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Horus Heresy: Battle for the Abyss (Warhammer 40,000: The Horus Heresy) | 
| Author: Ben Counter
Publisher: Black Library
Category: Book
List Price: £6.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  23 reviews
Sales Rank: 1301
Media: Paperback
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 1844166570
EAN: 9781844166572
ASIN: 1844166570
Publication Date: August 4, 2008
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| Customer Reviews: Read 18 more reviews...
 Another disappointment... October 29, 2008
I found this installment in the Horus Heresy series very disappointing.
As a previous reviewer rightly notes - the quality of the storylines and characters have deteriorated markedly since the first trilogy, which is a tragedy considering the wealth of source material available to the writers.
The first three books were amazing. It was genuinely exciting to discover that a deep and detailed sequence of novels were in the making about a storyline that was previously delivered in scraps to me as a kid through White Dwarf about fifteen years ago. I devoured them in the space of a few days. It was genuinely tense wondering what was going to happen next. Following on from the early books Flight of the Eisenstein was quite good and Fulgrim was okay. Descent of Angels was awful and completely irrelevant. Legion was utterly baffling and then we get Battle for the Abyss.
The characters are boring and shallow whilst the plot is formulaic and frankly quite dull. I was expecting some exciting showdown on a massive scale as the Word Bearer's assault Macragge with the Furious Abyss and demonic allies. Instead I get a plodding spaceship chase through space/warp/space/warp/space, culminating in the most powerful ship the galaxy has ever seen being boarded by half a dozen randomers, who manage to fight their way through half a space marine legion with nothing other than a few cuts and bruises before chucking a couple of grenades in the reactor. Bang. The end.
Its probably a good job the Word Bearer's defected judging by the marksmanship and general inneptitude. What a bunch of ponces. I couldn't help but picture them like the hapless generic goons in Dr Evil's lair in the Austin Powers movies.
I am not some uber nerd fanboy prone to critiquing minutia. I simply feel frustrated by the sliding quality of what should be a landmark series. The early books were of such quality that they might have acheived the rare accolade of expanding the readership beyond simply appealing to the usual Warhammer nerds. With the way the series is heading however they are likely to drive away even the captive fanbase.
Ben Counter is obviously a great writer having produced the fantastic Galaxy in Flames so this only adds to the palpable disappointment. Maybe he is being restricted by GW's dictates? Come on guys - give us more of the first three books!
This book is worth reading for those following the trilogy I guess, though don't expect too much...
Adds little to the tale October 23, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Most of my criticisms of this book have already been addressed by other reviewers. To those, I'd add that this book's worst failing for me is that it adds nothing to the overall unfolding of the heresy. We already know the Word Bearers are a traitor legion, and the attack on the Ultramarine's homeworld has been mentioned in 40K literature for years. The Word Bearers are an intriguing legion, previous novels have even hinted that they are responsible for corrupting Horus himself. Yet we learn nothing new about their motives or beliefs here, as they're portrayed as little more than two-dimensional moustache-twirling villains crying 'Curses! Foiled again!' as the squeaky-clean (and dull) Ultramarines foil their dastardly plot.
The inclusion of a loyalist Thousand Son and World Eater isn't explored as much as it could be, and we learn little more about those legions too.
I also suspect Counter sometimes forgets he's writing Warhammer 30k novels here; the characters go on rather too much about 'witchcraft' and 'things in the warp'. Abnett's books portray the marines of this millenium far better, as ultra-rationalists a far cry from the praying, superstitious denizens of the 40k world.
 Brilliant September 28, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
First of i'd like to say to all those who have written bad reviews for this book haven't truely understood it. Ok now thats out of the way now on with the review.
The book is simply brilliant, you really connect with the characters and how they feel at different points in the book. It's really well written with non stop action all the way through. In my opinion it's a welcome addition to the series
In short, a must buy for all the warhammer 40,000 fans out there. Thank you for reading my review.
 Battle for the Abyss September 12, 2008
The Battle for the Abyss has received some very negative reviews since its release, most focussing on the lack of character and the seemingly pointless story. I have never been a Ben Counter fan, his previous novel in the series 'Galaxy in Flames' was a frustrating read that only worked because the characters were already previously established. Battle for the Abyss did not have this luxury thus the reader is left with terrible cliche dialogue that caused me to flinch. The scene when the Ultramarines kneel to their fellow Astartes was the definative low point in that regard (reminded me of a certain scene in the Phantom Menace).
However Counter is great in writing comic book action, and some of the sequences in this book were as good as anything in the series. The assault on the space station was my favorite sequence, with the brutality of the World Eaters and Space Wolves overwhelming the Word Bearers. The space battles were well thought out and possibly the most interesting character relationship was that between Cestus and admiral Kaminska.
The story itself has been the subject of much criticism, mainly because it appears many fans are unhappy with the direction the Black Libary has taken the series. Rather than simply telling the story of Horus and the Lunar Wolves as was the case with the opening trilogy, the focus has changed to include other aspects of the war. Battle for the Abyss is obvously the starting point of a Battle of Calth story line, an event which is important in the history of the war. As such I do not understand how anyone can see this as a pointless story. It may be frustrating having to wait for the eventual continuation of the Horus storyline and the Siege of Terra, but I for one do not mind this exploration of other chapters. There is a condition however, as I would hate for these strands to be left unconcluded, for example I want another novel to continue the Battle of Calth, another novel exploring Luther's fall on Caliban etc...
Where Battle of the Abyss fails is simply in the execution. Interesting characters such as Skraal the World Eater (my hero in this novel) and Mhotep (a close second)are great until someone opens their mouth. The Ultramarines are particularly terrible in terms of characterisation, to the point that the only difference between them is that they disagree on certain courses of action. Do not even get me started on how awful the Word Bearer characters are developed! Yet this should come as no surprise as this is the author who managed to destroy the banter between Loken and Torgeddon to nothing but cheesy hollywood catch lines.
The first third of this novel was so terrible in this regard that I almost stopped reading. In short this was a serious step down from the previous novels, that for the exemption of Galaxy in Flames, were good enough to be seen as more than simply merchandise, exploring complex themes with a tone that kept older readers enthralled.
But credit to the author as I found myself really enjoying the final third of the novel. The thought of a World Eater on the run in the ship was really entertaining, and well written. His final encounter with the Word Bearer admiral Zadkiel had me cheering out loud. Cestus's desperate assault and Mhotep's final battle were both epic action, which this author does better than anyone in Black Library.
For an opening to a Battle of Calth storyline, this is only adequate, and a serious drop in quality from Descent of Angels and particularly Legion. As an action novel, it definately has its excellent stand out moments. As an entry into a fantastic new franchise of novels, this is unfortunately a huge dissapointment.
Furious Abyss? Furious reader more like September 10, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I shall keep this short and sweet, and sadly harsh. Battle for the Abyss is a very anti-climactic mess filled with annoying repetition, stereotypical, bland characters formed from the personifications of their chapter traits. The Ultramarine is regimented, the Space Wolf a drunken brawler, the World Eater does a hulk smash, and the Word Bearers chant of a directionless and uninsightful philosophy given no depth. They follow a religion whose sole creed is to be a religion.
The first half of the book wastes no time dropping you into the action, and it suprisingly backfires. We learn nothing of the goals, desires, flaws, or fears of either the heretics or the loyalists. There is a naval engagement, a scene in the warp (with gribblies) and those two events with recycle repeatedly.
The second half of the book intensifies as the enemy come closer to their master plan. I won't spoil anything for the battle scenes and combats, but the final hundred pages feature some firm hardcore action. You don't care that the characters are 2D because they're laying some serious hurt on each other.
Then comes act 3, or as I like to call it, the final 3 pages. They basically forge the notion that the book is conclusive of itself, entirely pointless, and finished with all the finesse of a sledgehammer. The Battle for the Furious Abyss is irrelevant, there is no conclusion, epilogue, meaning, sentiment, moral. Did the author find out he had one week to finish the book, and he hadn't started it? Did his ex-wife sneak into his office and write these final pages before sending it to Black Library? Did Ben Counter just hate me? I do not know, but what I will say is this book is entirely skip-able, which is never a good thing in a series. Poor start, ebbing middle, no end.
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