Customer Reviews

The Bleeding Chalice (Warhammer 40,000)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like Ben Counter's previous novel, Soul Drinker, this is a great novel for fans of the 40k universe. Brutal, over-the-top violence fills nearly every page, and the huge scope of events gives the novel an epic feel.

Having been excommunicated from the Imperium, the Soul Drinkers continue to wage war against Chaos, as well as their former masters in the Empire. Their impossible goal is to save their chapter by finding a cure for the chaos which has tainted them. Following close on their heels is a ruthless, macchiavellian inquisition determined to exterminate the renegade marines at any price. Meanwhile, an army of the dead has risen on dozens of planets, and threatens to overtake the entire sector.

Ben Counter does a great job envisioning and communicating his tale. In usual 40K form, the novel seeks to impress the reader with carnage on a massive scale, and succeeds.

The Soul Drinkers are back in this epic fiction from BL. Counter out does himself here, and this is even better than the first in the series. Epic battles, psychological struggles, and great writing. Counter has a real touch for the grim darkness of the far future, and his fiction is great.

As the second segment of the Soul Drinker novels, the Bleeding Chalice captures the epic nature of battle in "the grim dark future." Counter seems to have a great knack for pacing and giving the reader a sense of the desperation of the characters as they fight for their lives their own redemption. All you space marine fans will love the examination of their role on the battlefield.

With the introductions out of the way (in Soul Drinker), Counter is able to focus on the plot in THE BLEEDING CHALICE. This book tells two main stories, one of Sarpedon and his Chapter's efforts to find a way to halt their mutations, and another of Inquisitor Thaddeus' hunt for the 'heretic' Soul Drinkers. While we get many of the same characters from the first book, some great new ones are introduced here, including Thaddeus and Aescarrion (of the Adeptus Sororitas), as well as Teturact and The Pilgrim, a couple of intriguing new antagonists. This volume, also available in The Soul Drinkers Omnibus, jumps around a lot more than its predecessor, and spends relatively little time with Sarpedon and the rest of the Soul Drinkers. While at first that might sound disappointing, it is actually a good thing, allowing Counter to add some depth to his tale by fleshing out more of the Universe, and creating a more epic feel to this book. The plot of this one is also much more subtle than the previous book, with the reader left in the dark about much of what Sarpedon is trying to accomplish until the very end. As always, this book is full of intense combat and nail-biter situations as the heroes battle impossible odds to reach their goals. Very well-written and fits in nicely with the rest of the WH40K fluff, this one should please any fan. Highly recommended.

I gotta get this off my chest: why are some reviewers giving away storylines and plots? Hello? you are ruining people's potential reading experiences :(

That said, I need to post reviews sooner after finishing the book! Bleeding Chalice Great! but I'm afraid I don't recall
Soul Drinker as well anymore. Gotta read it again :)

Complements to you Ben. Loved "Daemon World" !

Bleeding Chalice:
Definitely enthralling. Cool storyline with lots of new WH40k concepts and technology. Also many twists that cover the ending rather well.

I can't say that I'm fully sold on the mutant thing but with these guys having no choice but to try and stick together they pull it off rather well.