At risk of coming off like an Andy Rooney rant, going to the cinema just ain’t what it used to be.
I went and saw Thunderbolts this past week, and was treated to about half an hour’s worth of “pre-content” before the movie started. Now it’s been awhile since I was a regular theater-goer for the talkies movies- having five kids across seven years right before a global pandemic does have a bit of a chilling factor on one’s social activities- but I remember you’d usually have around three previews, a PSA on not talking during the show, and then the main attraction.
Then again, plush recliners, massive screens, and immersive sound systems are all definite improvements, so maybe it’s more of a push.
Regardless, today on the Black Library Weekly we’re going to be recreating that pre-movie experience with a raft of previews for upcoming attractions- and I promise, not an ad for car insurance or mobile phone service in the bunch.
So grab your popcorn, sip that soda, and enjoy the show before the show! (And for the avoidance of doubt, none of these will be going up on preorder this week, they’ve all been teased for release later in the year. There are no Black Library books up for preorder in the current window, so enjoy the week off!)
Voidscarred, by Mike Brooks
Mike Brooks has written Eldar (Lelith Hesperax: Queen of Knives), he’s written Orks (Brutal Kunnin, Warboss), and he’s even blended the two (Da Big Dakka)- so who better to write a tale of Eldar versus Orks?
This time it’s Corsairs going toe to toe with the Greenskins as a long-simmering conflict between the two takes a surprising escalation.
Queen of the Rose Throne, by Gary Kloster
The Last Volari author Gary Kloster is back with a new Nyssa Volari tale! Now ruler of a kingdom, the Soulblight Gravelord must confront a beast army as it rampages through her territory in search of a necromantic artifact.
While Skaventide was Kloster’s last sojourn into Age of Sigmar, he also had a 40K story (The Buried Beast) included in the Blood of the Imperium anthology earlier this year (review here).
Abraxia: Spear of the Everchosen, by Chris Thursten
The mighty Champion of Archaon is consumed by ambition, driven to leave her mark on Ghyran. As she defends the dark citadel of Blackpyre against all threats, she must find the balance between killing and diplomacy.
Thursten is also the author of Darkoath and the Grombrindal: Ancestor’s Burden anthology.
Paragon of Faith, and Other Stories, by Various
Finally, there’s an anthology of Adepta Sororitas tales both new and new-to-print. The first of the book’s two novellas, Paragon of Faith marks Amanda Bridgeman’s exciting return to 40K after her 2022 short story debut, Reconsecration.
The other is Saint’s Judgment by Ness Brown, who debuted last year with Joy of the Martyr in Daughters of the Emperor Week last July. Joy of the Martyr will also be seeing print here for the first time.
Three more Daughters of the Emperor Week eShort debuts are also making their first print appearances in Paragon of Faith, with Kate Flack’s Our Lady of the Voyage, John Sollitto’s Redemption through Blood, and The Fires of our Faith by Nicholas Werner.
I know I’m dating myself here, but it makes this book remind me of the old Future Stars baseball cards I collected as a kid. It was always fun to hang onto them and see who ended up making it in the bigs.
That guy in the middle turned out okay, didn’t he?
Last- but certainly not least- the mighty Jude Reid (Fulgrim- The Perfect Son) contributes some veteran’s chops here with Infernal Motives. No points for guessing where we’ve seen that short story before.
For those keeping score at home, that makes all five Daughters of the Emperor Week 2024 eShorts making their way into print.
So that’s four more entries into the Black Library that were previewed this week. We’ll be sure to hear more about them as we get closer to their releases, including any special or limited edition treatments we have in store. Enjoy!
You know that part in the movie previews when it looks like the show is about to start, and instead now you get the theater’s own ads about concession stands and remembering to silence your phone? Like it’s saying, did you think we were done? No, we’re not done.Â
That’s where we are now, as we’ve got one more round of goodies to show off.
The Warhammer 40,000 Character Encyclopedia, by Wade Pryce
Back in 1986, one of my favorite comics to read was the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. I would spend hours without end browsing through page after page of heroes and villains- many of whom I’d never even heard of or seen in the pages of my favorite titles. Turns out that encyclopedias are rich playgrounds for the imagination, and a great way to bulk up your lore knowledge on something you’re passionate about.
So it’s with great delight that I noted the announcement of the Warhammer version this week.
Written by Wade Pryce, former Loremasters host and Lead Writer for Game Workshop, the book covers more than 120 characters and comes with an exclusive miniature. All for under thirty bucks? Pinch me, I’m dreaming.
You can preorder this one here, and it will release on October 7th. (Pro tip: preorder from your local independent bookseller instead!)
The Art of Warhammer Video Games, by Andy Hall
If you’ve enjoyed the nexus between Warhammer and video games, this book has your number. It’s not just a collection of images, but rather is billed as the “ultimate love letter” to both. Concept art, promo pieces, and loads of commentary throughout trace the evolution of Warhammer’s depiction in the medium.
This one should be hitting shelves early November, and more preorder information can be found here.
Words of War: The Miniature Book of Space Marine Quotes
A small book of notable quotes from the Space Marines, with pictures of miniatures. This might be the first Warhammer “bathroom book” I’ve ever seen and I don’t mean that as an insult. While personally I tend to prefer resource books over novelty ones, am I gonna say no for thirteen bucks? If nothing else it will pair well with the “Daily Stoic” book sitting perpetually on the corner of my desk for whenever I need a little inspiration. More info here, it also releases on October 7th.
And Now, Our Feature Attraction
Back at the end of March, WARCOM’s Sunday Preview teased an upcoming eShorts Week themed around the Heretic Astartes. I love these theme weeks, because not only is it new Black Library content but they are also the proving grounds of new talent (as discussed above with the upcoming Battle Sisters book). I counted down the days.
Out of absolutely nowhere, the Black Library dropped the newest eShorts Week story subscription last week. No hints, no teasers, I found out on Tuesday when one of the authors happened to announce their story’s inclusion.
It’s a little bit puzzling why they would launch a Theme Week without any fanfare or support, and seems like a missed opportunity to drum up some enthusiasm. After all, these stories are products for purchase. The Adeptus Mechanicus don’t get new stories all that often, and at least adding something to the Sunday Preview is a low bar to clear.
ICYMI
Despite coming a bit late to the party on the Cult Mechanicus short stories release, I nevertheless made time to enjoy them and share my thoughts in a full review.
Also reviewed last week was the latest Age of Sigmar novel, Ushoran: Mortarch of Delusion by Dale Lucas.
Artist Profile: Valera Lutfullina
Lutfullina is a freelance artist from St. Petersburg, Russia, and she created the cover for the Limited Edition of Ushoran: Mortarch of Delusion.
She’s also done work for the Pathfinder role-playing game as well as Magic: the Gathering, such as the Nightwhorl Hermit (below).
You can find more of her here.
BlueSky’s #BlackLibrary Community
I’ve enjoyed BlueSky for awhile now (you can find me here); the general absence of vitriol and bots makes it a much more serene place than what’s become of Twitter. I’ve also been pleasantly surprised by just how many Black Library authors can be found there.
One neat feature they have there is something called a “Starter Pack.” Anyone can make one, and it’s simply a curated list of accounts and feeds you want to share with other people. I maintain a Starter Pack of every Black Library author on BlueSky, currently with 86 different writers on it.
Come say hello and talk some books!
Quick Hits
- Anyone out there playing Tacticus? I picked up a few back issues of White Dwarf recently, and one of them had a code for Commissar Yarrick. Someone online mentioned that while the codes are expired, emailing customer support can get a happy result. If anyone wants to shoot their shot to score the Old Man, here you go: DFMTAUVSSD
- Russell Zimmerman, author of Seven Ships in the recent Heretic Astartes eShorts Week (reviewed here) has written a Batletech story that’s free for the month of May. Check out Objective Raid here.
- Warhammer Community has been running bimonthly Age of Sigmar fiction stories for the Chronicles of Ruin arc. This past week a Soulblight Gravelord story dropped, Forest of Death.
- Veteran writers freely sharing their advice is one of my favorite things to read. This week Cavan Scott (Plague of the Nurglings) wrote a bit about experiencing pre-launch jitters and other writer hangups.
- On that same note, John French (Ahriman: Undying) discusses how to break into the creative field. A must-read!
- Speaking of Ahriman, French’s fourth novel in the series, Ahriman: Eternal is the eBook of the Month for the Black Library. It’s just four bucks for the digital version- a steal!- but that price ends tomorrow.
- Steven Sheil (Tithemarked, Ghost Planet) wrote some flash fiction on BlueSky about AI ‘resurrecting’ the dead. Very timely piece around something that’s been on a lot of our minds lately. He also recently sat on a panel at the Edgar Awards to discuss scene-setting and suspense-building. The recording went up this past week, so again if you’re looking to hone your writing chops it’s time well spent!
- Episode two of a new podcast by Adrian Tchaikovsky (On the Shoulders of Giants) has dropped, with some conversation around historical fantasy and spoilers.
And that’s a wrap for this week! I’d love to hear which of these upcoming releases is going to be a personal “blockbuster movie” for you, though, so please share in the comments or on BlueSky!
Have any questions or feedback? Drop us a note in the comments below or email us at contact@goonhammer.com. Want articles like this linked in your inbox every Monday morning? Sign up for our newsletter. And don’t forget that you can support us on Patreon for backer rewards like early video content, Administratum access, an ad-free experience on our website and more.
