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The Inquisition War #2
Harlekin
40 373 - Jaq Draco száz év elteltével kiszáll a sztázistartályból. Ahhoz, hogy megtudhassa, mi történt a Birodalomban, míg õ kényszerű pihenőjét töltötte, találnia kell egy asztropatát, aki lehallgatja az űrben keringő pszi-üzeneteket. Zhordtól tudomást szerez a Harlekinember újabb mesterkedéséről, a megváltást hozó Numenről és arról, hogyan akarják megakadályozni az idegen eldák, hogy az Istencsászár halála után a Káosz istenei átvegyék a hatalmat a galaxisban.
Draco csapatához csatlakozik az Űrgárdistából ismert kapitány is. Az Inkvizítor, a Zömik, Ey'Lindi és az űrgárdista hős együtt indul a Fekete Könyvtár keresésére, hogy megtalálják a galaxis jövőjére vonatkozó próféciák gyűjteményét...
Draco csapatához csatlakozik az Űrgárdistából ismert kapitány is. Az Inkvizítor, a Zömik, Ey'Lindi és az űrgárdista hős együtt indul a Fekete Könyvtár keresésére, hogy megtalálják a galaxis jövőjére vonatkozó próféciák gyűjteményét...
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
19 people are currently reading
218 people want to read
About the author
Ian Watson
300 books121 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 27, 2018
Mah… Jaq & Co. giocano un po’ troppo all’allegra famigliola e il loro muoversi in continuazione affrontando scontri random genera più confusione che entusiasmo. Le descrizioni falliscono l’incarico di decantare la maestosità gotica di questo universo, rendendo invece ancor più arduo il compito di districarsi nella sua complessità. L’arrivo degli Eldar dà una botta di vita alla storia, eppure anche la figura degli Arlecchini, in primo piano… almeno in teoria, delude (il che è un vero smacco data la loro teatralità). La trama continua a barcamenarsi scegliendo finalmente una direzione da prendere soltanto in chiusura, il che porta alla formazione del nuovo gruppo - sempre che un trio lo si possa definire tale.
Quasi dimenticavo, la “Biblioteca Nera” - che uno va su di giri solo a sentirla nominare - è stata di una bruttezza imbarazzante T_T
Quasi dimenticavo, la “Biblioteca Nera” - che uno va su di giri solo a sentirla nominare - è stata di una bruttezza imbarazzante T_T
May 16, 2025
“To slay is to pray, is it not?”
Okay, moving closer definitely to what I think of and enjoy from 40k. Still REAL weird tho.
But absolutely has the feeling of “oh, okay, we’ve shored up a lot of rules and lore going into a new edition. Maybe let’s get these closer to that, yes?” And it’s certainly still interesting and messy and jaw-droppingly weird in the way I like 40k to be. Plus Eldar! I love me some Eldar. They actually are kinda emerging as my favorite faction as of now mainly because of how shitsplat nuts everything about them is and this just reenforces all of that! (Even though I’m sure a lot of this stuff has either been translated a lot better on table and/or gotten phased out entirely)
But then there is also this…weird undercurrent of horniness that keeps lapping up against either action or character beats. There is also this insane stuff about the overarching narrative that gets casually introduced in the first book, but is now the full driving engine of this one and it’s so massively overpowered that I can’t imagine anyone at GW letting it slide today. Like it’s almost book-breaking, how insane this is and it’s just like…THERE and it doesn’t even get close to getting dealt with, it just cliffhangers out of any real resolution. It’s definitely gotten me on the hook for #3 but it keeps this one from feeling like a complete experience.
Also, and this is more nitpicking (and only because I’ve read a whole deal about this particular chapter) but…Imperial Fists just casually showing up, lightyears away from Terra, but yet, still talking about Dorn and everything else, it’s just wild wild wild. This whole thing shifts into a space marine book toward the end but it’s like he just randomly chose a chapter and then went nuts with them, it’s insane.
And I think a lot of that kept me from REEEEEALLY getting into it like I have other aspects (though I do so seriously love the idea of the Black Library being a physical, literal place in the 40k universe). It’s like it’s juuuuuust about there but not totally quite yet and it’s not as self-effacing or as self-aware as to the tone of the whole thing just yet.
Okay, moving closer definitely to what I think of and enjoy from 40k. Still REAL weird tho.
But absolutely has the feeling of “oh, okay, we’ve shored up a lot of rules and lore going into a new edition. Maybe let’s get these closer to that, yes?” And it’s certainly still interesting and messy and jaw-droppingly weird in the way I like 40k to be. Plus Eldar! I love me some Eldar. They actually are kinda emerging as my favorite faction as of now mainly because of how shitsplat nuts everything about them is and this just reenforces all of that! (Even though I’m sure a lot of this stuff has either been translated a lot better on table and/or gotten phased out entirely)
But then there is also this…weird undercurrent of horniness that keeps lapping up against either action or character beats. There is also this insane stuff about the overarching narrative that gets casually introduced in the first book, but is now the full driving engine of this one and it’s so massively overpowered that I can’t imagine anyone at GW letting it slide today. Like it’s almost book-breaking, how insane this is and it’s just like…THERE and it doesn’t even get close to getting dealt with, it just cliffhangers out of any real resolution. It’s definitely gotten me on the hook for #3 but it keeps this one from feeling like a complete experience.
Also, and this is more nitpicking (and only because I’ve read a whole deal about this particular chapter) but…Imperial Fists just casually showing up, lightyears away from Terra, but yet, still talking about Dorn and everything else, it’s just wild wild wild. This whole thing shifts into a space marine book toward the end but it’s like he just randomly chose a chapter and then went nuts with them, it’s insane.
And I think a lot of that kept me from REEEEEALLY getting into it like I have other aspects (though I do so seriously love the idea of the Black Library being a physical, literal place in the 40k universe). It’s like it’s juuuuuust about there but not totally quite yet and it’s not as self-effacing or as self-aware as to the tone of the whole thing just yet.
December 24, 2011
This book was almost painful to read. The author's prose might have recommended him to write mediocre screenplays (Spielberg's A.I.), but it does NO justice to the complex universe of 40k and creates completely flat characters that its very hard to care about. The grimdark seems forced and I found this short novel a struggle to get through.
It passes my threshold of "do not recommend" only because other fans of the Warhammer 40k universe might want to read it and that it's only going to be available in cheap used copies and thus not much of a financial investment.
It passes my threshold of "do not recommend" only because other fans of the Warhammer 40k universe might want to read it and that it's only going to be available in cheap used copies and thus not much of a financial investment.
May 1, 2012
The next book was set 100 years after the first with the characters having gone into statis. Like the first book the first half didn't do much for me. It had them travelling and reuniting with their friends. One of who, very sloppily, revealed another conspiracy behind the one they had discovered earlier. The biggest problem with this book was that they hardly touched on the previous consipircay, and the new one was never fully developed. Half way through one of the space marine characters showed up and he added a nice balance to the "party". But the whole journey to get into the web to retrieve a book from the black library (while a cool idea) just seemed a bit pointless in the end.
May 4, 2025
When last we left Inquisitor Jaq Draco, he and his retinue were confused, disillusioned, and on the run. The discovery of a vast conspiracy within the Imperial Inquisition had led Jaq to seek the help of his ultimate master, the God Emperor, only to discover that the man was a fractured, confused shell of himself with no clear advise to offer.
Harlequin picks up a hundred years later. Jaq, the shapeshifting assassin Meh’lindi, and the psychic Navegator Googol awaken from the stasis pods where they have been hiding for the last century and begin to seek news of what has transpired in their absence. Although the hunt for them has died down, all is not at peace within the Imperium of Mankind and our heroes find themselves again searching for the mysterious harlequin man whose presence put them on the scent of the hydra conspiracy in the last book. Allies and enemies both new and old all seem to be headed for one destination – a dead world where the alien Eldar are gathering to conduct a mysterious ritual.
The best I can say about Harlequin is that it was slightly better than Draco. There are fewer gross-out descriptions and less awkward attempts at humor that don’t land. While the descriptions of anything remotely sexual still feel grimy and uncomfortably masturbatory, there is no one scene that is quite as over-the-top as the Slaanesh planet scene from the first book. And one of my favorite characters from Space Marine shows up in an unexpected crossover that improved the last segment of the story significantly.
This, however, is where the positivity ends. The plot of Harlequin is noticeably more complex than Draco’s, featuring conspiracies within conspiracies and characters with shifting and unclear allegiances. In the hands of a stronger writer, this could have been extremely rewarding, but in this book it just becomes confusing. Characters move from location to location and task to task, but rarely is there a clear line of logic between what has already transpired and what they are doing now, leading to a book that, despite the obvious through-plot, still feels like a string of disconnected scenes. The prose is still clogged with an excessive volume of adjectives and rhetorical questions and the story’s use of Warhammer 40,000 lore still stretches believability frequently for those who know anything about the setting. The last one can’t necessarily be laid at Watson’s feet – this was, after all, the early days of the setting and much that the story contradicts wasn’t even established yet at this point – but it does make the story even more of a chore to read for those who are familiar with 40k’s later installments.
The most frustrating aspect, however, was how underutilized some of the better ideas in the story were. The hydra conspiracy from the last book seems mostly forgotten about and the Eldar, despite being built up fairly heavily as antagonists, feel strangely like window dressing. While the finale takes place in their domain and one of their artifacts becomes key to the plot, most of the scenes that involve them have them are so distant and generic that the enemies in question could have been humans and nothing about the story would have changed.
Meh’lindi gets the worst of this. She was the side character in Draco with the most potential, and initially I was excited that she was going to get her own storyline in this book. Unfortunately, said storyline turns out to be so easily resolved and straightforward that reading it felt like a waste of time. The emotional effects of resolving one of her key character struggles from the first book are eluded to, but not developed in any way, and the whole thing feels more like a way for Watson to write himself out of a corner and fill page count than a sincere effort to progress the character. What remains is that the only female character with speaking lines exists in the story only to kill people and be sexy and while it’s hard to say that any of the male side characters fare significantly better, it does add to my overall annoyance with the series.
While Harlequin might not have quite as memorable of lows as Draco or Space Marine, there’s little to recommend it either. And that is, perhaps, it’s greatest sin: it’s boring.
There are better Warhammer books and there are better space opera series and the only reason to pick up this one is if, like me, you’re an obsessive completionist who wants to see the Inquisition War trilogy to its full conclusion or to experience every Warhammer 40,000 book in existence.
Warnings: Like its predecessor, Harlequin contains plenty of graphic violence and light body horror. There are vague references to sex slavery and two rape scenes, one of which is extremely violent, but ends quickly, and the other of which is longer but discussed in vague and ambiguous terms. A character makes frequent references to their desire to entirely genocide an alien race, specifically including the small children, although this does not wind up happening on-screen
Harlequin picks up a hundred years later. Jaq, the shapeshifting assassin Meh’lindi, and the psychic Navegator Googol awaken from the stasis pods where they have been hiding for the last century and begin to seek news of what has transpired in their absence. Although the hunt for them has died down, all is not at peace within the Imperium of Mankind and our heroes find themselves again searching for the mysterious harlequin man whose presence put them on the scent of the hydra conspiracy in the last book. Allies and enemies both new and old all seem to be headed for one destination – a dead world where the alien Eldar are gathering to conduct a mysterious ritual.
The best I can say about Harlequin is that it was slightly better than Draco. There are fewer gross-out descriptions and less awkward attempts at humor that don’t land. While the descriptions of anything remotely sexual still feel grimy and uncomfortably masturbatory, there is no one scene that is quite as over-the-top as the Slaanesh planet scene from the first book. And one of my favorite characters from Space Marine shows up in an unexpected crossover that improved the last segment of the story significantly.
This, however, is where the positivity ends. The plot of Harlequin is noticeably more complex than Draco’s, featuring conspiracies within conspiracies and characters with shifting and unclear allegiances. In the hands of a stronger writer, this could have been extremely rewarding, but in this book it just becomes confusing. Characters move from location to location and task to task, but rarely is there a clear line of logic between what has already transpired and what they are doing now, leading to a book that, despite the obvious through-plot, still feels like a string of disconnected scenes. The prose is still clogged with an excessive volume of adjectives and rhetorical questions and the story’s use of Warhammer 40,000 lore still stretches believability frequently for those who know anything about the setting. The last one can’t necessarily be laid at Watson’s feet – this was, after all, the early days of the setting and much that the story contradicts wasn’t even established yet at this point – but it does make the story even more of a chore to read for those who are familiar with 40k’s later installments.
The most frustrating aspect, however, was how underutilized some of the better ideas in the story were. The hydra conspiracy from the last book seems mostly forgotten about and the Eldar, despite being built up fairly heavily as antagonists, feel strangely like window dressing. While the finale takes place in their domain and one of their artifacts becomes key to the plot, most of the scenes that involve them have them are so distant and generic that the enemies in question could have been humans and nothing about the story would have changed.
Meh’lindi gets the worst of this. She was the side character in Draco with the most potential, and initially I was excited that she was going to get her own storyline in this book. Unfortunately, said storyline turns out to be so easily resolved and straightforward that reading it felt like a waste of time. The emotional effects of resolving one of her key character struggles from the first book are eluded to, but not developed in any way, and the whole thing feels more like a way for Watson to write himself out of a corner and fill page count than a sincere effort to progress the character. What remains is that the only female character with speaking lines exists in the story only to kill people and be sexy and while it’s hard to say that any of the male side characters fare significantly better, it does add to my overall annoyance with the series.
While Harlequin might not have quite as memorable of lows as Draco or Space Marine, there’s little to recommend it either. And that is, perhaps, it’s greatest sin: it’s boring.
There are better Warhammer books and there are better space opera series and the only reason to pick up this one is if, like me, you’re an obsessive completionist who wants to see the Inquisition War trilogy to its full conclusion or to experience every Warhammer 40,000 book in existence.
Warnings: Like its predecessor, Harlequin contains plenty of graphic violence and light body horror. There are vague references to sex slavery and two rape scenes, one of which is extremely violent, but ends quickly, and the other of which is longer but discussed in vague and ambiguous terms. A character makes frequent references to their desire to entirely genocide an alien race, specifically including the small children, although this does not wind up happening on-screen
September 3, 2025
I really dug this one, much better than Draco. A better story, more weirdness, and it lost the dreamlike flair at the end of Draco where he had to rush the entry to the Emperor's throne room.
It picks up 100 years later, with the reawakening of Jaq, Meh'linde, and their Navigator try to discover what happened in the intervening century. To do this, they need an astropath. They find a planet under attack by Slaaneshi cults, their Navigator is turned and then killed, and they meet up with their Squat friend who has been in service to the Harlequin-man/inquisitor. They pick up a Navigator that was secreted away by Grimm, and then seek an audience with the planetary governor. In order to obtain the astropath necessary to eavesdrop on the Warp, they end up discussing Chaos and then executing the governor, his guards, and his harem, knowing that this will doom the planet to fall due to the collapse in morale. Plenty of Dune-style weirdness here.
The navigator and astropath become close. The astropath is able to gaze into the uncovered Navigator eye due to the blindness from soul-binding, and they spend hours locked together. Grimm is also not quite trusted, as Jaq is suspicious of his fortuitous arrival. Jaq and Meh'lindi torture Grimm, and there's a major lore dump here. Apparently the Emperor had hundreds of children that are psychic blanks to him, and are immortal. These are the Sensei. There is a secret order of the Inquisition made up of those that had been possessed by a daemon and then thrown off the shackles of possession that is seeking to gather them. The goal is to sacrifice them to create the Numen, a rebirth of the Emperor akin to Dune's Golden Path.
They also find the former master of the Callidus shrine who ordered Meh'lindi's transformation into a genestealer-only shapeshifter, and convince him to reverse the surgery. Bit of a story hook here; he's in a Dreadnought body, but they leave uneventfully. This is only really important because it lets Meh'lindi mimic Eldar with her shapeshifting.
In eavesdropping on the Warp, they discover that the Eldar are enacting a ritual around the planet that underwent Exterminatus in the first book. A mind-wiped member of the Hydra cabal, Baal Firenze, is to lead a group of Imperial Fist space marines (with our old friend Lex, from Watson's other novel, now a captain). The slaughter is to whatever enigmatic designs the Eldar have, both of Marines and themselves. Meh'lindi assumes the guise of an Eldar Guardian and pretends to take the group prisoner. Jaq et al end up convincing Lex that Baal Firenze is not trustworthy, and he flees into the Webway with them.
They meet a Harlequin band, who give a contrasting view of the Numen - they don't want to sacrifice them, but to control them and replace the Emperor with them. They believe that a resurrected Emperor could be the Dark King, a 5th Chaos god. This is to take place at the Rhana Dandra, the Eldar end times. They are to be executed, but are saved by a timely arrival of space marines who also entered the webway.
Jaq's astropath was able to witness the path to the Black Library, where Eldar keep the most heavily guarded secrets, by staring into the eye of the navigator. The astropath is killed, and Lex carves the rune giving the path into the navigator's eye, shielded by his helmet. The group proceeds through the webway, following the path given by the rune. The Phoenix Lord of the Howling Banshees pursues them, killing the Marines one by one until only Lex is left. She disables his armor, and then kills Meh'lindi. Jaq is distraught, and I was honestly surprised by this - it's rare to kill a principal character, especially one who acts as a sounding board for the main character. Interested to see how this shakes out in the next book.
They enter the Black Library, find the book of the Rhana Dandra, which is studded with priceless gems. Due to the rune they're phase shifted away from the Eldar who would stop them, and only view them as shadows. The plan is to sell the gems to finance the research necessary, since none of the group read or speak Eldar. Jaq adds to his body count by executing the greedy navigator who had been corrupted by dreams of the immense wealth, adding to the trail of bodies. Really like this aspect of Watson's stuff - even the "good" guys leave a trail of innocents behind them in the hope of saving humanity. There's a grittiness to this that I think is left out of 40k stuff where the people doing the murdering tend to be side characters, or justify in some way. Now it's up to Jaq, Grimm, and the now-armorless former Space Marine Lex to try to stop the hydra . . .
It picks up 100 years later, with the reawakening of Jaq, Meh'linde, and their Navigator try to discover what happened in the intervening century. To do this, they need an astropath. They find a planet under attack by Slaaneshi cults, their Navigator is turned and then killed, and they meet up with their Squat friend who has been in service to the Harlequin-man/inquisitor. They pick up a Navigator that was secreted away by Grimm, and then seek an audience with the planetary governor. In order to obtain the astropath necessary to eavesdrop on the Warp, they end up discussing Chaos and then executing the governor, his guards, and his harem, knowing that this will doom the planet to fall due to the collapse in morale. Plenty of Dune-style weirdness here.
The navigator and astropath become close. The astropath is able to gaze into the uncovered Navigator eye due to the blindness from soul-binding, and they spend hours locked together. Grimm is also not quite trusted, as Jaq is suspicious of his fortuitous arrival. Jaq and Meh'lindi torture Grimm, and there's a major lore dump here. Apparently the Emperor had hundreds of children that are psychic blanks to him, and are immortal. These are the Sensei. There is a secret order of the Inquisition made up of those that had been possessed by a daemon and then thrown off the shackles of possession that is seeking to gather them. The goal is to sacrifice them to create the Numen, a rebirth of the Emperor akin to Dune's Golden Path.
They also find the former master of the Callidus shrine who ordered Meh'lindi's transformation into a genestealer-only shapeshifter, and convince him to reverse the surgery. Bit of a story hook here; he's in a Dreadnought body, but they leave uneventfully. This is only really important because it lets Meh'lindi mimic Eldar with her shapeshifting.
In eavesdropping on the Warp, they discover that the Eldar are enacting a ritual around the planet that underwent Exterminatus in the first book. A mind-wiped member of the Hydra cabal, Baal Firenze, is to lead a group of Imperial Fist space marines (with our old friend Lex, from Watson's other novel, now a captain). The slaughter is to whatever enigmatic designs the Eldar have, both of Marines and themselves. Meh'lindi assumes the guise of an Eldar Guardian and pretends to take the group prisoner. Jaq et al end up convincing Lex that Baal Firenze is not trustworthy, and he flees into the Webway with them.
They meet a Harlequin band, who give a contrasting view of the Numen - they don't want to sacrifice them, but to control them and replace the Emperor with them. They believe that a resurrected Emperor could be the Dark King, a 5th Chaos god. This is to take place at the Rhana Dandra, the Eldar end times. They are to be executed, but are saved by a timely arrival of space marines who also entered the webway.
Jaq's astropath was able to witness the path to the Black Library, where Eldar keep the most heavily guarded secrets, by staring into the eye of the navigator. The astropath is killed, and Lex carves the rune giving the path into the navigator's eye, shielded by his helmet. The group proceeds through the webway, following the path given by the rune. The Phoenix Lord of the Howling Banshees pursues them, killing the Marines one by one until only Lex is left. She disables his armor, and then kills Meh'lindi. Jaq is distraught, and I was honestly surprised by this - it's rare to kill a principal character, especially one who acts as a sounding board for the main character. Interested to see how this shakes out in the next book.
They enter the Black Library, find the book of the Rhana Dandra, which is studded with priceless gems. Due to the rune they're phase shifted away from the Eldar who would stop them, and only view them as shadows. The plan is to sell the gems to finance the research necessary, since none of the group read or speak Eldar. Jaq adds to his body count by executing the greedy navigator who had been corrupted by dreams of the immense wealth, adding to the trail of bodies. Really like this aspect of Watson's stuff - even the "good" guys leave a trail of innocents behind them in the hope of saving humanity. There's a grittiness to this that I think is left out of 40k stuff where the people doing the murdering tend to be side characters, or justify in some way. Now it's up to Jaq, Grimm, and the now-armorless former Space Marine Lex to try to stop the hydra . . .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 20, 2017
So overall, somehow, I really enjoyed this book and have to disagree with the majority rating.
For me "Space Marine" was the least interesting of the lot and the hardest to get into. Draco picked up the pace and got me sucked into the Warhammer 40k world.
Harlequin was just awesome!
Plot: 4
Although it appeared to not directly continue after Inquisitor to tell us about Hydra Conspiracy, it instead focused on a different, parallel path of the Black Library and mysterious Eldar. Gritty and dark it was just a thrill from page one until the end. I could hardly put it down.
Character: 3
This is where the book is just average. The only reason I felt good and attached to the characters was because of the previous book. I already knew them. No real character growth happens, with one major exception on the part of Melhindi...but read the book to find out more. Hint: it's worth it!
Setting: 5
Absolutely love the setting of Warhammer 40K. It's like a horror, sci go and fantasy smashed into one. Dark gritty worlds, interplanetary travel, finicky and evil gods, sort of good Emperor...all sorts of things going wrong in the worst possible ways and the ambiance of the entire world is just horrifying. I absolutely loved it.
Obviously, I'll be reading the last part of the trilogy sometimes in the future, that is for sure!
Roman "Ragnar"
For me "Space Marine" was the least interesting of the lot and the hardest to get into. Draco picked up the pace and got me sucked into the Warhammer 40k world.
Harlequin was just awesome!
Plot: 4
Although it appeared to not directly continue after Inquisitor to tell us about Hydra Conspiracy, it instead focused on a different, parallel path of the Black Library and mysterious Eldar. Gritty and dark it was just a thrill from page one until the end. I could hardly put it down.
Character: 3
This is where the book is just average. The only reason I felt good and attached to the characters was because of the previous book. I already knew them. No real character growth happens, with one major exception on the part of Melhindi...but read the book to find out more. Hint: it's worth it!
Setting: 5
Absolutely love the setting of Warhammer 40K. It's like a horror, sci go and fantasy smashed into one. Dark gritty worlds, interplanetary travel, finicky and evil gods, sort of good Emperor...all sorts of things going wrong in the worst possible ways and the ambiance of the entire world is just horrifying. I absolutely loved it.
Obviously, I'll be reading the last part of the trilogy sometimes in the future, that is for sure!
Roman "Ragnar"
July 12, 2025
I can only agree with reviews I’ve seen online, and have to wonder if Watson was taking something illegal when he wrote this. The grammar is poor, the writing is illogical, the story jumps around so much that it’s hard to follow and honestly, it just isn’t well written. The only reason I have this two stars is because the concept - a story about an Inquisitor - is a decent one.
November 26, 2025
se dovessi ragionare del "quando" son stati scritti(dato che questo fa parte di una trilogia) direi un quattro stelle/tre stelle e mezzo(Abnett ha trasmesso meglio le situazioni), se lo devo valutare con gli occhi di oggi 3 stelle è il massimo. Purtroppo le dinamiche proposte sono meno incisive persino del precedente scritto.
August 26, 2019
A bit all over the place.
August 18, 2020
Lex is back!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 9, 2022
Takes the series into so-bad-it's-good territory, with a truly risible sex scene. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/201...
November 6, 2022
This is just not good. It’s interesting for the look back to earliest 40k lore, but the writing is embarrassingly bad.
August 18, 2025
Quite boring.
December 30, 2016
Ian Watson's second installment in The Inquisition War continues the story of Jaq Draco and the mysterious plots that he has become wrapped up in. As in the first book, HARLEQUIN is a non-stop, action-packed thrill ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat with brutal battles and intriguing riddles. A number of new characters are introduced in this book, but the original cast maintains the prominent roles. Death and brutality are widespread throughout the book, with characters coming and going quite frequently. This book doesn't do much to answer questions about the overall story, leaving you with more questions than when you started.
This book delves into some of the most obscure aspects of the WH40K universe. One of the first books to provide a good look at the Eldar, HARLEQUIN gives some detail to the ancient enigmatic race. A significant part of the book takes place within the Eldar interdimensional Webways, where the heroes face unstoppable-seeming adversaries as they travel to discover the mysterious Black Library. Also, some of the inner workings of the Inquisition are uncovered, revealing the shadowiness of the galaxy's secret police.
Ian Watson's view of the WH40K universe differs in many aspects from that of most other authors, and while it upsets many die-hard 40K fans, I think its good that he was able to show some leeway in his interpretations. His version of the universe is even darker than most and the near-total despair and miserableness he portrays casts the universe in an even grimmer light. Grotesque piercings, tattoos, and scars seem nearly universal in these books, with every character having severe bodily alterations. Personally, I don't like this vision as much as those of Abnett and King, who tend to make the WH40K universe a lot more livable.
Overall, this book brings the story of the Inquisition War along nicely and leaves you with a burning desire to finish the trilogy.
This book delves into some of the most obscure aspects of the WH40K universe. One of the first books to provide a good look at the Eldar, HARLEQUIN gives some detail to the ancient enigmatic race. A significant part of the book takes place within the Eldar interdimensional Webways, where the heroes face unstoppable-seeming adversaries as they travel to discover the mysterious Black Library. Also, some of the inner workings of the Inquisition are uncovered, revealing the shadowiness of the galaxy's secret police.
Ian Watson's view of the WH40K universe differs in many aspects from that of most other authors, and while it upsets many die-hard 40K fans, I think its good that he was able to show some leeway in his interpretations. His version of the universe is even darker than most and the near-total despair and miserableness he portrays casts the universe in an even grimmer light. Grotesque piercings, tattoos, and scars seem nearly universal in these books, with every character having severe bodily alterations. Personally, I don't like this vision as much as those of Abnett and King, who tend to make the WH40K universe a lot more livable.
Overall, this book brings the story of the Inquisition War along nicely and leaves you with a burning desire to finish the trilogy.
December 18, 2014
This book is even foggier in my memory than part one. After hiding in cryo tanks for a hundred years to get free of the warrants & death threats against them, our intrepid "heroes" return to fight again! There's this conspiracy they deal with, and I can't remember the details, but it has something to do with the Emperor & like ... possible hidden children of his? It's pretty wide-spanning and insane, and I'm sad I don't really remember it. Somewhere during this book the sort of ... cohesion of the plot begins to break down. Ostensibly this book is about the gang going into the Webway & infiltrating the Eldar's Black Library, but ... it starts off REALLY slow with like 1/3 of the book just seeming to be a maguffin party-separation thing put in there to fill space ... sense starts going out the window ... you could tell book 3 was either going to be brilliant or horrible.
November 19, 2011
Not much happens, while you get bored with the little that actually going on. Read the Spacemarine twice instead. Sadly needs to be done if you want the whole trilogy (Jaq, Harlequin, Chaos Child)
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