Book Review // Annihilation Squad by Gav Thorpe
Welcome back to my nerdy corner of the Internet. Guess what? I have finished the next Last Chancers book! It was also the perfect time to finish the Last Chancers omnibus, with GW releasing some Kill Team teasers this last week. If you didn't know, this title is the third in the series, following on from the 13th Legion and Kill Team and follows Lieutenant Kage and his role within the Last Chancers. A group of military criminals, given the choice "die for the Emperor or die a traitor”
Book Stats
Title: Annihilation Squad
Author: Gav Thorpe
Publisher: Black Library
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 256 pages
Fluff:
Lieutenant Kage, convict of the 13th Penal Legion and probably its longest surviving recruit, has once more come to the attention of his ruthless old commanding officer, the Colonel. Joined with a brand new team of Last Chancers, Kage is sent on a suicide mission to the war-torn planet of Armageddon to hunt down and assassinate one of the most dangerous traitors to the Imperium - former planetary overlord Herman von Strab. However, the Third Armageddon War is still raging fiercely and the Last Chancers will have to fight through orks, rebels and even the planet itself if they are to succeed in their mission.
Review
As mentioned, this is the third book in Gav Thorpe's Last Chancers series and showcases the 13th Penal Legion. I believe there is a fourth, but I don’t yet own it, so maybe it's a while off for that review. Once more, the story is told and seen through Lieutenant Kage's eyes. Kage is a convicted murderer who has somehow managed to survive two suicide missions with the Last Chancers. But it seems he is finally becoming unhinged. The book follows the same path as the other two. Colonel Schaeffer has a top-secret mission for the Last Chancers, and they aren't supposed to return from it. We get to see them train, end up somewhere they shouldn't be, and then complete the final mission with some personal loss.
The plus side of this tale is the setting. This time, we get to travel on the ground of Armageddon and visit the jungles and industrial hell holes of this fantastic war world. So far, I have only seen this setting from a Space Marine viewpoint, so I am interested in reading it from a humble grunt. Like the last two books, it does have its weak points. Firstly, the cast, once more I found myself not caring for the other Chancers. They are purely filler and are almost forgotten by the end of the book. They seem to be there purely so Kage can comment about them, making this a missed opportunity to expand the lore. It's a pretty dark tale saying something from the grim dark future of 40k, but the ending seems rushed and not filled out. I know the last book is also set on Armageddon, so I am hoping for details there, but it just left a slight sour note in the reading as it built up and then flatlined.
Overall, this is another good, solid read—which is what I seem to say about a lot of Black Library titles—and I do recommend it. Seeing the Astra Militarum overcome impossible odds is always fun, and this book delivers. Now, find the final title, Armageddon Saint.
