Grey Seer

by C.L. Werner and C.L. Werner

Book Overview

Based on characters from the successful Gotrek Felix series, this novel launches a brand-new series. Original. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1844167399
• ISBN13: 9781844167395
• Release Date: July 2009
• Publisher: Games Workshop(uk)
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 4.1" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

I Want More Skaven Novels, Please!

Five Things To Know If You've Never Read A Warhammer Novel 1) The Warhammer world has a variety of fantasy races, above and below. 2) Grey Seer is a "spin-off" from the Gotrek & Felix series, in which Thanquol is a recurrent enemy (Boneripper is his rat-ogre bodyguard). 3) Skavens are a race of man-sized rat-like creatures, but they are not actual rats; although they do worship a deity called the Horned Rat (and the Grey Seers have horns). 4) Grey Seers are natural-born wizards that rank below the Council and above the Warlords, aided in magic by warpstone. 5) Warpstone is dark magic in solid form; unrefined is far more dangerous than refined (humans call it Wyrdstone). Grey Seer Thanquol is forced to retrieve the Wormstone (a toxic version of Warpstone), by the Council of Thirteen. He's made enemies amaong the skaven clans, mostly due to dirty politics (and a certain dwarf screwing up his plans in the past), so the Council considers him disposable. A band of smugglers happen upon the Wormstone, and hope to make a profit from it, but they don't realize how poisonous it is. When the first smuggler becomes infected with green worms from the Wormstone, the reader is shown how easily the worm plague is spread. (By the way, I loved the graphic details -- made my skin crawl.) There is also a giant mutant rat hunting down the Wormstone. The narration switches views between the skavens and humans, and it's easy to follow. I personally preferred the scenes with the skavens; I just didn't care what happened to the smugglers...they seemed so boring compared to the in-fighting between Thanquol and his adept, Kratch. Although, the mysterious Dark Master, playing the skavens and humans against each other, was intersting, but very little is revealed about him. Also, I was rooting for Grey Seer Thanquol every time he had to face off with the dark wizard. (Boneripper was another favorite character.) I would love to read another novel centered on Thanquol, but I would settle for any skaven adventure. If you are already a fan of Gotrek & Felix, you might like Shamanslayer, but if you prefer Warhammer 40K, Emperor's Mercy (Bastion Wars) was an excellent novel. As noted below, you can pre-order Temple of the Serpent (Thanquol and Boneripper).

Wonderful

Grey Seer is exactly what you want from the Warhammer universe. Now granted, I've always loved the Skavens, so I was biased going into this, but I think I would have enjoyed it anyway. And how can you not? Seldom do you find such wickedness packed into one package unless you're reading a Warhammer 40K novel about the Dark Eldar. First you have Grey Seer Thanguol. By turns vicious and cowardly, filled with hubris and venomous jealousy and consumed by faith in his own genius, Thanquol is a bad guy you can really enjoy. One dimensional he is not and if the story were made into film I think it would take somebody with the genius of Andy Serkis (Gollum in LOTR) to portray him. Then you have a band of vicious and semi-competent thugs led by Hans Dietrich and his brother Johann. Hans, like Thanquol, thinks he is cleverer than he is and is possessed of a sort of low animal cunning, for want of a better word. But what is truly amazing in a story like this, filled with bad guys, is that you actually care what happens to them. I think this is the greatest accomplishment of any novelist, developing characters the reader can empathize with. I think the key here is that bad as Hans and his gang are, you realize that what is out there is far, far worse. So it's not so much that they're not really all that bad after all, but that by comparison they seem more misguided than evil. True evil is represented here by Thanquol, and of course, the effects of warp stone, fabulously expensive and the key to Skaven power. Best of all, it's an easy read. C.L. Werner writes well. He doesn't bog down with long descriptions and the dialogue doesn't get in the way of the story. And it's a good-length books, about 400-pages, which means you won't finish it too soon. Plenty of time to watch Thanguol's plans unfold and to revel in each and every example of his utter madness.

Can Thanquol be defeated!?!

Watch out Gotrek and Felix...Thanquol's got his own book and that can only mean, he won't be going down any time soon. Grey Seer chronicles the latest adventures of Thanquol. Thanquol is the one adversary that Gotrek and Felix have yet to defeat. In this excellent read, Thanquol must recover the Clan Pestilins' secret weapon. The story opens with Thanquol being called upon by none other than the Council Of Thirteen, the highest rulers in all of Skavenblight. Fearing death he nonetheless goes to his audience with the council. But on the contrary, the council does not give Thanquol death, but intead the prestigious and deadly task of recovering the great and mighty Wormstone. This fantastic weapon could not only end humanity, but the entire world leaving only the possessor of such a weapon the ruler of the world. In a fast paced and exciting narrative, Thanquol's quest for the Wormstone is told in bold style. I won't give away the details, but the reader will have to discover if Thanquol can survive the treachery of the Under-Altdorf scum along his journey. And should he overcome all the obstacles...can he master the Wormstone. This is heady stuff and a great adventure. It's rare in the Warhammer universe to find yourself rooting for a Skaven...but this is one of those times. It's a nice change of pace and will breath life into some new corners of the Warhammer world. After all, even the Skaven play a role in shaping the future.

No one writes a story better than C.L. Werner!

Grey Seer Thanquol is brought before the Council of Thirteen to account for his failures. The skaven sorcerer's largest recent sin seems to be his failure to capture a certain dwarf airship. Thanquol survives a deadly trial only to find that the Council has not finished with him. Thanquol is entrusted with a vital mission and few survive any mission from the Council. A huge Wormstone that had been lost for a thousand breedings has been found. It is buried within the collapsed burrows beneath the man-nest (human city) of Altdorf. It is a block of pure warpstone, endowed with properties through an ancient process that cannot be duplicated. It is the key to destroying all the kingdoms of men and dwarfs with unparalleled plagues. The Grey Seer that had originally located the Wormstone is dead, but his apprentice, Kratch, survived and can lead Thanquol to its site. Grey Seer Thanquol believes Kratch is the sole survivor from the previous expedition due to betraying his dead mentor. Thanquol must keep Kratch close to his whiskers if he wishes to make sure the traitorous apprentice does not attempt to kill him as well. The Council sends minions with Thanquol, supposedly to help retrieve the Wormstone, but again Thanquol well knows that those minions are but spies for the Council. The group is to complete the mission without divulging anything about it to those dwelling within the skaven city of Under-Altdorf. Knowing that he cannot trust anyone within his group to protect his life, Thanquol must first find himself a totally loyal and intimidating bodyguard, a mutant rat-ogre to be named Boneripper. When Thanquol learns that some human smugglers have stolen the Wormstone and hidden it within their city, he realizes that his mission has become even more dangerous. Thanquol must recover the Wormstone, keep his own kin from killing or betraying him, while also dealing with a mysterious shadowmancer wizard and his band of (human) henchmen from ruining everything. ***** FIVE STARS! Fans of the "Gotrek & Felix" fantasy series will already be familiar with Grey Seer Thanquol. Gotrek (a dwarf) and Felix (a human) have unwittingly thwarted numerous of Thanquol's schemes. (The dwarf airship was but one.) Though this new series features the characters from "Gotrek & Felix", anyone who has not had the pleasure of reading that series will NOT be lost at all. Having read them myself though, I could not keep from chuckling whenever Thanquol briefly thought about one of his failed schemes and I suddenly realized it to be one I recalled reading in a "Gotrek & Felix" title. Thanquol's recollections of his past failures are kept very brief and only those who have read the other series will even make the connections. In my opinion, those rare sections are a brilliant touch. It did not feel strange as I followed the skaven. The author kept Thanquol's personality intact. The skaven sorcerer is very cunning, able to adapt quickly to changes, as well as figure out

Thanquol Rides Again!

So says Grey Seer Thanquol! I am the chosen representative of their malevolent majesties, the Lords of Decay, the Council of Thirteen of holy Skavenblight and the living claws of his most vengeful divinity the Horned Rat. I am the eyes, nose and ears of Skavenblight. I am their judge and their dagger! Know me and tremble,spleen-less mouse and beg my indulgence for your impiety! I must say it took almost no time from the moment I picked this book up to the time I set it down fully read. Clint Lee Werner has really outdone himself with this one. From the maze of inescapable death to the maze of merciless penance he does not let up. I was surprised by the Tregara, a beast of the underworld, a sort of cross between a cave spider and a catachan devil with preying mantis in the mix. We are treated to a brief synopsis of Thanquol's many adventures from his humble beginnings through the present. What great feats led him to his present discomfort? Why not else but the short-sighted fools and slackards that did not follow his great stategies. White Stormvermin - dread bodyguards of the council so alike in appearance they might have been cloned. Kratch - a young and erstwhile apprentice, promising but treacherous Lord Skrolk - Great Lord of Clan Pestilins Hans & Johann Dietrich - smugglers Skabritt - Kratch's master Theodor Baer - Sergeant of the Griffons(Altdorf's city watch) Arch Plague Lord Nurglitch General Paskrit Warlord Gnawdwell Night Lord Sneek Kritislik to name but a few of the cast of characters to look forward to. The object of the play? The Wormstone - two hundred pounds of cursed warpstone! At one point I was reminded of the old Star Trek episode The Trouble with Tribbles when reading this insult - "This self important functionary of a ten-flea circus with delusions of grandeur." Who knows what evil lurks in the streets of Altdorf? The Shadowmancer knows! Introducing Jeremias Scrivener saviour of Altdorf.... sort of. Where does all this exciting action take place? In Under-Altdorf of course, second in size only to Skavenblight but fallen on decadent times where the skaven have even adopted human mannerisms. Even Thanquol finds he has become infected when after he blasts the wrong servant he hits the top of his head with his palm. See Thanquol, during the climactic battle, hurl such a mighty spell that Lord Skrolk and every other skaven are horrified and vent the musk of fear. Of course for every skaven fan there is much venting of the musk of fear, grovelling, extreme cowardice, blaming underlings, backstabbing, flattering superiors, deceptions, avarice, treachery and rat ogres. A good time had by all.