Grey Knights (Warhammer 40,000 Novels)
by Ben Counter
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ben CounterEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-06-01
ISBN: 1844160874
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: Games Workshop
Book Reviews of Grey Knights (Warhammer 40,000 Novels)
Book Review: A great story with a couple annoying problems (3.5 stars)
Summary: 3 Stars
As an avid reader of Black Library fiction, Ben Counter is a bit of a confusing author to me. He writes with the vicious streak that you need to write with to accurately represent the type of sci-fi/fantasy war found in these books, and you'll never be able to accuse Counter of assembling a story without a plot. And this book is extremely well-paced. On the other hand, there are some elements of his work in this book that seem very derivative; the main character is extraordinarily dull, and Counter sometimes seems a little bit too focused on the superhuman abilities of Space Marines.
And, heck yes, they're supposed to be superhuman. I understand that, believe me. The Grey Knights are awesome, as well, with their shields of faith projected around them and their massive halberds as hand-to-hand weapons. It's hard not to think the Chapter is cool, as not one member of it has ever fallen to Chaos (one of the primary antagonists in the world of WH40k). They are demon slayers. Nothing in these descriptions says that they have to be wooden with no distinct personality characteristics. Literally the only way to tell Alaric, the main character, from the other Marines is that the book focuses on him. I'm told that in the Soul Drinker stories, Counter does a better job with his Space Marine protagonists' personalities, and that's good. It doesn't show up here, though.
The main plot of the story is Alaric and his fellow Knights must stop the reappearing of an ancient, immensely powerful demon and the man who would summon it, an ex-Inquisitor named Valinov. I have no problem at all with this plot, as it's generally very well paced and executed. That doesn't mean it doesn't have some annoyingly derivative parts. Is anyone else here a big fan of Inquisitors? I am, and what I don't understand about Black Library stories about them in general is why authors find the need to have so many of them cross the line into Chaos worship. Don't get me wrong, Inquisitors work in higher-risk situations than probably anybody in the Imperium in this universe, but jeez, if they're going to be given all this authority...shouldn't they be trained to reject Chaos?
What I'm saying is that this has been done before. Valinov is an ex-Inquisitor, and in this book there's another character closely related to the Inquisition who--surprise!--falls down the path of Chaos despite there never really being anything that would suggest he/she would be weak enough to let it happen. I can only assume that Dan Abnett and Ben Counter have differing views on how corruptable people are. In Abnett's books, one can avoid corruption by the "Armour of Contempt" and apparently that ain't true here. You can fall to Chaos despite working feverently against it and hating what it stands for.
I'm rambing, and probably being too negative. Alaric is kind of a wooden character but a passable hero nonetheless, and the human (not Space Marine) characters that Counter crafts are all very good. It's kind of like watching a movie with a bad lead and a great supporting cast. They don't quite compensate for Alaric's Wooden Marine impression, but it helps the book move along better and helps you immerse yourself in the twisting plot. The final battle scenes are very well done and, as I've said before, Counter writes with the mean streak that you want to see from an author of a 40K book.
Overall, I give this book 3.5 stars, as the positives really outweigh the negatives to make this an altogether fun read. Nothing special, but fun. Dark Adeptus, the second book in the GK series, isn't nearly as good, but I heartily recommend this one.
Summary of Grey Knights (Warhammer 40,000 Novels)
There are times when the scale of a daemonic infestation is such that even the most formidable and righteous Inquisitors need to call upon aid to triumph. High speed action and adventure with the elite Grey Knights as they struggle to banish the powerful daemin Ghargatuloth before time runs out and the creature is free to rampage aroung the universe! Ben Counter's lates foray into the war-torn far future is packed with white hot action featuring the superhuman daemonhunters - the Grey Knights. From the epic clash between man and infernal daemon to the dark horrors of Chaos, Ben Counter hits the target on every level!Literature & Fiction Books
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