‘Fireborn’ – Nick Kyme (Black Library)


Runtime: One hour and eighteen minutes.

Just a quick one today as today has been rather busy… Not a bad day, just a busy one, but I’ll still be glad when it’s over. In the meantime…

It’s also that time of the month where my bank statement reminds me that I have an Audible subscription and Amazon tells me that I have an Audible credit that needs to be spent. I’m not sure how much longer I’ll keep the subscription for, there’s one audiobook that I want to listen to but after that…? Audiobooks are fun but I’ve got a definite preference for regular books and I can’t see that changing any time soon. I used to listen to a lot of ‘Black Library’ audiobooks back in the day (on CD though, showing my age a little…) and I remembered ‘Fireborn’ being a favourite so I thought I’d spend my credit on that and see how (or maybe if…) it had held up over the years. No ‘review recycling’ this time though, not so soon after the last one…

The world of Sepulchre IV stands on the brink of destruction. From the stars the Red Rage descends, intent on murder and massacre, and only the elite Firedrakes of the Salamanders stand against them. But if even they can’t match the angry might of the Demon Engine, what will…?

 

‘Fireborn’ runs for just over an hour and a quarter which, funnily enough, is about five minutes less than my bus ride to and from work. Not bad timing there 😉 it had been long enough, since my last listen, that I’d forgotten how it ended; it did come back to me eventually but not so much that it spoiled what remained a stirring tale of Space Marines doing what they do best, especially when they’re wearing Terminator armour. Kyme lets us know that just moving in this armour is no mean feat which makes some of the things they do, over the course of the tale, even more cool. The tale itself is very straightforward, albeit with a slight twist near the end, but you’re not really here just for the story… The production behind it is superb with music and effects complementing the story perfectly and Toby Longworth is just brilliant, somehow managing to be a full cast of voices all by himself (okay, it helps that the Sisters of Battle have all taken a vow of silence but even so). You could close your eyes and almost believe that you were there and that’s what you’re there for, the plot isn’t a bad one but is almost incidental to the rest of it.

‘Fireborn’ is a slight tale then and to be fair, I think Tsu-Gan features in other books so it may be that I’ve come in part way through a series? It’s been a long time since I read the books so can’t really remember… It has enough going for it though that it’s definitely worth the listen, full of action and a couple of engaging characters. ‘Fireborn’ is also a tale dressed up in all its best and narrated by a master so the overall experience is positive. Join me around about this time next month when I remember that I have an Audible Credit that needs spending… 😉 

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