New Book Review - I Am Slaughter

Book - I Am Slaughter
Writer - Dan Abnett
Series - The Beast Arises
Published By - Black Library

And Black Library does it again. Who would have thought that they would start a new series of 12 books that would tell a big story over one year throughout 2016? But that is what they started this year and the responsibility once again falls on Dan Abnett to start another ambitious series.

This novel is the start of a brand new event series from Black Library. It's a brand new story set in an unexplored era of Imperial history which shows the entire Imperial Fists chapter in action against an ork invasion of staggering scale, it also gives us a look at Terra itself, the machinations of the High Lords and the start of the Imperium's slide into the dystopian horror we all know and love. 

Although there are  quite a lot of canon conflicts, the main interesting aspect of this series is its setting and the viewpoints of various characters with their varying motives trying to achieve yet more varying goals told in a manner that can be only possible by the incredible skill and finesse of Dan Abnett. Abnett once again does something so flawlessly that might be a gigantic effort to any other writer, he tells a story with a huge scope through a huge cast of characters while making each and everyone of them vivid and interesting. The world building is excellent and the political intrigue is quite enjoyable dispersed in between intense action.

Despite the skill displayed and the promising setting a few flaws does hold this book back. The book is too short in length at times and felt as if parts were cut of or forcibly left out to make the book short, and his seems even more disheartening as it makes the reader think this forced length held Abnett back  from further skillful character and world-building. The ending also felt rushed and left a lot to be desired too. 

Hopefully the next novels in the series will address the problems and gel the whole story together in a way that this abruptness is overcome.

I give this promising first novel in the series 3 out of 5 stars.