Welcome to August, everyone! Another month of 2020 strangeness has ticked by, so it’s time once again to take a look back at what I’ve been reading and listening to over the last few weeks. After a couple of months where I managed to read a ridiculous number of books – even for a quick reader – I slowed down a little in July…but I’ve still got plenty to talk about. I’ve continued to read a fair amount purely for escapism, i.e. without planning on writing reviews, but pending a couple of still-outstanding reviews I’m happy to see the ratio shifting a little bit back in favour of books I do want to write about.
As usual I’ve tried to keep things as succinct as possible, and I’ve linked out to reviews where they’re available. Without further ado, however, let’s get straight on (in the order in which I read them) with July’s books…
Road to Redemption by Mike Brooks
I do enjoy a good Necromunda novel, and as usual Mike Brooks delivers the goods here with a dark and characterful story which brilliantly captures the unique tone and feel of the setting. A quest story is a great way of exploring the underhive and its wildly diverse characters, and in this instance the protagonist Zeke comes into contact with all manner of allies and enemies as he searches for lost children and struggles to reconcile his past life with who and what he’s become. Necromunda stories just seem to suit Brooks’ style so well, and this does not disappoint.
Check out my review of Road to Redemption, and a Rapid Fire interview with Mike Brooks.
Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch
Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series is one of my all-time favourites, and I’m slowly revisiting the earlier instalments in the series by way of the audiobooks, beautifully narrated by the fantastic Kobna Holdbrook-Smith. Whispers Under Ground is the third in the series, and alongside setting Peter off on adventures in the sewers and assorted tunnels beneath the streets of London it brings Lesley May back to the foreground, and lays the groundwork for much of what comes next. Eight years after it was first published, it’s still fresh and exciting and an absolute blast.
Infestation by William Meikle
I’ve been meaning to read something by Meikle for ages, and had my eye on this – the first book in his S-Squad series – in particular. I wouldn’t necessarily say I was a massive creature feature fan, but off the back of reading this I feel like that might change. I love a book that doesn’t try to be anything it isn’t, and that’s what I got from Infestation – sweary soldiers, nasty critters both large and small, and a pacy plot full of action, danger and excitement. It’s total no-nonsense pulp entertainment, and I can see myself happily digging into the rest of the S-Squad series.
Check out my review of Infestation.
Daemonifuge – 20th Anniversary Edition
Back in the day, when I was still at school and Black Library still published the Warhammer Monthly comic books, I remember reading and enjoying the first ‘book’ of Daemonifuge. I don’t think I ever read the subsequent volumes, but I’ve always been a bit saddened that Stern wasn’t supported by Black Library the way other (male) characters from the same era were. It’s good to see the complete three-volume Daemonifuge reprinted in 2020, in glorious full colour no less, and I very much enjoyed finding out what Stern got up to in her subsequent adventures. If I’m honest I thought the second part dropped in quality in terms of both the artwork and the story, although the third picked up again, but that first book is still where it’s at! Seeing it in colour is the icing on the cake (although I still wish BL had continued her story in this format – would have been fab).
Exuma by Mark Brendan
I first encountered Mark Brendan’s writing WAY back in the days of Inferno! Magazine (check out my review of his short story Tenebrae) and it’s great to see him writing and publishing fiction once again. Exuma is a sort of adventure/horror story, a pacy little novella set in the 17th century New World and featuring the inquisition, slavery, shipwrecks, a sinister island and a load of creepy vampire priests. I would say it’s more swashbuckling adventure than really dark horror – some pretty horrible things happen to the characters, but the focus is more on keeping the plot moving than dwelling on the darkness. I would actually have liked it to go a bit darker, with less of a god’s eye view and showing more from the protagonist’s point of view, but it was a fun read nevertheless.
For the Emperor by Sandy Mitchell
Mitchell’s Ciaphas Cain series is one of the absolute joys of the 40k canon, and For the Emperor is where the whole thing began. Essentially a mixture of Flashman and Blackadder set to the backdrop of the 41st millennium, Cain’s stories are a bit left of centre for 40k overall but at the same time they offer a welcome diversion from the po-faced darkness that can sometimes dominate the setting. Full of wit and charm and with all the action and adventure you’d hope for, it’s little wonder this novel went on to spawn so many sequels, and it holds up well to re-reads. Or, in my case, revisiting it via the audiobook narrated brilliantly by Stephen Perring – with a little help from Penelope Rawlins (as Amberley Vail) and Emma Gregory (General Sulla) who bring the footnotes and additional excerpts wonderfully to life.
Moonraker by Ian Fleming
Like many, I grew up watching James Bond films on TV, and I went on to read maybe half of the original Ian Fleming novels as well. This audiobook edition of Moonraker, narrated by the incomparable Bill Nighy, was a perfect bit of escapism – I’m pretty sure I did read Moonraker at some point, and likewise watch the movie, but it felt like I was enjoying the story for the first time. Of course these novels have aged poorly in terms of the general level of sexism that runs throughout them (although I’d argue Bond himself isn’t as bad in Moonraker as he is in other stories), but that notwithstanding this is a hugely enjoyable story and Nighy’s narration is – in my opinion – utterly perfect. It’s just a shame he doesn’t narrate all of them!
Profit’s Ruin by CL Werner
I’m pretty sure I read Overlords of the Iron Dragon, CL Werner’s first Kharadron Overlords novel, in one sitting, and it didn’t take me much longer to read the sequel Profit’s Ruin! If you enjoyed the first book then I’m pretty sure you’ll like this one too – it’s arguably just more of the same, but when the basic ingredients are this much fun I don’t think there’s much wrong with that. Of course it isn’t actually just a repeat of the first book, but it is similarly good fun. Personally I would argue that these Kharadron novels show Werner at his best, in the way his skaven-focused stories often do, so if you’re after a fun action adventure in the Mortal Realms I would definitely recommend checking them out.
Check out my review of Profit’s Ruin, and a Rapid Fire interview with CL Werner.
Seven Devils by Laura Lam and Elizabeth May
I was lucky enough to get hold of an advance copy of this – look out for a review coming soon, but suffice to say I had a lot of fun with this pacy, high-tech adventure story. If you like a bit of sci-fi with a ragtag bunch of roguish characters thrown together by chance, and a plucky rebellion fighting back against an overbearing evil empire, then I think you might enjoy this too. Sure, it’s a bit Star Wars, but if Star Wars was populated by almost exclusively female characters, all of whom are damaged or traumatised in some way and yet absolutely badass in every way! I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m totally here for a multi-POV, queer feminist space adventure, and I’m now looking forward very much to book two!
Indomitus by Gav Thorpe
Another novel that I’ve yet to write my review for (I’ll get round to it soon, I promise!), Gav’s latest is a 40k novel released to accompany the latest edition of the tabletop game…and I’ve got to say I enjoyed it a lot. It definitely leans heavily towards the more action-oriented style of 40k novel, but both the Space Marines and Necrons are well drawn and entertaining (especially the Necrons, with their paranoiac Lord and sneaky Plasmancer), and the characters very much drive the story. I thought it worked really well as both a standalone action story and a way of illustrating the threat posed by the Necrons in the wake of the Great Rift – interesting, easy to read and enjoyably characterful.
Check out this Rapid Fire interview with Gav Thorpe.
Hellboy Omnibus Volume 1: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola and John Byrne
Despite not really being much of a comics/graphic novels reader, this first Hellboy omnibus was my second graphic novel of the month, and I’d honestly say it’s probably the best graphic novel I’ve ever read. It helps that I’ve been a fan of Hellboy for years having watched the films first, but there’s just something about Mike Mignola’s art that chimes with me more than pretty much anything else I’ve read. Thankfully, the stylish and beautiful artwork is complemented by some really cool storytelling and a bunch of memorable supporting characters. I could see myself going back to reread some or all of the stories in this omnibus, and if I can figure out what to read next from the massive catalogue of Hellboy stories I would be very happy to dig further into the Mignola catalogue.
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I hope you’ve managed to get some good reading/listening time in as well, over the last few weeks. I don’t know about you, but books continue to be a great source of comfort for me at the moment and I can happily say that I had a lot of fun reading this month’s selection. As always my TBR list/pile continues to grow, but hopefully in August I’ll continue to get through a decent number of enjoyable books!
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.