Incarnation

[Knockagh]

Just a few chapters into this and I’m loving it. It’s got a much better feeling to it than the opening book which i felt was a reasonable effort nothing amazing but the opening chapters of number two are shaping up beautifully. Very atmospheric. My reading time is severely curtailed at the moment so it will be a slow read but wonderfully good so far.

[1ncarnadine]

The first one took a while to get rolling. It was strange in that I didn't feel the stakes in it until the last act. Really looking forward to this, though, so I'm glad to hear it's off to a good start! I'm planning on jumping right into it after my second read-through of Slaves to Darkness. John French marathon, ho!

[Knockagh]

I had really mixed feelings after reading the first one. I was all hyped over new inquisition novels. It came out around the time Chris Wraight released his, which was excellent. Truthfully I didn’t really enjoy the opening Horusian offering but didn’t really dislike it either. I wasn’t overly hopeful for this but it’s working out much better than I thought.

[DarkChaplain]

That has me hopeful. I didn't really like Resurrection either.

[Taliesin]

Definitely interested in seeing more thoughts on this book, keep going Pete! :)

[Red_Shift]

I bought and read the first one a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed it so jumped straight into this one. To be honest I'm struggling. I've got about half way through and taken a break from it to re read titanicus.

 

I've found the new characters uninteresting and its been a bit of a slog. Nothing seems to have really happened! Hopefully it will pick up in the second half.

[Apothecary Vaddon]

Hm, might have to finish Resurrection...got through the first 15 pages and put it down due to boring my brains out of my skull

[b1soul]

What did you folks dislike about Resurrection?

[DukeLeto69]

Hm, might have to finish Resurrection...got through the first 15 pages and put it down due to boring my brains out of my skull

I got further than 15 pages but yeah pretty much the same with me. It just didn't hook me in the same way as Chris Wraight's Vault of Terra book. I was really excited to be getting two Inquisitor series but just couldn't get into John French's book. Despite that I have still bought the second book and will go back and have another crack at Resurrection.

[DarkChaplain]

I just hope Incarnation doesn't repeat the same structure as Resurrection, where just when things start to get interesting, random battles happen with nobody getting seriously troubled and the band escapes. I was really interested in those first chapters, with the conclave and all, but after that it just seemed to go through the same motions over and over.

It's strange, but I love the Agent of the Throne dramas, and the shorts are good too, but Resurrection just disappointed on multiple levels.

[Izlude]

I agree with DC. The shorts like Maiden of Dreams was excellent and had me excited for Resurection. It was okay for me and for JF book that is not bad but when compared to the other two similar style books (Carrion Throne and Emperor’s Legion) is seemed over shadowed by those two as they were outstanding excellent. I did get this one as an ebook so have high hopes

[Knockagh]

Got through a few more chapters today and still loving it. The atmosphere and world building is just how I like it.

Honestly wish I could find a few hours of peace to sit and finsh it but that’s not looking likely for a week or so

[Roomsky]

I loved Resurrection so much, I didn't even notice it was one of my arch foes (books set in the Dark Imperium). For this reason, instead of vowing to destroy it, I instead vowed to cut it off on the freeway every morning.

 

In all seriousness, French is one of my favorites for how much time he devotes to making his worlds feel ignorant and oppressive, he always evokes in me that love of flying buttresses, and other vaguely gothic things that make the Imperium what it is. Certainly it wasn't perfect, but it did enough right for me to make #2 a must-read. The premise is also ingenious, I'm at a loss as to why authors haven't tackled the Horusians in such detail before now.

[Taliesin]

 

 The premise is also ingenious, I'm at a loss as to why authors haven't tackled the Horusians in such detail before now.

 

I've wondered about that as well, and it's why I am so interested in this series and glad that it is being covered.

[Knockagh]

I’m getting near the end here and if anything I’m enjoying it more and more. Covenant isn’t really the central character, the team is really the core character.

This is the inquisition book I wanted when BL returned to inquisition books. Its clever, jumps around the plot with plenty of mystery. It’s dark moody and sinister but our band of hero’s are that chink of light amoung the dark.

My only regret is not getting the time to read it in two or three sittings. My snatching a read here or there makes keeping up with the book slightly difficult but that’s my problem.

So far a brilliant book, hopefully no poor ending awaits

[Red_Shift]

I've just finished it. It got better as it went along but I would say that the reason was that the disparate threads began to pull together a bit more. It wasn't a bad book but I can't say I overly enjoyed it. The end twist was pretty predictable and I would have preferred a lot more attention on the members of covenants team particularly the rogue traders. To me it felt like it would have been a good book three, too many concepts teased in the first one just to be placed straight in the open here.

[Knockagh]

Finished this tonight. Wish I hadn’t decided to read it during an busy period at work/home, but I really did enjoy it. The end was rather frantic jumping around all over but aside from that it was excellent, I wish the first one had been more like this it can be hard to successfully complete a run that had a poor start.

I love stories that revolve around the church and it’s devotees their observances the added layers of their theological discourses.

[DukeLeto69]

So I decided to go back and give Resurrection another go. First time around I gave up during the first third of the book. For some reason it just didn't click with me. Cannot put my finger on why but I just didn't like it. I read it back-to-back with Chris Wraight Carrion Throne which was awesome so perhaps that was why?

 

Anyhow, having seen the positive reviews of Incarnation I was determined I give John French's inquisition series another go (as on paper that was a delicious combo). So glad I did...

 

The first 100 pages or so of Resurrection were still hard going but after that, once you get to the scenes in the Navigators Enclave...wow what a book. The last two thirds of the book were fantastic. I loved it. Still don't know why. Certainly not that the plot seemed to pick up (and I don't mean action scenes as they actually aren't my thing) by the story and writing style just seemed to flow better.

 

Great book and now I have started Incarnation... Brilliant so far, loving it!

[Knockagh]

I must give resurrection another go as well. Due to an ever increasing backlog of unread books I think I will try an audible token on it. Listening to it can give another light to it. Also if it’s still terrible I can return it! Win win.

Really loved that second book.

[Roomsky]

Brilliant book, a stellar improvement over Resurrection, which I really liked anyway. The intrigue is way up in this one, with the action taking a back seat, the first's skewed ratio of such being one of my major gripes with it. While French does still on occasion leave me wondering "okay, but why was that there", such instances are barely noticable against his usual backdrop of excellent worldbuilding, an identifiable cast, and an intriguing pseudo-kudzu plot that somehow manages to come together by the end. It's also nice to see him continually improve with the rare beats of humour, the absence of levity being his Achilles heel (though not for much longer, if his recent books are anything to go by.)

 

Even better, nary a reference to Guilliman, Primaris, or Circadian Malaproperisms to be seen. High hopes for #3.

[DukeLeto69]

Welcome back B&C...

 

Finished Incarnation last week. Awesome. Truly awesome. Loved it and can't wait for the third in the trilogy.

[Petitioner's City]

I did really like this novel, although it had such an abrupt ending - we know Covenant et al (well maybe not Josef) will escape, but how? As with Resurrection, it did feel more limited in scale than Abnett's inquisition novels, but I continue to really enjoy how French builds up the 30K and 40K universes - they are so lived in, so grim, so varied and multifceted. His writing is also more esoteric than many in the BL stable - he does Chaos and Imperial magic, sorcery and belief really well. Indeed, the cult was terrifying as a formal force - this really was an Inquisitor/Inq28 vision, with French utilising the madness that freedom of form gave him to go to some disturbing places, far more than the normal 40K horror.  

 

Intriguingly this novel included a section in Covenant's POV - which was something I thought French was avoiding. I was intrigued by this - but then also disappointed, because he remained a cypher, really. Why go in his head? 

[Knockagh]

Inquisition stories suit first person. They are investigation tales and it makes the story so much more interesting to hear the investigative process inside the officers head. His thought process, hunches, fears and failings. That’s one of the reasons the Eisenhorn books are so popular.

 

I can understand why French wanted to try something different and put his own mark on an inquisition tale. Eisenhorn looms large over all things inquisition. I loved the second French book, he’s done a great job at putting a different slant on inquisition stories but nothing beats a detective story from the inside.