Phoebus Posted April 8, 2019 Share Posted April 8, 2019 I can’t believe I’m the first person to review this. I figured someone else with their hands on the Limited Edition would’ve offered their views first, but I guess it falls on me! “This isn’t the book I planned to write,” A D-B says in his preface. “It’s probably not the book you’re expecting to read, either,” he continues. Dembski-Bowden is right, and for most of the ride, it’s for the better. Even when it’s not, it’s never bad, or even average; it’s just detached — distant, rather — enough from the larger events occurring aboard the Hex or throughout Elara’s Veil to leave you longing for more. Given that (it sounds like) we’ll be getting a couple more novels in this corner of the Imperium Nihilus, that, too, could be a good thing. Still, it’s important that the reader understands in advance that while this tale is about a Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes, it is at least as much about their chronicler: Helot Secundus Anuradha Daaz. We see the Emperor’s Spears through her eyes, but we are also share in the limitations of her perspective: we are allowed to see as much as Lieutenant Commander Amadeus Kaias Incarius allowed Anuradha to. For much of the novel, however, this felt enlightening. Anuradha being a human, she is able to convey things about Space Marines in a way that feels more believable than if it was they themselves who did so. What can I about the characters that populate this story? I loved them. I can’t emphasize this enough. Anuradha is a wonderful narrator, but even better is the relationship she shares with Kartash and Tyberia. Their developing and changing bond, and the roles they carry out on behalf of Amadeus, define Anuradha and bring her to life. More than that, those three remind us of the larger world in this setting. An Adeptus Astartes Chapter isn’t just a thousand superhuman warriors. Millions of untold tales orbit to their heroics, some mundane and others tragic. A D-B has touched on this before with Cyrene Valantion and Lotara Sarrin, but never as much as here. We often talk about how detached Space Marines can be from baseline humanity, and often read notes from authors attempting to capture this bit of nuance, but Amadeus nails it. Seeing this character brought to life made me think of how much A D-B has grown as an author since Helsreach. That tale, too, was wonderful, but in it we were told more so than shown how detached Grimaldus was from those he sought to defend. It was Grimaldus’s questions and inability to understand us that conveyed this, but in Spear we see so neatly from human eyes the inhuman nature of the Adeptus Astartes. The Spears, too, are very well-written. The Immortals and the Druids of the Spears, and Serivahn of the Vargantes, in particular, are at once fearsome and likeable. It is here, however, that Anuradha’s distance truly makes itself felt. Striking a balancing act between maintaining the mystique of the subject matter and allowing too much familiarity is a tricky proposition. I cannot for the life of me decide whether A D-B shared too little of these warriors or just enough. I know this much: when Amadeus and Anuradha read the elegies the Spears had written to their dead, I cared. I felt the cheer intended and the inevitable melancholy. And then there’s Nar Kezar. You’ll meet him soon enough... One thing I’ve always appreciated about Dembski-Bowden’s writing is that he has yet to fall into the trap of stock action sequences. The combat we get in Spear supports the story being told first and foremost. There’s nothing wasted when Astartes meets heretic in these pages. Their struggles are not just depictions of warriors trying to kill one another. In their clashes, we see things we didn’t know about the characters: the mindset and culture of the new Chapter and the Mentors alike, as well as that of Amadeus’s servants. Through each battle, we see how the protagonists and the supporting cast feel: the anxiety, brutality, fear, and ferocity. The only problem that I had with Spear was with its pacing, but there’s a caveat that comes with this. The first three-fifths or so of the novel flow quite nicely, and so do the last two fifths. Partly because of the nature of the activity depicted, though, and partly because of where those events take place, the latter portion of the novel felt jarringly too from what led to it — to me. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy those latter chapters, or that I enjoyed them more than what they preceded. It just felt like a jarring transition, and this needs to be said: I’m fairly certain this was by design, and it may very well be that my own reading schedule may have contributed to the issue. Anyway, this is a good, fun read. It’s definitely worth reading. I resented the fact that I had to wait months to read this story, and so I bought one of the last copies of the Limited Edition. I don’t bring this up to spark one of the debates I’ve been guilty of keeping going in the past. I mention my purchase only to qualify the quality of this story: I don’t regret spending a premium to have read it. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panzer Posted April 8, 2019 Share Posted April 8, 2019 The reason you haven't seen others doing a review is probably because the original thread is 42 pages long so most who've read it already posted in there. ;) Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5293176 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoebus Posted April 8, 2019 Author Share Posted April 8, 2019 Gah... I hadn’t seen any reviews by the time I ordered it, and then it got buried. Apologies! Mods, let me know if you’d rather I C&P this review there, and then we can delete this redundant topic! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5293185 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schlitzaf Posted April 9, 2019 Share Posted April 9, 2019 So Phoebus did any Templars show up in the Emperor’s Spear? Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5293330 Share on other sites More sharing options...
RikuEru Posted April 9, 2019 Share Posted April 9, 2019 So Phoebus did any Templars show up in the Emperor’s Spear? Yes! "Just" in a side role to the Celestial Lions, but still very awesomely so. Your Chapter's Honour has not been besmirched, quite the contrary. The Moment the 3 Chapters finally meet up is really well done. It's a wholesome moment between bros who have fought and bleed together, without it being cheesy in any way. (It felt really like a moment between "battle brothers" of different units/armies meeting up and enjoying the cameraderie - maybe an idea AD-B got from the veterans and army men and women he talked to!?) Generally I can only agree with your Review! And I think the "change of tone"/shift in approach after the first 3 fifths of the book were a deliberate choice. (Mind you, I read it in Germany and almost in one go.) It really underlines the fact that 'things are different' now and the proragonists have to adapt. Once they are back on track, the story picks up speed again too. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5293390 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red_Shift Posted April 9, 2019 Share Posted April 9, 2019 Thanks for the review, it's nice to have a threat just for the review itself, the other thread got a bit rambling, imo. Also most of us still haven't had a chance to pick this up yet as IIRC it's only been released as special edition so far. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5293400 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felix Antipodes Posted April 14, 2019 Share Posted April 14, 2019 It will be out in June for those who missed the LE Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5296255 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother Tyler Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 Gah... I hadn’t seen any reviews by the time I ordered it, and then it got buried. Apologies! Mods, let me know if you’d rather I C&P this review there, and then we can delete this redundant topic!No, this separate topic is preferable to a 42-page monstrosity of a topic. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/355162-spear-of-the-emperor-review/#findComment-5301528 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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