Author Archives: Michael

QUICK REVIEW: Bossgrot – Eric Gregory

Eric Gregory’s first Black Library short story, Bossgrot is an anarchic Age of Sigmar tale of loyalty and treachery amongst the Gloomspite Gitz. Bossgrot Gribblak knows his inspirational leadership gives him the unqualified adoration of his skrap…or at least their grudging respect. After taking a beating at the hands of some particularly violent ‘umies, however, he needs to give his gitz something to really fire them up, so he hatches a plan to give them a big win…he’ll lead them in a glorious assault on the heavily-defended Glinty Crown, and both reaffirm their loyalty and win himself great renown.

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Priest of Lies – Peter McLean

Many thanks to Jo Fletcher Books and Netgalley for the advance copy of this book in exchange for a review.

A sequel to the fantastic Priest of Bones, and book two in Peter McLean’s War for the Rose Throne series, Priest of Lies is another brutal, brilliant fantasy tale of gangsters, spies, violence and intrigue. Life is complex for Tomas Piety, self-made prince of Ellinburg and reluctant servant of the Queen’s Men. For all his successes, he’s still driven – largely by the demands of his wife, the Queen’s Man Ailsa – to keep fighting for his city, and for the crown. As the situation in Ellinburg deteriorates and Tomas is drawn into the murky political waters of the capital, Dannsburg, he finds himself increasingly out of his depth and troubled by the consequences of power.

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AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Peter McLean Talks Priest of Lies

Welcome to this Track of Words Author Interview, my ongoing series of quick interviews with science fiction and fantasy 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 is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.

In this instalment I spoke to Peter McLean about his new novel Priest of Lies, which is available now from Jo Fletcher Books in the UK and Ace Books in North America. I’m a big fan of Peter’s writing, and his current series is one of the best I’ve read in a long time!

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Black Library Monthly – June 2019

Welcome to Black Library Monthly for June 2019, my usual monthly roundup of all things Black Library. This time around there’s loads of new and upcoming releases to talk about, some cool new information about future books in the Warhammer Horror range, and a few other bits and pieces on the news front. I’ve been reading a lot of short stories in June, so I’ve got links out to all of my reviews for those as well as a few thoughts about the latest Black Library short story anthology, as well as all of my other reviews, interviews and blog posts as usual. To begin with though, let’s take a quick look through the news…

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RAPID FIRE: Josh Reynolds Talks Apocalypse

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.

In this instalment I spoke to the ever-busy Josh Reynolds for a brief chat about his new Warhammer 40,000 novel Apocalypse, which is the fifth book in the Space Marine Conquests series. You can order this right now in ebook, paperback and audiobook formats – or even as a swanky Limited Edition hardback.

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RAPID FIRE: Gav Thorpe Talks Death’s Mercy

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.

In this instalment I spoke to Gav Thorpe about his new Warhammer 40,000 audio drama Death’s Mercy, the second part of his ongoing Heirs of the Laughing God series. You can order this audio in CD or MP3 formats right now.

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QUICK REVIEW: Anarchy’s End – Rob J Hayes

The Black Library debut for fantasy author Rob J Hayes, Anarchy’s End is an Imperial Guard short story set almost entirely within the confines of a Baneblade super-heavy tank – the titular Anarchy’s End. Battling the endless hordes of a tyranid swarm, loader Vi Modine and the rest of the crew of Anarchy’s End struggle to keep the ageing tank operational long enough to strike a decisive blow. As the longest-serving member of the crew Vi knows the history of the vehicle well, but as the battle grinds bloodily on she starts to wonder at the nature of its ancient machine-spirit.

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Agent of the Throne: Ashes and Oaths – John French

The third instalment in the excellent Agent of the Throne audio drama series (and follow up to the Scribe Award-winning Truth and Dreams), John French’s Ashes and Oaths continues the story of inquisitorial agent Ianthe and the dangerous missions she’s sent on by Inquisitor Covenant. This time around Ianthe and her team are tasked with acquiring the services of an ex-Administratum information broker, on the war-scarred world of Dustcorn. When things don’t quite go to plan, and a dubious figure from a past mission reappears, Ianthe is forced to make some unwelcome compromises in order to get the job done.

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QUICK REVIEW: The Unlamented Archpustulent of Clan Morbidus – David Guymer

A tale of scheming skaven in the Age of Sigmar, David Guymer’s wonderfully-titled The Unlamented Archpustulent of Clan Morbidus reimagines the political maneuvering of a papal conclave as the vicious, backstabbing process of electing the new spiritual leader of Clan Morbidus. As the voting draws nearer, several candidates for the position of Archpustulent employ bribery, cunning and violence to ensure they, and only they, are elevated to this vaunted – and dangerous – position of power. In typical skaven fashion, however, each candidate’s devious schemes clash, backfire and generally get in each other’s way causing carnage in the depths of Blight City.

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QUICK REVIEW: Dismember the Titans – Graeme Lyon

This story is currently only available within Inferno! Volume Three.

A much-deserved sequel to the excellent Mazlocke’s Cantrip of Superior Substitution, Graeme Lyon’s Blood Bowl short story Dismember the Titans returns to the characters of Juliana and Johann, now the Talabheim Titans’ star Blitzer/Catcher duo. Death is a workplace hazard for Blood Bowl players, but it usually happens on the pitch and in front of a crowd, not in secret. When their fellow players start turning up very dead, and minus some body parts, it falls to Juliana and Johann to investigate and try to find out who it is that has a grudge against the Titans, and why.

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