Ghostmaker

A sequel-prequel-connector story, Ghostmaker works to tie the reader in to the story of the Ghost's current position. Fighting on a forest world against a dug in enemy, some Ghosts remember life before this fight. A collection of short fights and battles, along with some non combat situations, really flesh out who the Ghosts are. Whether they're fighting in city streets, dropping into Normandy-like beach fights, or just gambling with a group of rowdy soldiers, the Ghost's really start to grow on you. This is actually the first Gaunts Ghosts book I read, and because of that I hold it in high regard. Ghostmaker does a great job of developing a back story for just about every major character that features in the series. It has a great storyline, with the back stories woven in between the action. Those who have read Eisenhorn will find a familiar face among the cast.

Ghostmaker, the second book of Gaunt's Ghosts, is used to delve into the characters of each of the Ghosts. The book is split into two very distinct parts; once the reminiscing about the soldiers is over, the present tense story takes over, and what a story it is. The flashback part showcases a number of incredible scenes. Of note is the Fall Of Tanith itself, Gaunt and Rawne teaming up against Orks on an ice deathworld, Larkin being visited by a hallucination...or was it? which forces him to confront his inner daemons and make a key shot, and an utterly fantastic chapter where Mkoll single-handedly kills a Chaos dreadnought. Caffran, Bragg, Corbec, Milo, and Dorden are also brought into the limelight. There is also a very important scene where the Ghosts take a tough target that a regiment of elite aristocrat-warriors, the Volpone 50th, couldn't take, and out of spite thier general orders artillery fire on Gaunt's men. After this is done the real action starts: As the Imperial Guard go on the offensive, onlooking Eldar whip up a vast psychic storm to wreak havoc over the battlefield. The Ghosts are separated and forced to cooperate with the Volpone. Meddling in Gaunt's affairs as he tries to rally his men is aa female inquisitor named Lilith, who believed that Milo may be an unsanctioned psyker. Lilith is a well-done character, trying to manipulate Gaunt and the other officers with her psychic powers, before she realizes that she doesn't need to. The battle degenerates and the Tanith and Volpone start to display strange behavior, with Lilith finally discovering a strange psychic spell in the storm. There is an excellent sequence where Larkin looks at the illusionary-disguised Eldar through his scope and sees them for what they really are. All in all Ghostmaker is an excellent, action-packed, character-heavy story that delves deeply into the personalities of the Ghosts in a way First and Only couldn't. It's no match in any way for the next book, though...

This book is really meant to help the reader get to know Gaunt's Ghosts as individuals. By breaking the novel up into a series of short stories, each of which stars a different ghost as the hero, Abnett helps the reader become more attached to each key player in the regiment. And while the book reads like a bunch of independent short stories, Abnett is still able to tie them all together and present a unified theme behing them all. Each story starts in the present tense with Gaunt thinking about something his soldiers had done in the past and then continues on to tell that story. The final chapter catches up with the present and tells of an exciting battle with Chaos in which the Eldar play a big part. Dan Abnett realized that readers needed a chance to really get to know each of the Ghosts better as ground work for the following novels and wove this collection of short stories into a cohesive unit masterfully. Highly reccomended

This is the second book in the Gaunts Ghost series, and while it's not the best Ghost's book, it's still a five star book. With a huge number of different characters in the books, I think this was a great idea for the series. Dan abnett was able to give more dimension to the characters and there past, which he brought to life in First and only. Yes, this book is pretty much a collection of short stories and each story focus's on a different character. I personally don't like short stories, but the way Ghostmarker was written was awesome. The thing I don't like short stories is there short! they don't leave any time for character development and in less then an hour they are done. In ghostmaker, the short stories were there to show the character, and show their past, and why they are so attached to it.Gaunt's Ghost is one of my favorite series of novels, and Ghostmaker is a must read for any fan of warhammer 40k or military sci-fi.

I didn't like this book nearly as much as First & Only (or Eye of Terror), but it was still a fun read. I really got sucked in to the characters from the first book and wanted to follow their further exploits. While First & Only had a strong plot that held it together, this book is more of a collection of war stories. They read like they may have already appeared in Inferno! (the Warhammer fiction zine). I'm not a big fan of straight combat/action fiction, so this was somewhat disappointing. What saves it is the fact that Abnett is a truly great writer who really rises above this genre of game fiction. The war stories are interrupted by these almost poetic tableaus of the Tanith troops between battles: A soldier obsessively cleaning his gun, the MASH unit quiet and waiting for the coming onslaught of carnage, a General sharing coffee and small talk with the company cook. These bits are very effective counterpoint to the ferocious battles of the surrounding chapters. I'm hooked. I can't wait for the next "Gaunt's Ghosts" book, I just hope that Abnett spends more time developing a compelling story arc and less time on the battlefield reportage.