Author Archives: Michael

Monthly Highlights – October 2018

Another month has rolled by, and we’re somehow into November already. As usual I want to take a look back at everything I’ve read and listened to in October and pick out a few highlights, the stories that have really stood out to me across the month. For this particular Monthly Highlights post I’ve gone for a novel, a short story anthology and a standalone short story, and while most of those selections are Black Library stories I’m going for something non-BL in there as well. I’ve read and listened to some really great stuff in October, but these were comfortable highlights.

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QUICK REVIEW: How Vido Learned the Trick – Josh Reynolds

The second of two Warhammer Chronicles short stories written before the End Times happened and eventually featured in Inferno! Volume 1, Josh Reynolds’ How Vido Learned the Trick is a Zavant Konniger story featuring characters originally created by Gordon Rennie. Returning from an errand for his master, the halfling Vido finds an assassin in Zavant’s study, but no sign of the sage himself. With his own life on the line, Vido must put into practice everything he’s learned from working with Zavant and figure out where his master can be found. All without allowing the assassin to complete his mission.

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QUICK REVIEW: Iron Devil – CL Werner

CL Werner’s Iron Devil is an Astra Militarum story which was first released as an audio drama before then being revised and expanded into a prose story. The Cadian 267th are embattled against orks on the ravaged planet Sanzu, but find themselves exchanging one danger for another when they’re forced to seek shelter from the planet’s toxic weather. Trekking their way through dangerous territory to a vast, crumbling Adeptus Mechanicus facility, the few remaining Cadians hope to find shelter and supplies, but there’s something large and angry waiting for them in the shadowed halls of the manufactorum.

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QUICK REVIEW: The Enemy of My Enemy – Nate Crowley

A Black Library debut for Nate Crowley, The Enemy of My Enemy is a classic pairing of Imperial Guard versus orks, albeit turned on its head. For ten years the Mystras VIII, the Golden Eighth, have been locked in battle with orks on the nowhere world of Cavernam Tertius, with General Pyrrhus unable to break the deadlock and salvage his career. When word arrives of a tyranid hive fleet heading in-system, the only option appears to be to evacuate and flee, until Pyrrhus conceives of a desperate plan to salvage victory. Can a human and ork alliance ever succeed, though?

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Gotrek & Felix: Slayer – David Guymer

The seventeenth Gotrek & Felix novel, David Guymer’s Slayer completes the two-part Doom of Gotrek Gurnisson arc within the wider Warhammer End Times series. Following on from the events of Kinslayer it sees Gotrek and Felix heading south with a ragtag force of men to try and reach Altdorf and Felix’s young family. In the way are whole armies of marauding northmen, while the shadowy presence of Be’lakor works to fulfil a prophecy and at last bring Gotrek’s doom down upon him. Despite their badly damaged friendship, the two adventurers fight side by side for what might be the last time.

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Black Library Weekly – W/C 22/10/18

Hello and welcome to the latest instalment of Black Library Weekly, my regular look at what’s been happening in the world of Black Library. It’s been a bit of an audio drama-heavy week this time around, with another short audio released on Monday and a long-awaited audio drama series up for pre-order at the weekend. Let’s take a look at what’s what.

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RAPID FIRE: David Guymer Talks Realmslayer

Welcome to this instalment of Rapid Fire, my ongoing series of quick interviews with Black Library authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

For this slightly special instalment I spoke to David Guymer about his new Age of Sigmar audio drama box set, Realmslayer. This is a bit of a beast of a release, coming in at over 4 hours long, plus an extra disc of bonus material, not to mention featuring BRIAN BLESSED as Gotrek! To mark the occasion, David and I reached out on Twitter to gather a few extra questions on top of the usual ones. I’ve rolled David’s answers to those questions in below, and flagged which ones came via Twitter.

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QUICK REVIEW: Waking the Dragon – Josh Reynolds

Billed as a Warhammer Chronicles story, Josh Reynolds’ Waking the Dragon is a previously unreleased tale of the World-That-Was, and which was originally written as part of the End Times series. The once-powerful Heinrich Kemmler, otherwise known as the Lichemaster, is in dire need of allies. Harried at every turn by the tenacious Duke Tancred, and accompanied only by the ancient wight Krell, Kemmler turns in desperation to the cursed Blood Keep where he hopes to raise an army and gather his strength. The ancient fortress is no longer abandoned, however, and Kemmler’s destiny might not be what he expected.

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Taker of Heads – Ian St. Martin

Taker of Heads is a 70 (ish) minute Mortifactors audio drama which sees Ian St. Martin return to the character of Adoni from his short story Deathwatch: Swordwind. This time it’s a story of Adoni’s youth, as he and his fellow neophytes are deployed to the jungle world of Aztlan to aid the embattled, outclassed Imperial Guard in their fight against the cunning t’au. There’s more at stake for Adoni than just defeating the t’au however, as this mission offers him the opportunity to prove himself a taker of heads, and earn his name and his place within the Chapter.

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Blood of Iax – Robbie MacNiven

Robbie MacNiven returns to the characters introduced in his short story A Brother’s Confession with the novel Blood of Iax, a Dark Imperium-era Ultramarines story featuring a Primaris-only strike force. Blood brothers Kastor and Polixis – Chaplain and Apothecary respectively – are part of Strike Force Fulminata, and are taking the fight to the invading orks on Ikara IX when the tide turns and Imperial forces hurriedly go on the defensive. The arrival of ork warlord Urgork changes everything, especially as his objectives go beyond simply finding the biggest scrap possible – the canny Urgork has a plan, and it involves Polixis.

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