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Gaunt's Ghosts #10
The Armour of Contempt
The Imperial crusade, including Gaunt's Ghosts, are sent back to the planet Gereon to join forces with the Imperial defenders and liberate the planet from Chaos. However, the brutality of the 'liberation' pitches Gaunt into opposition with his commanders, who believe victory must be achieved at any price, no matter how cruel.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published October 30, 2006
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March 12, 2020
-A veces se olvida la dureza de ser parte de la Guardia Imperial; esta novela es un recordatorio.-
Género. Ciencia ficción.
Lo que nos cuenta. En el libro La armadura del desprecio (publicación original: The Armour of Contempt, 2006) y en el vigésimo segundo año de la Cruzada de los Mundos de Sabbat, Gaunt regresa con tropas a Gereon como parte de las fuerzas que, por fin, tratarán de liberar al planeta del dominio del Caos. Las necesidades de soldados harán que hasta unidades de reserva, incluso las de entrenamiento y castigo, deban ser movilizadas, pero quizá ni con eso puedan enfrentar la decida resistencia del Caos ni las decisiones del Alto Mando sobre qué son pérdidas aceptables y cuáles son los verdaderos objetivos además de la liberación del planeta, un mundo al que muchos consideran demasiado apegado ya al Caos por el tiempo que ha estado bajo su control. Décimo libro de la saga Los Fantasmas de Gaunt.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...
Género. Ciencia ficción.
Lo que nos cuenta. En el libro La armadura del desprecio (publicación original: The Armour of Contempt, 2006) y en el vigésimo segundo año de la Cruzada de los Mundos de Sabbat, Gaunt regresa con tropas a Gereon como parte de las fuerzas que, por fin, tratarán de liberar al planeta del dominio del Caos. Las necesidades de soldados harán que hasta unidades de reserva, incluso las de entrenamiento y castigo, deban ser movilizadas, pero quizá ni con eso puedan enfrentar la decida resistencia del Caos ni las decisiones del Alto Mando sobre qué son pérdidas aceptables y cuáles son los verdaderos objetivos además de la liberación del planeta, un mundo al que muchos consideran demasiado apegado ya al Caos por el tiempo que ha estado bajo su control. Décimo libro de la saga Los Fantasmas de Gaunt.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...
November 1, 2025
Well, Gaunt once again has control over the Ghosts, now a unit of amalgamated foundings. Finally, the brass has sights on Gereon, the planet where Gaunt and a small crew led a successful assassination of a traitor general. Gereon will now be liberated, but what the Imperials find is that not much remains to be saved...
The charm of this one revolves around a new character, Dalin. Way back in the series, two kids were 'adopted' by the Ghosts in a world recently liberated. The oldest, Dalin, is not 18 and undergoes boot camp of a sort on the way to Gereon. It seems all his life Dalin wanted to be a trooper with the Ghosts, but once he gets a taste of war, he begins to have some serious doubts!
Abnett gives us a real meatgrinder here. The assault on Gereon's fortified cities reads like something from the US civil war, with the brass basically dumping soldiers into harsh battles just hoping their shear numbers will turn the tide. Good, but jeez, pretty grim. 4 stars.
The charm of this one revolves around a new character, Dalin. Way back in the series, two kids were 'adopted' by the Ghosts in a world recently liberated. The oldest, Dalin, is not 18 and undergoes boot camp of a sort on the way to Gereon. It seems all his life Dalin wanted to be a trooper with the Ghosts, but once he gets a taste of war, he begins to have some serious doubts!
Abnett gives us a real meatgrinder here. The assault on Gereon's fortified cities reads like something from the US civil war, with the brass basically dumping soldiers into harsh battles just hoping their shear numbers will turn the tide. Good, but jeez, pretty grim. 4 stars.
October 1, 2019
It's Gereon 2: Electric Boogaloo!
This is a cracking entry in the series, and plays more like a movie in your mind than pretty much any book since First and Only, cutting between and contrasting two distinct stories unfolding as part of the vast invasion to reclaim the Chaos-held planet of Gereon. The first is the insertion by the Tanith/Verghast/Belladon regiment behind enemy lines and doing... well, stealth stuff. Spoilers. The second is the immense, insane invasion of one of the strongholds by millions of guardsmen... including one Dalin Creed. Our boy is all grown up and ready to die pointlessly for the Emperor!
Both arcs are compelling in their own way, the former by way of broad plot development (that inquisition deal is back!), and the latter by a deep dive into the life of a grunt guardsman. The Ghosts have always been a relatively unusual regiment in that they are allowed a large degree of autonomy and operate mostly in a skirmish fashion. Most imperial guard regiments are not so lucky, being forced to engage in mind-numbingly large battles against vastly superior forces, more often than not winning through sheer numbers and even more sheer bloody-mindedness. The life of the average guardsman in such an engagement is brutal and short and nasty. And oh boy do we see that through Dalin's eyes. Parts of his story are genuinely harrowing, and possibly more than at any other point in the series show just how powerless the common man is in the setting.
For this - and for that ending - the book elevates itself above many of the others in the series. It's distressing, sears itself into your memory, and yet manages moments of sincere emotion. The Lost feels rather stalled at this point, and definitely does not compare favourably to The Saint at book three, but this novel is a local high point.
This is a cracking entry in the series, and plays more like a movie in your mind than pretty much any book since First and Only, cutting between and contrasting two distinct stories unfolding as part of the vast invasion to reclaim the Chaos-held planet of Gereon. The first is the insertion by the Tanith/Verghast/Belladon regiment behind enemy lines and doing... well, stealth stuff. Spoilers. The second is the immense, insane invasion of one of the strongholds by millions of guardsmen... including one Dalin Creed. Our boy is all grown up and ready to die pointlessly for the Emperor!
Both arcs are compelling in their own way, the former by way of broad plot development (that inquisition deal is back!), and the latter by a deep dive into the life of a grunt guardsman. The Ghosts have always been a relatively unusual regiment in that they are allowed a large degree of autonomy and operate mostly in a skirmish fashion. Most imperial guard regiments are not so lucky, being forced to engage in mind-numbingly large battles against vastly superior forces, more often than not winning through sheer numbers and even more sheer bloody-mindedness. The life of the average guardsman in such an engagement is brutal and short and nasty. And oh boy do we see that through Dalin's eyes. Parts of his story are genuinely harrowing, and possibly more than at any other point in the series show just how powerless the common man is in the setting.
For this - and for that ending - the book elevates itself above many of the others in the series. It's distressing, sears itself into your memory, and yet manages moments of sincere emotion. The Lost feels rather stalled at this point, and definitely does not compare favourably to The Saint at book three, but this novel is a local high point.
August 4, 2011
Abnett's books flow over me like an unstoppable river of action, characters full of pathos, and a world dripping in grim reality. Every Marine oriented book, or Guard book I have read drives home the fact that the soldiers of the Imperium all plan on dying in the service of the Emporer...that there will never be peace or time after war. All they can do is enjoy those times between, or their service, therein lies their humanity.
The lost series is caked in this humanity. This book, the return to the planet that's name has been a hushed whisper among the Ghosts is a FANTASTIC part in the larger Lost story arc. Not only does Abnett score again with characters you could meet in the street tomorrow, but make the same old war seem new again through the eyes of a first timer.
IF you are a fan of warfare novels at all and skeptical of 40K books, I highly encourage you to just read the section of this novel that deals with the first 5 hours of an invasion from the eyes of a character who just walked out of basic. It was harsh, terrifying,and stunning.
Anett delivers once again.
The lost series is caked in this humanity. This book, the return to the planet that's name has been a hushed whisper among the Ghosts is a FANTASTIC part in the larger Lost story arc. Not only does Abnett score again with characters you could meet in the street tomorrow, but make the same old war seem new again through the eyes of a first timer.
IF you are a fan of warfare novels at all and skeptical of 40K books, I highly encourage you to just read the section of this novel that deals with the first 5 hours of an invasion from the eyes of a character who just walked out of basic. It was harsh, terrifying,and stunning.
Anett delivers once again.
March 2, 2015
It took me 2 days to read it. Unfortunately not even close to masterpieces like Traitor General.
September 23, 2014
Rather disappointing I thought. Bitty. Not much story. And the now cliched rather abrupt ending that leaves a major character dead that is becoming a hallmark of the series.
First one of these for a while I've not loved though.
It just sort of... ends on a pretty massive downer on all fronts.
First one of these for a while I've not loved though.
It just sort of... ends on a pretty massive downer on all fronts.
June 30, 2016
In this tenth book of the Gaunt's Ghosts series the author manages to take you back to war as if it is the first time it has been faced. An incredible story.
January 20, 2021
It’s seemingly inevitable that any author who writes grand war scenes with projectile weapons will eventually write either a d-day battle or a WW 1 trench charge. Abnett seems to write a D-Day fight once every three books and a trench charge somewhere in one of the other two. I can’t complain, he does them well, full of named characters you’ve grown attached to being picked off like petals from a daisy leaving nothing left but your wishes for your favorites to make it through the malestrom.
Abnett’s willingness to kill characters and to do so it not always heroic ways makes his books potent. War is not a beautifully orchestrated ballet in these books but a wroth and woeful torrent intent on obliterating all who engage. It’s the characters ability to maintain their humanity that indicates their valor, not their ingenuity or plot invincibility.
Abnett’s willingness to kill characters and to do so it not always heroic ways makes his books potent. War is not a beautifully orchestrated ballet in these books but a wroth and woeful torrent intent on obliterating all who engage. It’s the characters ability to maintain their humanity that indicates their valor, not their ingenuity or plot invincibility.
July 26, 2024
Reminded me of a Matthew Reilly book, an author I’ll need to go back to, with epic movie-like sequences (no spoiler, but Gaunt, Mkoll, and the tank is action packed). That ending though punched me in the gut 😢
Gereon resists!
Gereon resists!
February 12, 2023
Not one of the stronger GG works. I like that Abnett tried something different here with the characters he chose to follow and what type of action to show, and there is definite value in showing what an invasion looks like for a classic 'cannon fodder' squad of Imperial Guard rather than an elite squad, but most of the characters in Dalin's storyline you know you re never going to see again, so its hard to get attached, and as well Dalin's experience is so bad its almost hard to enjoy sometimes. That said, there are some strong moments, particularly the ending
Similarly, the Gaunt et al. Plotline is a bit tough, as its meant to be so bittersweet and indicative of the blunt instrument that is the imperium. It certainly does that well, but theres no triumphant end or victory. Probably the GG novel that most closely shows certain aspects of IG life, and valuable and interesting for that reason, but difficult to read at points for the same reason!
Similarly, the Gaunt et al. Plotline is a bit tough, as its meant to be so bittersweet and indicative of the blunt instrument that is the imperium. It certainly does that well, but theres no triumphant end or victory. Probably the GG novel that most closely shows certain aspects of IG life, and valuable and interesting for that reason, but difficult to read at points for the same reason!
July 17, 2022
Oh man. This is another cracking instalment in the series. The running theme of knowing something bad is gonna happen had me putting the book down for emotional breaks throughout.
The end… just oh man. 😓
The end… just oh man. 😓
November 7, 2021
Další příběh ze světa Warhammeru, tentokrát opět s Gauntovými duchy. A Abnett se nejen vrací ke své úspěšné sérii, ale jeho hrdinové se vrací na Gereon, planetu zasaženou Chaosem, na které měli tajnou operaci a na které slíbili místním odbojářům, že se vrátí a planetu osvobodí.
Jenže ve chvíli, kdy se opravdu vrací, už vlastně ani není co osvobozovat. A samo osvobozování se od vyhlazování skoro nedá rozeznat.
Abnett se tentokrát chopil vážně jednoduchého příběhu, seškrtaného na několik bojových operací, aby na nich co nejlíp popsal atmosféru bojů a lidí, co jsou v nich uvěznění. Celé je to rozdělené na dvě simultánní části. V jedné z nich vystupuje Dalin Criid, mladý adept, který by měl nastoupit mezi Gauntovy duchy, ale místo toho skončil jako řadový pěšák v imperiální armádě. Čili prostě jako potrava pro děla, která je veliteli hnána stále znova a znova do marných bojových situací. Tenhle nehrdinský a velmi sugestivní pohled na boje je fakt něco nového.
A pak sledujeme samotného Gaunta, který má navázat na planetě styk s rebely, ovšem do cesty se mu postaví velmi zvláštní a nebezpečný nepřítel.
Přijde mi, že tahle kniha se asi nejvíc snažila o vystižení bitvy… a určitého zahořknutí, kterému hrdinové začínají podléhat. Ale je to pořád dobře vybalancované, protože ano, velitelé můžou být idioti, ale Císař je stále pro všechny dokonalou ikonou.
Je fakt, že mám pořád problém pamatovat si z minulých dílů zásadní postavy, jak je to armáda, je jich přece jen víc než obvykle, ale rozhodně kniha funguje, i když si člověk moc nepamatuje. (I když je asi dobré si předtím osvěžit Generálovu zradu.) Servíruje spoustu fascinujících scén a obrazů a boje vytúrované na maximum. Prostě Warhammer.
Jenže ve chvíli, kdy se opravdu vrací, už vlastně ani není co osvobozovat. A samo osvobozování se od vyhlazování skoro nedá rozeznat.
Abnett se tentokrát chopil vážně jednoduchého příběhu, seškrtaného na několik bojových operací, aby na nich co nejlíp popsal atmosféru bojů a lidí, co jsou v nich uvěznění. Celé je to rozdělené na dvě simultánní části. V jedné z nich vystupuje Dalin Criid, mladý adept, který by měl nastoupit mezi Gauntovy duchy, ale místo toho skončil jako řadový pěšák v imperiální armádě. Čili prostě jako potrava pro děla, která je veliteli hnána stále znova a znova do marných bojových situací. Tenhle nehrdinský a velmi sugestivní pohled na boje je fakt něco nového.
A pak sledujeme samotného Gaunta, který má navázat na planetě styk s rebely, ovšem do cesty se mu postaví velmi zvláštní a nebezpečný nepřítel.
Přijde mi, že tahle kniha se asi nejvíc snažila o vystižení bitvy… a určitého zahořknutí, kterému hrdinové začínají podléhat. Ale je to pořád dobře vybalancované, protože ano, velitelé můžou být idioti, ale Císař je stále pro všechny dokonalou ikonou.
Je fakt, že mám pořád problém pamatovat si z minulých dílů zásadní postavy, jak je to armáda, je jich přece jen víc než obvykle, ale rozhodně kniha funguje, i když si člověk moc nepamatuje. (I když je asi dobré si předtím osvěžit Generálovu zradu.) Servíruje spoustu fascinujících scén a obrazů a boje vytúrované na maximum. Prostě Warhammer.
December 12, 2017
The Crusade armies have identified their next target: the Chaos-held world of Gereon. Ibram Gaunt and a dozen of his best troops spent a year and a half on Gereon fighting the archenemy, and the Ghosts are in the vanguard of the liberation effort. Unfortunately, as the battle for Gereon rages on an apocalyptic scale, Gaunt gradually learns there are extenuating reasons for this invasion, reasons that are related to his prior mission to the planet...
The Armour of Contempt is the tenth Gaunt's Ghosts novel (of the twelve currently available) and the third book in the 'Lost' arc. The novel initially appears to have been written as a fan-pleasing move: having been through hell and back during the previous small-scale, stealth mission to Gereon, Gaunt gets to return with several hundred thousand troops of the Imperial Guard, vast numbers of tanks and aircraft and several Titans (skyscraper-sized battlemechs with enough firepower to level a city with a single salvo) to dish out some much-needed retribution to the occupiers. Of course, that would be far too obvious and much too boring to make for an interesting book. Instead, the novel is divided into two mostly-separate narratives which have different objectives.
In the first, Dalin Criid undergoes Imperial Guard training. Rescued from Vervunhive as a ten-year-old back in the third novel, Necropolis, Dalin is now eighteen and spoiling to join the ranks of the Ghosts. Unfortunately, as a trainee he is serving as part of the military reserve and when the assault on Gereon begins, he finds his reserve status activated and himself fighting as part of an ad-hoc-assembled military unit stuffed full of rookies, rather than with the Ghosts. This gives Abnett a chance to show us what it's like as part of a full-scale, combined-arms offensive in the WH40K universe rather than the standard Gaunt's Ghosts narrative about smaller-scaled conflicts with stealth and infiltration elements, as well as a chance to dish out more information and background on Guard training. This narrative unfolds fairly concisely with a focus on how Dalin handles the ridiculous pressures put on his shoulders and those of his unit. It's entertaining, but perhaps a little too straightforward after some of the more intriguing curve-balls thrown our way in the last few novels.
In the second narrative, Gaunt has to reacquaint himself with the Gereon resistance and the troops he left behind last time around. This storyline is more of a gut-punch, as Gaunt discovers just how badly he's been used by both his supposed friends and by his enemies, with the people of Gereon left to pay the price. This is a pretty grim story which doesn't have much of a happy ending, especially as it emphasises Gaunt's flaws (an Imperial commissar really should have seen the ending coming) instead of his virtues, something that is always welcome as it would be extremely easy for Abnett to allow Gaunt to become a flawless hero.
The two narratives unfold reasonably well together, although the linking device is a little bit corny. This book features the death of another prominent Ghost, but it is foreshadowed so much that it lacks any kind of real impact, which is a shame given the story points Abnett had set up in previous novels to support it.
Despite this minor weakness, The Armour of Contempt (****) is another strong entry in the series, with an different (but effective) structure to the rest of the novels. The book is available now in the UK and USA as part of The Lost omnibus.
The Armour of Contempt is the tenth Gaunt's Ghosts novel (of the twelve currently available) and the third book in the 'Lost' arc. The novel initially appears to have been written as a fan-pleasing move: having been through hell and back during the previous small-scale, stealth mission to Gereon, Gaunt gets to return with several hundred thousand troops of the Imperial Guard, vast numbers of tanks and aircraft and several Titans (skyscraper-sized battlemechs with enough firepower to level a city with a single salvo) to dish out some much-needed retribution to the occupiers. Of course, that would be far too obvious and much too boring to make for an interesting book. Instead, the novel is divided into two mostly-separate narratives which have different objectives.
In the first, Dalin Criid undergoes Imperial Guard training. Rescued from Vervunhive as a ten-year-old back in the third novel, Necropolis, Dalin is now eighteen and spoiling to join the ranks of the Ghosts. Unfortunately, as a trainee he is serving as part of the military reserve and when the assault on Gereon begins, he finds his reserve status activated and himself fighting as part of an ad-hoc-assembled military unit stuffed full of rookies, rather than with the Ghosts. This gives Abnett a chance to show us what it's like as part of a full-scale, combined-arms offensive in the WH40K universe rather than the standard Gaunt's Ghosts narrative about smaller-scaled conflicts with stealth and infiltration elements, as well as a chance to dish out more information and background on Guard training. This narrative unfolds fairly concisely with a focus on how Dalin handles the ridiculous pressures put on his shoulders and those of his unit. It's entertaining, but perhaps a little too straightforward after some of the more intriguing curve-balls thrown our way in the last few novels.
In the second narrative, Gaunt has to reacquaint himself with the Gereon resistance and the troops he left behind last time around. This storyline is more of a gut-punch, as Gaunt discovers just how badly he's been used by both his supposed friends and by his enemies, with the people of Gereon left to pay the price. This is a pretty grim story which doesn't have much of a happy ending, especially as it emphasises Gaunt's flaws (an Imperial commissar really should have seen the ending coming) instead of his virtues, something that is always welcome as it would be extremely easy for Abnett to allow Gaunt to become a flawless hero.
The two narratives unfold reasonably well together, although the linking device is a little bit corny. This book features the death of another prominent Ghost, but it is foreshadowed so much that it lacks any kind of real impact, which is a shame given the story points Abnett had set up in previous novels to support it.
Despite this minor weakness, The Armour of Contempt (****) is another strong entry in the series, with an different (but effective) structure to the rest of the novels. The book is available now in the UK and USA as part of The Lost omnibus.
October 8, 2019
The Gaunt's Ghosts books have been fun thus far, with the ups and downs to be expected in any multi-volume series. Pretty easy read, lots of action, not to complicated. This is why The Armour of Contempt was a bit of a shock. On the heels of His Last Command, which I found rather tedious (and the titular line... *deep sigh*), this is sooo much better than any other volume in the series! And like I said: I really dig the series.
Abnett manages to generate real tension in this story. I found myself shoulder to shoulder with the Guardsmen in the chaos—little 'c'—of an Imperial assault. It's a visceral depiction of life in the Guard when you're not a member of a highly skilled, rationally directed unit. The absurdity and seeming futility of combat is matched in it's intensity by the stupidity of leadership and the capricious brutality of the main-line Commissariat. It leaves the reader not sure if they should laugh or cry, so: spot on!
Abnett is a bit heavy handed when it comes to generating sentimentality. The ultimate resolution of the story is forced and, frankly, predictable. With the amount of foreshadowing he shoveled into the story, I feel like he could have just put it in the liner notes. This is not really news, and I love the guy anyway.
A ripping yarn, well told: First and Only!
Abnett manages to generate real tension in this story. I found myself shoulder to shoulder with the Guardsmen in the chaos—little 'c'—of an Imperial assault. It's a visceral depiction of life in the Guard when you're not a member of a highly skilled, rationally directed unit. The absurdity and seeming futility of combat is matched in it's intensity by the stupidity of leadership and the capricious brutality of the main-line Commissariat. It leaves the reader not sure if they should laugh or cry, so: spot on!
Abnett is a bit heavy handed when it comes to generating sentimentality. The ultimate resolution of the story is forced and, frankly, predictable. With the amount of foreshadowing he shoveled into the story, I feel like he could have just put it in the liner notes. This is not really news, and I love the guy anyway.
A ripping yarn, well told: First and Only!
January 3, 2023
The Armour of Contempt suffers a bit from splitting the story in half and both stories not really being meaty enough on their own even if they are complimentary to one another. Despite that, however, this book oozes atmosphere. The Ghosts side of things are haunting, punctuated by the horrors of a land long left to the Chaos, and literally populated with monsters. It's almost post-apocalyptic in a way and spends more time with characters than the big battles.
Dalin's side of things, however, is all about the meat grinder aspects of the Guard. Dehumanizing training, merciless commissars, battles so horrific that they defy a single human's understanding of the massive amount of violence happening around them. It has some really striking scenes and where the Ghosts' story is almost melancholic in its post-apocalyptic feel, Dalin is right there with two feet firmly planted in the center of the apocalypse itself.
So, despite the split story robbing the overall plot of some of it's momentum, this is probably some of Abnett's best writing simply in setting up scenes and depicting war from two different perspectives. It's a striking book, especially Dalin's side since the Ghosts rarely see war on that level, and reminds me of some of his Heresy work. A solid read overall!
Dalin's side of things, however, is all about the meat grinder aspects of the Guard. Dehumanizing training, merciless commissars, battles so horrific that they defy a single human's understanding of the massive amount of violence happening around them. It has some really striking scenes and where the Ghosts' story is almost melancholic in its post-apocalyptic feel, Dalin is right there with two feet firmly planted in the center of the apocalypse itself.
So, despite the split story robbing the overall plot of some of it's momentum, this is probably some of Abnett's best writing simply in setting up scenes and depicting war from two different perspectives. It's a striking book, especially Dalin's side since the Ghosts rarely see war on that level, and reminds me of some of his Heresy work. A solid read overall!
May 16, 2021
Quite a bleak story really here, certainly not as painful as the prior book was, but certainly not a triumphant tale.
I didn't enjoy the arc with Dalin Criid as much, as while he provides a good insight as to what life is like for someone new to the Imperial Guard, given that we haven't had as much focus on him previously, the emotional attachment wasn't there like we have for other characters, and indeed was more interesting when Merrt was there.
The other arc was more interesting, and more emotional, but also more bleak because of this, as we return to Gereon, and it certainly isn't the triumphant return you might have hoped for, instead it just seems quite sad, even if quite realistic for the 40k universe. The fate of Cirk is really quite sad, and Caffran's fate was another gut punch, the first since Sabbat Martyr really for me.
A strong read, but a bleak one, so don't expect much happiness out of this one!
I didn't enjoy the arc with Dalin Criid as much, as while he provides a good insight as to what life is like for someone new to the Imperial Guard, given that we haven't had as much focus on him previously, the emotional attachment wasn't there like we have for other characters, and indeed was more interesting when Merrt was there.
The other arc was more interesting, and more emotional, but also more bleak because of this, as we return to Gereon, and it certainly isn't the triumphant return you might have hoped for, instead it just seems quite sad, even if quite realistic for the 40k universe. The fate of Cirk is really quite sad, and Caffran's fate was another gut punch, the first since Sabbat Martyr really for me.
A strong read, but a bleak one, so don't expect much happiness out of this one!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 11, 2023
Probably a 3.5 in the end.
Half the book focusing on the ghosts isn't specifically an issue if the other half has more interesting story telling. Clearly Abnett wanted to show the pointlessness of the guard grind outside the Ghosts and highlight the terror that is the imperium but it went on for too long.
The foreshadowing became a tad too evident also and the finale of the book flopped for me. I didn't feel much about it, I think because I was so deadened by the carnage constantly hammered in through the non ghost elements.
This felt like a book desperate to finish up loose ends while also presenting a transition to the next saga. Certainly other books at the end of 'block' have done this, but none felt more self evident that this one.
Toby Longworth continues to be one of the best audio book narrators I've heard and now I'm left waiting for GW to release book 11 & 12 on audio!
Half the book focusing on the ghosts isn't specifically an issue if the other half has more interesting story telling. Clearly Abnett wanted to show the pointlessness of the guard grind outside the Ghosts and highlight the terror that is the imperium but it went on for too long.
The foreshadowing became a tad too evident also and the finale of the book flopped for me. I didn't feel much about it, I think because I was so deadened by the carnage constantly hammered in through the non ghost elements.
This felt like a book desperate to finish up loose ends while also presenting a transition to the next saga. Certainly other books at the end of 'block' have done this, but none felt more self evident that this one.
Toby Longworth continues to be one of the best audio book narrators I've heard and now I'm left waiting for GW to release book 11 & 12 on audio!
February 27, 2019
I think this was probably the best in the whole series, but probably the hardest to write a review for, because I don't want to give anything away. I'm not a fan of spoiler country. We get character development like no other book before this. And being able to see Dalin Criid is something special. Being able to see what basic training is like from someone who has been through war, and his unique perspective from being raised by the Ghosts was truly spectacular.
The action sequences of the novel were intense and suspenseful, and the heart behind every character is inspiring. The ending of this one is...
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Truly heartbreaking. I cannot wait to jump into the next book to see what's next.
The action sequences of the novel were intense and suspenseful, and the heart behind every character is inspiring. The ending of this one is...
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Truly heartbreaking. I cannot wait to jump into the next book to see what's next.
August 23, 2024
Really, really good. Feels even more of a 40k book than previous entries; even though there's hardly any of the "big factions" besides the Guard of course you get that real Karl Kopinski/David Gallagher codex art bleakness. The characters all shine here, too, and you're rewarded for taking the time to get to know them so well, especially Larks, Mkoll, Tona, and Dalin the newcomer's, whose bits feel straight out of something like All Quiet on the Western Front (All Quiet in the Segmentum Pacificus?). Also, got my heart ripped out and crushed in the last 10 pages, just when I thought it was safe. Cheers, Dan.
August 29, 2024
The Armour of Contempt, book 10 in Dan Abnett’s Gaunt’s Ghosts series. One of his best of the series imho.
He builds new characters, shows growth in fairly recent ones, and provides hope as the book picks up speed( we are going back). Horror and insanity of war. Fortitude and spirit battling true evil.
I don’t tag authors normally. This is where I want to yell curse kick @dabnett inna nuts cause he makes ya care. Then with a couple of near misses, feints, and a severe injury(maybe that’s it) he rips my heart out again. FFS.
I cursed a lot more and called him many more names in my head.
Overall another well written novel.
He builds new characters, shows growth in fairly recent ones, and provides hope as the book picks up speed( we are going back). Horror and insanity of war. Fortitude and spirit battling true evil.
I don’t tag authors normally. This is where I want to yell curse kick @dabnett inna nuts cause he makes ya care. Then with a couple of near misses, feints, and a severe injury(maybe that’s it) he rips my heart out again. FFS.
I cursed a lot more and called him many more names in my head.
Overall another well written novel.
November 10, 2024
Commissar Colonel Ibram Gaunt returns to his least favourite old stomping ground for a lesson in unexpected consequences and the cruelty of the fate awaiting soldiers of the Imperium. A young Ghostlet has a baptism of fire, other Ghosts revisit and attempt to overcome old traumas, and Gaunt himself finds himself in a 'Duel' with enemy armour reminiscent of Steven Spielberg's 1971 debut.
The 'Armour of Contempt' of the title, though, is more attitudinal in nature, shining a light on what sets Gaunt and by extension the Ghosts apart in very different ways in the eyes of the reader and of his peers.
Another enjoyable entry in the unshakably strong Gaunt's Ghosts series.
The 'Armour of Contempt' of the title, though, is more attitudinal in nature, shining a light on what sets Gaunt and by extension the Ghosts apart in very different ways in the eyes of the reader and of his peers.
Another enjoyable entry in the unshakably strong Gaunt's Ghosts series.
November 16, 2017
I've been reading the Gaunt's Ghosts novels and enjoying them well enough, giving them three stars each...but this one. THIS one took my heart and stomped on it. We finally get the Guard from the point of view of probably the most common dog-soldier, the new recruit who gets tossed onto the battlefield with a sadistic Commissar and equally clueless comrades. This story goes along beside our usual suspects fighting for the liberation of Gereon. "Armour of Contempt" has some of Abnett's best writing, plus lots of punches to the emotional gut. My favourite of the series so far.
December 29, 2017
This instalment leads us back towards the Ghosts I know and love. Brutal, but logical, consequences. Decent characterisations, solid pacing, free-flowing prose, superb world-building. It did drag in a couple of parts, though I suspect that was less a fault of Abnett's pacing and more the fact that I'm trying to cram the last few books in so that I hit my Goodreads challenge for the year...
It was also a little too heavy-handed on the sledge-hammer evils of the Imperium. At least in comparison to how it was treated in the earlier instalments.
It was also a little too heavy-handed on the sledge-hammer evils of the Imperium. At least in comparison to how it was treated in the earlier instalments.
July 12, 2019
Life in the service of the Emperor's Army is tough, even under an enlightened commander such as Gaunt. What about a fresh-faced recruit thrown into the meat grinder under the whip of the traditional commissar? Find out as a Criid goes into battle with a cobbled-together unit.
Meanwhile the ghosts return to Gereon, in a long overdue promised liberation effort, only to find that chaos might have held the world too long. Reunions are had.
Meanwhile the ghosts return to Gereon, in a long overdue promised liberation effort, only to find that chaos might have held the world too long. Reunions are had.
February 19, 2024
The new kid, Dalin, is very likeable and war through his fresh 18 year old eyes is suitably grim. The book does a fantastic job in detailing what a chaos occupation actually means an imperial world. I enjoyed the conclusion of Mkvenner's story arc with him becoming a legend and being dead but not quite dead. The death of Caffran was a shock but I have to admit it was a good conclusion to his story arc also.
February 3, 2019
Cannot say I liked this but it is very much in tone with the Imperium of 40k. There is no noble-bright that cannot be grim-darked, somehow, particularly if the Inquistion gets involved. Tantalizing hints of upcoming actions. Some real moments of suspense. But I cannot in good faith say I enjoyed all of it.
December 3, 2025
This one is excessively harsh in exploring the unforgiving, cruel reality of the imperial military regime. Way more blood, death and tragedy than usual.
The last page came as a total surprise. The story feels unfinished, untold, but on reflection I believe this is natural. There are no victors in war, only survivors. No glory, only pain.
The last page came as a total surprise. The story feels unfinished, untold, but on reflection I believe this is natural. There are no victors in war, only survivors. No glory, only pain.
June 2, 2019
Another superb Gaunts ghosts novel, reformed once again under Commissar Gaunt the ghosts return to the Chaos held world of Gereon this time to bring the liberating forces Gaunt promised when he left after the Sturm mission.
December 29, 2021
At this point I have read more than two dozen Warhammer 40,000 books and this was, by far, the most violent. Very enjoyable and barely science fiction. But damn, Dan Abnett found a lot of new and inventive ways to describe someone getting shot in the head
February 22, 2023
Dan Abnett does an extraordinary job of painting the vivid, futile nature of war on an epic. The finite nature of humanity amid a war engine of truly epic scale. Gritty, intense and well balanced across two plot lines.
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