Category Archives: Reviews

QUICK REVIEW: The Blind King – Paul Kearney

Published in 2015 (although subsequently removed from sale), Paul Kearney’s 40k short story The Blind King was intended to act as a prequel to his novel Dark Hunters: Umbra Sumus, which was sadly caught up in legal difficulties in quickly withdrawn from publication. Here we see the Dark Hunters chapter in its relative infancy, fighting for survival against an army of traitor Titans. With the future of the Dark Hunters at stake, the entire chapter goes to war, but against the might of Titans will even that be enough?

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QUICK REVIEW : Sins of the Father – Andy Smillie

The go-to guy for Flesh Tearers in 40k, Andy Smillie has recently turned his attention to their founding chapter, the Blood Angels, as part of the Horus Heresy series. A prequel to Virtues of the Sons (from the Death and Defiance anthology), his ‘quick read’ story Sins of the Father sees the primarch Sanguinius in a dark mood, reflecting on his future and that of his sons. He sees a bleak future for the Blood Angels, with only Azkaellon and Amit offering even a slender thread of hope.

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QUICK REVIEW : Child of Night – John French

Of all the merits of Black Library’s Horus Heresy series, perhaps its greatest achievement to date is the way it has cast the whole conflict in a new light and reminded readers that it wasn’t just a case of good versus evil and black and white, but very much shades of grey. John French looks at this in a little more detail with his quick read Child of Night, introducing us to Fel Zharost, the ex-Chief Librarian of the Night Lords. Having left his legion after the passing of the Edict of Nikea and returned to the underhive slums of Terra where he was born, he has remained unaware of the civil war ripping the Galaxy apart. Until now.

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Very Short Introductions Blog Book

The first Very Short Introduction book was published by Oxford University Press in 1995, and since then the series has expanded to the point that there are currently over 400 titles, from Classics (book 1) to Corporate Social Responsibility (book 414). The sheer variety of topics is incredible, but it can be a bit daunting when choosing from so many subjects. Help is at hand however, in the form of the VSI Blog Book, a collection of short essays from 30 VSI authors that provides a great little taster of each topic, giving the reader the chance to get a sense of each one and see what looks worth investigating further.

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Garro : Shield of Lies – James Swallow

Since first appearing in Galaxy In Flames Nathaniel Garro has become something of a fan favourite, as well as the poster boy for the ever-growing range of Horus Heresy audio dramas. James Swallow’s latest contribution to the Heresy series, Shield of Lies is the fifth audio to feature Garro and finds the first of Malcador’s Knights Errant on the orbital plate of Riga, in pursuit of an Administratum scribe who has stumbled across a deadly secret. A small cog within the vast Departmento Munitorum, Katanoh Tallory has paid a heavy price for her hard work and now finds herself caught between the menacing inhumanity of Riga’s mechanical guardians and the uncertain mercy of Garro.

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Archaon : Everchosen – Rob Sanders

Published in early 2014 before anyone had even an inkling of just how much Warhammer was about to change with the world-shattering End Times arc, Rob Sanders’ book Archaon: Everchosen sets out to tell the full story of the Everchosen of Chaos, the driving force behind the single biggest change in Warhammer’s 30+ years. From humble (and fairly grim) beginnings to his life as a templar of Sigmar and the events that turn him to a darker path, we watch as one man’s fate is manipulated for sinister purposes that will see the world drenched in blood.

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QUICK REVIEW : Black Oculus – John French

The latest Horus Heresy quick read from Black Library, John French’s Black Oculus is a prequel of sorts to his excellent novella Tallarn : Executioner, which was a limited edition release in 2013 and is sadly still not yet generally available. After the events at the climax of Angel Exterminatus, Perturabo ordered his fleet into the heart of a black hole, deep within the Eye of Terror. Here we get a glimpse of the terrible effects that decision had upon the Navigators who guided the Iron Warriors fleet on that fateful journey that led to their arrival at Tallarn.

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Valedor – Guy Haley

With a few notable exceptions the Warhammer 40k universe is largely shown to us through the eyes of the Imperium, lending it (not inappropriately) a very human perspective. Occasionally though, Black Library releases something which shows a different side to 40k, in this instance Guy Haley’s Valedor which follows in the footsteps of Gav Thorpe’s Path of the Eldar series to look through the eyes of this ancient, dwindling race. We see the eldar of Iyanden, still reeling from the latest in their string of disasters, as they set out to prevent the merging of two tyranid hive fleets; in order to avert a disaster that would have terrible consequences for their entire race, they are forced to ally with not only the eldar of another craftworld but also their dark kin.

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Cat Sense – John Bradshaw

Love them or loathe them, cats are remarkably popular as pets; according to John Bradshaw in his book Cat Sense, domestic cats outnumber dogs by three to one, so chances are most people encounter them on a fairly regular basis. Unlike dogs however, who tend to be overt with their displays of affection and emotion, cats are often difficult to read; the purpose of Cat Sense then is to dig a little deeper into cats as a species in order to try and help cat lovers understand their feline companions better, and as a result make the lives of both cats and owners a little easier.

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Hegarty on Creativity – John Hegarty

You might never have heard of John Hegarty or his advertising agency, Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH), but unless you’ve been living in a cave your entire life you will have come across at least some of the work he’s been involved in. Vorsprung durch Technik? That was him. Levi’s adverts such as the guy dancing in his boxers in the launderette, or Flat Eric? Him too. He has sustained a creative career over an incredible four decades, and in Hegarty on Creativity he attempts to distil some of his philosophy regarding creativity and the creative process.

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