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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not Quite Platnium, Better than Iron,
By
This review is from: Iron Company (Warhammer: Empire Army) (Mass Market Paperback)
Chris Wraight's Iron Company marks the second entry in the Empire Army series and builds on the foundation established by Richard Williams in Reiksguard. Admittedly, I was a bit lukewarm towards Rieksguard; the narrative was a bit slow and uneven at times, there were a LOT of characters that were often hard to keep track of, and I had trouble getting a good sense of what Williams wanted the book to be (a political drama or a war story). However, Wraight takes a serviceable foundation set by Williams and improves upon it by leaps and bounds. Perhaps it's the characters, perhaps it's the narrative; whatever the reason, I found Iron Company to be a much more compelling and interesting read.
The Iron Company of the title's namesake refers to the gunners and engineers of the Empire charged with firing and maintaining the lumbering artillery of the army. Here, the story focuses on Magnus Ironblood, a grizzled veteran, an alcoholic, a man on his last legs in the Empire army. Magnus is approached to lead the artillery of an Imperial force staked to overthrow a rogue margravine set to cause havoc in the Hochland countryside. Magnus begrudgingly accepts, gathering a small crew of engineers to help him lead the iron company to victory or ruin. Joined by Silvio Messina, a Tilean engineer with flair, Thorgad Grimgarsson, a dwarf with a secret motive, and his longtime friend Tobias Hildenbrandt, Ironblood sets of to siege the margravine's mysterious citadel, Morgramgar. What follows is an excited and tense narrative involving all manners of siege warfare, something that is exciting and really unique to a fantasy setting. The siege warfare is really what makes this book shine. Battles are exciting and tense, the manner in which they are conducted is quite believable, and it's really a refreshing alternative to the open battlefield warfare of a lot of fantasy novels. Wraight does a fine job establishing Morgramgar as an entity unto itself, which really makes the sieges come to life. And while the battles really do make the book great, it's the characters that allow the story to flow and function well. Unlike Reiksguar, we are dealing with, essentially, four characters throughout the novel. There are auxiliary characters of course, a warrior priest here, the ubiquitous steely army general there, but the novel belongs to Magnus, Silvio, Hildenbrandt, and Thorgad. We're introduced the characters early and they're able to grow throughout the novel. We're not subject to the convoluted character histories of Rieksguard, nor are we asked to juggle characters that aren't easily discernable from each other. It makes the read a lot more enjoyable. Additionally, Magnus Ironblood is a really good protagonist. He isn't overly likeable. Despite his abilities as a master engineer, he has his character warts. But that's what makes him a good character. We grow to really like Magnus as we're allowed inside his head and privy to his history, despite those flaws, and that makes his triumphs all the more exciting. And while Iron Company provides a great narrative, it isn't without a flaw or two. Late in the novel we find out about a former rival of Ironblood's that played a pivotal role in his decent into alcoholism and unlikeable nature, but it seems a bit contrived. I understand that Wraight probably felt that his protagonist needed a solid antagonist to oppose him, but I really think the struggles Ironblood had against himself, coupled with the seemingly impregnable Morgramgar ,would have served just as well as major conflict points. Regardless, Iron Company is a really fun story that sets itself apart amidst a sea of similar literature by tackling siege warfare in an in depth way. Coincidentally, the most exciting parts of the Lord of the Rings movies are the citadel sieges, so it only makes sense that it would work in the Old World. Quite frankly, it makes me year for a siege supplement to the WHFB tabletop game. Chris Wraight hits on all cylinders with Iron Company, adding a much needed triple to Rieksguards weak infield hit and the Empire Army series. The Good + Great siege battles really make the book shine + Small cast list keeps us interested and focused on their growth The Bad -- Ironblood's rival seems like a forced attempt at a villain
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An entertaining read!,
This review is from: Iron Company (Warhammer: Empire Army) (Mass Market Paperback)
I've read the first three books in this series and found them all to be enjoyable good reads.
Second entry in the series, this book differs from the maiden installment, entitled Reiksguard, in the following ways: Whereas Reiksguard is all about the elite knights and swordsmen who are also the eldest sons of nobles from different provinces of the empire, Iron Company is all about the gunners and engineers. Whereas Reiksguard has a huge cast of characters with "speaking" roles and explores the themes of brotherhood, service, loyalty, allegiances, and honor, Iron Company has a smaller such cast and explores the themes of justice (or "righting" a wrong) and redemption. Although the second book in the series, it does not absolutely require prior reading of the first book and can be read as a standalone. The plot is not complicated. Once famous for having shown an aptitude for designing and building new types of guns and cannons, as well as commanding a gunnery company, Magnus Ironblood has not been living up to the family name and his previous reputation lately. Instead, he has taken up drinking and not taking care of himself. At the novel's opening, we find Magnus in a beer house, approached by an agent of the Empire rounding up personnel for a second wave of army to be sent to Morgramgar to quell the rebellion of a renegade countess. According to the agent, the second wave of army needs a Master Engineer, for the one that went with the first wave had not been heard from again, along with the rest of the entire first wave, and the second wave can ill afford to wait a number of days for a replacement to arrive from another province for the enemy gathers force and strength with each passing day. Since Magnus used to be a Master Engineer and is available, would he be interested in the open position? Magnus reluctantly accepts the offer for a chance at redemption, even though he knows the odds are against him. Many in the empire still looks down on engineers for past failures with experimental weapons. Others simply don't understand the science. Magnus' terrible appearance also does not inspire confidence in him. Soon after Magnus and the second wave of army depart for battle, problems start popping up. The loss of a large cannon. Surprise attacks by enemies hidden in the cover of night and equipped with murderous weapons that can fire at far greater ranges than the imperial gunnery's weapons can. A seemingly impregnable enemy fortress and cunning rebel army. Insubordination of people under his command. Evidence that an old nemesis has cheated death and is the creator of the murderous weapons used against the imperial army. Could Magnus redeem himself in his own eyes by overcoming his problems and finding a way to defeat the enemies? Could he set things right by finally striking down his old nemesis once and forever and prevent the further spread of the murderous weapons used against the imperial army? The strategies and tactics that emerge are plausible and believable. In addition to quick thinking, Magnus also got help from someone whose motivations are revealed in the final chapters of the novel, which also contains a few more surprises! Overall, an entertaining read! Note: The next installment in the series is entitled "Call To Arms" and is written by Mitchel Scanlon. I like that book as well!
10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Linear & one dimensional,
By
This review is from: Iron Company (Warhammer: Empire Army) (Mass Market Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is my first exposure to Warhammer, so I will not be comparing it to other Warhammer novels, and I want to reiterate that this was my first exposure to anything in the Warhammer world.
On face value the novel appealed to me, it was right up my alley of things I usually like, warfare or mass combat, seigery, and I found the integration of black powder into an otherwise medieval universe to be interesting. There was also a dwarven angle, and I like dwarves. However, in the end, I found it shallow and unfulfilling. Perhaps I have been spoiled reading such things as A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin, but I am still capable of separating what I consider to be literary fantasy, and pulp fantasy. This was obviously going to be pulp fantasy and so I hold it to a lower standard, but even that standard it didn't meet. The writer's style is acceptable, he kept the pacing smooth. Some of the non-US spellings for various words were a tad annoying, but I suppose all the UK readers feel that way about books written in American English. Otherwise it was an easy read, no problems with the diction or syntax. However, where the book fails is in plot. The plot was predictable and ridiculously linear. You knew, at the beginning, exactly how it would end. You might wonder what details would happen next, but the broad strokes were all there, obvious, and straight. The characters were all one dimensional, the good guys were all heroes, paragons of skill in their profession, and the bad guys all wore black hats. There was a small attempt at a bit of a redemption where a character quits drinking, buy having a vice you want to quit does not a flawed character make. I give it two stars, merely for easy reading quality, I read it, I was mildly entertained, I finished it. The dreaded 1 star is something I reserve for things I'm loath to even finish. This book will appeal to fans of R.A. Salvatore, or possibly those Eragon books. But fans of more complex fantasy, or more complex characters, should probably look elsewhere. There was one point where the protagonist's massive friend (who was, apparently, a master engineer, swordsman, and boxer all in one) was on the edge of death, having been convinced to go on the journey and leave his wife and kids by said protagonist. I couldn't help thinking "What if he dies, now that'd be drama, the protagonist is going to blame himself, lots of internal mental conflict." But of course, predictably, he is saved, and is saved every time he goes into danger. In fact, no character in the book who isn't on the wrong side, treacherous, or malicious, dies. Sometimes good people die in war, when you have an author that doesn't acknowledge that then you never actually ever fear for the characters because you know they'll always be safe. That makes any danger they find themselves in seem false and uninteresting.
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