Book Club Book #181 – The Wicked and the Warped by Robert Rath

Every two weeks we read a new book in the WH40k universe and discuss it on our podcast. We invite you to read along with us and join in on our conversation via comments, Twitter, Discord, email, or vox cast.

For this episode, we’re reading The Wicked and the Warped by Robert Rath. You can purchase it at Amazon or Audible.

From the back of the book:

Trazyn the Infinite and Orikan the Diviner hate each other. Orikan is a master astromancer, not content with merely observing the future when the opportunity to shape it is within his grasp. Trazyn is an egotistical historian and meddler, stealing people and events out of the present to forever preserve them in his gallery. Their feud has lasted millennia, destroyed worlds, and defined their immortality.

When the opening of the Great Rift delivers a mysterious world from the necrons’ past back into realspace, Trazyn sees an opportunity – this is his chance to not only mend his quarrel with the embittered Orikan, but to uncover the fate of the last expedition to the Chaos-corrupted planet of Amenthis. What horrors of the past will they unearth in its depths, and what will their discoveries mean for their future?

Discussion guide for The Wicked and the Warped:

• Did you like the book?
• Which parts stood out to you?
• In The Infinite and the Divine, Trazyn and Orikan’s rivalry spans millennia across open space. How does forcing them into an uneasy, claustrophobic expedition on Amenthis shift their dynamic?
• Necrons operate on absolute physical laws, geometry, and cold technology. How does Rath use Chaos and the Warp to put two famously arrogant machines completely out of their depth? Was it compelling?
• How did introducing third-party perspectives like Inquisitor Valeria, and cameos from Solemnace’s “exhibits,” impact the story? Did an expanded cast elevate the stakes, or did it pull focus away from the core Trazyn/Orikan double act?
• Rath is always good for sharp, dry comedic timing, but The Wicked and The Warped introduces significantly darker themes of arrogance, loneliness, and obsessiveness. Did the tones “work” or did they clash for you? 
• What did you think of the ultimate revelation behind the lost Necron expedition to Amenthis? Is the revelation about Chaos compelling or did it feel out of place?
• Of all the off-handed revelations and cameos, which was your favorite?
• Are we excited for the next book in the trilogy?