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. I’ve spent a lot of this week working on my 1,000th post on Track of Words, so I hope you’ll forgive me if I’m a bit worn out and don’t write too much for this one! Don’t get me wrong, there’s been some very interesting BL-related news, and so let’s take a look…
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 Guy Haley about his latest Horus Heresy Primarchs novel, Corax: Lord of Shadows. It’s Guy’s second novel in this series, and one of no fewer than three releases from Guy all coming within a few weeks of each other – he’s a busy man! Lord of Shadows is available to order this weekend as a Limited Edition hardback, and will be available in standard editions in a few months.
Peter McLean returns to the Reslian 45th for his third Black Library short story, No Hero. Abandoning the jungle world of Vardan IV to the rampaging orks, Imperial forces are pulling out and redeploying elsewhere. The troopers of One Section, D Company are finally on their way to being evacuated when their Valkyrie is hit, and the survivors must slog through the jungle on foot to try and reach the landing fields before the orks do. For one young Guardsman keeping a journal of events, it’s a journey that tests him body, mind and soul.
Available as a standalone e-short or as the first story in Inferno! Volume 1, The Unsung War sees David Annandale tackling Ultramarines Primaris Marines in a story of pragmatism and sacrifice. Deep in the bowels of the freighter Summons of Faith, two Ultramarines Intercessors are being held captive by drukhari raiders, in the wake of a disastrous mission to cleanse the ship of its tainted crew. A resourceful human stowaway offers them hope of fighting back, but in order to have any chance of victory, and avert a great tragedy, the Ultramarines may have to turn to the lesser of two evils for aid.
David Annandale’s 22-minute audio drama Judge of the Wastes is at once a 40k ghost story, and a tale of a man whose rigid faith and fervour have left him ill-equipped to cope with doubt. Commissar Selander stands in judgement over the Imperial forces locked in a seemingly endless stalemate on Solennes, fighting and dying over a bleak wasteland. After the execution of an apparent deserter fails to provide sufficient motivation for a decisive advance, Selander begins to see the shade of the executed soldier, and finds doubt creeping in to undermine his certainty.
Way back in 1997, issue 1 of Inferno! magazine was the first publication from a newly-created Black Library, featuring short stories, artwork and comic strips exploring the Warhammer settings. Fast forward to 2018 and Inferno! Volume 1 is the first in a new series of short story anthologies which promise to breathe new life into the Inferno! name. The eleven featured short stories cover Warhammer 40,000, Warhammer Age of Sigmar, Necromunda and even Warhammer Chronicles (tales from the Old World), and come from the keyboards of Black Library authors both old and new – including three never-before-seen stories from Black Library debutants (not to be confused with debutantes).
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. There have been plenty of releases this week to talk about, including confirmation of another month’s worth of upcoming titles, so let’s get straight down to business.
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 Guy Haley about his latest 40k novel Dark Imperium: Plague War, one of three releases from the always-busy Guy due in October, which is available to order right now.
Over the summer of 2018 Black Library released a series of six paperback novellas, all previously available in different formats and editions, under the label of Start Here With Black Library. These went somewhat under the radar, as they weren’t (and still aren’t) available via the Black Library or Games Workshop websites, instead being available to pick up in book shops, and on Amazon. They’re absolutely amazing value, however, at a mere £3 each, so obviously I picked up a copy of each of them for myself (I found them at Forbidden Planet in London), and I wanted to talk a little bit about them here.
Included in the special edition hardback of Dark Imperium, Guy Haley’s short story In the Grim Darkness offers a quick glimpse into the slightly sinister world of Bellisarius Cawl as he works to perfect his new type of Space Marine in the wake of the Great Heresy War. Eleven-year-old Decimus Androdinus Felix was about to fulfil his dream to become an Ultramarine when his name was called and he was taken away. Waking some time later and escaping his captors, he finds himself in the company of a monster who speaks like a man, and who offers him a choice.