Tag Archives: Ben Counter

Legends of the Dark Millennium : Space Wolves – Black Library Anthology

Originally serialised in eight separate short stories spread out over a period of months, Legends of the Dark Millennium – Space Wolves now collects together these stories from four Black Library authors into a single volume. Not so much an anthology as a collective novel, it focuses on Ulrik the Slayer and Krom Dragongaze as they embark on a desperate search for Logan Grimnar after the Great Wolf fails to return from his Great Hunt. Each author tackles two parts of the wider story, beginning with Ben Counter and moving through Steve Lyons and Rob Sanders before finishing off with CL Werner.
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QUICK REVIEW : Gift of the Gods – Ben Counter

The fifth 2015 Advent Calendar story from Black Library, Ben Counter’s Gift of the Gods features the disgraced, exiled Chaos Lord Antonidas Hajos of the Dire Claws, abandoned on feudal jungle world after leading a failed coup within this chapter. Accompanied by a handful of his warriors and driven on by anger and pride, he sets out to turn the locals to the worship of the chaos gods, undertaking a series of tasks to prove his worth. The question remains though, will this be enough to set him on the path to revenge and glory? Keep reading…

QUICK REVIEW : The Flesh of the Angel – Ben Counter

The third short story in Black Library’s Deathwatch serial and Ben Counter’s second contribution, The Flesh of the Angel follows brother Zameon Gydael of the Dark Angels as he infiltrates a brood nest of the xenos sslyth. Venturing alone through alien-infested territory in order to detonate a virus bomb at its heart, he approaches the conclusion of his mission only to find his loyalties torn between the objectives of his Deathwatch kill team and the hidden, ancient goals of his parent chapter as an unexpected enemy shows itself.
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QUICK REVIEW : The Caged Wolf – Ben Counter

Black Library’s latest Space Wolf serial continues with The Caged Wolf, in which Ben Counter details the reaction of the Wolves to the daemonic infiltration of the Fang and the worry that the Great Wolf Logan Grimnar might be in need of assistance. With the Wolf Lords thirsting for blood and ready to crusade across the stars in their lord’s name, Ulrik the Slayer counsels caution, leading a small force to track the Great Wolf and test the validity of the daemon’s tale. When he arrives it takes all of his willpower to keep his own battle-lust in check.

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QUICK REVIEW : Feast of Lies – Ben Counter

Black Library are all about releasing serial stories at the moment, and a new Space Wolf serial starts with Feast of Lies by Ben Counter, featuring Logan Grimnar and Ulrik the Slayer at the conclusion of the thirtieth Great Hunt. As Grimnar battles the Tau on a distant world, the remaining Great Companies return to Fenris with trophies and tales of their exploits, feasting and boasting of their successes. When a human emissary tells a worryingly prophetic tale of Grimnar and a shocking discovery, Ulrik realises there is more going on than he realised at first.

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QUICK REVIEW : One Bullet – Ben Counter

Ben Counter’s contribution to a loose series of Deathwatch-themed stories from Black Library, One Bullet looks at the Ultramarines of Third Company as they face off against a vast army of orks among the wreckage of an industrial city. Led by the fiery rhetoric of a young Chaplain Cassius, and supported by a squad of experienced Sternguard veterans, the Ultramarines must make use of every weapon in their arsenal if they are to emerge victorious.

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The World Engine – Ben Counter

The latest Space Marine Battles novel – The World Engine – is Ben Counter’s second in the series and promises to be about as epic a story as it’s possible to be. The titular World Engine is a mobile planet, a vast and apparently indestructible necron construct that has been marauding through Imperial space and devastating systems with impunity. With few options remaining, the entire Astral Knights chapter launches a suicidal assault, crashing their battle barge directly into the planet in a last ditch attempt to stop the World Engine. The Space Marine Battles series is built on the premise that the stories told are enjoyable, entertaining and fun, and with such a ridiculously over the top concept this should deliver all three in spades.

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Arjac Rockfist: Anvil of Fenris – Ben Counter

For some, limited edition books exist purely to make the publisher money. Others enjoy the rarity and the collectible aspect of them. Whatever your opinion on the topic, there can be no doubt that a physically beautiful book is a lovely thing to own and read. Black Library have been publishing ‘exclusives’ for a while now, in various release formats, the latest being Arjac Rockfist: Anvil of Fenris. Written by Ben Counter as part of the Lords of the Space Marines series, this is a novella-length book available in two formats – the ‘deluxe limited’ edition complete with additional audio drama and ornate case, and the standard ‘limited’ edition as reviewed. Bound underneath the dust cover in grey leather-effect and embossed with Fenrisian runes, as limited editions go this is an absolute beauty. Unlike ebooks, physical books offer a wonderfully tactile experience, and this one takes things one step further in its sheer luxuriousness.

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Renegades of the Dark Millennium – Black Library Anthology

We all love a baddie, right? Fans of Black Library probably do more than most, given the proliferation of great bad guys (and girls) in the worlds of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000. If that’s you, if you’re a fan of the dark(er) side, then Renegades of the Dark Millennium is for you. Unsurprisingly given the title, this is a celebration of all things dark, twisted and evil in the 40k universe, and is very much a Space Marines release.

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