As usual, now that we’re into December (somehow – where has 2019 gone?) Black Library are starting to release loads of new short fiction as part of their latest Advent Calendar series. Between the 1st and 24th of December, we’re going to see one new short story or audio drama every day, and as is my tradition I’ll be writing a review of each one to go along with it. This year the series is split evenly between short stories and audio dramas, along with two brand new novels getting digital-only premieres on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
In this article I’m going to provide a roundup of what information has been made public so far regarding these stories, consolidating the details provided by Warhammer Community along with what’s available elsewhere online (i.e. Amazon) and giving you everything you need in one place. Each day I’ll update the information below with the name and description for the latest story, as well as a link to my review. For now, here’s a quick run through of how the stories are split out, based on the information Black Library have provided so far:
- 12 short stories
- 12 short audio dramas
- 2 digital premiere novels
- Six settings/imprints:
- 40k
- Age of Sigmar
- Blackstone Fortress
- The Horus Heresy
- Necromunda
- Warhammer Horror
I’ll list out each story right here, and while we wait for Black Library to reveal what’s coming next, you can have a look a little further down for a breakdown of what else we know to expect.
Day 1: Illyrium by Darius Hinks – the first of three Horus Heresy audio dramas, this one featuring Tarasha Euten looking back on the exploits of a young Roboute Guilliman. Check out my review here.
Day 2: The Crystal Cathedral by Danie Ware – a story of young Sister Augusta, continuing Danie’s brilliant exploration of the Order of the Bloody Rose. Check out my review here.
Day 3: Reflections in Steel by CL Werner – a typically dark Age of Sigmar tale of the Path to Glory, the power of anger and the dangers faced along the way. Check out my review here.
Day 4: A Question of Taste by Denny Flowers – this isn’t your usual Necromunda story, taking place mostly up-hive as a trio of Guilders talk (dangerous) business over dinner. Check out my review here.
Day 5: Augur of Despair Part One by Chris Dows – the first instalment of a three-part Blackstone Fortress audio drama, which sees a Rogue Trader and her Crusader companion retrieve something potentially game-changing from the Fortress. Watch out for a review of the whole audio drama coming soon – in the meantime click here for an interview with Chris Dows.
Day 6: Augur of Despair Part Two by Chris Dows – the second instalment of this new Blackstone Fortress audio drama, in which Neyam Shai Murad and Gotfret de Montbard must battle twisted mutants before heading back into the Fortress.
Day 7: Augur of Despair Part Three by Chris Dows – the third and final part of this audio, which sees Neyam and Gotfret battling for their lives against increasingly dangerous denizens of the Fortress. Click here for my review of Augur of Despair as a single story.
Day 8: Strong Bones by Michael R. Fletcher – Fletcher’s second Ossiarch Bonereapers short story, this one comes from the perspective of a trio of young ogors and really shows the terror that the Ossiarch inspire. Check out my review here.
Day 9: Serpents of Ardemis by Mike Brooks – a Navigators short story that’s a prequel to Mike’s fabulous novel Rites of Passage, featuring Chetta and her husband socialising, scheming and proving their business acumen. Check out my review here.
Day 10: The Revelation of the Word by David Annandale – the second Horus Heresy audio drama, this focuses on Lorgar Aurelian and his reaction to learning of the importance of his Lectitio Divinitatus to the mortals of the Imperium. Check out my review here.
Day 11: The Child Foretold by Nicholas Kaufmann – the first Warhammer Horror short story in the Advent series, a tale of a broken man given new purpose by the unexpected arrival of a child. Check out my review here.
Day 12: Heirs of Grimnir Part One by David Guymer – the first instalment of this 3-part Age of Sigmar audio drama, which explores more of a great character from Realmslayer, as a great tragedy befalls the Aruksson brothers of the Unbaki Lodge. Check out this interview with David and actor Steve Conlin about this story.
Day 13: Heirs of Grimnir Part Two by David Guymer – in the second part of this audio drama, the Aruksson brothers turn their attention from the Moonclan grots to a different enemy as they continue to seek vengeance (and a means of succession). Check out my review of the full three-part story here.
Day 14: Heirs of Grimnir Part Three by David Guymer – the third and final part of this story, which sees the embattled Aruksson brothers fighting for survival now, against an unexpected enemy. Check out my review of the full three-part story here.
Day 15: Champions, All by Marc Collins – a really smart story of Black Templars and Battle Sisters, of faith and fury, of duty and penance and really big swords. Check out my review here.
Day 16: The Age of Enlightenment by David Guymer – Hamilcar is back, and his newfound quest draws him to a shrouded fortress, an old (and somewhat unwelcome) ally, and an ancient mystery. Check out my review here.
Day 17: The Sanguinalia Day Massacre by Justin D. Hill – a hyper-violent Necromunda story featuring a pit fighter turned revolutionary in the underhive. Check out my review here.
Day 18: Broken Saints Part One by Alec Worley – the first instalment in this three-part audio drama which continues the Sister Adamanthea series and sees the forgiven Repentia wrestling with her demons during a religious ceremony for the garden-temples of Concordia. Check out this interview with author Alec Worley talking about Broken Saints, the Adamanthea series and Sisters of Battle in general.
Day 19: Broken Saints Part Two by Alec Worley – the second part of this audio drama, in which Adamanthea takes the fight to the heretics after the ceremony has been disrupted and the treachery of Chaos revealed. Check out my review of the full three-part story here.
Day 20: Broken Saints Part Three by Alec Worley – the third and final part of the audio drama as Adamanthea faces her sternest test yet, resisting temptation and struggling for a firm grip on her faith. Check out my review of the full three-part story here.
Day 21: Skull Throne by Jake Ozga – an Age of Sigmar story released under the Warhammer Horror imprint, this is a dark and intense tale of sadness, fear and distant, hazy survival in the Realm of Shyish. Check out my review here.
Day 22: The Test of Faith by Thomas Parrott – a 40k tale of the secretive Dark Angels, in which two chaplains – of different generations – lead their brothers in crushing a rebellion only to find there’s more beneath the surface. Check out my review here.
Day 23: Divine Sanction by Robert Rath – a Callidus assassin infiltrates the retinue of an Imperial Confessor, whose sermons are spreading the word of the insidious T’au Empire. Check out my review here.
Day 24: Morningstar by Graham McNeill – harking back to Graham’s novel Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero, this is a quiet, reflective audio drama which sets a couple of key characters up before the Siege of Terra. Check out my review here.
Day 25: Armageddon Saint by Gav Thorpe – the fourth novel in Gav’s classic Last Chancers series, released over fifteen years after the last one! How did Kage survive? I guess we’ll just have to read it and find out. Check out this interview with Gav for more details.
Day 26: The Oubliette by JC Stearns – the latest Warhammer Horror novel, and Jim’s first novel for Black Library, this promises to be another dark tale of what it takes to survive in the 41st millennium. Check out this interview with Jim for more details.
As they usually do, Black Library have made these stories available (for now) in two ways. You can either buy them individually, or you can grab the Subscription offer which gives gives you a discount compared to buying everything separately, and means you’ll see each story added to the My Downloads section of your account on the BL website. My advice is always the same – if you want to pick and choose just the stories you’re interested in then the Subscription is probably not for you. If, however, you think you’ll probably want to read everything then while £69 seems like a lot to pay up-front it’s actually going to be comfortably the more cost-effective option (especially considering the two digital premieres are included, this year).
Here’s a quick look at how it breaks down:
- 12 short stories (normally £2.49 each) = £29.88
- 12 short audio dramas (normally £3.99 each) = £47.88
- 2 ebooks (normally £9.99 each) = £19.98
- Total cost if bought separately = £97.81
- Saving from buying subscription = £28.81
Not bad, eh? If you pre-ordered the subscription before December, the value was even better because it earned you a free audiobook of Guy Haley’s Dante, although by the time I publish this article I think that offer will have ceased as it was a ‘one week only’ deal.
Once the whole Advent Calendar has been revealed, and I’ve read, listened to and reviewed all of the new stories (well, it might take me a while to read the novels as well), I’ll put together my usual roundup article as well, with my overall thoughts on the series.
Until then, if you’ve got any comments, questions or suggestions about this year’s Advent Calendar then I’d love to hear them! Please do get in touch and let me know – either in the comments below, or over on Twitter.