Welcome to March’s Monthly Highlights post here on Track of Words, in which I’m looking back at what I’ve been reading over the last few weeks. I’ve been playing around with the format of these posts recently, and I’m going to change things up again this time around. I’ve done a lot of reading this month but my brain hasn’t been in the best of states (as I’m sure many of you can understand, with the weird state of the world right now)…and to be honest, still isn’t. With that in mind, rather than talking about a few books in more detail, this time around I’ll give a quick overview of all the books I’ve read recently. It won’t be in-depth, but hopefully I can give you a flavour of each one.
I’ve restricted myself to books, and haven’t included any of the short stories I read in March, largely for the sake of brevity – it’s already quite a long article! Happily, I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read recently so I can firmly recommend all of these books – and if you want some short story recommendations, have a look at my latest reviews here. I’ve gone through these books in the order in which I read them rather than any sort of priority order, and linked out to my reviews where available – so without further ado, let’s get cracking.
Never Die by Rob J. Hayes
I first came across Rob with his Black Library short story Anarchy’s End, and ever since then had been meaning to read one of his (many) books – not least because I’m intrigued by the whole self publishing world. I started Never Die at the end of my recent trip to New York, during most of which I just hadn’t been in the mood to read…but this kicked me out of that funk with aplomb! It’s an Asian-inspired martial arts fantasy packed full of ancient spirits, intriguing mythology and heroes of various guises who each fight with their own unique techniques – magical-seeming abilities only they can employ. It’s an absolute blast from start to finish; action-packed but still characterful, a pacy page-turner with an enjoyably dark undertone. Well worth checking out!
Lethal White by Robert Galbraith (aka JK Rowling)
I’m an unashamed fan of Harry Potter, and have happily devoured all of the Cormoran Strike novels (and the TV show, too) since it became clear that Galbraith is in fact Rowling. I do enjoy a good crime novel, and Rowling has a knack for writing stories and characters that I just find instantly engaging and readable – and happily Lethal White continued that trend. It’s a mountain of a book – 770 pages in paperback – but I blitzed through it in no time at all, thanks primarily to being desperate to know what happens next between the two main characters. The plot was great – I don’t want to say much about it for fear of spoilers – but at this point I think I’m sufficiently engaged with the character drama that I almost don’t mind what the actual story is about. Thankfully, it was excellent, so I got my fix of Cormoran and Robin AND an enjoyable mystery!
The Oubliette by JC Stearns
Stearns has written some fantastic 40k short stories for Black Library, so I was very much looking forward to reading his first longer-form story – especially as it came under the Warhammer Horror banner. As I rather expected, it’s less of an out-and-out chillfest and more of a tense tale of desperation and determination to survive resulting in dark decisions being made. What’s interesting is that it provides a reminder of just how grim and awful life in the Imperium really is – 40k is fundamentally incredibly dark, but it’s easy to take that for granted if you read a lot of Black Library stories (like I do). While this isn’t perfect – I really wish BL had commissioned Stearns to write a full-length book rather than this ‘short novel’, so he could have properly dug into this story – I enjoyed it a lot, not least the opportunity to explore an Imperial world’s hierarchy of nobles and politicians, and see how nasty 40k can be even away from the battlefields.
Check out my review of The Oubliette.
Watchers of the Throne: The Emperor’s Legion by Chris Wraight
This was a re-read, in preparation for reading the sequel, The Regent’s Shadow – which, ironically, I still haven’t got round to. I remember when this first came out back in 2017, being blown away by the opportunity to explore 40k-era Terra (from a different angle to The Vaults of Terra) and spend time with both Custodians and Sisters of Silence, not to mention a character in Tieron who’s just one step removed from the High Lords of Terra. Re-reading it several years later, despite the additional familiarity it’s still an absolute thrill to read about these characters and the momentous events that bring this period of 40k history to a close. It’s really an ideal Black Library book – brilliantly written with fascinating characters and a gripping plot, while also offering a compelling viewpoint on one of the most important locations/settings in the IP. Really can’t recommend this enough.
Check out my original review of The Emperor’s Legion.
Anathemas
Before the Warhammer Horror range was announced, I would have said that I wasn’t really a fan of horror fiction. Since then, however, I’ve read every new story that BL has released as part of the range, and enjoyed them all! The latest short story anthology, and the third of its kind, Anathemas is probably my favourite of the bunch so far – these stories still feel more like an evolution of BL fiction rather than a revolution, but they seem to just keep getting better. In comparison with Invocations there are two fewer stories which were previously released as eshorts, which helps to make the whole thing feel fresh and new, while I felt there was a real sense of authors trying different things as well. With a few stories that left me genuinely unsettled, I’d call this a successful anthology all round!
Check out my review of Anathemas.
Sanctuary by V.V. James
I confess I’ve never actually watched Desperate Housewives (bear with me, there’s a point here somewhere), but V.V. James’ excellent novel Sanctuary is basically what I imagine the TV show to look like…crossed with the relentless pace of a Lee Child thriller…with an added dose of magical realism in the shape of a witch with a shop on the high street. That might sound a bit mad but it works brilliantly and results in a thriller with the heart of a suburban family drama, complete with out-of-town detective, close-knit friendship groups ripped apart by trauma and grief, and a community which turns on its own in a desperate attempt to understand what’s happening. I have to say I found some of the characters utterly repellant at times, but regardless of how dreadfully they were behaving it always felt appropriate – awful, but understandable. Throw magic in the mix, and make it the focus of small-town paranoia and prejudice, and you’ve got a compelling story which I simply couldn’t put down!
Check out my review of Sanctuary.
Secrets on the Shore by Katherine Woodfine
This might look a bit out of place – a sweet, gentle story for younger readers in amongst all the death and horror and general darkness of pretty much everything else I read – but I’ve always had (and will always have) a soft spot for the joyful simplicity of a great adventure story. Woodfine’s writing is an absolute delight, and the two main characters (who were first introduced in the novel The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow) are just so much fun to read about. I wouldn’t recommend this as an entry point to the series – despite being a novella, and therefore quick and easy to read, it would benefit from knowing who the characters are beforehand, so I’d suggest trying the first novel if you’re interested in taking a look. If you’re already familiar with the characters, however, this is well worth a (quick) read, and should nicely tide you over until the next novel is released in August.
Saturnine by Dan Abnett
With this, the Siege of Terra series – the conclusion to the ridiculously epic Horus Heresy – reaches its halfway point…and boy does Abnett do it in style! I haven’t worked out what to say in my proper review just yet (besides OMG this is amazing you should buy it and read it it’s incredible…which doesn’t feel like it hits my usual standard of objectivity, never mind eloquence), but suffice to say I couldn’t put it down. It feels like the pace of the Siege is starting to ramp up now, with a real sense of momentous events taking place all around – there are a fair few ‘fist bump’ moments in this book, the sort of scene which leaves me grinning like a loon and thinking “who needs insightful character development when you can have THIS?!” That being said, there’s lots of great character development taking place as well, and I’ve a feeling this is a book which is going to please a lot of Horus Heresy fans. The only problem is, it’s left me desperate to read the next book…so come on Black Library, let us know when that’s coming out!
Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson
I picked this one up off the back of a recommendation by Peter McLean, one of my favourite authors at the moment, who hasn’t yet steered me wrong with his book suggestions. The fact that it’s set in Deptford, which is just down the road from me, helped pique my interest as well – although bearing in mind this is 18th Century Deptford we’re talking about, I didn’t recognise many landmarks. I enjoyed the chance to read something I probably wouldn’t have picked up without the recommendation, and much like the Woodfine novella I read earlier in the month it felt like a nice palate cleanser amongst all the sci-fi and fantasy that I usually go for. Dealing as it does with the slave trade, some of what happens in this book is seriously – at times unpleasantly – dark, but it’s a gripping, fascinating read despite…or possibly even because…of that.
False Value by Ben Aaronovitch
The Rivers of London series has become the literary equivalent of comfort food for me, and I blitzed through this in no time at all – it was just an absolute delight. I read the first book in the series quite soon after it was released and fell in love with so much about it, from Peter’s tone of voice to the landmarks of Covent Garden which, having recently relocated to London and started working in the West End, I was unusually familiar with. While the first few chapters felt a little strange (I really don’t want to spoil anything, so let’s just say that after the events of Lies Sleeping things are a bit different for Peter), once I got into the swing of things I simply couldn’t put it down. Eight books into the series, there are so many characters that they can’t all have as much page time as I might want…but Aaronovitch does a great job of tying everything together, balancing the demands of the characters while telling a fantastic story. I can’t wait for the next instalment, now!
I Am Slaughter by Dan Abnett
Sneaking in at the end of the month (I finished it on the 31st) is the audiobook of this somewhat unusual 40k novel – I read it when it was first released back in 2015, but when Black Library offered the audiobook for 99p (for a week only, sadly) I jumped at the chance to revisit the start of The Beast Arises. It’s a great book, as most Abnett books are, and going back to it having already read the whole series is an interesting experience – especially tackling it in audio, which I find always provides a good opportunity to pick up on different elements of a story. Revisiting it reminded me, however, of how weird (and interesting) it is to explore a period in between the Heresy and mainline 40k, with lots of familiar elements balanced out by an equal amount of “…wait, what’s that?” moments. If I had the time I’d love to properly dive back into this series, not least to revisit all the brilliant scenes with Vangorich and the High Lords bickering and squabbling. If you haven’t yet tackled The Beast Arises, and you’re even slightly interested in not just seeing some massive battles but digging into the politics of the Imperium, then it’s really worth giving this series a go.
Check out my original review of I Am Slaughter.
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So there you go…the eleven books that I read or listened to last month. In hindsight, I can see that a lot of what I chose to read in March was specifically geared towards easy reads and the sort of thing I can just kick back and unwind with. Not all of it for sure (I’m not sure I can necessarily unwind reading horror stories, for example), but a lot of it – re-reads of Black Library novels I loved first time around, new stories by some of my favourite authors (Aaronovitch, Abnett, Woodfine), non-SFF books I know I’m not going to review…clearly I wanted to be able to lose myself in reading! Under the current circumstances, I think that’s fair enough.
I feel like I’m slowly getting back on track now, so while I hope I can read and listen to plenty in April I’m also aiming to review a higher proportion this time around. Fingers crossed, anyway! Keep an eye out for more reviews coming soon, and another Monthly Highlights post looking back at April’s reading activity. I’d love to hear about what you’ve enjoyed reading or listening to recently, whether you’ve read and enjoyed any of the books I tackled this month, and whether there’s anything you’d like to see in these highlights/roundup articles…so do drop me a line in the comments below, or get in touch on Twitter.