The Bleeding Chalice (Warhammer 40,000)

Rating:
Summary: The dead have risen! To read this book!
Review: Like Ben Counter's previous novel, Soul Drinker, this is a great novel for fans of the 40k universe. Brutal, over-the-top violence fills nearly every page, and the huge scope of events gives the novel an epic feel.

Having been excommunicated from the Imperium, the Soul Drinkers continue to wage war against Chaos, as well as their former masters in the Empire. Their impossible goal is to save their chapter by finding a cure for the chaos which has tainted them. Following close on their heels is a ruthless, macchiavellian inquisition determined to exterminate the renegade marines at any price. Meanwhile, an army of the dead has risen on dozens of planets, and threatens to overtake the entire sector.

Ben Counter does a great job envisioning and communicating his tale. In usual 40K form, the novel seeks to impress the reader with carnage on a massive scale, and succeeds.