Warhammer 40,000: Sabbat Martyr by Dan Abnett

On April 26, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer8 Comments

Sabbat Martyr Cover

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 December 2002)

Series: Gaunt’s Ghosts – Book Seven

Length: 10 hours and 35 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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In addition to my review for Straight Silver, I also present a review for the impressive and epic seventh novel in Dan Abnett’s Gaunt’s Ghosts series, Sabbat Martyr. This was an outstanding and fantastic addition that perfectly followed on from some of the previous books in the series, including Necropolis, Honour Guard and The Guns of Tanith, while also throwing the beloved protagonists into all manner of trouble.

It is a time of miracles in the Imperium of Man. As Warmaster Macaroth continues his extensive and exhaustive Sabbat World Crusade, the forces of the Imperium are stretched like never before. However, word has reached the ears of all the faithful in the Sabbat Worlds that the legendary Saint Sabbat has reincarnated on the isolated and pious world of Herodor. There, in Civitas Beati, a holy city dedicated to her, the reborn Saint awaits the faithful, the pilgrims, and the mighty warriors of the Imperium.

Amongst those summoned to Herodor are the battle tested and weary soldiers of the Tanith First-and-Only, better known as Gaunt’s Ghosts. Thanks to their previous victories, as well as their involvement in miracles associated with the Saint, the Ghosts and their leader, Colonel-Commissar Gaunt, have been personally chosen by Sabbat to be her honour guard. However, nothing on Herodor is as it seems, and Gaunt finds himself drawn into deceptive military politics and the manipulated beliefs of the city. Worse, the forces of the Emperor of Mankind aren’t the only ones who have heard the call of the new Saint.

As Gaunt attempts to establish order in the city, an unstoppable danger appears on the horizon in the form of the infamous followers of Chaos, the Blood Pact. Lead by the terrible Chaos warlord, Enok Innokenti, the invading forces of Chaos have one mission: find and kill the reborn Saint, and, by doing so, rob the Imperium of hope. Desperately outnumbered and faced with impossible odds, Gaunt and his ghosts will need to do all they can to save the Saint and the city. However, the dread Innokenti will have the Saint’s head by any means necessary and has sent nine deadly and corrupt killers to ensure this happens. Can Gaunt and the Tanith First-and-Only pull off a miracle in the name of their blessed saint, or is this their final battle?

Abnett pumps up the feels and brings together some amazing storylines in this seventh excellent Gaunt’s Ghosts book. An action-packed and highly intense read, Sabbat Martyr was another exceptional read, and one that I absolutely powered through thanks to its addictive and powerful story.

Sabbat Martyr has a pretty impressive story behind it, especially as Abnett wraps up the Saint sub-series within the larger Gaunt’s Ghosts books, in a big way. Starting off fairly typically, with the Ghosts arriving on a new world to take care of some riffraff, Abnett quickly sets the scenes and revisits several of the key existing storylines and character arcs. However, Sabbat Martyr goes in some intriguing new directions as Gaunt and his soldiers encounter what appears to be a reborn Imperial Saint, who has inspired a new bout of religious fervour and devotion in the region. This proves to be an interesting new angle which ties this book into the larger concerns of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, rather than focusing on the fight of the common footslogger. I liked this change of focus, especially as it fits with the hints raised in the preceding novels, and the initial intrigues of the novel added a level of uncertainty that worked quite nicely. A fantastic, extended battle scene ended the first third of the book nicely, especially as it leads to some big revelations and sets the scene for the second half of the book.

The second half of Sabbat Martyr is where things get really interesting. Abnett cleverly uses the start of this half to quickly extend several great character arcs, which sets some figures up for some dark times, while others are restored in interesting ways. However, you don’t have a chance to fully appreciate that, as Abnett then launches the reader right into a new phase of war, as deadly enemies literally rain down around the protagonists. Essentially the entire second half of the book is pure warfare, as the forces of Chaos arrive and harry the Imperial forces on every front, including with an extended space combat sequence. From there, the enemy arrives on Herodor in force, including the nine promised deadly killers, and all the protagonists are thrust into a deadly battle for survival.

I loved this last part of the book, especially as Abnett knows how to write an exceptional war sequence. Expertly splitting the story between numerous point-of-view characters, the resulting carnage is epic, with the protagonists forced into intense street fighting to survive. All these battles are well crafted, and show the protagonists at their most desperate, as they are slowly pushed back with seemingly no hope to win. I really loved these battles, as well as the simultaneous character arcs that tied into them, and you really get drawn in towards the big climax. I did think that Abnett slightly rushed this last half, mainly because he was trying to fit in too much at once. While the nine killers get a good introduction, they weren’t utilised as effectively as they could have been, and their appearances are a little briefer than you would have liked. Indeed, there is so much potential material in this second half that Abnett could have honestly fit his story across two books and really expanded everything out. Still all the big battles are very epic, and the big climatic fight sequence proves to be everything you could have wanted. Abnett wraps everything up with some major tragedy, as multiple character arcs come full circle in a big and emotionally charged way. As such, readers, especially established fans of the series, come away from Sabbat Martyr shaken while Abnett clearly and decisively ends a major chapter in the Gaunt’s Ghosts series.

Abnett does a really good job bringing this epic story to life, and I deeply appreciated just how dark and intense Sabbat Martyr got in places. Expertly utilising multiple character perspectives to tell an elaborate story, you really get sucked into the massive carnage that emerges, and I really must commend Abnett for the impressive battle scenes. Abnett has his methodology set for the Gaunt’s Ghosts books by this point in the series, and I love how smoothly his story unwinds. The blend of character focussed storytelling and intense action makes for an exciting read, and I really got invested in this outstanding seventh entry in the series. I did appreciate how Abnett took his protagonists into the much wider realm of faith, saints and holy power that is well established in other Warhammer 40,000 fiction, but not something we’ve typically seen in this series. It honestly made for a unique change of pace, and Abnett does a great job wrapping ongoing storylines around it. I also appreciated how several loose ends and antagonists from previous novels got revisited here, including one of the big issues I had with Honour Guard which got nicely resolved here. This does mean that unlike the other Gaunt’s Ghosts books, Sabbat Martyr is less accessible for new readers, although Abnett does a good job of summarising old storylines where needed. As such, this proved to be an epic entry in the wider series, and I really enjoyed how this chapter of the Gaunt’s Ghosts books came to an end.

As with all the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, the heart of Sabbat Martyr lays in the extended cast of protagonists from whom the elaborate story emerges. Abnett has a very well-established cast of characters for Sabbat Martyr, and it was frankly moving to see how this story unfolded for them. The author does a good job splitting the story amongst the cast, and I appreciated how this book, unlike the previous novel, didn’t overdo the number of primary cast members. The resulting character arcs and personal stories proved to be very moving and intense to different degrees, and Abnett really got dark in places, especially when it came to bringing certain character storylines full circle.

Now, I won’t go into too much detail about the characters here, because I don’t want to ruin some major parts of the book. However, I will say that Gaunt is once again a great central figure, and it was intriguing to see him impacted by his fate, as well as the many friendships he’s made throughout the series. In addition, Gol Kolea gets a nice addition to his story, which I really appreciated, while one of the original Ghosts, Brin Milo, finds himself going on some bold new adventures that tie in nicely to his long-hinted destiny. The feud between Lijah Cuu and Hlaine Larkin that was such a dark and memorable part of Straight Silver, comes to a great conclusion here, and Cuu really proves to be the ultimate villain of this series. Agun Soric’s battle with his unusual messages is another highlight, especially as Abnett works in some powerful personal struggles, as well as a very dark ending that will leave you hurting. All these character arcs, and more, are handled perfectly and all readers, especially those who have enjoyed the rest of the series, will really appreciate how Abnett continues or concludes them here. However, I may never forgive Abnett for the big tragedy that occurs at the end that ensures the Tanith First-and-Only will never be the same again.

It goes without saying that I ended up listening to Sabbat Martyr on audiobook, especially after how impressed I have been with the previous Gaunt’s Ghosts audiobooks. Coming in with a run time of 10 and half hours, Sabbat Martyr was another descent length Warhammer 40,000 audiobook that I just flew through. This format works so well to tell epic Warhammer 40,000 stories, and I loved how effectively the fight sequences came through in Sabbat Martyr, as you can so easily envision Abnett’s massive action set pieces. A lot of how effective Sabbat Martyr’s audiobook is comes down to excellent narrator Toby Longworth, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators. Longworth, the established narrator for all things Gaunt’s Ghosts (as well as Abnett’s other audiobooks like, Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus), has long perfected the voices he uses within these audiobooks, and it was great to hear his established tones and voices again. The narrator really has all the key characters down and love the fitting and effective voice each of them has. This impressive voice work deeply enhances an already awesome story, and you really get to feel the emotions and actions of each of the characters. I honestly had such a great time listening to the Sabbat Martyr audiobook, especially in some of the more intense action scenes which swept my imagination away, and this is easily the best format by which to enjoy this amazing book .

With fire, blood and faith, Abnett wraps up a major part of his iconic Gaunt’s Ghosts series in a big way with the epic Sabbat Martyr. Loaded with war, personal conflict, powerful developments, and some memorable tragedy, Sabbat Martyr was a worthy and intense addition to the series, and one that I couldn’t stop listening to. I had such an exceptional time with this book, and Sabbat Martyr, and indeed the entire Gaunt’s Ghosts series, is required reading for all Warhammer 40,000 fans.

Sabbat Martyr Cover 2

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Warhammer 40,000: Straight Silver by Dan Abnett

On April 26, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer9 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 December 2002)

Series: Gaunt’s Ghosts – Book Six

Length: 9 hours and 52 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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After having a blast reading and reviewing The Traitor’s Hand, my desire for more things Warhammer 40,000 needed to be sated, so I dove into the exceptional and gritty Gaunt’s Ghost book by Dan Abnett, Straight Silver.

While there are some truly impressive Warhammer 40,000 authors out there, few can match Dan Abnett in terms of quality and impact. One of the most significant authors of Warhammer fiction, Abnett has produced a great number of books in the franchise over the years, which includes several must-read series for all Warhammer fans. These include his substantial contributions to the massive Horus Heresy series, as well as the iconic Inquisitor extended series. The Inquisitor books include his impressive and highly compelling Eisenhorn trilogy, made up of Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus, and which are amongst my favourite literary trilogies. While I am a huge fan of these novels, probably his most grounded and well-known contribution to the Warhammer 40,000 canon are the Gaunt’s Ghosts novels.

The Gaunt’s Ghosts books are an extended series that follows the members of the Tanith First-and-Only, a weary and battle-hardened regiment of Imperial Guard soldiers. Led by Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt and known for their stealth abilities and the destruction of their home planet, the Tanith First-and-Only have taken up the name Gaunt’s Ghosts and are fighting in the massive Sabbat World Crusades hoping to find a new planet to call home. This series emphasises the common human soldier and the gruelling realities of war in the grim Warhammer 40,000 future, and it is one of the most compelling series out there. I have had an outstanding time with this series and all the books I have read, including First and Only, Ghostmaker, Necropolis, Honour Guard, The Guns of Tanith, and the prequel novel The Vincula Insurgency, have been extremely epic and complex, perfectly blending great characters with intense action. Despite still having several books to go, the Gaunt’s Ghosts novels are one of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 series for a very good reason and I had no hesitation diving into the next book of the series, Straight Silver, when I needed something fun to read.

As the massive Sabbat World Crusades gain traction against humanity’s enemies, the Imperial forces finally have the capacity to send aid to the long-isolated planet of Aexe Cardinal. There the loyalist nations of the Aexe Alliances have been locked in a gruelling 40-year war against the Chaos corrupted Shadik Republic. Amongst the Imperial reinforcements sent to Aexe Cardinal are the veteran Ghosts of the Tanith First-and-Only, who are ready to make a dent in a new foe.

However, upon arriving on Aexe Cardinal, the Ghosts are surprised to find themselves under the command of the Aexe Alliance rather than their own generals. Forced to serve the whims of their new allies for political reasons, the Ghosts are soon thrust into the archaic way of fighting that have led the war to linger for decades. Worse, their new commanders refuse to use the Ghosts to their full potential, and the lightly armoured scouts find themselves fighting in bloody trench warfare.

Forced to endure confined conflict in ill-maintained trenches, the Ghosts find death constantly on the horizon as raids, bombardments, gas weaponry, and their own shattered morale begin to take their toll. To keep his regiment alive and sane, Gaunt volunteers his troops for the most dangerous missions where the Ghost’s scouting skills can be best utilised. However, the resulting campaigns will test Gaunt and his troops to the utter limit as the relentless forces of Chaos come crashing down upon them.

Straight Silver proved to be an exceptional entry to this amazing Warhammer 40,000 series. Featuring some powerful and gritty action that took its protagonists to dark places, this sixth entry in the Gaunt’s Ghosts series was so damn good that I managed to power through it in no time at all.

Abnett did a brilliant job coming up with a particularly intense and dark story that plants the protagonists and the reader into the middle of a gritty warzone. The main story is initially a little basic, with the Ghosts arriving on a new planet and finding themselves caught up in another long-standing war. However, the book takes an outstanding turn when the Ghosts, who work best as a scout force, are forced into an elaborate trench warfare scenario. Thanks to the excellent World War I inspired setting, the Ghosts are figuratively thrust back into the past and are forced to fight an old-fashioned type of war with their lasguns going up against firearms, chemical shells, and fixed lines of trenches. The constant grim trench battles, raids and fights across no man’s land that dominate the first half of this book are very intense, gory, and pointless, and the reader is swiftly drawn into the unusual and dangerous scenario the Ghosts find themselves in. Abnett masterfully captures so many aspects of this grim scenario, and you have to appreciate how brutal he makes the battles and the terrible conditions the characters find themselves in.

All these initial battles are expertly shown through the eyes of the many recurring characters of the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, and you swiftly begin to feel their despair and the rising tensions within them. This works well with many of the existing character arcs, as several figures deal with grudges, uncertainty about duty, and growing relationships. This excellent use of character arcs and perspectives humanises the fight, and you can’t help but get dragged even more into their hopeless situations. I particularly enjoyed how Abnett deliberately made the antagonists a purely human force, with no named enemy characters serving as the villain. This helps to reinforce that the true antagonist of the plot is human nature and their ability to wage unforgiving war, as the two opposing armies destroy everything around them.

While Abnett could have kept the characters in the trenches for a while and still had a good book, he chooses to accelerate the plot about halfway through Straight Silver, as the Ghosts are given a chance to prove themselves by going on two deadly missions. This splits the story, as Gaunt leads half the characters on a series of deadly raids behind enemy lines, while another small group of key characters find themselves away from the fighting as they scout a critical location in the woods. Naturally both storylines result in deadly chaos for the relevant protagonists, but I loved how they played out. The storyline with Gaunt was brutal infiltration across no man’s land at its finest, and there are so many shudder-inducing moments as they continuously encounter the horrors of war. The other storyline is much more a slow burn, as the characters find themselves isolated in the woods and only have themselves to fight with, as the grudges and resentments introduced at the start of the book are refreshed. While the characters come together when an enemy presents itself, they are still caught up in their raw emotions, and this results in some dark moments. Both storylines are resolve in an impressive and compelling manner, and the reader will come away enthralled, excited, and a little angry, as one excellent villain gets away with everything again. You are honestly left wanting more, especially as Abnett throws in some tantalising hints for the future, and the bloody battles and horrors of Straight Silver will stay with you long after you’ve finished.

As with most books in the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, Straight Silver can be read as a mostly standalone read, as many of the key characters and story arcs are expertly reintroduced throughout the course of the book. While readers will always get more out of Straight Silver if they read the other Gaunt’s Ghosts books first, especially as that will allow them to become more attached to the characters, a new reader can easily pick up Straight Silver and have an outstanding time getting through it. Straight Silver and the Gaunt’s Ghosts books can also be readily enjoyed by those people with minimal pre-knowledge of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. The Gaunt’s Ghosts books exist in their own little pocket of the universe, with the story completely focused on their own struggle as soldiers. As such, this makes these books perfect entry level reads for those wishing to learn more about Warhammer 40,000 fiction, and anyone with a love for science fiction or military fiction is going to love Straight Silver.

I’m always impressed with the amazing range of characters that Abnett fits into each of his Gaunt’s Ghost novels, as the author tries to constantly capture the entire experience of the regiment in a Band of Brothers sort of way. Unlike his Eisenhorn books, which had one perspective character, the Gaunt’s Ghosts follow many different protagonists, which allows you to see a massive picture of events unfolding. This works really well, and I loved the huge range of unique perspectives and personalities that emerged, as well as the different views of the fights and internal conflicts. I did think that Straight Silver might have featured a few too many different perspectives, as Abnett tried to bring some new characters to the fore. This meant that several of the established cast from the previous book didn’t have a chance to shine here and were often sidelined, while the newer characters didn’t impress as much in their first big appearance.

There were still a ton of great character arcs going on, and even with less time in the spotlight, many of these characters made the most of it. Main protagonist Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt gets a good showing, especially as he is forced into conflict with his friend, the highly moral Chief Medic Tolin Dorden, and he is forced to balance his responsibilities as a Commissar with the love he holds for his soldiers. Newly promoted Sergeant Tona Criid proves to be an absolute badass character, and it was great to see her take command and kick butt. Sergeant Agun Soric has some great scenes as he slowly comes to realise his latent psychic abilities, while the formerly charismatic Gol Kolea is a hard figure to read about, after suffering a head wound in the previous book and losing his intelligence. However, the best storyline in Straight Silver involves the mad sniper Hlaine Larkin and the nefarious trooper Lijah Cuu (sure as sure). Thanks to their interactions in the previous book, the slippery murderer Cuu has a major grudge against Larkin and is determined to kill him, just like he did Bragg. This results in a deadly game of cat and mouse between the two, as Larkin tries to survive both the enemy and Cuu. Cuu comes away as such a good villain for this book (even more than the enemy), and you can’t help but hate the guy, especially as there is something slick and scary in his every appearance. These characters, and many more, helped to turn Straight Silver into an exceptional read, and you really get wrapped up in their unique experiences of war.

I doubt anyone who has every read one of my Warhammer reviews will be surprised that I ended up listening to Straight Silver on audiobook. All Warhammer books are so much better in this format, and the Gaunt’s Ghosts audiobooks are a great example of this, especially with narrator Toby Longworth. Longworth, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators, has lent his voice to most of Abnett’s Warhammer audiobooks, and he always does a remarkable job moving the story along and describing the book’s epic battle sequences. This is extremely evident in Straight Silver, and I very quickly powered through this audiobook because of how good it is.

I especially loved the awesome voices that Longworth came up with for the various characters featured throughout the book, and he goes out of his way to ensure that every figure has their own distinctive and fitting voice. Many of these voices are carried over from the previous audiobooks, and it was great to get the continuity for each of the recurring characters, so much so that by this point listeners of the other Gaunt’s Ghosts books can figure out who is talking just by hearing their particular tone. One thing I particularly appreciate is the range of accents that Longworth distributes across the audiobook. Each group of soldiers, such as the original Tanith troopers, the new Verghastite recruits, and the soldiers of Aexe Cardinal, are given their own distinctive accents, and this cool attention to detail is what makes Longworth such a good narrator. This was such an epic audiobook; with a runtime of nearly ten hours, most people can power through it, especially when they get caught up in the epic story.

Straight Silver is a particularly epic and impressive addition to the Gaunt’s Ghosts series as Dan Abnett takes his fame regiment down into battle hell. Loaded with intense moments, a powerful background setting, and multiple engaging character arcs, Straight Silver is an exceptional read, and it is honestly one of the strongest Gaunt’s Ghosts books I have so far read. An utterly addictive Warhammer 40,000 novel, I can give it no higher honour as a reviewer than to say the moment I finished it, I instantly grabbed the next book in the series, read it, and will be putting up a review for it now.

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