For his debut Black Library novel, Robert Rath goes big with The Infinite and the Divine, a grand tale spanning thousands of years of bitter rivalry between two virtually immortal Necrons. Trazyn the Infinite (archaeovist and Overlord of Solemnace) and Orikan the Diviner (Master Astromancer of the Sautekh Dynasty) have been rivals since their days of flesh and blood, opposites in both outlook and temperament. After Orikan steals the Astrarium Mysterios from Trazyn’s galleries on Solemnace, their enmity escalates into a deadly feud as, over the course of millennia, each attempts to outdo the other in pursuit of the ancient artifact and the power (or in Trazyn’s case, the collectible history) they hope it can unlock.
At its heart this is a story about two bickering old men whose rivalry ebbs and flows over time, to the point where the original source of discontent is almost irrelevant. As these particular old men wield incredible power (or at least incredibly powerful artifacts), their feud plays out in not just scathing verbal exchanges but also increasingly lethal attempts on each other’s lives. Think ambushes, assassination attempts, sneaky time manipulation, technological wonders and ancient melodrama resulting in a few impressively madcap action set-pieces (including battles against dinosaurs, just for that added bit of fun). It’s also a story which shows the 40k galaxy from a different viewpoint to usual, illustrating its depth and scale as seen by a race whose technological power, artificial longevity and tragic history gives them a unique perspective. Trying not to spoil anything, suffice to say this interesting view on time lends itself perfectly to an almost multi-generational plot, which is ambitious and unusual but highly effective.
The dynamic between Trazy and Orikan makes for a wonderful mixture of humour and pathos, and this translates into a book that’s often laugh-out-loud funny as Trazyn mercilessly teases Orikan, who responds with increasingly sharp mockery of his own. Their relationship lends itself beautifully to witty crosstalk and cutting humour, which is a huge amount of fun to read, but there’s a darker side to it too. Their rivalry results in cataclysmic damage to various non-Necron civilisations, much to Trazyn and Orikan’s absolute lack of concern – to them, such damage is barely worth noticing, but of course to the younger races things look rather different. As it develops, the plot also digs into the painful history of the Necrons and their ill-fated alliance with the C’tan, and what biotransference has done to the once-glorious Necrontyr empire (not-really-a-spoiler – it’s not great).
Books from non-human perspectives are rare in Black Library’s canon, but this comfortably proves that ‘alien’ characters can be just as relatable as humans – Trazyn and Orikan may have lost their mortality and, arguably, their souls…they may think in terms of centuries and millennia rather than days, months or years…but they’re still fallible and flawed. They’re still vulnerable to very relatable and human mistakes, and ultimately they’re just tremendously entertaining to read about. It’s genuinely hard to pick faults in this book, it’s such an interesting and well-executed concept populated by such compelling characters and offering a fascinating perspective on Necron life, society and history. The humour and the non-human POVs lend things quite a different tone to most BL stories, and its balance leans a little more towards quieter, dialogue-heavy moments than action, but it still feels quintessentially 40k. Characterful, adventurous, inventive and wildly entertaining, this really is a fantastic book from start to finish.
Review copy provided by the author – many thanks to Robert Rath for sending me a copy of The Infinite and the Divine, in exchange for my honest review.
See also: my Rapid Fire interview with Robert Rath talking about The Infinite and the Divine
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