Review: First and Only by Dan Abnett

I will be the first to admit that I hate IG from a gameplay standpoint.  The codex has some serious power to it, but it also makes games fairly flat.  If I can weather the incoming fire for a turn or two, I stand a good chance of winning.  If I can't, it's over.  Mech IG are perhaps point-for-point the best gameplay value out there. 

That aside, I really enjoyed reading Dan Abnett's book First and Only. It is a book that follows an Imperial Comissar, Ibram Gaunt, and the regiment he is commander of, the Tanith First-and-Only, also known as Gaunt's Ghosts.  They are the only regiment from a world that was destroyed by a Chaos Incursion.  This book is the first installment that acquaints us with Gaunt, the Ghosts, and their origins.  After having read various other 40k novels like Nightbringer and Helsreach, it is refreshing to see the more human servants of the Imperium.  Though not equal to the Space Marines, I would say that the Tanith Ghosts are very intriguing.  By the end of the book, I found myself wondering if certain members of the regiment might die or if they would be in further installments of the series. 

If you enjoy the 40k universe or Imperial Guard or both, I highly recommend First and Only by Dan Abnett.