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Angelika Fleischer #2
Sacred Flesh
Awave of terror has swept through the Empire and Chaos is on the move. Mutations are increasing and strange creatures roam the streets at night. Some say it is the end of the world whilst others say it is the beginning of a new order! Against this backdrop of terror, battlefield looter Angelika Fleischer meets up with a group of Pilgrims heading for a remote monastery in the dangerous Blackfire Pass. Dogged by goblin attacks and an unknown killer in their midst, they journey together to see the most holy Mother Elisabeth, the great Priestess of Shallya, Goddess of Mercy. But with Empire forces and the hordes of Chaos converging on their destination, Angelika uncovers a dark secret that could cost her life.
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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About the author
Robin D. Laws
146 books195 followersWriter and game designer Robin D. Laws brought you such roleplaying games as Ashen Stars, The Esoterrorists, The Dying Earth, Heroquest and Feng Shui. He is the author of seven novels, most recently The Worldwound Gambit from Paizo. For Robin's much-praised works of gaming history and analysis, see Hamlet's Hit Points, Robin's Laws of Game Mastering and 40 Years of Gen Con.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 8, 2017
Robin Laws follows up the first Angelika Fleischer book (Honour of the Grave) with this sequel. In brief: if you liked Honour of the Grave, you will most likely enjoy this book as well.
No spoilers here, though I will hint at a few developments.
The book picks up after Honour of the Grave with Angelika still making her living as a battlefield looter and her companion Franziskas still tagging along, disapprovingly. They meet a group of pilgrims who venerate the goddess of mercy and healing, and become tangled in their various problems. There's numerous twists and turns in the narrative along the way and a suitably bloody conclusion.
One bit of advice: there's numerous pilgrims and if you aren't great with names (I'm not) you might want to make a little cheat sheet of who's who. The book does a good job reminding you in the text, but I found myself wishing I'd done that just for a very quick reference.
As an odd note, the text is larger in this book than in Honour of the Grave. The book looks a little longer, but I think it's a similar length.
For me, this book does a great job of bringing to life interesting aspects of the Warhammer setting as compared to other fantasy worlds. Besides Angelika's profession as a grave robber, very few people can be trusted. In one of my favorite chapters, a bout of disease plays a major role - which is not something that most epic fantasy protagonists have to deal with. And Robin Laws provides some interesting and even creepy details about the faith of Shallya, goddess of mercy, who could otherwise seem like a fairly boring benevolent fantasy deity.
Even better, I don't think deep knowledge of the Warhammer setting is required. The book explains each topic as it comes up, so if you are just looking for a darker fantasy book and have never picked up a Warhammer miniature or RPG book, it should still be accessible and enjoyable.
Like (some) Warhammer material, the book is surprisingly funny as well, which does a great job of balancing the gloomy, grimy setting. Angelika often has something sharp to say and several of her lines made me laugh out loud while reading. The supporting characters add a lot to the story as well and the villains - once they become obvious - are suitably treacherous. There's not as many action scenes as some Warhammer novels, but each one is exciting and dangerous for the participants.
Of the Warhammer novels that I've read, this is one of my favorites. (For reference, I also really enjoyed Jack Yeovil's Vampire Genevieve series. I liked Gotrek and Felix in the Trollslayer series, but I enjoyed the travel and mystery in Sacred Flesh more than the more action-packed Trollslayer boooks.) I highly recommend it.
No spoilers here, though I will hint at a few developments.
The book picks up after Honour of the Grave with Angelika still making her living as a battlefield looter and her companion Franziskas still tagging along, disapprovingly. They meet a group of pilgrims who venerate the goddess of mercy and healing, and become tangled in their various problems. There's numerous twists and turns in the narrative along the way and a suitably bloody conclusion.
One bit of advice: there's numerous pilgrims and if you aren't great with names (I'm not) you might want to make a little cheat sheet of who's who. The book does a good job reminding you in the text, but I found myself wishing I'd done that just for a very quick reference.
As an odd note, the text is larger in this book than in Honour of the Grave. The book looks a little longer, but I think it's a similar length.
For me, this book does a great job of bringing to life interesting aspects of the Warhammer setting as compared to other fantasy worlds. Besides Angelika's profession as a grave robber, very few people can be trusted. In one of my favorite chapters, a bout of disease plays a major role - which is not something that most epic fantasy protagonists have to deal with. And Robin Laws provides some interesting and even creepy details about the faith of Shallya, goddess of mercy, who could otherwise seem like a fairly boring benevolent fantasy deity.
Even better, I don't think deep knowledge of the Warhammer setting is required. The book explains each topic as it comes up, so if you are just looking for a darker fantasy book and have never picked up a Warhammer miniature or RPG book, it should still be accessible and enjoyable.
Like (some) Warhammer material, the book is surprisingly funny as well, which does a great job of balancing the gloomy, grimy setting. Angelika often has something sharp to say and several of her lines made me laugh out loud while reading. The supporting characters add a lot to the story as well and the villains - once they become obvious - are suitably treacherous. There's not as many action scenes as some Warhammer novels, but each one is exciting and dangerous for the participants.
Of the Warhammer novels that I've read, this is one of my favorites. (For reference, I also really enjoyed Jack Yeovil's Vampire Genevieve series. I liked Gotrek and Felix in the Trollslayer series, but I enjoyed the travel and mystery in Sacred Flesh more than the more action-packed Trollslayer boooks.) I highly recommend it.
October 1, 2013
This author can really write. Very colorful and enjoyable characters, witty dialogue, and tons of bloody action. Everything a reader of heroic fantasy looks for in a novel. Well done.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews