REVIEW: Deus Sanguinius

Review This bit doesn't give the plot of the book away

Deus Sanguinius is the second and final book in the Blood Angel saga that began with Deus Encarmine. I gave that book a poor review and I'm afraid things haven't improved at all for the next installment.

I was hoping that my difficulties with Encarmine lay with the fact it had to introduce lots of characters and the plot, and that once the characters were established the pace would quicken. If anything, it slowed.

We get page after page of dense blocks of text explaining the dull and earnest inner thoughts of the characters and yet still we don't care about them. For all the internal monologues the book feels very thin in terms of characterisation and none of the characters has any real story arc or significant emotional journey. It's all so predictable.

The writing is right on the nose, too, with no subtext at all. The bad guy you suspect in book one turns out to be the bad guy in book two. The goodies win. The baddies lose. There is no surprising 'twist' in the tale. Everything builds to a conclusion you already leapt to halfway through the first novel.

Just when you think the turgid prose will be jettisoned in favour of a decisive, pacy finale the descriptions lengthen. We get over 100 pages of the last climactic battle! The material in these two novels seems to have been stretched very thin indeed, in fact there is only enough plot for one book.

Very, very disappointing.

Summary Deus Sanguinius is as slow as an Obliterator moving through difficult terrain and as deep as an Ork who has taken a bolter shell to the brain.

Score 3/10

Scores

All of my reviews end in a score out of ten for the product. The table below explains what that score means.

• 10/10 Perfect, absolutely nothing better
• 9/10 Excellent, highly recommended
• 8/10 Very good, recommended
• 7/10 Good
• 6/10 Above average, some problems
• 5/10 Average, some good points some bad points
• 4/10 Below average, some redeeming features
• 3/10 Poor, major flaws
• 2/10 Very poor, avoid if possible
• 1/10 Absolutely appalling

REVIEW: Deus Sanguinius synopsis

• Available from The Black Library
• Written by James Swallow
• Cost £5.99 (just under $12)
  

Synopsis [Spoiler alert] This bit tells you exactly what happens in the book!

Blood Angel Brother Rafen secretly worships the Emperor in a makeshift shrine on Shenlong. Arkio tells Rafen of his plan to reunite the Blood Angel successor chapters then launch a Blood Crusade into the Maelstrom.

Captain Gallio and Librarian Vode arrive to investigate Arkio on Chapter Master Dante's behalf. Inquisitor Stele uses his psychic powers to turn the confrontation into a battle; Gallio and Vode are slain. Rafen quizzes Inquisitor Stele but is driven off by psychically-induced suicidal impulses. He stumbles back to the shrine to kill himself but is saved at the last moment by a vision of Sanguinius.

Inquisitor Stele consults with Warmaster Garand of the Word Bearers and the Daemon Mallafax. They tell Stele to convert the Blood Angels to Chaos more quickly.

Sanguinary Priest Sachiel requests an audience with Dante on the shrine world of Sabien. Fearing a trap, Mephiston goes in his place.

Rafen tries and fails to overload the fusion core of the Ikari fortress. Arkio believes Rafen died in the attempt, but Rafen escapes. Sachiel reveals his doubts to Stele but his mind is wiped by the Inquisitor. Rafen sneaks aboard the starship Bellus and travels to Sabien with Arkio. Arkio is troubled by dark dreams and visions and his corruption by Chaos is only hidden by Inquisitor Stele.

Arkio and Mephiston meet on Sabien. Mephiston challenges Arkio to single combat. Rafen takes up the challenge. Rafen injures Arkio. His taint is realised by Sachiel who is psychically killed by Stele. The Inquisitor blames Mephiston and uses Sachiel's death as an excuse to launch an attack on the Blood Angels.

Warmaster Garand takes the opportunity to begin his own ambush of the Blood Angels. The Warmaster also orders his space ship, Misericorde, to attack the Bellus as well as Mephiston's Europae.

Rafen kills Arkio. Stele summons the Daemon Mallafax. Mallafax kills Stele, then the Chaplain Delos. Rafen wields the Spear of Telesto and the rebel Blood Angels renounce Arkio, fighting once more for their united chapter. Rafen destroys Malfallax. As the Daemon dies it forces the Blood Angels to succumb to the Black Rage. The Word Bearers retreat. Rafen and the Spear bring Mephiston and the Blood Angels back from the brink.

The Spear is taken back to Baal. Shenlong is destroyed by Exterminatus. Warmaster Garand must explain his failures to Abaddon the Despoiler. Rafen is offered Captaincy but refuses it, asking for forgiveness instead.