Thoughts and Images

  Book: Annihilation Squad Author: Gav Thrope Pages: 412 Hard Core Scale: 1/4 Normal Scale: 5/10 Publish Date: 2004 About: Lt. Kage and his new last chancers come to the war torn world of Armageddon. Not to fight orks, but instead to either rescue or assassinate the planetary governor depending upon his decisions. At the same time Kage’s warp dreams are getting worse along with his blackout panic attacks. Is it all his PTSD or something else entirely? The third novel of the Last Chancers series. Review: No frame no game. Thus, present tense does not function. On top of this weird plot twists with old characters does not paint a pretty picture. Many pages of getting places instead of the mission at hand makes the journey often a moot point. One of the most boring space battles I have ever read. The telling over showing is too strong here. Plus a very muddled nonsensical plot for 40k. The ending weirdly detached, but would of ended on an acceptable end despite the bloat and ...

  12/23/2021 Book:   Kill Team Author: Gav Thorpe Pages: 264 Hard Core Scale: 2/4 Normal Scale: 7/10 Publish Date: 2001 About:   Lt. Kage has again been pulled from prison to train a new batch of Last Chancers for a mission. This Mission, to assassinate a commander of the Alien Tau. Review: Much similar to the first one you get what is on the tin. No more and no less: War SF bolter porn with a penal legion. Slightly better character writing still clung to archetypes and slightly better frame control, but not by much.   One can argue about obsifucating character use and purpose, but because of the 40k setting it is weirdly acceptable. Ultimately better than its prequel.    Thought have to call out the advertiser's tagline. “The action and relentless violence starts in merely rip-roaring fashion and then steadily escalates.” Always a puzzle on how these things get writ. The rising action aka the mission itself makes up the last 50 something page...

  13th Legion Book: 13th legion Author: Gav Thorpe Pages: 274 Hard Core Scale: 2/4 Normal Scale: 6/10 Publish Date: 2000 About: Lt. Kage of the 13th legion aka the last chancers has just been promoted to lieutenant. The reason? The last Lieutenant reached a terrible end. As a member of this Penal legion he will only be absolved of his crimes if he survives. From battlefield to battlefield he and the regiment fight hoping for redemption. Yet the colonel begins to make very strange tactical decisions pushing them towards a greater goal. Will Kage find redemption or end up dead.   Review: Gav’s first book. An early 40k novel of the early Black Library area and the first of a trilogy. This is the opposite of Inquisition War: A good story marred by some bad writing habits. Weak temporal transitions, a weak and uneeded frame resulting in poor present tense use, and the use of the bad, bad, bad royal you. It is a fun pocket novel though which I have not read in a wh...