‘Embedded’ – Dan Abnett (Angry Robot)

I never really bothered with the whole ‘What books I’m looking forward to in 2011’ thing.  I’m not knocking it as a whole load of blogs that I read regularly all turned out lists with some interesting books on them. Everyone else got there before I did though (erm... I was busy...) and any post I did make would have been just a repeat of everyone else’s. If I had made such a list though, one of the books on it would definitely have been Dan Abnett’s ‘Embedded’.

If you’ve been around these parts for a while then you’ll know that Dan Abnett has swiftly become my ‘go to author’ for all things ‘military sci-fi’ (as well as popping up when I least expect him to in places like 2000AD and ‘Primeval’ tie-in fiction to deliver  entertaining reads there as well). I’ll even stick my neck out here and say that I don’t know anyone who does military sci-fi better (Karen Traviss isn’t bad at all but doesn’t get the balance right between technical jargon and human interest...) Having only really read Abnett’s military stuff in the Warhammer 40K setting, I was looking forward to seeing how his work would translate into a setting entirely his own (the Sabbat systems only really ‘half count’ as far as that goes). On the whole, I wasn’t disappointed...

There’s something decidedly dodgy happening on the colony planet of Eighty Six (local trouble suddenly developing into full blown warfare) and it’s going to take a better journalist than Lex Falk to get to the bottom of it all; Falk is the best journalist around and if he can’t dig up the dirt then no-one can.
All of a sudden, the playing field opens up in a way that Falk never saw coming. Journalists are forbidden from going anywhere near the battlefield but a journalist hitchhiking in the head of a combat veteran, that’s a different story entirely. Things take a turn for the worse though when Falk’s carrier stops a bullet in the worst possible way... In a body that isn’t his own, Falk must somehow find his way to safety whilst keeping an eye open for whatever is going on that’s so important. The answer will prove to be the story of a lifetime, if Falk can stay alive for long enough.

I’ve read enough of Abnett’s work now to know that I’ll be in for the long haul with new books of his. This was very much the case with ‘Embedded’, a book with a big question that demanded you stick around for the answer. Having said that though, prepare to possibly feel a little let down when the ‘big answer’ finally rears its head. I actually quite liked the vagueness of it all (to me that just added to how ‘big’ this thing is and you can probably take a guess at what it is anyway) but if you’re in the market for a clear cut conclusion then this book may not be for you...

‘Embedded’ is a bit of a slow burner to begin with, almost too much of a slow burner if you know what I mean. It’s almost like Abnett does too much of a good job on telling us just how deadly dull the planet of Eighty Six and doesn’t leave us too much to engage with. There are a few little nice touches (like the sponsored expletive) that give the setting an original feel but these are few and far between. Falk’s character is well drawn enough but too world weary, at this point, to really move things forward. The book drifts as a result and I’m left wondering whether this is a result of elements failing to engage or whether Dan planned this deliberately so that events in the second half of the book would have even more impetus. My reading of the book leans towards the former I have to say; if this was all done deliberately then it was a move that didn’t quite pay off...

Stick with it though, I did and the end result is worth sticking around for.

When the ‘military’ part of this military sci-fi kicks in, Dan Abnett really brings his ‘A Game’ to the table and you are immediately caught up in a rush of fire fights, espionage and explosions. Abnett presents us with a detailed military infrastructure and drops Falk right in the middle of it all, a man with no prior military experience at all. The ensuing passages are all the more urgent because of this as Falk must not only fight to survive but do so in a body that isn’t his. You might wonder at how easy these difficulties are overcome but give it a chance and you’ll find that it all makes sense. In the meantime, we get to see Falk make a personal journey that redefines his character, and makes him a person worth following throughout the book, as well as throwing up moments that stand the plot on its head at just the right time. Falk can’t get too comfortable and you won’t be able to either. Abnett has proved more than adept in the past at showing us just what life can be like on the frontline; he does it again here and in some style. You really get a feel for what it’s like to be under sustained fire and I was left glad that I was only reading about it! The second half of the book flows like quicksilver and I was left wishing that the first half had been able to do the same...

 Everything ties together nicely at the end (aforementioned vagueness to one side, it might be your thing and it might not...) with a neat little word play on just what the term ‘Embedded’ can mean in the context of this book. I’ve counted three possible meanings and they all work, I liked that.

‘Embedded’ feels a little stodgy to begin with but a little persistence really pays off in the long run as Abnett delivers the kind of pulsating military sci-fi that we all know he can. Fans of Abnett will lap this one up and fans of military sci-fi in general should check it out anyway. ‘Embedded’ has its issues but is worth a look.

Eight and a Quarter out of Ten