Customer Reviews

Riders of the Dead (Warhammer Novel) (Warhammer Novels)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The early portions of this book are not consumed with the typical fire of Abnett's other books, e.g., the Gaunt's Ghosts Warhammer 40k novels, but there are many good things to recommend this book.

First, for readers who are unfamiliar with the Warhammer Fantasy universe, things might be a bit confusing, but Abnett does a good job of explaining things as they come, focusing more upon the characters and their plights than on the game world.

There are two main characters, who begin the story very different from how they are at the novel's end. One was born into nobility, and is very haughty and overbearing, while the other is of lesser birth and has worked very hard to improve his station. They are fellow horse soldiers in the Empire, sent to help the defense against the northern hordes.

They quickly become separated, and their lives follow very different paths both from each other and from their previous existences. One is captured by the evil northern forces and is slowly corrupted by them, while the other falls in with the barbarians of the steppes, tenuous allies of the Empire. Both experience radical changes of perspective and personality before the climax of the novel.

Besides what I thought was a slow start, it seemed that the end was almost too quick. Perhaps this in itself is a statement of the way of life in the Warhammer world, but for a novel it seemed very hurried and disappointing. Don't get me wrong, now, for the last 75 pages or so I could not put the book down. But for the first hardcover Warhammer book, I would have liked a longer novel with more resolution than was given, though the very end was quite nicely done.

Basically, I really liked the story, but I think most people should wait for the paperback, as this is not quite worth the hardback price. Personally, I hope that the Black Library puts out more hardcover books (again, Gaunt's Ghosts, guys!), but that they make it more worth the price. For [the money], I want a longer read than this one.

This was a fun fantasy warfare book from Mr. Abnett which tracks the divergent lives of 2 cousins after a military defeat in which they are separated, and the sequence of events which was obviously going to bring them into conflict.

I think either of the subject's stories would have been a good standalone novel's basis, as the inevitable confrontation between the two seemed like a lot of effort to get nowhere. The scenery and background/settings were very well written, along with the individual threads of the 2 stories.

I prefer Mr. Abnett's eisenhorn trilogy to this.

This is a very good read. If you ar into battle scenes, Abnett is your man. No one is better than Abnett at descibing the blurr,blood, and chaos that is medevil combat. But it not just the battles that make this book great, its cultures add a huge amount of flavor and substance to it also. Would be a 5 star classic if not for the sudden ending. Abnett likely had a page count given to him to stay under by the publisher.

If a poorly done ending can ruin a book or author for you, stay away from this work. You will meet two very well written and extremely captivating characters who will meet in an epic clash... and then its like someone else came in to write 3 hurried pages of lame, poorly constructed junk (which is the rest of the book... that's right, huge build up, they see each other, 3 pages later you're at the back cover!). Never mind who wins or loses, none of it makes sense anyway. Neither story arc is brought to a solid conclusion and neither one makes a point. I don't need a "happy" ending, but I do ask for a complete story that feels poignant... this one needed at least 50 more pages. I'm certain that Abnett was side tracked by one of his many other projects and this incredible fruit was suddenly left to rot on the vine.

Abnett has a knack for literary warfare. He has done a splendid job emersing the reader in a world of dark fantasy here. The characters and their histories are beautifully fleshed out. Perhaps the best thing to note in this book is the gradual, painstakingly well-crafted way that a protagonist makes his way down the path of darkness. From a hero to a villian, the transition is so well honed that you'll be awestruck.

My only complaint is that, after spending hundreds of pages building these characters up and detailing them flawlessly, the final battle between our protagonists lasts nearly half a page, and feels somewhat unsatisfying. You've followed a main character for a long time, soaking up his mannerisms and ways, only to have him cut down quickly and efficiently, with little time spent on his own thoughts as it happens. Perhaps Abnett did this on purpose, but it left me feeling a little flat.

Despite that, this is an excellent piece of fantasy, and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in brutal action and warfare.

I agree with the former reviewer that the ending is a bit rushed. We reach this wonderful conclusion and suddenly it's all over: no reflection on events, no pause to smell the daisies as it were, no time to really think about what has transpired until the last page is reach and the back flap is closed.

This isn't to say that the book is not good. Abnett has really done his homework on Medieval and Renaissance warfare, and his vivid descriptions really give the book a wonderful texture. But I would have preferred a little less description on the machineries of war (for example, he spends a good chuck of page real estate describing how to make a composite bow; good educational information, but not all that necessary) and more time on character development. I would have also liked to see more time spent discussing the nature of "Chaos", which is such a prevailing part of the Warhammer World.

But I do think it's definitely worth picking up for all you Abnett fans out there. The battle scenes are quite enjoyable.

The story of two empire demilancers company men, forced by events to abandon their flag and calling. One finds himself amongst the brave Kislevian's, (empire allies), the other is caught by the "northerners", (the evil northern antagonists of the empire, allies to chaos). The plot (as with most Warhammer novels) is predictable and linear. Change the names and remove the fantasy setting and you will find yourself reading a familiar script. But as always with Warhammer books, the writer storytelling is superb and makes all the difference. The pace is excellent, a rush of non-stop action scenes as good guys and bad guys alike get the headsman axe. Character develop is great, both our hero and our antihero go through a drastic change. One from a spoilt noble to a true man of the prairie, the other from an educated person to a wild thing of chaos. Both shed their layers of the "civilized world", racing to an inevitable confrontation. The aspect I liked most with this Warhammer novel is the Dan Abnett's special angle of tackling the Warhammer mystical side. Unlike most Warhammer stories, which are full of chaos made mutated spawns and lumbering monsters, chaos mainly exists here as an aspect of life for the evil northerners and their adversaries. It is an entity without real form, lurking at the corner of the eye. To my opinion it adds a lot to the strength of the story to its realism and suspense. Chaos blends into the society of the northerners like a force of nature, which brings us to another great aspect of riders of the dead, the narrator ability to bring to life an alien human society. Abnnet took the historical earth Mongols and planted them inside the north prairie of the Warhammer world. The story gives us a glimpse into their barbarous and cruel customs, tools, language and life philosophy.
The only point I regard as weak with ROTD is its rushed ending. The last battle is almost anticlimactic which is a disappointment as the whole story builds towards it.
To sum it up: A great book, I would suggest it even to those who are not avid fans of Warhammer.

This was an exciting read with tonnes of blood thirty action! I love atmosphere of the story is excellent and I really enjoyed most of it. If anything my only complaint would be that it could have been just a little longer. The ending was a little abrupt after such a great read. However, all in all, I recommend it!

"Riders of the Dead" is not a perfect book but almost. The prose is lean and powerful; the structure is balanced and clear. It has a psychological component that is interestedly handled. More specifically, the protagonist that the reader would identify as the "nice" one is the one that turns to Tchar, while the "nasty" one matures and fights for the Empire.

Further, in order for the IP (Intellectual Property) to succeed there needs to be a balanced view between Khaos (chaos) and the Empire (order). All too often in the Warhammer universe, this need for balance is ignored.

Michael Moorcock, who used the Miltonic themes of order verses chaos most successfully, knew that in order to have a satisfying and somewhat subversive work, chaos had to appear attractive.

Abnett in this novel seduces the reader with the well revealed world of the Northern tribes during the time of Archaon's invasion of the south. In that regard, he succeeds in bringing balance to the mythos of the Warhammer universe.

The one false note in the novel is the conclusion. From the build-up, there is no way the winner of the duel between the protagonists would have been who it was. Ultimately, Abnett caved in and allowed the myth of the good to prevail in the face of the reality of not only the world (but his fictional universe). Unfortunately, this myth permeates the WHF world and is repeated over and over again.

... or actually the book that no one forgets.

The book was about two demilancers of the Empire who went to war and got separeted.
It was the 2521 and a full scale war was goin' on. One of the empire armies march north and face the northern tribes.
The northern tribes were more and outnumbered then and most of them fell.
Some were made captives to their own sports and others fled south.
And this is how our story begins.

Dan Abnett made a story about two different friends, if you can call it. One is a noble (anti-hero) and other is a educated person (Hero). In the book they go to drastic changes.

This book is about the main characters but we can see other aspects. Dan Abnett portraits exclently the Viewpoint of Empire, of the Kislevian's (who are the empire allies but seen as under-developed people), and the Northers (Norsca) Who are the antognists of the empire.

In the end I personally admire each and every other realm.
The norcsa who aren't that all chaos and mayhem, the kisvelians who live in the stepps and aren't that under-develped but rather code and faith followers.

I like the all book. If there is a part where I don't feel so excited its the end. I guess it was rather precipated. But the end after the last battle was tottaly unpredictable. (It remind me of Dan Abnett's Double Eagle)

If you want to start reading Warhammer you can start anywhere since they are all great books.
But Abnett's book are just marvelous. I would recomend this one to people who love a book about war and character development.

(I am not a native english person but portuguese)