Mark of Faith by Rachel Harrison. A look at the Adeptus Sororitas as the Great Rift tears across the galaxy. We see the sisters of Battle looking to retrieve the Shield of Saint Katherine and take back some of what has been lost in the wake of Chaos resurgence.

 

Mark of Faith by Rachel Harrison, a Review.

    I enjoyed Honourbound immensely and looked forward to reading this outing by Harrison. I have read various stories concerning the Sisters of Battle over the years, they are the militant arm of the Ecclesiarchy and a formidable force. I had never really gotten a grip on them beyond their faith in the Emperor and their battle prowess from what I had read. These women are utterly devout, they believe in the Emperor above all else, and they seek death in battle in his name. In most stories, they have featured as secondary characters, but in this book, they are out front and center. The story revolves around Sister Evangeline and her squad, following them after their survival in the world of Ophelia VII as the Great Rift opened and the forces of Chaos surged across the galaxy. In that apocalyptic battle, Evangeline and her sisters fought a greater daemon of Tzeentch, and nearly all of her sisters were slain. Evangeline miraculously survives the encounter, changed and marked by her battle. It is believed, by those around her, that she has been blessed by the Emperor, marked by him for some great deed yet to be done. A deed that will take her to the other side of the Galaxy, through the Great Rift itself.

 

    This is a story of Faith in the universe of 40k. And that is no simple thing when there are literal Gods that attempt to conquer the material realm, when not trying to kill one another. It has long been held that the Emperor of Mankind is a living god, bound to the Golden Throne where he shapes the destiny of mankind. This is what the Sisters of Battle believe. He is their guiding light, the rock that holds them against all darkness, and they will give all in his name. It was interesting to see just how that faith manifests, how deeply it is ingrained into them, and how far that faith will push them to go. It impressed me how Harrison fleshed out these characters, how she made them more than stereotypes when it came to their faith, and their sisterhood. Harrison has a knack for making them feel real and fully realized in just a matter of pages. Like the Adeptus Astartes, these are characters that seem like they should be one-note, but they are more than just their religion and the militant role that they fulfill. 

    Coming into this story is the Inquisitor Ahri Ravara and her retinue. The Inquisitor is on a mission of her own, one that she believes is tied to Evangeline and the Sisters of Battle. It is a mission that has become all-consuming for the Inquisitor, a mission that is tied closely to a loved one. Ravara is driven, stubborn, and ruthless when she needs to be. She has a goal in mind and she will see it done regardless of the cost, even if it those around her that pay that cost. As an Inquisitor she has access to a great deal of knowledge hidden from the everyday citizens of the Imperium and an immense of amount of authority behind her. Ravara is driven by her most recent failures and it is those failures that haunt her throughout the story. I will say, that as a reader I saw one aspect of her story coming, the supposed twist about her visions seemed expected but it was managed well enough that it never detracted from the book overall. 

    Evangeline is pushed to the fore as the number Mother Superior of her squad, given new squad mates and hailed as blessed by the Emperor. In a vision she has seen the Shield of Saint Katherine, whom her order is named after, and believes that she must seek it out. This belief is shared by many, and so a crusade of sorts is called together in search of the shield. An item that has not been seen in millennia. Throughout this story Evangeline calls into question her own abilities, her worth, and if she has been marked by the Emperor himself. All of these aspects are tested as she leads her sisters into battle, both in the crossing of the great rift and upon the planet the other side of it. Harrison did a great job in describing that reckless journey, of the turbulent and dangerous tides of the warp that have been stirred up by the creation of the rift.  That journey nearly proves the death of them all, the great ship that takes them across it battered by the entities that call that realm home. Harrison does a goob job of dealing with memory and how it impacts future events, how the past shapes people and how it can help guide them at their lowest moments. 

 

    The story, overall, is interesting enough to keep the attention of the reader, though the twist at the climactic moment was a little predictable. The action is well written, which is common place for the authors for the Warhammer universe, but Harrison's true strength lies in her character work. She gets inside the minds of her creations, brings out their doubts and fears and shows how they find the strength to overcome them. Of all the writers working for Games Workshop, there aren't many that are on par with Harrison when it comes to this aspect of her work. Having read this book, and her previous one, I am looking forward to what she does next for them. 

    This is an easy 8 out of 10. It would be higher if the story had been a little stronger, that twist so obvious that any reader would see it coming. I would recommed this to any Warhammer fan and any sci-fi fan in general. So give it a look and let me know what you think, or if you've read it already, let me know what you thought of it.