‘Lost Hope’ – Justin D. Hill (Black Library)


Page Count: 35 Pages

This week has been all about short reads (just to keep myself ticking over really) and the way that things are going at the moment, you’ll see more than a few other short reads featuring here. What with work and my upcoming house move, things are about to get even more hectic before they start to die down. What a time to be alive etc etc 😉

In the meantime… I came across this title while I was looking for something to read on the way home last night. Justin Hill’s Warhammer books (40K and The Old World) haven’t let me down yet and I’m always partial to some 40K action where the heroes are the least powered faction in the setting, going up against certain terrifying death armed with a piss poor las-rifle and faith in the God Emperor. What’s not to like? Well, that’s what I thought when I saw ‘Lost Hope’ so I went with it and…

In desperate need of fresh troops for his long campaign against traitors and renegades, General Creed of the Cadian 8th and his aide, Colour Sergeant Kell, head to the world of Lost Hope, a frozen and dangerous prison planet. But when they discover that the prisoners have revolted and the world is in the grip of heresy, their mission becomes much more complicated, and they realise that their foes' plans are greater and more convoluted than they could have ever imagined…

It was only after I’d finished reading ‘Lost Hope’ that I realised I should have read ‘Last Step Backwards’ first, just to get a better view of the overall plot. Not to worry though, ‘Lost Hope’ stands very well on its own, a couple of sentences help you get your bearings and then you’re off on this mad dash through a world that Creed is looking to mine for ‘volunteers’ but is actually in league with the great enemy. The results are as you’d expect but Hill still manages to spring a few surprises that lend the story fresh impetus at just the right moment, punctuated by all the gunfire you could possibly want.

The big question that I was left with though was the ability of one Traitor Marine to withstand an assault by a determined yet threadbare group of Cadians and loyalist prisoners. I would have thought that the result would be a foregone conclusion but I was wrong and it did leave me wondering if/how that fight should have gone. In the end though, the power-fist makes for a fun spectacle and that’s really the main thing for me, especially after a long day like yesterday.

I also got to meet General Creed for the first time and that was a lot of fun in itself. There isn’t a lot of room for introductions but Hill still manages to make room for us to see what Creed is all about; mostly very determined to get the job done (so he can concentrate on what he sees as a far bigger threat) and able to chip in at any time with a great line in motivational speeches, you can’t ask for much more than that in a Cadian General.

‘Lost Hope’ was a great way to spend the bus ride home and I can see myself picking up the rest of these short stories as and when I get the chance. Is it a little corny to say that the future of Cadia is safe in Justin Hill’s hands? Probably, but it’s true.

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