The Infinite and The Divine (Warhammer 40,000)

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I absolutely loved this book, from the interesting view of the Necron perspective of the galaxy, to Trazyn just collecting anything that catches his eye. While bundled up in the trappings of astrology, it's clear enough that this is no vague spiritualism but rather a precise science of determining probabilities and running programmes. You couldn't ask for a more perfect pair of protagonists in Trazyn and Orikan, both functional demigods of an ancient sentient race that had long since given up their flesh and blood to become the immortal robots that we know them as through the course of this story.

Characterful, adventurous, inventive and wildly entertaining, this really is a fantastic book from start to finish.

Here is a quick description and cover image of book The Infinite and The Divine (Warhammer 40,000) written by Robert Rath which was published in —. This story pretty much embodies everything great about the Necrons and in particular, the characters of Trazyn the Infinite and Orikan the Diviner.

But when an artefact emerges that may hold the key to the necrons' next evolution, these two obsessives enter a multi-millennia game of cat and mouse that ends civilisations, reshapes timelines, and changes both forever. Goodreads Librarians are volunteers who help ensure the accuracy of information about books and authors in the Goodreads' catalog. In this light, the novel reads as a manifesto not that Trazyn's brand of cultural scholarship is superior to Orikan's empiricism, but rather that the rivalry itself is stale and artificial, that different forms of knowledge complement each other rather than replace each other. The core of the book is, of course, the rivalry between Trazyn (Mr Infinite) and Orikan (Mr Divine), a rivalry which on the surface consists of a millennia-long series of pranks, theft and occasional gratuitous violence.

Painting the Medium: The same scene at the tribunal is repeated multiple times with slight differences, to show Orikan's attempts to Save Scum. Trazyn, a collector of historical oddities, presides over a gallery full of the most dangerous artefacts – and people – of the galactic past. Not So Different" Remark: Trazyn and Orikan have a civil talk while cloaked inside a cafe between their antics, deciding to reflect on humanity around them while they are there; despite being a vastly inferior, younger race that they should be scoffing at compared to their might, Trazyn's time around them (especially in the aftermath of the Horus Heresy) eventually shown him a side to humanity that resonates with him enough to have interfered with their history from time to time, something that even catches Orikan's attention as they continue to talk before recognizing that Trazyn is actively comparing humanity to when they were still the Necrontyr in that, despite their weaknesses, mankind like the Necrontyr managed to claim a name for themselves in a cruel galaxy and could have even ruled the galaxy unquestioningly had adversity not threaten to shatter them like it had the Necrons after the War in Heaven. Both principal characters written incredibly well and brought to life by the narrator in a stunning and convincing fashion.

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. The story is about learning as much as fighting, as each rival tries to solve the same problem from different angles, each spending thousands of years developing and applying their approaches. Explore a story told across the millennia that delves deep into a pair of fascinating necron characters, their relationship and their plans for the galaxy.

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. 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. There have of course been many, many posts about it on this forum - I don't really post here myself, but I do enjoy lurking as a bit of a guilty pleasure and it's very common to see excerpts, commentary and theories from those who read and enjoyed a 40k book that hit some very different beats to the norm. As riddles unwind and ancient secrets are revealed, the question remains: will their feud save the necron race or destroy it?