Tag Archives: Summer of Reading 2019

QUICK REVIEW: To Speak As One – Guy Haley

Guy Haley’s 40k short story To Speak As One is an unusual tale of conflicting Imperial jurisdiction, and the ongoing repercussions of Guilliman’s return and Belisarius Cawl’s unorthodox genius. Inquisitor Cehen-qui isn’t best pleased to receive orders to hand off a xenos prisoner to one of Cawl’s lieutenants, Magos Qvo-87, so refuses and hunkers down in an abandoned Ordo Xenos void station to defend his prize. To his mind, the Inquisition’s remit supersedes the authority of Cawl, or even Guilliman. Undeterred, Qvo deploys his forces – including Alpha Primus, a Space Marine of ambiguous origins and unusually dour demeanour – to press the issue.

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QUICK REVIEW: Miracles – Nicholas Wolf

For his second Black Library short story – Miracles – Nicholas Wolf ventures into Warhammer Horror territory with a bleak tale of a family man pushed to his limits. Jacen Hertz might not find it easy to pray to the Emperor, but he works hard and loves his wife and children. As tension rises within Praxis Hive amid talk of disappearances and mutilated bodies, Jacen’s past comes back to haunt him when he miraculously survives a terrible disaster only to fall under the suspicion of the enforcers. As the pressure upon him increases, Jacen must decide how far he’s prepared to go to find salvation.

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QUICK REVIEW: Born of the Storm – Edoardo Albert

Edoardo Albert makes his Black Library debut with Born of the Storm, a 40k short story offering a characterful view of the Fulminators Chapter’s recruitment process. Even at an early age, listening to his father read stories of angels, dragons, wolves and knights, Augustin knew he wanted to grow up to fight monsters. From battling ambushing gangers as a cadet in the Astra Militarum to surviving hardships under the storm-ridden skies of Mars, he must overcome challenge after challenge, endure brutal hardships and sacrifice much – even the last links to his family – for the chance to attain his dream.

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QUICK REVIEW: The Heart of the Fallen – Sarah Cawkwell

Sarah Cawkwell’s second Age of Sigmar/Warcry short story, The Heart of the Fallen takes place in the desolate plains of the Bloodwind Spoil as warriors from the Untamed Beasts hunt dangerous prey in search of honour for their tribe. While one young hunter stalks the ‘meat’ on his own, determined to prove himself and claim his prize, three further warriors follow his trail, a core of concern underlying their youthful bickering. They all know that the hunt will be dangerous but great prestige is on offer, and the opportunity for one of them to truly make their name.

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QUICK REVIEW: Dead Drop – Mike Brooks

Mike Brooks’ Necromunda short story Dead Drop continues his impressive run of Black Library stories featuring strong characters with powerful familial bonds. Danner Grimjack and his Road Dogs, a close-knit gang of Orlocks, launch a carefully timed ambush of a rival gang, the Steel Crescents. Their goal is to relieve the Van Saars of what they hope is a valuable piece of cargo, recently arrived on Necromunda through illicit channels, and sell it on for a tidy profit. As ever in the underhive it’s a case of risk versus reward, but the Road Dogs trust each other to get the job done.

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QUICK REVIEW: Forsaken – Danie Ware

Danie Ware’s third Black Library story featuring the Adepta Sororitas of the Order of the Bloody Rose, Forsaken features a younger version of Sister Augusta as she and her Sisters search for survivors in the darkness of a drifting Ecclesiarchy vessel. When the sepulchral quiet is shattered by alien ambush, Augusta finds herself cut off from her Sisters and lost deep in the bowels of the ship. Faced with endless emptiness stretching away all around, Augusta falls back on her faith to sustain her and drive her on, but what she finds down there in the darkness tests even that.

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QUICK REVIEW: Fangs of the Rustwood – Evan Dicken

Evan Dicken’s Age of Sigmar short story Fangs of the Rustwood continues his approach of exploring the lesser visited corners of the Mortal Realms, this time featuring the sinister dangers of Chamon’s grot-infested Rustwood. Seeing opportunities for advancement in his future, witch hunter Kantus Vallo escorts a trio of prisoners, each a suspect in a high-profile murder, to face the judgement of his superiors in the Order of Azyr. As the forest’s lethal flora and fauna take their toll, however, he’s forced to free the prisoners and put his trust in them in order to survive and escape the Rustwood.

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