Two years after Unchanged capped off his trilogy, Ahriman is back in a new audio drama from John French, Ahriman: Key of Infinity. This time Ahriman has caught himself a necron Cryptek and, accompanied by Ignis and Credence, sets out to understand the powerful time-altering technology it possesses. To the Cryptek, Setekh, the interrogation provides all the time it needs to carefully arrange an escape, but then perhaps it hasn’t reckoned with the sheer power the Thousand Sons sorcerers possess.
The opening instalment of John French’s Agent of the Throne audio drama series, which ties into the wider Horusian Wars arc, Blood and Lies sees Ianthe (first seen in the short story The Purity of Ignorance) recounting the tale of her first solo mission for Inquisitor Covenant. Dispatched to Mithras to deal with a troublesome cult before it becomes too much of a problem, only to find a deeper darkness lurking beneath, she has to use of all the tools – human and otherwise – at her disposal in order to fulfil her oaths and complete her mission.
Part of Black Library’s Space Marine Battles series, Architect of Fate is made up of novellas from Sarah Cawkwell, Darius Hinks, Ben Counter and John French featuring various Space Marine chapters and members of the Inquisition battling against daemonic plots and manipulations on the fringes of the Eye of Terror. Four quite different stories told in each author’s distinct style, they nevertheless fit together nicely with common themes, the occasional bit of connective tissue, and a consistent tone.
Author of the (in my opinion) wonderful Ahriman trilogy, as well as a few stories in something you might have heard of called the Horus Heresy, John French is back with the first novel of a brand new series – the Horusian Wars. You might have come across a few of the accompanying short stories already; we’re still pretty early days but it looks like there’s a lot of content coming out for this series. You can find my review of the first novel below, along with a link to a page with details of everything that’s been released so far.
The character of Inquisitor Covenant was introduced in 2001’s Inquisitor rulebook; fast forward to 2017 and he’s the focus of The Horusian Wars: Resurrection by John French. The first novel in a new series that has already seen a few introductory short stories, it joins Covenant and his acolytes partway through their hunt for a fellow inquisitor, a radical named Talicto. A rare gathering of his peers provides Covenant with an opportunity to confront Talicto, but with so many inquisitors gathered in one place, events inevitably don’t go quite to plan. And so begins a story of conflicting ideologies and murky loyalties, of hidden conflicts taking place while the galaxy burns.
If you’ve been keeping an eye on recent releases, it won’t have escaped your notice that John French is writing an Inquisition series for Black Library – the Horusian Wars. I’m a massive fan of John’s writing, and I’m loving this series through and through. I thought it might be useful for anyone else who’s interested in this series if I gathered together all of the information that’s available into a single place – so that’s what this article is for.
Back in August 2016, before we knew what the deal was with the Horusian Wars, I did a bit of research and came up with some early speculation regarding the series, including snippets of background text from the Inquisitor rulebook and a couple of the Dark Heresy roleplaying books. Here’s a link to that article, but bear in mind it was written WAY before a lot of the subsequent information came to light.
For something a bit more official, try this great post from John’s own blog where he talks a little about what the series is, and what it will be. You might also check out this post on the Warhammer Community site.
Here’s an interview I did with John in 2017 about this series, his inspirations, how it compares to/is influenced by his Ahriman series, and lots more: John French Talks The Horusian Wars.
And here are all of the quick Rapid Fire interviews I’ve done with John for this series so far:
Here’s a list of everything in the series that’s been published or confirmed so far, in publication order, along with links to my reviews where appropriate and either a snippet of each review, or a little bit of the blurb:
The Purity of Ignorance (short story)
“Leading his warband in an airborne insertion, Covenant is joined by Lieutenant Ianthe of the Agathian Sky Sharks, seconded to Inquisitorial duty.”
The Maiden of the Dream (short story)
“Mylasa is a powerful psyker who, as one of Inquisitor Covenant’s acolytes, uses her gifts to interrogate prisoners of the Inquisition and purge their memories.”
The Absolution of Swords (short story)
“…continues to build familiarisation with Covenant’s warband, introducing new characters and particularly focusing on the Rogue Trader Cleander, but this time it also sets the narrative up for the novel, Resurrection.”
The Horusian Wars: Resurrection
“Complex and uncompromising, this isn’t your usual easy Black Library read, although it nails the fundamental tone and vibe of 40k in a way that few others do.”
The Blessing of Saints (short story – included in the limited edition of Resurrection)
“…a simple premise, set out in the opening line with a reference to “the three saint-hunters”, but deceptively complex.”
Agent of the Throne: Blood and Lies (audio drama)
“…if you’re interested in the Inquisition and fancy a look at a ‘peripheral mission’, not quite important enough for a full inquisitor but dangerous enough that it needs an Inquisitorial presence, this really hits the spot.”
Agent of the Throne: Truth and Dreams (audio drama)
“…an intriguing exploration of Ianthe, in terms of how her role as Covenant’s agent has affected her as a human being. It’s a development of Ianthe’s story that… continues to add texture to what French is creating with the wider Horusian Wars series.
The Horusian Wars: Incarnation
“…another fascinating story that builds on what’s gone before, raising the stakes and delivering a powerful example of what the 40k universe really has to offer.”
The Son of Sorrows (short story)
“…the story of a man so damaged he chooses to lose a key part of his personality in order to avoid his pain, and the incredibly powerful tool he becomes as a result.”
The Mistress of Threads (short story)
“…the tale of a commercial empire’s ups and downs in the wake of the Great Rift, a sinister cartel, and the strange relationships that underpin the von Castellan dynasty.”
The Spirit of Cogs (short story – included in Inferno! Volume 3)
“…a story about ghosts in the machine, and how it’s possible for an adept of the Mechanicus to reconcile their supremely logical creed with a concept which – on the surface – seems entirely illogical.”
Agent of the Throne: Ashes and Oaths (audio drama)
“…a story about how far servants of the Throne are prepared to go in order to achieve their goals, and the ways they find to cope with the repercussions of their actions.”
The Horusian Wars: Divination (short story anthology)
From the blurb: “Myriad are the cohorts of the Inquisitor Covenant. As he struggles to unpick the plans of the mysterious and deadly ‘Triumvirate’, he must use every weapon in his arsenal and every resource at his disposal. ”
The Knave of Stars (short story, included in Divination)
“…a quiet, reflective character study, heavy with dialogue enlivened by Cleander’s innately sarcastic view on proceedings, and packed full of French’s characteristic eye for cultish detail.”
I asked John if there was a recommended reading/listening order for the stories so far, but it looks like things are a little more complicated than just a simple linear order, with John describing things as “a patchwork, or lattice”. Certain stories feed into each other but aren’t necessarily directly linked to others, while characters crop up in multiple stories even if they’re not the main protagonists…
For example, while The Absolution of Swords is a pretty direct prequel to the novel Resurrection, The Purity of Ignorance relates more to Agent of the Throne: Blood and Lies.
That being said, while there’s no problem reading/listening to these stories in ‘any order’, here’s what John suggested if you want something a bit more concrete:
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That’s everything so far, but there’s definitely going to be more to this series. As soon as anything is announced I’ll add it to this page, and I will of course review everything that’s released. Drop me a line if I’ve missed anything!
If you’ve got any questions or comments, do let me know.
Having tackled the character of Horus in a short Horus Heresy audio drama before – the appropriately named Warmaster – John French takes a longer, darker look in Dark Compliance. A simple but effective portmanteau, it sees the ruler of one planetary system – defiant in the face of Horus’ demands – regaled with the horrifying tale of another system’s demise…over a single day. A statement of Horus’ intent as much as his military power, the story of Accazzar-Beta’s destruction, as told by Sons of Horus emissary Argonis, demonstrates the fate awaiting those who defy the Warmaster. As threats go, it’s pretty compelling.
The third short story in John French’s burgeoning Horusian Wars series, The Absolution of Swords is pretty much a direct prequel to the novel Resurrection. On the shrine world Dominicus Prime, within and beneath the temples of the Crow Complex, Inquisitor Covenant and his warband hunt down an insidious cult known as the Tenth Path. While Duke Cleander Von Castellan and the soldier Koleg seek to cleanse the taint of Chaos from the darkness beneath the temples, Covenant leads his other followers in search of answers, and the man ultimately responsible for the cult’s dark purpose.
A digital-only Horus Heresy short story by John French, Ordo Sinister is the first Black Library story to feature this particular Titan Legion, who have only recently been explored by Forge World in their book Inferno. Taking place during the Webway War, it sees a single Titan holding back an entire daemonic incursion on its own, for this is no ordinary Titan. Commanded by Prefect Hydragyrum, controlled and powered by…unconventional means, Borealis Thoon is a Psi-Titan.
Yesterday, out of the blue, Black Library released a limited edition boxed set of John French’s Ahriman trilogy. 500 copies only. It wasn’t on the Coming Soon section of the website, it hadn’t been hinted at or teasered…it was a complete surprise. Well. It is, after all, Tzaanuary – according to Games Workshop – so in hindsight it’s not actually surprising that a series of novels featuring Tzeentch’s favourite 40k pawn should get the posh hardback treatment in a month dedicated to the Changer of Ways…