The Blood Angels Omnibus (James Swallow)
This omnibus collects two novels and a short story. Normally I'd review the novels separately, but they're basically two halves of the same tale, and if I had read the first novel by itself, I probably would have been pissed at the cliffhanger ending. (I also don't know that I have much to say without giving away the first book's story.)
Collected as a omnibus, the two novels work great; I have yet to read a bad James Swallow book, and the streak holds here. Swallow's villains are always more interesting than his heroes, and this omnibus stars a particularly loathsome piece of filth pitted against our (somewhat forgettable) heroes. I don't want to say much more except that this falls into solid good-not-great territory; it's a easy recommend for W40k fans, but if you're not familiar with the setting, I'd recommend Swallow's excellent Fear to Tread first, which covers the same chapter of Space Marines and serves as a very nice introduction.
Grade: B+
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Friday, August 15, 2014
"The Cuckoo's Egg"
The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage (Cliff Stoll)
This is a real-life detective story that I had a really hard time putting down. The book kicks off when the author notices a seventy-five cent billing discrepancy in his mainframe system (this is back in the 80's when people were paying for computer time), and a little digging ends up turning up, well, I'm not really sure I should say.
I can say that I really liked this book; it's mostly about computer crime, but I wouldn't worry about it being too esoteric (I mostly find it charming - the mainframes these guys are chasing each other through have a faction of the power of your phone.) I would recommend skipping the back cover, which gives away the mystery, but otherwise I have nothing but good things to say.
Grade: B+
This is a real-life detective story that I had a really hard time putting down. The book kicks off when the author notices a seventy-five cent billing discrepancy in his mainframe system (this is back in the 80's when people were paying for computer time), and a little digging ends up turning up, well, I'm not really sure I should say.
I can say that I really liked this book; it's mostly about computer crime, but I wouldn't worry about it being too esoteric (I mostly find it charming - the mainframes these guys are chasing each other through have a faction of the power of your phone.) I would recommend skipping the back cover, which gives away the mystery, but otherwise I have nothing but good things to say.
Grade: B+
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
"Honour Imperialis"
Honour Imperialis (Aaron Dembski-Bowden, Rob Sanders, Steve Lyons)
A W0K omnibus about the good ol' Imperial Guard. I'm going to review all of the novels one by one.
Dead Men Walking (ADB) - This is probably the worst ADB novel I've read yet, meaning it's just good and not great. Honestly, by the time I got to the end of the omnibus, I'd forgotten almost everything that happened in this novel; I do remember there were some great action scenes, and I was also kind of gobsmacked that the book contained literally zero female characters. (The Imperial Guard's omnisex - unlike the setting's popular stars, the Space Marines - so there's really no excuse.) That said, I don't want to be too tough on the book; it's exactly the kind of above-average but not spectacular book that fits perfectly in a omnibus like this.
Grade: C+
Cadian Blood (Rob Sanders) - This author wrote one of my all time favorite W40K novels in Atlas Infernal, and he's written probably the best novel in this omnibus. My big issue with Cadian Blood is the same problem I had with Atlas Infernal : The author keeps jumping around the chronology of the story, cutting between our heroes being interrogated in prison and earlier scenes running around fighting Orks. This is annoyingly confusing, all the more so as some characters are introduced in the flash-forwards before we meet them in the earlier parts, which make up the bulk of the book. Still, this is pretty good - it's not quite as bonkers as Atlas Infernal, but this novel is the star of the omnibus.
Grade: B
Redemption Corps (Steve Lyons) - Remember when I said that Cadian Blood was bonkers? This book has Imperial Guard guys charging Necrons on horses. I couldn't imagine this without laughing.
That's pretty much the high point. This is a good-not-great book, unfortunately weighed down by making the focal point of the beginning of the book a frankly boring romance between two goofs I was hard-pressed to care about. After this problem is disposed of, the novel falls into the W40k trap of having too many POV characters, although in fairness it's not nearly as bad as some other books (cough, cough). I'd recommend just skipping all the parts with the two lovers, at least until the second half of the book - once the Necrons warp in the book gets a lot more interesting.
Grade: B-
After the main attraction there's four short stories - one really good ADB one, one not so great Steve Lyons one, and two pretty good ones by (cough cough) and (mumble mumble). All in all, this is one of the stronger W40K omnibusses out there; there's not a single miss here, and while none of the novels themselves are superstars, all three of them for $9 is a great deal.
Total Grade: B+
A W0K omnibus about the good ol' Imperial Guard. I'm going to review all of the novels one by one.
Dead Men Walking (ADB) - This is probably the worst ADB novel I've read yet, meaning it's just good and not great. Honestly, by the time I got to the end of the omnibus, I'd forgotten almost everything that happened in this novel; I do remember there were some great action scenes, and I was also kind of gobsmacked that the book contained literally zero female characters. (The Imperial Guard's omnisex - unlike the setting's popular stars, the Space Marines - so there's really no excuse.) That said, I don't want to be too tough on the book; it's exactly the kind of above-average but not spectacular book that fits perfectly in a omnibus like this.
Grade: C+
Cadian Blood (Rob Sanders) - This author wrote one of my all time favorite W40K novels in Atlas Infernal, and he's written probably the best novel in this omnibus. My big issue with Cadian Blood is the same problem I had with Atlas Infernal : The author keeps jumping around the chronology of the story, cutting between our heroes being interrogated in prison and earlier scenes running around fighting Orks. This is annoyingly confusing, all the more so as some characters are introduced in the flash-forwards before we meet them in the earlier parts, which make up the bulk of the book. Still, this is pretty good - it's not quite as bonkers as Atlas Infernal, but this novel is the star of the omnibus.
Grade: B
Redemption Corps (Steve Lyons) - Remember when I said that Cadian Blood was bonkers? This book has Imperial Guard guys charging Necrons on horses. I couldn't imagine this without laughing.
That's pretty much the high point. This is a good-not-great book, unfortunately weighed down by making the focal point of the beginning of the book a frankly boring romance between two goofs I was hard-pressed to care about. After this problem is disposed of, the novel falls into the W40k trap of having too many POV characters, although in fairness it's not nearly as bad as some other books (cough, cough). I'd recommend just skipping all the parts with the two lovers, at least until the second half of the book - once the Necrons warp in the book gets a lot more interesting.
Grade: B-
After the main attraction there's four short stories - one really good ADB one, one not so great Steve Lyons one, and two pretty good ones by (cough cough) and (mumble mumble). All in all, this is one of the stronger W40K omnibusses out there; there's not a single miss here, and while none of the novels themselves are superstars, all three of them for $9 is a great deal.
Total Grade: B+
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