Another Black Library debut in the pages of Inferno! Volume 1, Filip Wiltgren’s The Firstborn Daughter is a tale of prejudice and treachery amongst the Vostroyan Firstborn, and a warning against idolising your heroes. Lieutenant Ekaterina Idra leads her light platoon against the traitor forces on Tovoga, despite the grumbling of men not used to being led by a woman. When she joins forces with the renowned Major Haskel, at first she’s happy to be fighting alongside a hero of the Imperium. As Haskel grows increasingly erratic, however, Idra finds herself viewing the man in an increasingly negative light.
There are two interesting themes front and centre here, tackling questions of gender and hero worship, and Wiltgren handles them both very well, integrating them into the story while still delivering a rousing, action-packed plot. It’s structured and paced well, with brief flashbacks interspersed throughout which call back to Idra’s youth and tie in with events taking place in the main story, while also adding a little extra depth to the depiction of the Vostroyans and their particular history. Wiltgren writes with quite a terse, efficient style that suits the story nicely, and there’s scope here for plenty more stories of Lieutenant Idra.
