Category Archives: Black Library

Darkness in the Blood – Guy Haley

The third of Guy Haley’s 40k Blood Angels novels, Darkness in the Blood is a bleak tale of duty and necessity which explores both Commander Dante’s new role as Warden of Imperium Nihilus, and the unsettling growth of Chief Librarian Mephiston’s psychic might. In the wake of Hive Fleet Leviathan’s defeat at Baal, and the arrival of Roboute Guilliman with Primaris Space Marine reinforcements for the Chapters of the Blood, Dante plans his campaign to purge the remaining Tyranids and begin retaking Imperium Nihilus. Before that can happen, however, Mephiston’s burgeoning powers appear to herald a new danger for the sons of Sanguinius, as the Flaw rises in even the new Primaris Marines. Meanwhile, an agent of Belisarius Cawl travels to Baal bearing gifts of science and technology that might just offer a little hope.

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Warhammer Crime – The Range So Far

Black Library’s Warhammer Crime range only launched in 2020 but it’s steadily growing as new titles are released, and I thought it might be useful to put together an article that breaks down all of the relevant releases and links out to reviews and author interviews where they’re available. Because a few of these stories are connected as well (characters appearing in both short stories and novels, for example) I’ve included as many of those connections as I know of too, so hopefully this should be helpful both as an introduction and a refresher to Warhammer Crime. I’ll keep this article updated as and when new titles are released and/or I publish new reviews/interviews, so that it’s as useful and up to date as possible.

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Sanction & Sin – Warhammer Crime Anthology

Sanction & Sin, the third short story anthology from Black Library’s Warhammer Crime range, collects together nine stories from a mixture of BL veterans and newer names (including debuts for J.S. Collyer and Jude Reid) exploring the trials and tribulations of some of the women living amidst the blood, the dirt, the crime and corruption on the grim streets of Varangantua. Whether trying to maintain the Lex, care for others’ bodies and souls, make a killing or just make a living, each of these characters is forced to confront the realities of life in this vast and unforgiving city, the inequality and the brutality, the squalid streets and the merciless conditions. While some thrive despite the odds, others aren’t so strong or so fortunate, and justice means little in Varangantua.

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Sanction and Sin: Warhammer Crime and Women in Black Library – with J.S. Collyer, Victoria Hayward, Jude Reid and Danie Ware

Hello and welcome to this very special author interview here on Track of Words, where today I’m talking to no fewer than four fantastic authors – J.S. Collyer, Victoria Hayward, Jude Reid and Danie Ware – about their stories in the new Warhammer Crime anthology Sanction & Sin from Black Library. It’s always great to see new stories published in the Warhammer Crime range, and Sanction & Sin sounds like a fantastic collection of stories exploring some really interesting angles on Warhammer 40,000 as a setting. More than that though, it’s something of a landmark for Black Library as the first anthology to feature stories from four female authors.

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QUICK REVIEW: Oracle – Liane Merciel

Liane Merciel’s Age of Sigmar short story Oracle, part of the wider Broken Realms narrative and a sequel of sorts to Red Claw and Ruin (from Covens of Blood), starts with an investigation and ends with an invasion. Posted to the city of Anvilguard to support the Anvils of the Heldenhammer, most of whom have been redeployed elsewhere, Etanios of the Hammers of Sigmar finds himself in the unusual position of assisting with a murder investigation, after several deaths among the city’s prominent citizens. When he’s contacted by an old ally with a dire warning of Morathi’s duplicity, however, he finds himself pulled in different directions trying to do his duty.

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Ghazghkull Thraka: Prophet of the Waaagh! – Nate Crowley

Nate Crowley puts his wild imagination to darkly hilarious use with the fantastic Ghazghkull Thraka: Prophet of the Waaagh!, effortlessly elevating Warhammer 40,000 orks into compelling, thought-provoking characters. Relatively short but wide-ranging, it’s structured around the central conceit of a radical Ordo Xenos inquisitor interrogating a captured grot claiming to be Makari, the banner bearer of Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka. As Inquisitor Falx and her unusual retinue question Makari – via a somewhat suspicious interpreter – they’re gradually presented with both an origin story for Ghazghkull and a jaw-dropping exploration of greenskin culture and the orkish mindset. Orks not being known for their trustworthiness though, the Imperials have to wonder how much they can trust and what the implications might be if Makari’s story is actually true.

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QUICK REVIEW: Roadwarden – Liane Merciel

Liane Merciel turns her attention to the harsh landscape of Aqshy with the short story Roadwarden, available in the Inferno! Volume 6 anthology. When strangers approach roadwarden Fereyne wanting to hire her as a guide through the Reaver Wastes, at first she balks at aiding anyone once claimed by the Blood God, but her scepticism is soon outweighed by the truth of their situation…and the high price they’re offering for her services. As she leads the motley party through the wastes in search of a magical artefact with the power to bring life to arid Aqshy, Fereyne and her companions find themselves faced with the stark reality of Chaos’ influence on the Mortal Realms.

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40k Reading Order: The Horusian Wars – John French

Hello and welcome to another 40k Reading Order article, where this time I’m offering a recommended reading order for the various stories that make up John French’s excellent Horusian Wars series. If you’ve ever wanted to read these dark tales exploring the warring factions within the Holy Orders of the Emperor’s Inquisition, but haven’t known where to start, then look no further than this article! With John’s very kind assistance I’ve put together a comprehensive list of all of the Horusian Wars stories to date – which include novels, short stories and audio dramas – based on their in-universe chronological order.

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Where to Start With Black Library: Age of Sigmar Grand Alliance Order

Hello and welcome to this instalment of my Where to Start With Black Library article series, where I’m offering suggestions for good entry points into BL’s various ranges, and attempting to demystify Warhammer fiction a little bit. Historically, Black Library hasn’t provided much in the way of guidance regarding its massive range of stories, so I was pleased to see a recent (at the time I’m writing this) Warhammer Community article offering suggestions for where to start with Age of Sigmar books exploring the Grand Alliance Order – the ‘good guys’ (ish) of the Mortal Realms. While I applaud the intentions of this article, I didn’t think it was very thorough, and I didn’t necessarily agree with all of its suggestions, so I’ve put together an article myself on the same topic.

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Where to Start with Black Library: Necromunda

If you’ve ever looked at Black Library’s range of Necromunda stories and thought “that looks cool, but I’ve no idea where to start” then don’t worry – I’m going to do my best to help! As with pretty much everything BL produces, it’s tough to figure out in which order to read these stories and whether any of them are connected, but that’s where my series of Where to Start With Black Library articles comes in. I’m always keen to try to demystify Warhammer fiction, so in this article I’ll offer a few suggestions for what I think might be good entry points to Necromunda as a setting and as a fiction range.

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