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Just finished Cadian Blood on this chilly but otherwise fine Saturday morning and thought I would let Dakka know that it's a worthwhile read.

I do not promise that my review will not include spoilers but I will try to avoid them.



Whatever the Loyalists have said since 2004, BL via Aaron Dembski-Bowden seems convinced that Abaddon's Thirteenth Black Crusade was a success. Scarus is in flames and things are not looking good on Cadia (but don't let's get too excited on that count, this book does not push the overarching storyline along). Our heroes in Cadian Blood, trooly 'ard and violet-eyed guardsmen from the 88th Mechanised Infantry, are deeply chagrined to find themselves transferred away from Home to spearhead clean-up duties on the recently plague-ridden shrine world of Kathur. Having been claimed for the Imperium by the Raven Guard during the Great Crusade, this now-miserable world was re-named after some great Imperial admiral-cum-saint who fought the traitors back when Horus was still Warmaster. Since those days, the whole planet has been built up into a great monument to the Emperor's glory. Odd, then, that the plague known as "the Curse of Unbelief" should have so devastatingly ravaged the population and odder still that Kathur, unlike other worlds in Scarus that have fallen to this daemonic infection, is not on the front lines of the latest Chaos incursion. Needless to say, a simple reclamation mission soon blossoms into a situation that quickly goes from bad to worse to "Sweet merciful Throne!"

The pacing of this novel is excellent. There are many facets to the fight and detailing all of them would have frustrated the building suspense. The cost is an up-close description of several battles, including the details of some fleet action (that's right BFG fans--there is still a nice something for you in this one!) and what one would expect to have been a rather tense encounter between the Raven Guard and some Plague Marines. As cool as it would have been to read about the latter example, you can find plenty of Marine-on-Marine (er . . .) action in other BL books. As for the former example, those roaringly gigantic grimdark space battles, there is just enough to leave you wanting more but glad that you got as much as you did. And in any case, the mystery of Kathur is what will keep you flipping pages and that unfolds at just the right speed.

The mostly wooden characters of Cadian Blood are prettty par-for-the-course in a Guard novel. There's nothing to hate here but there's not much to particularly love. The character I found the most intriguing was killed off, albeit in a fitting and glorious manner. Yet I wouldn't pick up another Cadian 88th novel on the strength of its cast or even the ferocity of Dembski-Bowden's descriptions of the fighting (which is not quite up to Abnett) but rather for the talented plot construction and solid grasp of the grimdark material, which is reminiscent of James Swallow at his finest (Flight of the Eisenstein, IMO) although I think Swallow has a better sense for conveying drama in a fight scene. Like all BL books, there are some annoying bits. Particularly stupid was the Pavel Chekov-esque Russian accent that a plasma gun-toting guardsmen developed out of nowhere. But these trivialities did not substantially impair my enjoyment of the book.

All in all, Cadian Blood a very entertaining 40k novel that I'd recommend, although not above something like For The Emperor, and especially to anyone fond of the Cadian fluff or interested in reading more about Nurgle worship. Easily 4/5.

HERESY!

Add in that fifth star, or suffer the wrath of The Dembski-Bowden Fan Club!

And the Chekov-esque Russian accent was explained as the fact that he was from a different region, which had a different accent from the majority of the 88th.

I subtract one star for the generally limp battle descriptions.

Yes, I caught that Guardsman Chekov was from Kasr Novgrad. I also thought that was silly. The fact that the fellow had popped up much earlier in the book with no mention of this characterization made it more silly. The fact that D-B spelled out the accent in italics after the character's lines in quotation made it yet sillier. And, finally, the fact that he did this three times on one page and then totally dropped it made it so very silly as to be worth mentioning in a review. In any case, that one weird blemish is not where Cadian Blood lost a star.

"It was just plain silly, Kanluwen." I am thinkink that serwious is vas not, comrahd.

Are you telling me this is a book about cadians fighting zombies? least thats what the cover looks like

@Ennkay: Yes, that happens. But that's just the most boring part of the story and is only really pertinent in the exposition leading up to battles against traitor PDF, Deathguard, and worse.

If your point is that the cover art is not great, we agree.

I haven't read it,but sounds great.

Manchu wrote:I subtract one star for the generally limp battle descriptions.

Yes, I caught that Guardsman Chekov was from Kasr Novgrad. I also thought that was silly. The fact that the fellow had popped up much earlier in the book with no mention of this characterization made it more silly. The fact that D-B spelled out the accent in italics after the character's lines in quotation made it yet sillier. And, finally, the fact that he did this three times on one page and then totally dropped it made it so very silly as to be worth mentioning in a review. In any case, that one weird blemish is not where Cadian Blood lost a star.

"It was just plain silly, Kanluwen." I am thinkink that serwious is vas not, comrahd.

I declare this thread purgatus.

You may not diss the Cadian Blood. Or you shall suffer the same glitch.

I'm about halfway through this one, myself.

Normally I try to stay away from Black Library stuff unless it's Dan Abnett, but lately I just can't get enough 40k, and that has led me to expand my horizons a bit. I'm liking Cadian Blood alright so far, surprisingly. I had been wanting to learn more about the Plague of Unbelief, and this book looks like it's going to deliver in that regard.

My one major complaint is that the characters are (at least thus far) all very two-dimensional, stock characters. For a stand alone novel that's not bad, but if there's going to be more then I demand dynamism from someone. Anyone. I'm looking to you here, Captain Thade. Or Lt. Vertain. Or hell, even Rax.

I think this is a one-off in the series of Ice Guard, Gunheads, and Desert Raiders . . . i.e., Imperial Guard Omnibus 2.

I'm pestering Aaron to see if he's going to continue the series.

I really hope he does, because I'd love to hear more about the 88th.

Without spoiling anything I can say that the book is set up to go in a very interesting direction. That direction, however, seems pretty off limits seeing as how it gets into the 42nd Millennium.

I wouldn't say that. Isn't there a Chaos book set in the 42nd Millennium?

And I'm sure they wouldn't be opposed to actually moving on from the way Cadian Blood went!

I've not heard of the Chaos book you're referring to or at least don't know of any set in M42. The Chaos books I can think off the top of my head are Daemon World, Storm of Iron, and the Word Bearer series. Maybe you're thinking of Graham McNeill's Hounsou short stories?

Entirely possible, Manchu.

I've always thought now would be the PERFECT time to start expanding into the 42nd though. Cadia on the back foot, overrun with endless hordes of Chaos roaming wild... with strongpoints of Imperial resistance in the marshes and poles, being supplied with constant streams of reinforcement.

Man, that's the stuff of LEGENDS right there.

No doubt it would be great. I think GW/BL would not likely do this with a novel. It would be passing up a great sales opportunity. Then again, where are the M30 models to go with the HH series? That would make them a ridiculous amount of cash. That said, Thade has the potential to be a good recurring character in a Star Trek captain kind of way. But I have to agree with Shane (as I already did in my review, actually) that even Thade is a bit rigid of a character. Seth is the one I was talking about as the most intriguing to me.

Y'know, I think that the M30 models and the Horus Heresy series are kind of a touchy subject. It's always seemed like they WANT to do them...but there's something holding them back. Forge World, especially, has had their sculptors champing at the bit(Mark Bedford especially) to do them but constantly get told no.

Maybe it's related to employees who've left the company owning design sketches or something of that caliber?

Or something with the Sabretooth cards?--although doubtful given the Horus Heresy art book. I suspect that the plain salves projections after getting involved with creating several lines of new models and some new rules don't look as grand as we fanboys would like to think. :(

Yeah. It might just be that they don't want to have to explain ANOTHER range of Space Marines though .

Because, after all.
We could have more than just 40k Marines and their Successors/Traitor foes...

We could have the 30k Marines, Traitors, and moar!!!!11

I love this book. It does have some flaws in it but on the whole it was well above average and worth reading.

I agree on the accent. It didn't bother me that he had one, it bothered me that he just suddenly had an accent when he'd already been in the story a great deal prior to that and had never had an accent before.

I just finished my copy about and hour ago, and though it contains some good moments, i thought it lacked the awesomeness of the 40k violence and fights...but then again the only other books I've read have been everything Abnett and Faith and Fire (can't remember who wrote it

I've never read a Guard novel but I'd like to.

Tell me, does this one feature massed human waves being forced forward with heavy bolters at their backs and a Commissar yelling "ONWARD YOU DOGS, TO VICTORY!".

And then when the human wave reaches their objective, they get obliterated by earthshaker artillery as the purpose of the charge was merely to pen the enemy into one position Commander Chenkov style?

I'd really like some novels on an epic scale with Imperator titans and such

Titanicus by Abnett

I've read it, and enjoyed it.

Course, Fifteen Hours kick this one's ass imo.

...

GTFO Golden. Fifteen Hours is terrible.

Kanluwen wrote:...

GTFO Golden. Fifteen Hours is terrible.

...I liked it. Although it kinda got plain wierd near the end. It didn't even anything to do with anything.

Well, okay. Here's my issue with Fifteen Hours.

It attempted to be a tale of the tragedy of war, a kind of 40k "All Quiet on the Western Front" if you will.

I will admit it had its moments. It wasn't a *bad* read, persay. It was still head and shoulders above C.S. "Multilaser Pewpew!" Goto.

But it really wasn't even remotely comparable to Cadian Blood. That's like putting a Goosebumps novel next to The Odyssey.

And what was with the last bit? I was was seriously WTF at that point.

@Kanluwen: Your raging man-crush on Aaron D-B is plain for all to see. Tell him I would like to read more 40k books by him but that he needs to learn a bit about battle scenes from Dan the Man. Do NOT, I cannot stress this enough, DO NOT let him imitate Abnett in any other way, however.

Spoiler-ish.


Two scenes seemed directly ripped out from the Gaunt's Ghosts series...the Dreadnought scene and the Commissar pulling his pistol on the Captain scene.


It was a decent read, but I didn't feel any of the epic-ness associated with the 40k setting. It seemed like another "Imperial Guard can kill anything!!1!!1!" kind of story.

orchewer wrote:It was a decent read, but I didn't feel any of the epic-ness associated with the 40k setting. It seemed like another "Imperial Guard can kill anything!!1!!1!" kind of story.

Most of the time they were fighting zombies and traitors. The few marines they fought took a heavy toll on the guard.