Thanquol's Doom

Thanquol & Boneripper #3

by C.L. Werner

Thanquol is caught in a deadly net of treachery and intrigue as he is caught up in the rival plans of clans Mors and Skyre to destroy the dwarf hold of Karak Angkul. In order to escape with his life and a magical relic of awesome power he will not only have to betray both his Skaven allies, but also defeat a renowned Dwarf master engineer and Skaven hero Ikit Claw

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction

416 pages, Paperback

First published September 27, 2011

Reviews

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw the thing with my own eyes, a great orb of steel the size of a steamship and packed with raw wyrdstone. Ikit Claw constructed his wyrdstone bomb over the fault running beneath Karak Azul. If he’d been able to unleash the power of his weapon, he could have precipitated an earthquake the likes of which no dwarf has seen since the Time of Woes.

Just not as good as previous awesome novel, the Grey Seer's paranoid changing his attitude every moment got repetitive and boring in the end, and having read Nathan Long's Elfslayer I already knew Thanquol was not going to meet his doom here having meet there his two nemesies twenty years later,.
Luckly storyline was really good, the Skaven leaders scheming and plotting against themselves to gain control of the Doomsphere (a steampunk mix between a warpstone fueled Death Star and a fantasy atomic bomb) and Thanquol's first Boneripper returning as an undead automaton resurrected by Clan Skrye's technology were hilarious.
And the final battle against the Dwarfs in the halls of Karak Angkul and the unexpected summoning of Khorne's bloodthirster Skarbrand the Exiled One, almost turning the dwarven hold in another Moria, was pure epicness.



Final vote: ☆☆☆1/2 rounded up to ☆☆☆☆

[Tomáš Šváb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanquol is the best skaven, yes-yes.

[Ross Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Backstabbing. Duplicitous. Paranoid. Scheming. Treacherous. Self-serving. Cowardly. You name it, the term can probably be applied to the skaven, the giant ratmen of the Warhammer world.

The Grey Seer Thanquol probably represents all that is nasty about the skaven, thus in his mind, is truly a fine specimen of skavenhood. He becomes one of those horrible villains that you just like to read about and see him come undone.

Having narrowly survived his unsought adventures on the tropical island of Lustria, Thanquol, in his never-ending quest for self-advancement, finds himself thrust unwillingly into war against the engineer dwarves of Karak Angkul. The dwarves are a particularly hated enemy of Thanquol's, courtesy of the dwarven Slayer, Gotrek, aided by his human rememberer, Felix, having previously thwarted Thanquol's plans in the past.

Thanquol was first created by William King in the early Gotrek & Felix novels, before being continued in that series by Nathan Long. But it was C. L. Werner who was given the task of creating the spin-off series, Thanquol & Boneripper. The Grey Seer has gone through several rat-ogre bodyguards, all called Boneripper, and now the skaven engineers of Clan Skryre have gifted him with the re-animated remains of the original Boneripper.

One of the things I enjoy about the skaven is the technology emerging out of Clan Skryre, which has a steampunk feel to it. That of the dwarves has a similar feel, although not powered by the corrupting warpstone as so much of the Skaven technology is. So it was interesting to see the two clashing once more.

Werner has taken that existing character of Thanquol and expanded it while remaining true to the original. In fairness, the constant changing of Thanquol's attitudes to suit the immediate situation was laid on a little thick at time. But nonetheless, in Thanquol's Doom the story of Thanquol continues and even deepens a little.

I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Michael Haase · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has Ikit Claw AND Queek Headtaker in it. What more do you need?

Honestly, I think this is the best of three Thanquol books. It has several major characters in it, it pits the skaven against the dwarves (my two personal favorites races), warp technology vs. dwarven artillery; the writing is great, the characters are interesting and well written, there's plenty of surprises and sudden turn of events to keep the story feeling fresh, what's not to like?

Well actually, there's a few things. For one thing, the story is kind of all over the place. Yes, there's a ton of twists and turns, but as a result the story feels sort of directionless. It's fun to read, but you're often left wondering what's going on, why this or that is happening, and where was the story going originally. Some of the character, such as Queek, show up seemingly at random. It doesn't help either, that the main character keeps changing his mind constantly. Basically, the story has ADD. All the same, it's still a blast to read.

Of all the Thanquol novels, this has the most interesting characters (even the side characters are interesting to read) the most action, the highest stakes, and the most Thanquol.

[Batsap · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you've read the previous two Thanquol and Boneripper books, or if you've read any of the Gotrek and Felix series, then you know what you're getting with this book, which just happens to be pure Warhammer-skaven-y awesomeness.

I love rats, ergo I love skaven, ergo I love Thanquol. He's just so... Thanquol. His casual violence to his underlings, his insane machinations, he's just adorable! What sums him up for me is the scene where he orders his subordinates to "Stop dying!"

And 'Thanquol's Doom' is doubly awesome because it features my second favourite Warhammer race - the dwarves. I like the clash between the dwarves care for one another and the esteem in which they hold tradition, and the skaven self-centredness and scramble to take control by whatever means necessary.

An awesome character in this I would have liked to have seen more of was a skaven called Nikkrit, who was Thanquol's standard bearer for a while. He was great comic-relief.

[Brent Skinner · Rating 2 out of 5]

I will admit, this book took a while to grab me. On the outset it feels like the plot is meandering a bit too much. Thanquol, in his third outing, doesn't really seem to have a solid direction. At the whims of a revolving door of other Skaven he is largely incidental.

That is the problem here. There are so many characters with definitive goals that we meet for a time, then they leave the narrative. It's almost like they are introduced just as a reason to move in a direction.

I definitely got the feeling that Werner's main goal here was to write a Dwarf story as the characters are way more fleshed out, for better or worse.
There is an engineer who won't play by the guilds rules and is "super cool" and "badass" and all the other dwarves love and respect him. That guy, I didn't like so much. There was also a Slayer who added nothing to the plot and could have been handled way better. Like a bookend to the story. Alas he kind of contributes little.

I won't say this isn't an enjoyable read. You just have to really love dwarves... and there are better options for dwarves out there.

[Mati · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skavens are nation of brave, self sacrificing, humble, honrable and kind ratfolks, who bring love and understanding to other race...well no. Thanquol, the chosen by Horned Rat, grey seer, the one and only who was trying to get on the top of the skaven’s hierarchy. Being one who joined the war against dwarf things and teaming up with two heroes Ikit Claw and Queek Headtaker was too much for him to swallow most of the time. The treachery, the backstabbing and murder here and there was presented so casually and with style among skaven.

[J.F.R. Coates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fascinating look into the brilliant character of Thanquol, with all of his contradictory genius and cowardice on full display. Some great supporting roles from some of the more iconic names in skaven history, including Ikit Claw and Warlord Queek.

Fewer pointless characters than the previous entry in the series, and a generally really enjoyable read.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

who doesn't love grey seer thanquol

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

After second part this was nice refresher. Nice fun adventure, heroic defense, some intrigue of skaven part. Glimpse into dwarven culture. I enjoyed it.

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

65/100. Nice conclusion of a trilogy but the shinning is over for me at least. I will explain as soon as I make a more detailed review in the next few months.

[Delray Beach Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warhammer: Thanquol’s Doom by C.L. Werner

In this edition of the Thanquol and Boneripper series, Thanquol and his minion have been given the task to take the Dwarven fortress of Karak Angkul. Although given command of an entire skaven army, he knows it will not be enough to defeat the fortress. However Thanquol has a plan involving an ancient and powerful artifact which he believes he can use to create a weapon that will bring glory to him and possible bring about his ascension to the Council of Thirteen. However when his rival the famous general Ikit Claw usurps command in search of his own glory, Thanquol will have to act fast. Will Thanquol be able to unleash his secret weapon and bring about glory to himself? Or will it be stolen from him by fellow skaven, or even worse, the dwarves emerging victorious.

To discover the conclusion to this adventure, pick up a copy today.
For more information on the author, go to this site:
http://www.vermintime.com/

Reviewed by Wyatt Rutherford, TAB@DBPL Reader Advisor since 2012

[Stephan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, Thanquol. Our favourite skaven hero returns once more to do untold harm to the world of men skaven dwarves!

Having survived the jungles of Lustria the council of thirteen have devised a new plan to kill him. Or so Thanquol thinks. They are obiously afraid of his power, charisma and leadership!
This time he's sent of to try and destroy the dwarven fortress of Karak Angkul. This puts him right between rivalling Skaven clans, very angry dwarves and quite a few backstabbing traitorous skaven (a description fitting just about every skaven)
Luckily clan Skryre have managed to steal back the corpse of Thanquols very first Rat ogre, Boneripper, and using dark magic and weird science managed to resurrect (and improve) it.
Too bad about the safety valve stopping it from attacking skaven of clan Skryre...


A fun and interesting novel. Thanquol is by far my favourite character of the warhammer fantasy world.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Third book in the series about the scheming skaven Thanquol, which is a nice break from the dark heroic fantasy of the Warhammer series. The act is getting a little old though, and there's lapses in the plot where Thanquol's enemies have a habit of just disappearing as though shunted off-stage or leaps in the narrative, only to be replaced by a totally new character who just appears to drop from the sky, or rather ceiling. Nice humorous touches as Thanquol takes on a bunch of progressive dwarves, along with a Warlock Enginner who devises the Warhammer equivalent of the Death Star. Fast moving, quite enjoyable, and certainly unique.

[Maximilian Surjadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love the twist ini this book. Never thought my favourite character, Queek Headtaker, would make appearance in this novel. Didn't see the Bloodthirster coming either! Each of Thanquol decision seems always lead him into a worse position, sooner or later.

Too bad this is the last of the trilogy.

[Gavin Gates · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book, this is (I think) the 3rd in a series and there is a lot in there that doesn't make sense on its own. Werner has a brilliant dark humour present from start to finish. I can't wait to pick up the prior ones and then read this one again.

[Jerramy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanguol, ruining skavendom one burrow at at time. Lots of cool dwarves though! Hence 4 stars instead of 3. Nothing too spectacular here but more fun in the Warhammer wrold.

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Grey Seer falls in his plans to destroy the dwarfs but makes new enemies.

[Lester Pasarell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book in the Warhammer World series. Need to read it again

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good end to the trilogy, with the character we all know and fell in love with

[Jonas]

Great book.