Isha’s Lament – Thomas Parrott

Thomas Parrott’s first longer-form Black Library story, Isha’s Lament is a Blackstone Fortress novella, an entertaining and insightful tale of survival, exploration and the after-effects of trauma. Brakus Andradus – once a soldier, now a hunter – is part of a group of explorers who find a ruined, dead ship within the fortress, and in doing so unwittingly trigger a calamity that endangers everyone on both the fortress and Precipice. Despite his failing health Brakus ventures back in search of a way to prevent disaster, accompanied by a motley group of uneasy companions, and in the darkness faces up to his fears.

Blackstone Fortress makes for a fantastic setting, digging beneath the surface of Warhammer 40,000 to reveal all sorts of weird and wonderful angles whilst giving authors the chance to combine characters who would never normally share a story. In this story Parrott brings together brand new characters (such as Brakus and the enigmatic Exactius-ζ94) with familiar names from the game and previous BL stories, all of whom feel equally fleshed-out and engaging, so we get to see how Janus Draik and Amallyn Shadowguide interact (albeit not at the same time) with Brakus, Exactius and the mercurial drukhari Maugra when faced with a locked-down Precipice or the various labyrinths, monsters and challenges of the fortress – Old Unfathomable as Parrott calls it.

Brakus makes a great protagonist – strong and capable but also relatable, flawed and hurting, trying to understand his own motivations and come to terms with why he feels so alive when risking life and limb in action. We gradually learn a little of his backstory as the plot develops, through flashbacks, dialogue and the strange psychological effects of the fortress, while to a lesser (but still fascinating) extent also gleaning a little insight into Aeldari culture through his observations of the wary alliance between Amallyn and Maugra. There’s a great balance between world building (in the dangerous districts of Precipice as well as the fortress’ ever-changing architecture) and daring adventure, while Parrott absolutely nails the impossible nature of the fortress and its strange sort-of-sentience – but it’s the dynamics between the characters which really make the story work.

It’s all put together with a good pace, moving from the fortress to Precipice and back with enough time in each location to build up a strong sense of place and atmosphere for anyone new to the setting, whilst moving the plot forward, maintaining momentum and building the characters. All told it’s a tremendously entertaining adventure story full of excitement and action but also empathy and pathos, primarily (but not exclusively) with Brakus as he’s forced to process his past and his emotions in ways he hasn’t been able to before. It would make an excellent introduction to the setting, but also stands perfectly alongside Darius Hinks’ novel Blackstone Fortress to expand things out a little more – either way it’s an excellent novella, and well worth checking out for any 40k or Blackstone Fortress fan.

Click this link to buy Isha’s Lament.