![]() The Emperor needed Evangeline particularly to get to this location to defeat this enemy. The question Evangeline has been asking is, "Why me?" and unfortunately it is not clearly answered. When she becomes a shining avatar of the Emperor's will in the final battle, it doesn't seem to result from her renewed faith in herself, nor is it clearly a result of other people's faith in her. Why anyone listens to her I am sure I don't know, as she comes across as a rather pathetic character, following the directions of prophetic dreams that seem to lead her and her associates into disaster after disaster.Įvangeline has the beginnings of an interesting arc in her insecurities, but unfortunately it is not paid off in a satisfying way. Broken by the loss of her subordinate and lover in a recent failed venture, Ravara is accompanying the Sisters' warship in search of the MacGuffin in the hopes that it will return her love to her. Ravara is neither competent nor ruthless. ![]() Secret police with near-unlimited authority, in previous depicitions an Inquisitor's competence has only been exceeded by their ruthlessness. Inquisitor Ravara is a member of the most feared institution in the Imperium, the Inquisition. She is given new purpose -and further insecurity - by a quest for a holy MacGuffin, in which she is accompanied by our second perspective character. Evangeline struggles to understand why she has survived when her sisters have fallen, and privately wishes she had achieved a martyr's death alongside them. The first is Evangeline, a sister of battle who is one of few survivors of her order following a terrible battle, who is physically marked out her by scars as under the special favour and protection of the Emperor. I struggled to make it though Mark of Faith, as neither of our perspective characters really clicked with me. Besides the common Warhammer 40,000 setting there are no links between that and this, at least that I picked up on, as the focus moves from the Antari Rifles - baseline human soldiers of the Imperial Guard - to the Sisters of Battle, elite warrior-nuns. ![]() This is the second novel by Rachel Harrison I have read published by Black Library, following Honorbound. This is among the best 40k novels I've ever read, and I hope we will get to see Rachel Harrison do more with the Adepta Sororitas in future. In a way, Mark of Faith has laid significant groundwork for future novels to build off. This is the most detailed, most interesting examination of what the Great Rift is and what it means for the Imperium that we've seen yet. It is omnipresent throughout every point of the story, and is brought to dark life when the journey through it commences. However, there is a third character that remains unmentioned: that of the setting. The two main characters are, as stated in the bio, Sister Evangeline and Inquisitor Ravara. Before the book is a third over, we know all we need to know about them to understand the journey each is respectively on, and their development unfolds magnificently. Rachel Harrison crafts her characters masterfully every scene is drenched in personality, and every action taken by the characters is motivated, understandable from the character's perspective. And the novel does this revitalisation justice. The Adepta Sororitas have received a long-awaited revitalisation in the Warhammer 40k franchise, with this novel accompanying the release of the faction's first plastic models. All told it’s a powerful, brutally honest book, and something that should be at the top of the list for any 40k fan. For all the bruising combat and Warp-infused cosmic horror (it is a Warhammer story, after all) however, Harrison never loses sight of her characters, putting them through hell but keeping the reader engaged with relatable, human stakes. Everything combines into a driving narrative which is cleverly paced using the intertwining viewpoints of the two characters, the intensity of the plot ebbing and flowing with some incredibly dark moments, particularly in amongst the breathless and high-impact action sequences. Haunted by ghosts of the past and wrestling with their duties, both find their faith tested and their paths profoundly challenged.Īs with all the best Black Library books this uses great characters to reflect and explore their archetypes, digging beneath the surface of the 40k setting while telling a powerful, compelling story which cuts to the core of 40k and the eternal conflict between the Imperium and Chaos. To Inquisitor Ravara of the Ordo Malleus, Evangeline’s mission offers the opportunity to serve her own ends and undo a terrible wrong. After losing everything in defence of Ophelia VII, Sister Evangeline of the Order of Our Martyred Lady is sent on a divine quest to seek out the Shield of Saint Katherine in Imperium Nihilus.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |