Customer Reviews

Execution Hour (Warhammer 40,000 Novels)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

One might argue that there is nothing new in the Warhammer 40k universe. Taken individually, each facet of the mytho can be traced to another sf or fantasy writer. Heinlein, Herbert, Asimov and other legends have all made contributions. Nope, nothing all that new.

So what! This initially mismatched collection of classic sci-fi, fantasy and alt history adds up to an extremely interesting universe. Then you remember that the whole thing was the result of a miniatures wargame. Pretty darn impressive when you view it that way.

Execution Hour is a fine effort to examine some varied aspects of the 40k universe. More precisely, it ties the relatively recent Battlefleet Gothic game to its venerable ancestor, War Hammer 40k.

Gordon Rennie gives us good characters, nice plot, fine exposition of various technical, social, metaphysical and psychological aspects of the universe. Against the broad canvas of a massive invasion by the seemingly irresistable forces of Chaos, the workings of a heretofore neglected segment of the great military machine of the Imperium, its Navy, are illustrated in detail.

Certainly, there are some sections which will leave the 40k neophyte scratching his or her head, but you don't need to be able to discriminate between an Adeptus and an Arcanus to enjoy the action and plot in this well crafted novel.

This book is great! A must for WH 40K and BattleFleet Gothic fans. This is a wonderful full length story of Gordon Rennie's characters Captain Leoten Semper and Flag Lieutenant Ulanti aboard the Lord Solar Macharius (an Imperial Cruiser). Though things are different from the book in terms of damage caused, the descriptions are excellent and are brought to life (as real as it can be). I couldn't stop reading this after I bought it. The story is consistent for the most part and displays it from both sides of the conflict. A novel well worth the price, time, and effort.

Battlefleet Gothic is a spaceship wargame set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, making use of miniature model ships to simulate sweeping battles fought over the vast expanse of the galaxy. It is an attractive tabletop game offering a high degree of playability and excitement, and lots of colorful action.
Execution Hour vividly portrays the dramatic ship-to-ship battles and savage hand-to-hand fighting in the game setting. The writing conveys the sense of doom among the desperate defenders of the invaded world perfectly.
A minor criticism may be that the Chaos warships are too fragile in the story. Players of the Battlefleet Gothic game will know that Imperial torpedoes, attack crafts and gunfire are hardly so devastating, and Imperial ships are just a bit so sluggish in action. Ship-to-ship fight is often a rather inconclusive draw, and not so much of brilliant victory after victory as depicted in the book.
Nonetheless, the novel provides very good entertainment value to the game enthusiasts, and is probably one of the best among the Warhammer tie-in novels.

This is a tale about the ongoing war in the Gothic sector( a area in the Warhammer 40,000 that is rife with war and conflict). But, there is a dark threat on the horizon. Abaddons evil warfleet is on its way with a new weapon called, "The Planet killer". The Imperial warship, THE MACHARIUS, lead by Captain Semper. Is in a struggle against the agents of chaos. This book has it all. A finely written book that is easy to follow( if you know & understand the warhammer 40,000 world ). It has epic battles in space and more personal battles on the planet of belatis; A planet marked for complete destruction. It also tell the story from several different angles;from Capt. Semper to a lowly crew hand...There is also a new book out called "Shadow Point" that is the second part to this book.

Execution hour is one of the best novel out there, Sadly, you have to understand a lot about the WarHamer 40K universe, so for new fans, or outsider, they should start with simpler book (See Space Wolf (Ragnar's books), Xenos (Eisenhorn trilogy) and even the Eye of Terror novels). But for the fan's it's a rarely seen aspect of the WH40K universe, the space battles, and gothic ships, fighters etc... It's a great book, good and strong story line, a few twists to keep it interesting, the action, and space battle are vividly and richly detailed, and thus, completely enjoyable, the only negative part was the end, a little abrupt, but they're will obviously be a sequel in the future, recommended to all knowledgeable fans.

Emperor be praised! What a great novel! Players of Battlefleet Gothic or Warhammer 40k or just fans of Sci-Fi will like this action packed book! Alot of outer space fleet action, small craft fighter action even grounder pounder action! And the characters are involving and interesting. It's also an excellent tie in to the Abaddon Black Crusade saga. Get it, NOW!

This is easily the best 40k fiction out there.
I read it years ago and still remember it fondly.

When i started to read warhammer 40k series, I was in only for space marine stories.But eventually I've changed my mind abot other battle divisions of the WH40k world.The causes of these changes were Inquisitor series books, gaunt series and this one.Actually, Rennie has made a great job describing the life of the titanic, flying, heavy armed fortress,which is called battle spaceship.I personaly liked the story from different angles.We can observe a young and ambitious lieutenant, wise and brave captain, saint and crazy pilot of the space intercepter and (my personal favourite) one lucky thug/killer. What i liked the most , is the atmosphere of total anarchy on the face of the doomed planet.It's great to see arbitres at work.Really tough guys...Good work,Rennie...Sorry for my grammar,english isn't my native language.

Execution Hour is a must have book for any BFG player. The book is written just as if Rennie was watching a huge BFG Tournament game being played out and he was the play by play man for some gallactic radio station! The details he puts into the book are so descriptive, yet easy to read, that you actually "feel" the storyline. Fantastic descriptions of an Imperial Cruiser or a Chaos capital ship. The scenes on the bridge where Captain Semper commands his ship are so well layed out, it was just as if Rennie used an Imperial set of blueprints. BFG players will love the battle details, and the book is full of them!

Wow!, well written and thoroughly absorbing. The struggle and futility were conveyed well, as was the desperation and dedication by all characters. The details were as accurate with the 40K universe as they can be. A well recommended book for those who like me, love all things sci-fi and the Universe of Warhammer 40k.