'Thorn Wishes Talon' – Dan Abnett (Black Library)

It's kind of late in the day but, what a day it's been. Not going to lie, you're lucky to have this post as what I really want is to go to bed and try to get a head start on tomorrow ;o) I'm here now though and while I am, I'll bring you another one of those short stories that I've been squeezing into the gaps between work and other things...

So the Audible subscription crept up and surprised me again but that's ok. I've been enjoying going back and listening to some older Warhammer 40K audiobooks which are proving to be just as good at getting me through the commute as they were back in the day. I'm a little bit older now but selfish commuters still annoy me, just as much as they did when I was in my twenties, so a little bit of 'grimdark war' in my ears can really go a long way to keeping my blood pressure on an even keel (the tablets help more though). With that said then, lets talk about an old favourite of mine then...

On Malinter, the Divine Fratery, servants of the Runious Powers, do battle with Inquisitor Gideon Ravenor and his companions. But someone else is waiting in the shadows, someone that the Fratery want to see dead even more than they do Ravenor.

As daemonhosts battle in the skies and the air fills with gunfire and rain, Ravenor meets with an old friend, summoned by a simple message: Thorn Wishes Talon.

'Thorn Wishes Talon' is best listened to, or read, after the 'Eisenhorn' books and before 'Ravenor' but while that prior knowledge of events etc will really pay off, it doesn't work too badly as a standalone piece either. It's been years since I read either set of books and I was able to pick up the gist of things in fairly short order.

What I was really after though (and I knew I'd find it here) was an entertaining diversion from the morning commute and it was no surprise that I got just that. 'Thorn Wishes Talon' opens in a hail of gunfire and goes from there with a running battle fought throughout the story. The gunfire makes your eardrums throb and the cast deliver their lines superbly, making it really easy to immerse yourself in the events playing out. It's not just that though, long time fans will see through the mystery fairly quickly but for everyone else, Abnett draws out the tension very effectively; giving little hints in between the gunfire and then ramping everything up into a level of warfare far above the ordinary. Everything is thrown at the plot but for very good reason and the finale is just glorious to listen to.

Just listening to 'Thorn Wishes Talon' has got me keen to jump into the 'Ravenor' series but in order to get the most of out of the whole thing, I know I really need to go back and read right from the beginning. Like I don't have enough to read already... ;o) 'Thorn Wishes Talon' made a very welcome return to my ears, I mustn't leave it too long before listening to it again.

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