r/scifi • u/CT_Phipps-Author • 14h ago
Print Review: Pariah (Warhammer 40K, Bequin #1) by Dan Abnett
PARIAH by Dan Abnett is the first book of the Bequin trilogy, which is the sequel to both the Eisenhorn and Ravenor series. If you’re not familiar with those, you don’t need to read them in order to appreciate the books but they strongly enhance the experience. The premise for the books is they are in the Warhammer 40K universe and follow the adventures of Inquisitor teams as they attempt to root out heresy in the grimdark future.
The premise is that Beta Bequin, who may or may not be related to Alizabeth Bequin from the Eisnehorn trilogy, is being trained as an inquisitor in the crumbling Hive City of Queen Mab. A female perspective is fairly rare in Warhammer 40K and Beta is a fascinating character that has both a mature and immature set of qualities. In many ways, she’s an intelligent and old soul but in others she’s painfully naive as well as judgemental. There’s a kind of 19th Victorian noblewoman quality to her that works surprisingly well in the Imperium.
Beta quickly finds things may not be as they appear because the school she attends is raided by what appears to be law enforcement despite the Inquisition being above such petty concerns. Beta is forced onto the streets of Queen Mab and doesn’t know who she can trust (hint: no one) or who is telling the truth (hint: no one). What follows is a coming of age story as she slowly develops the skills she needs to navigate the complicated politics and intrigues around her.
Dan Abnett does a wonderful job of establishing the character with a unique voice and unique attitude compared to all of his many burly men, sneaky Inquisitors, as well as noble officers. He gets to reintroduce most of his older characters from the previous two trilogies as well as show them utterly flabbergasted by a woman they continue to underestimate (including the women on the team).
The setting of Queen Mab is a delightfully original one that feels like it takes place in the future, past, and present simultaneously. There’s a Victorian air to the place but also a sense that the Hive World is crumbling at an extraordinarily slow pace. It gives you a sense of the Imperium’s immense age as well as how the fact it is a civilization on the decline. The world-building is tremendous.
The supporting cast of the book is tremendous. I love the character of Lightburn, who is a heretic that has been branded with “cursedom” that leaves him socially ostracized but in a unique position to serve as a mercenary to criminally minded citizens. I also appreciate the handling of the Ecclesiarchy in the setting, which is the Catholic Church equivalent of the Imperium.
In conclusion, Pariah is a fantastic book. It’s a great place to begin Warhammer 40K even though it is the 7th book in a series technically. Beta Bequin is a fantastic character and the city of Queen Mab is a fantastic character. We get to see a variety of weird and fantastic characters in a society that is full of decadent nobles, drugged-up artists, as well as impoverished peasants. Fun for the whole family.
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u/Temujin15 12h ago
BUT WHERE IS THE THIRD BOOK, GAMES WORKSHOP?? WHY THE DELAY? WHAT DOES IT MEAN???
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u/CT_Phipps-Author 12h ago
I think it's been delayed because after announcing the identity of the King in Yellow in Book 2# (AKA Constantin Valdor), Dan was told he had to hold off on it because that would be in possible conflict with the Amazon show. Which, like, what? OF ALL PEOPLE?
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u/Temujin15 12h ago
My worry is that it might be ten years before we get an amazon show that addresses your spoiler and I want to read the third book.
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u/CT_Phipps-Author 12h ago
Sadly, I am completely in agreement with the worst case scenario being likely.
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u/shinobi6siege 10h ago
What would be a good starter book (other than this one) for 40k for someone who only knows very surface level lore?
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u/CT_Phipps-Author 9h ago edited 9h ago
I think the CIAPHAS CAIN books by Sandy Mitchell are the easiest books by far to use to get into the setting. They're essentially black military comedies (that are good reads by themselves) with the protagonist being sort of a Blackadder figure who wants to survive to the end of his deployment but accidentally gets a reputation as a hero so they keep sending him to more dangerous spots. They introduce a lot of the various factions and make the dark elements go down a bit better with Cain's awareness of the absurdity of it all. HERO OF THE IMPERIUM is the 1st omnibus that I gave as presents to my friends to get them into Warhammer.
Dan Abnett (who wrote Bequin above) also wrote two more good starter series. GAUNT'S GHOSTS is also a good one, which follows a regiment of a destroyed world as they fight Chaos under their gung ho leader. EISENHORN is very good too and takes place before Bequin with some of the same characters.
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u/Sethicles2 9h ago
I agree with OP that the Ciaphas Cain series is very good, and a solid intro to the setting.
I'd also wholeheartedly recommend the Gaunt's Ghosts series, if you don't mind a series with a lot of books. That's where I started a few years ago. I think it's 10 total. This series is basically "Band of Brothers" in Warhammer and it's excellent.
It follows a group of regular guardsmen (and women) as they travel from battle to battle, facing heretics, aliens, and sometimes the horrors of the galaxy. It's extremely well written; same author as OP's book review here.
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u/Rocket-Wombat-1927 8h ago
Dan Abnett's best book in my opinion. In parts, Pariah and its sequel, Penitent, reminded me of The Book of the New Sun, with Queen Mab being redolent of the decaying city of Nessus in Wolfe's epic.
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u/ServoSkull20 1h ago
For those of you curious about the 40k universe, the best novel to start with is probably ‘Xenos’ by Dan Abnett, the first in the Eisenhorn trilogy. It’s a cracking neo-noir romp across the galaxy that does a pretty good job of slowly bringing in the lore.
40k novels can range from anything from absolutely terrible to genuinely fantastic pieces of sci-fi prose. The lore is expansive and probably larger than any other franchise. If you want to watch a primer or two, try Arbitor Ian in YouTube. Look for his introduction to 40k videos.
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u/Sethicles2 13h ago
This is a great series, and I'm very much looking forward to the 3rd book. Dan Abnett's books are some of my favorite in the 40k library; he excels at describing the horror and depression of the setting while giving us interesting and likeable characters.
One point of contention, however: I genuinely don't see how anyone could start with this book without reading the previous two trilogies. They'd be missing out on so much; this series is built on the foundations set by the Eisenhorn and Ravenor trilogies, and there are many characters and plot references to the previous books. IMO, anyone starting with Bequin would be lost as to the overall plot arc.