The Silent King

Set in the "current" arc in Warhammer 40k this is the latest episode in Roubute's struggles to arrest and reverse the decline of the imperium of mankind. The narrative structure and pacing match the typical Black Library approach to novels with multiple POV characters, building tension for a little over half the book, and then a second half of action filled resolution. Black Library has not found a larger narrative to hang stories on as compelling as the Horus Heresy and the books do suffer because of that. The Horus Heresy books were much more varied in terms of quality but the good Horus Heresy books are far better than all but the standouts of the more modern setting (such as The Infinite and The Divine, Gaunt's Ghosts, and the Eisenhorn saga. (Dan Abnett, author of the latter two series, is both prolific and an excellent writer)) Little happens in this novel that pushes the larger plot in the imperium forward. The Lion is back but still not on the stage, the incursions of chaos and the tyranids are not addressed, and while the schisms of Terra are mentioned they are not moved forward in the novel. We learn about an increased necron threat and otherwise the situation remains fairly stable. This was an enjoyable book, but one that (through presumably no fault of its own) leaves little mark on the larger narrative.