show the pilots losing their humanity were particularly jarring.  Honestly, I thought Abnett’s portray of the Titans was just brilliant, and I have yet to see another Warhammer author do any better.  Abnett also takes a lot of time to dive into the lore surrounding the Adeptus Mechanics.  While these parts of the book might be slightly confusing for newer readers, established fans will love seeing Abnett explore these machine-worshipping figures, especially as a theological schism becomes a major plot issue.  Other cool lore aspects include examining the uneasy relationship between the Imperium and the Mechanicus on planets they share, the dark side of human life on a planet under siege, and even little fun moments, like a toy maker finally finding success as he makes models of the Titans battling across the world.  All these elements make Titanicus a particularly epic read for fans of the franchise, and I personally loved seeing Abnett’s take on all these cool universe inclusions.

While the writing, story and Warhammer 40,000 elements are all exceptional on their own, what really brings them together and makes Titanicus truly awesome are the multiple cool characters scattered throughout the plot.  Abnett introduces a huge range of fantastic and complex characters in Titanicus who you grow quite attached to as the plot continues.  All the characters, from major figures to minor one-scene characters, are fantastically written and cleverly influence the plot in their own cool ways.  Highlights for me included the desperate crew of a destroyed tank who try to escape on foot, only to find more danger in front of them.  A group of inexperienced conscripts who are completely unprepared for the horrors of war also prove to be really entertaining, and you grow invested in their struggles to survive and the tragedies that await them.  Abnett also examines several intriguing Adeptus Mechanicus figures within the Orestes Forge, whose frustrations, ambitions and struggles for power are far more human than they’d like to believe.  However, the best character arc for me was the one that revolved around the crew of a Legio Invicta’s Titan who are forced to accept an Orestes’ Princeps (the pilot plugged into the Titan’s mind) when their own dies without a successor.  The resulting conflicts between the inexperienced and arrogant outsider pilot and the veteran Legio Invicta crew, which includes the Titan’s moderati (second-in-command), who finds himself under a suspended death sentence, sets the scene perfectly, and you become really intrigued in seeing how the Titan will survive.  Watching these figures come together as a crew is a highlight of Titanicus, although Abnett does an excellent job twisting that around later when internal conflict splits the protagonists.  All these characters, and many more, gave Titanicus some real emotional heft, and I became so damn invested in seeing the final fate of so many of these outstanding protagonists.

I think that it’s kind of a given that I listened to Titanicus on audiobook rather than seeking out a physical copy of the book.  Warhammer audiobooks are so damn good, and frankly there is no better way to enjoy the franchise’s awesome narratives and compelling action.  This is particularly true for Titanicus, as the intricate details and impressive combat sequences really shine through even better when read out.  I especially loved how incredibly epic the various Titan-on-Titan battles came across in this audiobook format, and the fantastic voice of narrator Toby Longworth ensured that you were enrapt by every single second of carnage.  Longworth, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators, always does an exceptional job bringing Abnett’s amazing stories to life, and he was once again exceptional here in Titanicus.  Longworth captures all the characters in Titanicus perfectly, and you get a real sense of their personalities, emotions and their reactions to the insane events of the book.  This includes the various Adeptus Mechanicus figures, which Longworth voices in all their mechanical glory, and you can just imagine these augmented figures, and indeed all the complex characters of Titanicus, as Longworth describes them.  This makes for such an exceptional experience, and I flew through the audiobook’s near 14-hour long runtime extremely quickly.  There is honestly no other way to enjoy Titanicus than on audiobook, and you are guaranteed to have an amazing time.

Dan Abnett continues to showcase why he is such a highly regarded author of Warhammer fiction with the brilliant and captivating Titanicus.  Perfectly showcasing a war between one of the franchise’s most epic components, the massive Titan war engines, Titanicus was an exceptional read from start to finish and one that I cannot recommend enough.  I had such a great time with Titanicus, and I look forward to reading even more Warhammer 40,000 books from Dan Abnett this year.

Amazon

Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Extended Universe, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Throwback Thursday14 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Audio (Audiobook – 1989)

Series: Discworld – Book 8 / City Watch – Book One

Length: 13 hours and 29 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

I recently revisited one of my favourite books in Terry Pratchett’s iconic Discworld series, Guards! Guards!, and I just had to review it to showcase how much fun this series can be.

I have never made any secret of the fact that I love all things Terry Pratchett as the Discworld books were one of the formative series of my youth.  A massively popular series set on a flat world carried through space on the back of a giant turtle and four elephants, the Discworld books present a range of unique fantasy adventures, backed with exceptional comedy and satire.  This series is so much fun, and I honestly love every single Discworld book, having read them all multiple times, usually while laughing myself silly.  Indeed, I am such a big fan of this series that I named my blog after a location in the universe.  Despite my overwhelming love for this series, I haven’t reviewed many Discworld books (the exception being Moving Pictures and The Last Continent).  That changes with my review of the outrageously funny Guards! Guards! which I recently enjoyed while on a road trip.

Guards! Guards! is a particularly entertaining addition to the Discworld series that I have a lot of love for.  Serving as the first book in the City Watch sub-series, Guards! Guards! sees Pratchett blend his typical fantasy and comedy elements with a complex murder mystery.  This book follows the ragtag city watch of this world’s main recurring city, Ankh-Morpork, as they try to solve a series of deaths caused by a monstrous murder weapon.  Due to its brilliant and hilarious story, as well as the fact that it perfectly sets up the rest of the awesome City Watch books, I generally consider Guards! Guards! to be one of my absolute favourite Discworld novels, and I have featured it in various Top Ten Tuesday lists over the years.

On the fantastical and impossible Discworld no place is more dangerous, corrupt or morally unhealthy as the legendary and stinking city of Ankh-Morpork.  The Disc’s largest city, Ankh-Morpork has many terrors haunting its urban depths, where life is cheap and death lurks around every corner.  However, not even the hardest criminals, deadliest wizards or most manipulative politicians are prepared for an ancient and malevolent creature that is about to be unleashed upon the city.

A shadowy secret brotherhood has engineered an elaborate plan to seize power in Ankh-Morpork through use of an unlikely weapon, a dragon.  Summoning a fully formed fire-breathing dragon to cause terror, the brotherhood hopes to use the resulting carnage to bring in their own puppet to control the city.  However, the dragon has its own ideas about what sort of terror it wants to bring down on humanity.

With the rest of the city powerless against the dragon, it falls to the ramshackle Ankh-Morpork Night Watch and its depressed captain, Sam Vimes, to try and stop it.  The only problem is the Watch are the biggest joke in the city, incapable of standing up to normal crime, never mind carnage caused by magical dragon.  But with an unnaturally keen new recruit guilting them into action, and a terrifying dragon fanatic with a crush on Vimes keeping them in line, the Watch is going to try and save the day, even if no-one wants them to.

Guards! Guards! still reigns supreme as one of my top Discworld novels from the always impressive Terry Pratchett.  Featuring a unique plot, loaded with an outstanding mix of mystery, humour and fun fantasy elements, Guards! Guards! brilliantly sets up one of Pratchett’s best sub-series while presenting its own epic and powerful story.  An exceptional read from start to finish, this book gets a very easy five-star rating from me, and I love it so damn much.

The plot of Guards! Guards! is so damn clever and is peak Pratchett in its inventiveness and impressive characters.  Presenting an entertaining and humourous noir murder investigation in a fantasy series, Guards! Guards! has a lot of moving parts to it, including some impressive character-driven story arcs, all of which come together beautifully for a particularly intense and insane story.  Starting off very strong with some great introductions to various key characters, including the young and keen Carrot Ironfoundersson, who journeys to the massive and corrupt city of Ankh-Morpork to join the Night Watch, providing fresh blood, irrepressible honesty and uncontrolled enthusiasm to the small squad of rejects and failures currently staffing it.  Carrot’s arrival corresponds with the start of a bold conspiracy, as a secretive mystic brotherhood plots to dethrone the Patrician and take over the city.  The initial scenes of this book are extremely good, and I love how Pratchett expertly sets up the entire narrative with some hilarious moments, including the opening sequence with the Elucidated Brethren of the Ebon Night, whose petty ideology shows you just what sort of criminal minds we are truly dealing with.

Things go in a chaotic direction as the Night Watch, led by the drunk and depressed Captain Vimes, witness a direct murder by dragon and begin their own investigation into the matter.  Pratchett expertly pivots the story around from its comedic fantasy start into a complex police procedural/noir murder investigation, as the protagonists try to find out why the dragon is terrifying the city and who benefits from the apparent crime.  At the same time, several great character arcs emerge, including a truly nice, if unconventional romance, new friendships, and a fun analysis of dragon mythology.  There is a great twist about halfway through the book as the down-and-out Night Watch witness an interesting change to the classic dragon fantasy tale that sees a unique king take over the city.

The final third of the book is some of Pratchett’s strongest writing, as Vimes identifies the true culprit and must work to undo the damage they caused.  There are some great moments in this last part of the book as Pratchett presents his own unique and hilarious take on classic fantasy tropes, including the famed million-to-one shot, the heroic rescue, and the successful defeat of a dragon.  I felt that the identity of the main villain of the story was very clever, and Pratchett sets it up well with subtle clues, although if you know Pratchett’s thoughts on certain government positions it’s not too surprising.  Still, the final confrontation between the protagonists and this villain is great, and being literal has never been so deadly.  Pratchett leaves Guards! Guards! on a hopeful note, and it’s impossible not to come away with a smile on your face.

Pratchett was really on-point when it came to writing Guards! Guards! and I loved how perfectly it came together.  As with all books in the Discworld series, Guards! Guards! features an exceptional mixture of fantasy and humour elements, as the unusual and cynical Discworld produces some unusual situations, layered in with a great plot and some fantastically complex characters.  A lot of the humour is derived from classic fantasy scenarios that are taken up to 11 and shown in outrageous manners, accompanied by sarcastic comments from the characters as they witness them.  For example, this book serves as an ode to the guards and watchmen from classic fantasy fiction, and there are some funny scenes when these self-aware guards realise how expendable they are in a fantasy story.  However, Guards! Guards! also features a brilliant third element as Pratchett also features a compelling crime fiction read, accompanied with an addictive murder mystery.

The blend of fantasy and crime fiction elements works incredibly well, and it is highly entertaining to watch a serious investigation consider magic, suddenly appearing dragons, and the unique background setting of Ankh-Morpork.  I also loved how many clever and subtle jokes Pratchett was able to weave in because of these crime fiction inclusions, and he ends up lovingly roasting so many classic tropes from police procedurals and noir detective novels.  Despite having read this book many times, I still laugh like crazy at all the humourous moments in Guards! Guards!, especially as you always discover a new joke or pun you previously missed.  I honestly don’t have time to list all the funny scenes in Guards! Guards!, but favourites include the various meetings of the petty and mostly incompetent Elucidated Brethren, Carrot’s naïve overreactions upon discovering crime in the city, and various musings on how to achieve a perfect, million-to-one chance.  Pratchett once again expertly backs up his humour in Guards! Guards! with a series of entertaining footnotes spread throughout the book, that prove to be nearly as much fun as the main story.  These brilliant footnotes contain additional jokes, sarcastic comments, or interesting expansions of the Discworld universe, and they always bounce off the main story perfectly, providing extra laughs and food for thought where necessary.  I really cannot emphasise just how well this blend of genres worked with Pratchett’s unique and endearing humour, and it proves impossible not to have an exceptional time while reading this book.

As with most Discworld books, Guards! Guards! works exceedingly well as a standalone novel, and I feel that anyone wanting a laugh could easily jump in and follow the story without any issues.  Due to its early position in the shared Discworld universe, you don’t have to know anything about the other entries in the overarching series to jump right in, as Pratchett goes a tad light on some of the more outrageous Discworld elements.  As such, I consider Guards! Guards! to be one of the very best entry novels to new Discworld readers.  It also proves to be a brilliant first book in one of Pratchett’s best sub-series, and so many key details of the subsequent City Watch books are introduced here.  This includes some excellent early looks at the chaotic city of Ankh-Morpork and key recurring characters in the larger universal plot.  Ankh-Morpork is a great background setting for Guards! Guards! and it was the first book completely set within the bounds of the city.  I loved seeing this crazy city in even more detail, and all the fun elements set up here help to make it an epic setting.  As such, this is a great book for any Discworld reader, new or old, and it’s one of my favourites for very good reason.

As with pretty much all of Pratchett’s works, the key things that made Guards! Guards! so impressive were the amazing and unique characters that were featured throughout the plot.  Pratchett had a real knack for producing complex, multi-layered figures who can be both comedic and tragic at the same time, and who you couldn’t help but love.  Guards! Guards! was a particularly good example of this, as Pratchett featured a range of brilliant and entertaining characters who would go on to be become major recurring figures in the Discworld canon.  Indeed, Guards! Guards! is one of the most significant books for new characters, and it is frankly amazing how many exceptional major and iconic figures were introduced here.  Each of these characters were so well written, and you have to love both their specific arcs in this book, as well as how they were expanded on in later works.

The most prominent character in Guards! Guards! is Captain Samuel Vimes.  A cynical and damaged man whose habit of calling out social inequities has seen him assigned to the joke position as head of the Night Watch, which he deals with by drinking vast amounts of alcohol.  A parody of every hard-drinking cop and private eye in classic noir fiction, Vimes starts the book with no prospects and too many dead friends.  Given new purpose when the dragon appears in the city, Vimes turns his innate rebellion to a purpose and tries policing and detecting.  Pratchett does an exceptional job setting up Vimes here in Guards! Guards!, and it is no wonder he goes on to be one of his top protagonists.  Vimes’s depressed investigative method proves quite successful, and it was entertaining to watch Vimes attempt to solve the case while sarcastically calling out his fellow citizens’ base stupidity and selfishness.  Pratchett also sets up an impressive redemption arc around Vimes, which comes about through a combination of trusted colleagues, romance, and a renewed determination to uphold the law.  While he ends the book still irritated with the world, the road forward to Vimes doing bigger and better things is well established, and you really get drawn into his arc as a result.

Another impressive character is naïve and innocent City Watch recruit, Carrot Ironfoundersson.  Due to his complex home situation and a late life revelation that he’s human rather than a dwarf (being six and a half feet tall wasn’t a clue to him), Carrot is sent to Anhk-Morpork with a desire to become a watchman, which he incorrectly believes is a noble calling.  Thanks to his literal personality and highly moral upbringing, Carrot proves to be an anathema to the lawless folks of Anhk-Morpork, as he comes to town bringing justice, enforcing obscure laws, and actually arresting thieves: “change your ways”.  A brilliant parody of ultra-righteous fantasy kings, Carrot serves as an outstanding comic relief for much of the book, especially when it comes to his wholesome interactions with the exceedingly criminal inhabitants of the city.  However, beneath his comedic cover, Carrot is written as a complex figure of change, and his ability to inspire the other characters, either through guilt or determination, leads to some big moments.  Pratchett did an amazing job with Carrot in Guards! Guards!, and it was fascinating to see how he evolves from his initial innocent personality, to a more clever, but still determined, character.

Aside from Vimes and Carrot, the other two watch characters are Sergeant Fred Colon and Corporal Nobby Nobbs, both of whom are excellent and solid comedic characters.  The stereotypical fat sergeant and dodgy corporal, Pratchett has fun setting them up as unassailable fixtures of the Night Watch as they do the jobs nature intended for them, and I love how they play off each other.  While Colon has some hilarious scenes, including his attempt at archery and his various ill-timed run-ins with the dragon, you can tell that Pratchett had a lot more fun writing Nobby.  While not all his over-the-top characteristics from the series are shown in Guards! Guards!, Nobby is still a particularly entertaining figure.  Between his coarse language, petty criminal mindset, and uncharacteristic foppish behaviours, every scene with Nobby is highly amusing, and I love how Pratchett expanded off clever stereotypes about lifetime corporals to create this wayward figure.

Outside the members of the City Watch, there are a fantastic array of figures who help to make Guards! Guards! a particularly enthralling story.  This includes one of the few female characters in the book, Sybil Rankin, a dragon-loving heiress who ends up being Vimes’s unlikely love interest.  Deliberately written as the direct opposite of a noir femme-fatale in both personality and appearance, Sybil is a force of nature, using her accumulated nobility to pull the Night Watch, especially Vimes, into her orbit.  It proves impossible not to like Sybil as you watch her confidently go after Vimes or try to put the dragon to heel, and she ends up being one of the most complicated female characters that Pratchett wrote (which is saying a lot when you think of some of his other great female characters).

The other major character that I want to separately highlight is the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, Lord Havelock Vetinari.  While he has appeared in previous Discworld novels (notably Sourcery), this is the first book that showcases him as a full character.  Generally depicted as a Machiavellian mastermind and one of the few people capable of controlling the chaotic city, Vetinari has some great early scenes.  However, it’s not until the second half of the book when you realise just how fantastic a character he is.  Deposed by the false king, Vetinari initially appears to be completely powerless in the dungeons, until Vimes is thrown in with him and begins to realise that he is still in control, especially as he’s managed to cultivate a new intelligence network (procured by providing wartime strategy to magical rats), while also getting locked in a dungeon specifically designed to keep him safe.  His subsequent scenes tormenting the book’s real antagonist and talking about the nature of humanity with Vimes really cement him as an impressive figure, and the seeds for his many later inclusions as the Disc’s ultimate political mastermind are well sown here.

While I know I’ve been going on a bit about characters (blame Pratchett for being such a good writer), I just need to highlight a few more figures who have a great role in Guards! Guards!.  This includes the Librarian, one of Pratchett’s most iconic characters, who proves to be just as much fun outside of a wizard focused book, and it was entertaining seeing him interact with a separate group of friends.  You get a great introduction to the character of Cut-My-Own-Throat Dibbler, whose mercantile tendencies are on full display here.  The unusual swamp dragon Errol proves to be an unlikely pet, and his arc about finding love and his true form was particularly heartwarming.  Finally, I must mention the book’s great antagonist, who fully embraces the mad tendencies that his position demands.  While I won’t go into too much detail about who he is, I will say I loved seeing his various internal rants about the world, and the scenes with his incompetent henchmen were so damn funny.  All these characters, plus even more hilarious figures, are instrumental to so much of Guards! Guards! brilliant charm and humour, and after being introduced to them here, it’s impossible not to follow them on their full journey.

I have had the pleasure of reading Guards! Guards! in a couple of different formats over the years, but to my mind the best way to enjoy this book, and indeed any Discworld novel, is on audiobook.  The Discworld audiobooks are something very special, and I find that the unique stories, excellent humour and elaborate characters really come across when read out by a passionate narrator.  With the recent re-release of various Discworld audiobooks, there are now two different unabridged versions of Guards! Guards! fans can enjoy, and I want to highlight them both here.

The first Guards! Guards! audiobook is the original version with the talented Nigel Planer, who narrated 22 of the original 23 Discworld audiobooks.  Guards! Guards! is one of his best performances, and it set the scene nicely for many of his subsequent Discworld audiobooks, especially as he settled on a lot of key character voices and tones here.  While it has been a little while since I’ve listened to Planer’s version of Guards! Guards!, I have enjoyed it so many times it is permanently engrained in my head (I used to grab the tape cassette version out of my local library all the time).  Planer, who does all the voices himself, really captures the essence of Pratchett’s storytelling and excels at expressing the author’s unique humour through his vocal work.  I also felt that his portrayal of many of the key characters was second to none, and he really brought to life all the City Watch protagonists, as well as some other long-running figures, in some impressive ways.  He would revisit many of these voices in multiple subsequent performances, and it is a testament to his skill that the initial tones he came up with here, worked so well in the later books.  I frankly have so much love for Planer’s original take on Guards! Guards!, which definitely still stands the test of time, and his excellent and heartfelt voice work defines many of the City Watch characters for me.

While Nigel Planers original version is perfect, current Discworld fans may be more familiar with the latest audiobook production of Guards! Guards!, which was part of a recent re-recording of all the Discworld books.  These new audiobooks each feature a different famous British performer voicing the main plot, while acclaimed actors Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy have key roles in every single production.  While these have been out for a little while, I only just listened to my first one .  Coming in at a runtime of 13 and a half hours, which is a tad longer than the roughly 10-hour long Planer version, this Guards! Guards! audiobook was extremely fun, and it served as excellent entertainment on a recent road trip.

The new version of the Guards! Guards! audiobook is primarily voiced by British radio and television personality Jon Culshaw.  Culshaw is amazing in the role, and I was deeply impressed with his take on the Guards! Guards! characters.  Each unique character comes across extremely well in Culshaw’s capable hands, and I enjoyed his take on their unique characteristics and eccentric personalities.  He perfectly showcased protagonist Samuel Vimes’s drunken despair and depression, while various other key members of the watch, such as the extremely keen Carrot and the more cautious Colon, are shown extremely well.  I also felt that Culshaw did an incredible job with several complicated figures from the story, such as the infamous watchman Nobby Nobbs, who Culshaw gifts a gruff and weaselly voice that sounded a lot like David Bradley or Jon Pertwee.  His Lord Vetinari is also amazing, and the deep and threatening tones really capture the character’s dangerous nature.  Finally, I felt that his take on the main female character, Sybil Ramkin, was just perfect, and you really got the full blast of her big personality and excessive aristocratic characteristics.  Many of the other side characters were also perfectly portrayed to my mind, and I must highlight the excellent way in which he disguised the voice of the main antagonist during some key secret society scenes.

Culshaw’s primary narration is well backed up by Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy in their respective roles.  Serafinowicz provides the voice of Death whenever he appears in this audiobook, which works out extremely well even with Death’s relatively minor role in Guards! Guards!.  Serafinowicz has an exceptional Death voice, and hearing it suddenly appear throughout Guards! Guards! is so damn epic, especially during one scene where Death is hiding amongst the soon-to-be deceased.  Nighy, on the other hand, narrates the various footnotes.  Nighy was a perfect choice for this, and his calm, consistent tones, echoing Peter Jones’s similar role in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy radio and TV editions really highlighted the subtle comedy of these footnotes.  I felt that all three of these distinctive actors really vibed together in the Guards! Guards! audiobooks, and the switch between them was seamless, allowing for a particularly awesome listen.  Throw in an interesting short afterword about fantasy elements by acclaimed author Ben Aaronovitch, and this proved to be a remarkable and compelling audiobook I could not get enough of.  While Nigel Planer’s original narration of Guards! Guards! is always going to live in my head rent free, I felt that this new version more than lived up to the hype surrounding it, and I really appreciated the unique and powerful performances these new narrators brought to the table.  Frankly both of the audiobook versions comes highly recommended by me, and it is impossible to be dissatisfied by them at all.

Whew, well in case you could guess from this massive review (it got away from me), I love Guards! Guards! and I have some very strong feelings for it.  One of Terry Pratchett’s best Discworld novels, Guards! Guards! is the perfect blend of fantasy, crime fiction and humour that you could ever want, and I always get wrapped up in its elaborate story.  A wildly entertaining and comedic novel from start to finish, Pratchett added so much heart to this book, and you get drawn into the impressive characters and compelling, crime fiction plot.  A brilliant start to the City Watch subseries, Guards! Guards! is so damn good, and I know I will be reading it many more times in my life.  I can think of no better way to emphasise just how amazing Guards! Guards! is than to mention that I used it to introduce the Discworld to my wife, who is now powering through the series on her own.  So do yourself a favour and check this book out now!

Amazon

Warhammer 40,000: Double Eagle by Dan Abnett

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer19 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 January 2004)

Series: Warhammer 40,000/Sabbat Worlds

Length: 10 hours and 16 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

The master of Warhammer fiction, Dan Abnett, takes to the skies with the deeply addictive and ultra epic fighter pilot novel Double Eagle.

Readers familiar with this blog will know that I have been extremely damn obsessed with Warhammer fiction the last couple of years, having spent a substantial amount of time reading and reviewing numerous books from the franchise.  Of the many Warhammer fiction authors I have read during this period, one of the most impressive is the legendary Dan Abnett, who has written so many exceptional and powerful books around the franchise, including several series considered to be the seminal texts of the extended universe.  I have had a ton of fun with many of his books, including his brilliant Eisenhorn trilogy (Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus), and he has multiple entries in my current favourite Warhammer 40,000 books list.  However, his best-known series is the iconic Gaunt’s Ghosts books, which I am currently in the middle of reading.

The Gaunt’s Ghosts books are a beloved and key series of Warhammer 40,000 fiction that seeks to give readers a moving look at the lives of the frontline human soldier in this grimdark universe.  Set in an extended, multi-planet campaign, known as the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, the Gaunt’s Ghosts books follow a ragged regiment of soldiers as they attempt to survive the dark servants of Chaos coming for them.  I am having an exceptional time reading the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, and in 2024 alone I have read two particularly epic entries, Straight Silver and Sabbat Martyr.  However, before I dive any further into the series, I decided to read the spin-off novel, Double Eagle, which I have had on my to-read list for a while now.  Double Eagle was an interesting and unique novel that follows members of an airmen wing who were introduced in the fifth Gaunt’s Ghosts book, The Guns of Tanith.  Set after their mission with the Ghosts, Double Eagle follows these pilots, including a few characters from The Guns of Tanith, in a brutal new campaign.

War has engulfed the Sabbat World system as the forces of the Imperium of Man attempt to reclaim multiple worlds invaded by the forces of Chaos.  After years of fighting, the Imperium’s crusade has reached a tipping point, with victory or defeat for the entire campaign hanging on the results of a few key battles.  While the fighting is fierce throughout the system, nowhere is it more desperate than the beleaguered world of Enothis.

After failing to conquer the Chaos footholds on Enothis, the infantry and armoured forces of the Imperium are in full retreat, attempting to traverse miles of hostile terrain to return to safe territory, all while being harassed by relentless enemy aircraft.  With the fate of the planet in the balance, the commanders of the crusade deploy multiple squadrons of Imperial fighters and bombers to Enothis to turn the entire conflict into an air war.  If the Imperial pilots can hold back the advancing tides of Chaos and allow the ground forces to regroup the war for Enothis may be won.  But if the airmen fail, then Enothis and the entire Sabbat Worlds campaign is doomed.

Amongst the pilots sent to Enothis are the elite flyers of the Phantine Air Corps.  Veterans from the recent war to liberate their home planet of Phantine, the pilots of the Phantine Air Corps are determined to do their bit in this new conflict.  But the battle for Enothis will be unlike anything seen before, as thousands of Chaos aircraft descend on the planet, hoping to obliterate the defenders.  Severely outnumbered, can even the dogged Phantine pilots hold back the approaching tide of dark air machines before the planet is conquered, especially with an unnaturally skilled Chaos ace stalking the skies, determined to bring every opposing pilot down in flames?

Just when I think that Dan Abnett couldn’t impress me even more, I go and read Double Eagle.  A brilliant, intense, and exceptionally well-written novel that focuses on a particularly cool aspect of the Warhammer universe, Double Eagle blew me away with its great characters and elaborate air combat sequences.  I had an incredible time with Double Eagle, and it gets an easy five-star rating from me.

I deeply, deeply enjoyed Double Eagle, as Abnett took the brief of a Battle of Britain-inspired Warhammer 40,000 story and applied his usual impressively detailed style and powerful character-driven storytelling to produce an outstanding and addictive read.  Perfectly spinning off from the previous Gaunt’s Ghosts books and bringing the reader to another adventure in the expansive Sabbat World Crusades, Double Eagle has a brilliant narrative loaded with action that goes hard and fast for your feels and refuses to let go once it has you firmly in your grasp.

Double Eagle starts off quickly, getting the reader across the brutal new campaign and the importance of the aerial war that emerges, you are soon introduced to multiple characters and shown some initial awesome sequences with some explosive dogfights.  From there the story moves at a fast but smart pace, as you follow several distinctive and often overlapping character arcs throughout the length of the brutal campaign on Enothis.  You really get dragged into each major protagonist’s story as they attempt to survive the flying war.  There are some excellent battle scenes in this first half of the book and Abnett really shows how epic he can make a fighter pilot dogfight very early on.  The characters each experience some highs and lows in the first half of the book, and it doesn’t take you long to get attached the protagonists and their complex personal tales within the confines of the main story.

However, it is the second half of the book where everything comes together perfectly.  Each of the protagonists experience some version of personal loss or difficulty, and the impact of the war slowly drains them, taking them to some dark places.  Abnett sets up a brilliant underdog narrative around the protagonists, as the massive fleet of Chaos airships seek to crush them.  You can really see the parallels between this narrative and the Battle for Britain at this point, especially as the tired and severely outnumbered Phantine fighters and their local allies attempt to hold back the overwhelming and often Germanic-inspired forces coming for them.  Everything leads up to a massive final confrontation, as the protagonists engage in a series of brutal and drawn-out dogfights and aerial confrontations as we lead up to the finale.  While a couple of the character arcs leading up to this are a tad unsurprising, the way that Abnett writes them makes you love every second it.  The author brings everything to an epic close with continued and captivating action that honestly is impossible not to react to at times.  There are some very powerful moments at the closes, especially when some characters get everything they want, and you come away from Double Eagle wishing Abnett had made this book even longer.

Abnett once again masterfully crafts his compelling narrative together in such an effective way that I honestly just couldn’t stop listening to this book.  Making excellent use of multiple complex perspectives, you are swiftly drawn into the lives of several ordinary soldiers drafted into the deadly aerial war against a massive opposing fleet.  Featuring a range of complex characters arcs, Abnett expertly balances the character-driven plot between the various perspectives, while also featuring an epic war story that hits in all the right places.  Abnett’s use of quick-fire perspective changes works to create an excellent and fast-paced narrative, and it works especially well in some of the novel’s more intense sequences.  Speaking of action, you can’t talk about Double Eagle without discussing the amazing and epic aerial fight scenes and dogfights that make the book so damn distinctive.  Abnett did a remarkable job of harnessing the energy and feel of classic World War II fighter combat and bringing it into the Warhammer 40,000 universe.  Featuring many, many awesome sequences of aerial combat, Double Eagle really feels like you’re in a futuristic Battle for Britain as you witness fights between small groups of fighters fending off mass raids from Chaos forces, as well as sequences from the perspective of Imperial bombers.  The resulting dogfights between advanced fighter craft works so damn well in the context of the story, and you are treated to some truly epic sequences.  I was constantly enthralled by the brilliant aerial combat and flight sequences, and Abnett did an exceptional job expressing the intensities of flight, the ultra-fast pace nature of the combat, and the craziness of a massed aerial battle.  I could have honestly spent many, many more hours listening to Abnett’s descriptions of aerial combat, and there are so many excellent writing elements to this book that drag you in.

Double Eagle also proved to be an interesting and particularly strong Warhammer 40,000 novel that is really going to appeal to a wide range of readers.  Spinning off from the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, Double Eagle is tailor made for fans of the original series, although familiarity with the Gaunt’s Ghosts books isn’t necessary to enjoy this epic book.  While there are a few references, returning characters, and discussions about the overarching Sabbat Worlds Crusade, for the most part any reader can easily dive into Double Eagle and follow the story with no issues at all.  As with most tie-in books in the franchise, Double Eagle is best enjoyed by existing Warhammer fans, who will once again enjoy Abnett’s compelling insights into the canon.  I know that I really loved the exploration of Warhammer 40,000 air combat, and I loved how Abnett explored the physics, as well as the reasons why aerial fighters are still utilised in a universe where space travel exists.  However, I also felt that Double Eagle would serve as a pretty good entry point to any new readers interested in finding out why the Warhammer 40,000 universe is so damn cool.  Indeed, readers who are a fan of aerial focused military fiction or World War II fighter combat fiction can very easily jump into the new world here, as Abnett really presents a tale they would enjoy.  I need to read more Warhammer books from Abnett (I have several currently in my queue), and I currently very excited to read the recently announced sequel to Double Eagle, Interceptor City, which is set to be released later this year.

I found that the writing element that really brought Double Eagle together where the excellent characters at the heart and soul of the plot.  Focusing on several intriguing pilot characters, Abnett dove into the mindset of these flyers and did an amazing job capturing their love of the air and their desire to be the best.  However, as the book continues, you see a darker side to many of these characters, as the toil of war drags them down into their own mental hells.  While it did take me a little while to get across every protagonist, I eventually got drawn into the excellent character-focused storylines that Abnett set up in Double Eagle, and it was great to see the return of several characters introduced in The Guns of Tanith.  This includes the Phantine flight commander, Bree Jagdea, and the bombardier Oskar Viltry.  Jagdea proves to be a great centre for much of the plot, and her steady determination to keep her flight together and survive the various rigors of war, really strike a chord with the reader.  Viltry’s narrative is a little more complex, as the veteran pilot is suffering from trauma after being shot down and captured in The Guns of Tanith.  Certain about his own impending death, Viltry spends much of the book as a morose and depressed figure, until he finds someone worth living for.  Viltry’s storyline proves to be particularly heartfelt, especially as he has a relatively nice romance angle, and I felt that Abnett really captured his trauma and desire for a better life.

Aside from Jagdea and Viltry, Double Eagle also features several other impressive perspective characters who really bring the narrative together.  This includes young Phantine pilot, Vander Marquall, who serves as a major protagonist.  A rookie pilot fighting in his first campaign, Marquall has a massive desire to prove himself.  His obsession with becoming an ace and being respected becomes an overwhelming part of his character, and you find yourself occasionally disliking him, while also simultaneously cheering him on.  Thanks to his interactions with the other characters, Marquall gets some much-needed perspective at times (that scene with his mechanic at the end was brilliant), and I felt he had one of the most complex, dark and relatable storylines in the entire book.  Abnett rounds out the characters with local pilots August Kaminsky, a wounded veteran no longer allowed to fly, and Enric Darrow, a rookie without a plane after getting shot down in the opening scenes by the novel’s big bad.  While parts of Kaminsky and Darrow’s storylines are a little predictable, you really get invested in their various battles, especially as Abnett produces some interesting character moments and interactions for them.  I especially loved the hilarious exchanges between Kaminsky and Jagdea during one fun sequence, and Darrow proves to be a very likeable and determined young character to get behind.  These main characters, plus an excellent supporting cast, were great to follow in Double Eagle, and it will be awesome to continue at least one survivor’s story in the upcoming sequel.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that I ended up listening to Double Eagle on audiobook, as there is frankly no better way to enjoy an epic Warhammer 40,000 novel.  While I always gush about how much I enjoy a Warhammer audiobook, I frankly really need to emphasise just how impressive and exceptional Double Eagle was in this format.  The many, many aerial combat sequences come across so damn well when they are read out to you, and I loved how easily it was to visualise the fast-paced and exceptional flight scenes.  You really get lost in the battles when you listen to them, and I was frankly buzzing the entire time I was listening to Double Eagle.  Part of the reason this audiobook was so damn good was the inclusion of one of my favourite audiobook narrators Toby Longworth.  Longworth has lent his voice to most of Abnett’s Warhammer 40,000 novels in recent years, and frankly the two are a match made in heaven.  The story comes across so effectively in Longworth’s voice, and he really makes every scene, especially the exciting action sequences, that little more epic.  I also really love the fantastic and compelling voices he uses for the various characters.  While a couple of character voices sounded the same as those Longworth used in the Gaunt’s Ghosts audiobooks, I felt that they perfectly fit every figure they were assigned to, and you really get drawn into the matching character arcs as a result.  Frankly this audiobook was perfect, and I had so much fun listening to it.  With a run time of just over 10 hours, the Double Eagle audiobook is very easy to power through, and that is exactly what I did.

With an elaborate, powerful and addictive story about glorious battles in the sky, Double Eagle was a particularly epic Warhammer 40,000 novel that proves impossible not to fall in love with.  Another exceptional novel from Dan Abnett, who once again shows why he is one of the best authors of Warhammer fiction, Double Eagle had me hooked from the very first chapter, and I honestly couldn’t stop reading it until the very end.  This book comes very highly recommended, and I cannot wait to read the sequel later this year.

Amazon

The Outsider by Stephen King

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Horror, Thriller, Throwback Thursday12 Comments

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton/Simon and Schuster Audio (Audiobook – 22 May 2018)

Series: Standalone/Holly Gibney series

Length: 18 hours and 41 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

After years of having it on my to-read list, I finally got around to checking out The Outsider by Stephen King, and boy was it a particularly epic book.

Fans of this blog will know that I have been getting more and more into Stephen King lately, especially as I have been lucky enough to receive copies of his more recent books.  I have so far deeply enjoyed Mr Mercedes, Later, Billy Summers (one of my favourite books of 2021), Fairy Tale, Holly (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023), and You Like it Darker (one of my favourite books from the first half of 2024).  These have all been amazing reads in their own way and I really enjoyed the elaborate stories, dark plots, and complex characters that King comes up with.  However, one of my new favourite King novels with a captivating scenario was the fantastic read The Outsider.

Released back in 2018, The Outsider was an intriguing novel that really caught my attention with its unique concept.  I immediately identified it as a book I wanted to read, but I was unable to fit it into my reading schedule back then, which I deeply regret now.  Despite not reading it when came out, The Outsider remained firmly in mind, especially as it had connections to the Bill Hodges trilogy, which I had also heard good things about.  This need to check out The Outsider was dramatically increased after I read Holly last year and was blown away by the elaborate and exceedingly dark story.  As such, I have been looking for an opportunity to enjoy The Outsider for a while, and a recent road trip gave me all the excuse I needed, and boy was I glad that I did.

It is the worst crime to ever occur in the history of Flint City.  A young boy, Frankie Peterson, has been brutally killed, raped and mutilated, his violated body left on display out in the local park.  The Flint City police, led by detective Ralph Anderson, are determined to find the monster responsible for Frankie Peterson’s death, and they soon zero in on a prime suspect, local sports coach and one of Flint City’s most respected citizens, Terrence Maitland.

With unassailable evidence and numerous witnesses placing him at the scene, the police have a watertight case against Maitland, and Anderson orders the public arrest of the coach in front of his family, friends, and the entire town.  However, despite the DNA, fingerprints, and numerous reliable witnesses indicating that Maitland killed Frankie, Maitland insists that he is innocent and has an airtight alibi for the time of the murder, having been in a major public conference in another city, surrounded by unimpeachable witnesses.

Determined to prove that Maitland committed the murder, Anderson and his colleagues attempt to destroy his alibi.  But the further they dig, the more apparent it becomes that Maitland was nowhere near the scene of the crime, and Anderson begins to believe Maitland’s pleas of innocence.  With lives being destroyed all around him and the citizens of Flint City baying for Maitland’s blood, Anderson is forced to figure out how a man can be in two places at once.  But when the situation takes a dark turn, both Anderson and Maitland’s supporters call in unusual investigator Holly Gibney, whose own experience with impossible cases will take them in the darkest of directions.

Well damn, that was particularly awesome.  I knew I was going to love The Outsider well before I read it, but even I was unprepared for how impressive and captivating this novel proved to be.  Featuring King’s typical elaborate storytelling, powerful characters, and unique insights into the human mind, The Outsider was a complex and sinister read that will have you hooked from the very beginning and which gets a very easy five-star rating from me.

King presents the reader with an incredibly, dark, complex and thoughtful narrative that burrows into your head and refuses to leave.  Starting off strong and proceeding into darker and more horror-lined territory, this complex narrative sucked me in almost instantly thanks to the very impressive initial story concept.  Introducing a particularly gruesome murder, The Outsider starts off in crime fiction/legal thriller territory, as King showcases the details of the initial arrest of Terrence Maitland, while also bringing in a few key characters.  These early chapters are cleverly offset by a series of short inclusions that showcase police interviews and forensic evidence for the main investigation, all of which firmly paints Maitland as the killer.  However, events take an outstanding turn shortly into the book, when Maitland reveals an impossibly airtight alibi that flies in the face of the substantial evidence of the police.  The full extent of this alibi is particularly compelling, especially with King name-dropping one of his peers, and it really turns the entire plot on its head.  The subsequent scenes are extremely intriguing, as the reader sees both sides of the case, and find themselves wondering if Maitland committed the crime, is completely innocent, or whether something far more sinister is going on.  I honestly love every second of this first half of The Outsider, and I cannot emphasise just how exceptional and thought-provoking this complex scenario proved to be.

At around the halfway point, The Outsider features a substantial moment that changes the entire tone and focus of the plot.  While I was initially a little disappointed with this, mainly because I was already loving the direction the story had been going up to that point, it helps turn The Outsider into a more typical King novel, loaded with complex horror elements that reflect dark human nature.  The author also deeply enhances the story’s emotional drama, placing several characters in terrible situations, and amping up the desperate tragedy of the plot.  Thanks to the introduction of recurring King protagonist Holly Gibney, the protagonists start to consider a more unnatural solution to the crime and begin to investigate accordingly.  I quite enjoyed the dive into the darker, supernatural side of the story, and the resulting investigation is quite unique, requiring the grounded protagonists to believe in the unknown.  King ensures that the supernatural investigation elements of the book come across in a compelling and sensible manner, and it was intriguing to see how the character’s reached their conclusions.  The case eventually leads the protagonists on an extended trip to Texas, which ends with a series of showdowns.  King keeps the intensity of the plot going all the way to the very end, and readers will be left guessing about who’s going to survive and how the story will unfold.  The chase for the culprit and the big showdown were a very solid conclusion to the entire narrative, and you will come away extremely satisfied with how The Outsider ended.

I really enjoyed how this book came together, and I personally think that this was one of the stronger King novels I have so far had the pleasure of reading.  A lot of this comes down to the initial clever scenario, which King does an extremely good job of setting up.  The whole idea of someone accused of a crime they are innocent of and have a perfect alibi for really makes you think, and King utilises it to perfection, diving into the thoughts of the police, the alleged perpetrator, and the various family members associated with it.  It helped that King once again returned to his favourite setting of a small American town, and he was able to capture the resulting chaos as rumour and fear spread throughout Flint City.  You can really feel the emotional turmoil of all the people in the town, especially the main characters, and it helped to deeply enhance the impact of every scene, especially when you have no idea whether Maitland committed the crime or not.  The way in which the author starts off as a more traditional crime fiction story also works extremely well and helps to drag the readers into the plot with its mystery.  However, the transition over to horror is particularly effective, and the way in which the darkness infecting the plot goes from that created by ordinary humans to something more supernatural, is an effective and powerful part of the book.  This proved to be a particularly haunting and moving read that will keep you up late at night thinking about how you would react in the exact same scenario.

While most of King’s books prove to be standalone reads, The Outsider is connected to the author’s previous Bill Hodges series due to the inclusion of a major supporting character.  I had heard in advance that readers needed to be familiar with the Bill Hodges books to fully appreciate this book, however, I felt that The Outsider stood on its own merits as a standalone novel.  New readers can easily dive into The Outsider’s excellent story without any issues and will become enthralled in King’s complex mystery and his excellent depictions of human nature.  Established fans of the Bill Hodges books will probably get the most out of The Outsider, especially as it is a continuation of King’s unique look at the crime fiction genre, and the return of a key character offers a lot of opportunities for those who loved his previous trilogy.  However, I would say that this is a book that pretty much all mystery, thriller or horror fans can really enjoy, as there is something for everyone here, although some readers should be warned about how dark and graphic this story can get.

I really need to highlight the outstanding character work that King featured within The Outsider.  This fantastic book featured a rich cast of complex small-town characters who find themselves caught up the twisted darkness of a small child’s murder and the subsequent revelations about who was behind it.  King does such an exceptional job of diving into the various mindscapes of the impacted characters, from the obsessed investigating detective who is taking the case personally, to the distressed wife of the apparent killer, and even the confused accused himself.  The complicated mindscapes of all these characters, and more, are shown in exquisite detail throughout The Outsider, and you really grow attached to their powerful personal tales.

While I don’t want to go into too much specific detail about the book’s primary cast here for spoiler reasons, I will say that the way the various characters deal with events and the many dark twists makes for quite a personal and emotionally charged read, and it was fascinating to watch so many characters try to let go of their conventional thinking and try to see the world in a different light.  I also must highlight the intriguing way in which King enhances his cast in the second half of The Outsider by bringing in investigator Holly Gibney from the Bill Hodges trilogy.  Holly, the slightly unusual but brilliant private eye, proved to be a compelling addition to the plot, and it proved very interesting to see her interact with the established cast, especially as Holly has a much more open mind due to her previous experiences.  Fans of the Bill Hodges books will really love seeing Holly return, and her compelling character development since her original appearance in Mr Mercedes proves to be a great part of the book.  I really cannot emphasise just how impressive the various characters, as well as their complex development, is in The Outsider, and you will have to check it out.  Be warned though, no one comes out of this book unscathed, including the reader when they become attached to these great figures.

As I mentioned above, I managed to enjoy The Outsider while out on a road trip, which meant that I listened to the audiobook version of it.  I have had some great success with Stephen King audiobooks in the past, and The Outsider was another impressive example of how this format can enhance the powerful story within.  Coming in with a substantial runtime of nearly 19 hours, listeners do require a bit of a time investment for The Outsider audiobook, but it is well worth it.  I felt that I got a fantastic sense of the story while listening to it, and I love the intense depictions of the characters, the small-town setting, and the dark deeds being done within.

In addition to the great way it brings to the story to life for the reader, one of the big highlights of The Outsider audiobook was the inclusion of veteran actor Will Patton as the narrator.  Patton, who has lent his voice to several of King’s previous audiobooks, does an outstanding job narrating The Outsider.  His softly spoken and measured voice really fits the dark and sinister story contained within The Outsider, and you get an excellent sense of the personal horror and complex emotions that the events of this book unleash.  Patton also does an outstanding job voicing the eclectic and damaged characters featured within The Outsider.  Patton infected many of these characters with his southern accent, which fit the small-town vibe of The Outsider extremely well, and you can really imagine King’s characters a lot better with Patton’s voice behind them.  Highlights for me include his take on the antagonist of The Outsider’s real voice, as well as an entertaining old lady found down in Texas, who steals all the scenes she’s in, especially with Patton’s exaggerated tones.  However, I did feel that Patton overplayed the awkward nature of Holly Gibney when she entered the plot.  Patton made all of Holly’s dialogue, as well as the description of events in the chapters told from her perspective, very subdued and halting, which messed with the flow of the audiobook.  While I know that he was trying to capture Holly’s ethereal and damaged nature with this narration, it was honestly a bit distracting.  Despite this slight annoyance, this ended up being an awesome way to enjoy The Outsider and I can personally guarantee that it is an incredible accompaniment to a long road-trip.

Overall, The Outsider proved to an outstanding and exceptional book from the always impressive Stephen King that I could not get enough off.  Featuring both an incredible mystery and some brilliant dark horror moments, The Outsider is a particularly gripping and intense read that will live rent free in the dark corners of your brain.  Highly recommended and one of my new favourite Stephen King books.

Amazon

Warhammer 40,000: Cain’s Last Stand by Sandy Mitchell

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer5 Comments

Cain's Last Stand Cover

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 January 2008)

Series: Ciaphas Cain – Book Six

Length: 10 hours and 30 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

Amazon

I’ve been on a real roll with the amazing Ciaphas Cain series by Sandy Mitchell (a pseudonym of Alex Stewart) lately, which is easily one of the funniest Warhammer 40,000 series out there.  Amazing books like For the Emperor, Caves of Ice, The Traitor’s Hand, Death or Glory and Duty Calls have all proved to be highly entertaining, and I like the author’s take on a less heroic figure in the martyr-filled grimdark Warhammer 40,000 universe.  As such, when in need of a particularly fun read, I made the very easy choice to power through another entry in this classic series last week with the sixth book, Cain’s Last Stand.  This was an unsurprisingly awesome book, and I loved the intriguing story that emerged.

Commissar Ciaphas Cain, legendary hero of the Imperium and self-professed fraudulent coward, has done the near impossible and survived decades of brutal service in the Imperial Guard.  Now effectively retired from active duty, Cain has returned to the planet of Perlia, which he helped save from an ork invasion early in his career, and now spends his time teaching Commissar cadets at the planet’s Schola Progenium.  However, the battle is never truly over for Cain, and soon dark forces begin to descend once again.

Half a galaxy away, Abaddon the Despoiler has launched his 13th Black Crusade, determined to invade the Imperium of Man.  While most of the fighting occurs around the fortress world of Cadia, a splinter fleet has broken off and is heading deep into the Imperium, defeating several forces sent to stop it.  When it becomes apparent that this fleet is heading directly for Perlia, Cain is once again forced into action, especially as he knows exactly what they are coming for.

An ancient alien device of devastating power lies hidden on Perlia, one capable of reshaping reality itself, and Cain is one of the few people who knows it’s there.  With no means of escape available and the fate of the galaxy in the balance, Cain is forced to lead the defence of Perlia against the oncoming Chaos tide.  With only a ramshackle army of local soldiers, militia and students from the Schola under his command, the defence of the planet looks grim, especially when faced with a charismatic Chaos lord and his fanatically loyal soldiers.  Worse, a far greater evil has its eyes on Perlia, one that Cain fears above all else.  Can the legendary hero of the Imperium pull out one last impossible victory before he rides off into the sunset, or has Cain finally met his match at the site of his greatest triumph?

Mitchell continues to bring joy to the dark Warhammer 40,000 universe with this epic sixth entry, which I had so much fun with.  Cain’s Last Stand was an excellent read, and I loved the cool and elaborate story that emerged.

I think Cain’s Last Stand might be one of my favourite stories that Mitchell has so far used for the Ciaphas Cain series, especially because it differs from the standard narrative patterns of the series, while also cleverly tying together some intriguing ongoing storylines.  Set further into the future than any of the previous books, you get to see a nearly retired Cain in action, as the series finally ties itself into the events of the 13th Black Crusade (the original version of it, not the darker recent retcon).  I liked how Mitchell takes the reader back to the setting of the fourth book, Death or Glory, and the initial scenes of Cain as a reluctant but capable teacher, were very fun.  The switch from Tyranids to Chaos as the main threat is handled extremely well, and I liked the continued niggle that even worse enemies are lurking around.  The subsequent reveal that the reason behind the invasion is due to the ancient artefact first hinted at in Death or Glory and then expanded on in Duty Calls was great, and Mitchell does an excellent job of tying the various ongoing storylines together.

The second half of Cain’s Last Stand proves to be a very fun planetary invasion arc, especially as Cain works to rally an unusual array of defenders, including untrained militia, under strength garrison forces, and his own students.  The forces of Chaos prove to be excellent foes for this story, and I liked the much more insidious nature of the threat that emerged, especially as there was a slow build to the reveal.  After plenty of action, clever ploys, some touching tragedy, and so much misdirection from the protagonist, the story eventually heads to the inevitable last stand, which cleverly mirrors a similar event from Death or Glory.  Mitchell does a great job of building up anticipation for this event, and it doesn’t disappoint as there are some excellent action sequences and fun revelations that occurred.  I particularly enjoyed the big bluff that leads to the death of a certain enemy, especially as it was a classic Cain antic.  The final reveal about the actual big bad of the story was well handled, and it leaves this storyline open for the future, which I am very excited for.  An overall excellent addition to the series that builds on the prior novels while offering existing fans something new to enjoy.

Mitchell continues to utilise the fantastic writing style that has made the other Ciaphas Cain books so much fun, and I love how it cleverly enhances the narrative of Cain’s Last Stand.  As always, the cool journal format, equipped with entertaining footnotes and in-universe texts from Inquisitor Amberley Vail, ensures that you get a frank and cynical look at events in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, and I love the inherent humour that results.  The various action scenes are exciting and fast-paced, and the constant commentary of complaints and annoyance that emerges from the protagonist are very entertaining.  This action and compelling humour are well offset by some of the darker elements of the plot, including some genuinely tragic moments, and you get thrown around the emotional ringer as a result.  This mixture of elements helped to create a much more impactful and complex read, and I appreciated some occasional seriousness to go with the impressive humour.

As with most books in the Ciaphas Cain series, Cain’s Last Stand can be read as a standalone read, especially as the author does a good job of rehashing relevant events from the prior novels.  However, for the full experience, especially when it comes to some fascinating storylines, reading the last two books would be good, and I really enjoyed how the author kept bringing the story back to these prior adventures.  While there was once again some repetition between books as Mitchell reutilises his favourite lines, I felt that the more original story and important connections to previous books ensured that Cain’s Last Stand stood out and got away from some of these minor issues.  An excellently written book that will appeal to both new readers and established fans of the series.

As always, I must give a callout to the outstanding characters featured in Cain’s Last Stand.  This of course includes Commissar Ciaphas Cain, the main protagonist and narrator, whose harrowing adventures we continue to follow.  I’ve talked a lot about the exciting dichotomy of Cain throughout my previous reviews, especially as he can be considered both a hero and a coward, and I loved seeing that occur again in Cain’s Last Stand.  Cain continues to be both a self-serving cad and a peerless commander, and it always fun to see himself plot to survive while discounting his own accomplishments.  His adventures in this book are particularly fun, and the inclusion of the protagonist as a teacher trying to get his methodology of command to Commissar cadets was a great choice from Mitchell and plays nicely on some of his offhand comments in previous books.  This, as well as the return to a planet important to his mythos, ensures that Cain has a lot to think about in Cain’s Last Stand, and I really enjoyed the way his past adventures keep coming back to haunt him.  This was a powerful adventure for Cain, and I always enjoy seeing the protagonist debate his own legacy whilst doing his trademark daring deeds.

The supporting cast for Cain’s Last Stand was also very good, and it provided an interesting mixed of established characters, returning figures, and raft of great new comrades.  This includes Inquisitor Amberley Vail, whose role as the overarching narrator of the book, as well as the person behind the footnotes, ensures that her fun influence is felt the entire way through.  Cain’s faithful bagman, Jurgen, was also a welcome inclusion, and his loyal service and fun interactions with Cain were as great as always.  Jurgen once again showed why he is the true MVP of the Ciaphas Cain series, and you have to love the entertaining contrast between his Baldrick-esque appearance and his impressive abilities.  Other great characters include a favourite character from Death or Glory, an interesting array of fellow teachers from Cain’s Schola Progenium, and other unique comrades for the protagonist.  I particularly enjoyed the class of Commissar cadets who are being instructed by Cain, and it was fun to see the range of different personalities they had.  Throw in a smarmy Chaos warlord whose charisma and influence outweighed his abilities and stature, and you had a great cast for Cain’s Last Stand, and I had a lot of fun seeing Cain interact with them.

I once again had an outstanding time with the audiobook format of this book, and frankly there is no better way to enjoy a Ciaphas Cain novel.  Thanks to the epic and well-cast multiple narrators, readers get an amazing experience when they listen to Cain’s Last Stand, especially as it helps to really capture the crazy nature of the plot.  The main narrators are Stephen Perring and Penelope Rawlins, who voice Cain’s perspective and Inquisitor Vail’s notes respectfully.  Perring once again does an incredible job voicing the main cast of the story, especially Cain and Jurgen, while Rawlins has a lot of fun including her character’s informative, if often sarcastic, comments throughout the plot.  These two main narrators complement each other extremely well, and I always have an awesome time listening to them.  The audiobook also features the talents of additional narrators Richard Reed, John Banks and Phillipe Bosher, each of whom voice fun in-universe texts and pieces of propaganda to liven up the main plot and provide some amusing context for the main story.  I have so much love for how these narrators bring the story together and this proved to be another impressive audiobook to listen to, especially as its great style really fit the fantastic story Mitchell came up with.  With a run time of 10 hours and 30 minutes, this is a very easy audiobook to get through quickly, and I managed to finish it off in no time at all.

Cain’s Last Stand was another amazing entry in the Ciaphas Cain series by Sandy Mitchell, and I have so much love for this entertaining and fun Warhammer 40,000 series.  This sixth book was a particularly impressive entry in the series, and I loved the complex story that emerged, especially as it brings together several previous adventures from Mitchell’s outstanding protagonist.  A clever, exciting and overall funny book that I could not get enough of, Cain’s Last Stand comes highly recommended and I look forward to continuing this series in the future.

Amazon