It’s been a while since I’ve done a Monthly Highlights post, but I think it’s time to resurrect the concept and get back in the habit – so I’m starting off by looking back at the last two months! I’m going to pick out a few of the best books I’ve read in the second half of the year so far and talk a little about each, linking back to my reviews, then do the same thing for short stories as well. I love a good short story! I’ll quickly touch on some interesting news regarding submitting stories to Black Library, then finish with a look ahead to a few things I’m particularly looking forward to in September.
For the last few years I’ve been primarily covering fiction published by Black Library over here on Track of Words. I’m still doing that, but I’m starting to broaden out my reading once again to take in a wider range of sci-fi and fantasy, which you’ll see reflected in this post. I hope that anyone reading this who tends to mostly (or only) read Warhammer-related fiction will take a look at some of the other stories I’m recommending as well, and give some of them a go – after all, I’m a huge Warhammer fan but I also loved all of these books and short stories! Likewise if you’re reading this and have never considered checking out Warhammer, I’d urge you to take a look at some of these stories and see what you think.
Novels
Without further ado, however, let’s take a look at a few of the best books I’ve read in the last couple of months. Entirely unintentionally, these are all fantasy novels – not a sci-fi book in sight this time.
Priest of Lies by Peter McLean
I read the first book in Peter’s War for the Rose Crown series – Priest of Bones – last year, and it was right up there with the best books I read all year. As such, my expectations were high for the sequel, Priest of Lies. I needn’t have worried. On the one hand it’s more of the same – gangsters and spies in a Tudor-inspired fantasy world – but on the other hand it’s a deeper dive into these compelling characters and the world they inhabit, broadening the scope of the story and digging a little more into everything that makes this series so great. As far as I can see, the only downside is the wait for the next book!
As an aside, if (like me) you can’t get enough of the world Peter has created with this series, check out Grimdark Magazine Issue 18 for the short story Hunger and the Lady, which is a prequel to Priest of Bones featuring Billy the Boy. Well worth it.
Check out my review of Priest of Lies.
The Court of Broken Knives by Anna Smith Spark
I read this at the recommendation of Peter McLean, and while it maybe wasn’t quite what I expected, I’m very grateful for the suggestion! It’s a fantasy novel made up of all the usual elements – breathtaking levels of violence balanced against intrigue and detailed world building, and an epic sense of grandeur alongside gritty, bloody realism – just put together in a way I’d never come across before. Vividly descriptive and often genuinely beautiful, Smith Spark’s writing style regularly slips into a sort of hypnotic, stream of consciousness delivery which demands you pay attention as you read, but proves powerful and entirely absorbing.
I wouldn’t call this an easy read, but if you’re after a fantasy novel with a genuinely unusual voice (not just one whose publisher throws words like ‘essential’ and ‘important’ around), this is definitely worth investigating. It’s book one in a trilogy, with the third novel just having been released in hardback, so now’s a great time to give it a look!
Check out my review of The Court of Broken Knives.
Gloomspite by Andy Clark
It’s not often that any book leaves me feeling genuinely uncomfortable, least of all a Warhammer novel – for all that they lean towards the darker side of SF&F, I generally feel pretty well inured to the horrors of the Mortal Realms or the 41st millennium. Not so with Gloomspite, a novel which starts off like a classic fantasy adventure before turning into a siege story and then…well, then all hell breaks loose as Clark unleashes a disgusting avalanche of spores, fungus and creepy fairy-tales-gone-wrong. Goblins (grots in Age of Sigmar terms) are often seen as the comic relief in fantasy settings, but here they’re horrifying little monsters who bring with them all sorts of nasty creepy crawlies as well as a chilling sense of the world going wrong.
If you’re already an Age of Sigmar fan, this should be at the top of your list to see just how dark and unpleasant the setting can get (in context of a fabulous story with some really memorable characters). If you haven’t yet taken the plunge, or you’ve no idea what I’m talking about but fancy checking out this Warhammer lark, then as long as you’re prepared for a bit of skin-crawling nastiness in your fantasy stories then this is as good (and gross) a place to start as any.
Check out my review of Gloomspite.
We Are the Dead by Mike Shackle
With this recommendation, Peter McLean made it two for two – seriously folks, the man knows his stuff! A dark, often brutal tale of occupation and resistance in an East Asian-inspired fantasy world, this gripped me from the start and refused to let go. There’s a real sense of shock and desperation as characters come to terms with a sudden reversal in their lives, and it’s fascinating to see the different ways they react when faced with horrifying enemies – then again when given the opportunity to strike back. You might argue that most of these characters are pretty tough to like, but somehow Shackle imbues them with such relatable motivations that even though some of their actions are quite shocking, they remain incredibly relatable.
If it sounds like this is an unrelentingly dark book that’s partially true – it certainly is grim, bloody and ruthless. At the same time, however, that’s entirely in keeping with the situation it portrays, while behind all of the violence it’s deeply character-led, so the action and the brutality always serves a purpose. For me it’s another example of a book which left me desperate to read more – about the characters, and the world on show – so I simply can’t wait for the next book in the series!
Check out my review of We Are the Dead.
The Imaginary Corpse by Tyler Hayes
An imaginary stuffed-toy dinosaur investigating crimes in a world created from the cast-offs of human imagination, risking everything to solve the mystery of a new nightmare which can do the unthinkable and kill off an Idea for good. That’s the premise of The Imaginary Corpse, but it’s so much more than that as well! It’s a wild combination of unfettered imagination and sharply-considered human psychology, cleverly using obvious metaphors – characters and locations are fundamentally linked to and informed by their creators’ hopes and dreams – to disguise more complex, subtle messages of positivity and hopefulness. If that sounds vague, well…just give it a read and you’ll see what I mean.
A deeply tricky book to review without giving spoilers or sounding preposterous, it’s a book which truly is unique (there really isn’t anything else like this), pulling together influences which most people would never think to combine into something that’s considerably more than the sum of its parts. It’s not your usual fantasy novel, but it’s very clever and beautifully done.
Check out my review of The Imaginary Corpse.
Short stories
I talk a lot about how much I love short stories, and I try to read and review as many as I can. I understand that not everyone’s as keen on them, so if you’d prefer to skip this section then that’s not a problem…but if you are interested then I’d like to highlight a couple of collections that I’ve recently had the pleasure of checking out.
Three Crows Magazine Issue 4
If you’re not in the mood for a specific short story anthology, online magazines like this can often be a great way of broadening your horizons and checking out some short stories from authors you might not have come across before. That’s exactly what happened when I read this issue of Three Crows Magazine and the three short stories contained within – by Avra Margariti, Stephen Couch and Eliza Chan. Featuring a fable-like story of sadness and familial loss, a weird sci-fi tale of drug-fuelled AIs and a creepy serves-you-right horror story after which you’ll never look at teddy bears the same, you couldn’t get three more different stories…but they’re united by all being excellent in their own styles. Not only that, but you get various other interesting bits and pieces – reviews, interviews etc. – thrown in, and all for less than £3! Bargain.
Check out my review of Three Crows Magazine Issue 4.
Black Library’s Summer of Reading 2019
Black Library’s novel output is crazy – pretty much one (or more) per week – but when you factor in the sheer quantity of short stories they release…well, let’s just say I don’t envy the editors. For us fans, however, it’s great – not least because two or three times a year we get week-long collections of short stories (sometimes audio dramas) spanning the various Warhammer settings, like August’s Summer of Reading series. With seven different authors taking on topics as diverse as Space Marine recruitment, domestic-level horror, tests of faith and lethal hunts, there should be something here for pretty much any Warhammer fan. My personal favourite from the week’s stories was To Speak As One by Guy Haley, an ambiguous 40k story with great characters and sharp dialogue, but all seven are well worth taking a look at.
Check out links to my reviews of all seven short stories here.
Other talking points
Just the one talking point, actually. I can’t talk about the last couple of months without at least quickly mentioning Black Library’s open submissions window, a month-long period during which BL are accepting short story submissions based around a few key guidelines. Last year’s subs window resulted in some fantastic new authors starting to write for BL, five of whom I’ve interviewed about their experiences so far, and I’m really looking forward to reading new stories from another batch of upcoming authors. If you’re even vaguely interested in the submissions process, take a look at this article which contains links to all of those interviews I mentioned along with loads of other useful advice and guidance from experienced authors…and good luck!
Looking forward to…
I had an absolute blast reading all of these stories over the last couple of months, but there are plenty more coming up which I’m hugely excited to get my hands on. This list could go on for ages, so for the sake of brevity I’ve cut it down to just three highlights:
- The Black Hawks by Dave Wragg: I’ve read so many good things about this irreverent-sounding fantasy novel, I simply can’t wait to check it out.
- The Quantum Garden by Derek Kunsken: the first novel in this series – The Quantum Magician – was a bonkers but brilliant hard sci-fi heist story, so obviously I’m looking forward to reading the sequel!
- New Gotrek Gurnisson stories: with no fewer than three new releases – the scripts for last year’s Realmslayer audio drama, a new novel (Ghoulslayer) and a second Realmslayer audio (Blood of the Old World) – September’s Black Library releases are rather dominated by a grumpy dwarf Slayer…and I’m all in.
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So there you have it, a few of my highlights from the last couple of months along with a small handful of the books (and audio dramas) that I’m looking forward to the most in September. I’d love to hear about what you’ve enjoyed reading or listening recently, so do drop me a line in the comments below, or get in touch on Twitter. I’ll be back with another roundup post next month!