Reading 'Black Library' tales on the bus... The Last Psyker' (Shauna Lawless), 'Solemnity' (Nick Kyme), 'Seven Ships' (Russell Zimmerman)

Some things are just inevitable... Yesterday was a day in the office and by the time I got round to catching the bus back home, I had just enough remaining in me to read a few Black Library short stories (and even then, I had a little nap between two of them, damn I'm old...) I know I said I was going to switch it up a little but the state I was in yesterday evening, you're lucky you're getting these to be honest ;o)

Anyway, enough of that. Let me tell you about what I read...

'The Last Psyker' - Shauna Lawless

Page Count: 48 Pages (on my phone)

Karleth, a primaris psyker, is despised and feared by the troopers he accompanies into battle. Only the pragmatic Captain Ollana seems to value his function. When their regiment is sent to investigate a planet evacuated during the outbreak of the Great Rift, Karleth is targeted by forces more appreciative of his gifts…

I still have an unread copy of 'The Children of Gods and Fighting Men', giving me reproachful looks as I type this, and given the way things are at the moment, I figured the only I'd get to finally read anything by Shauna Lawless would to be pick up a short story if I could find one. I did, so I did :o) 

I haven't read nearly enough WH40K stuff about Psykers so was keen to give 'The Last Psyker' a go and I had a lot of fun with it. I wouldn't have minded finding out just what Faro's problem was but that was a minor quibble. Lawless gives us a very effective exploration of the strained relationship between a psyker and the soldiers that he is sworn to protect. If that wasn't enough, there's a nice bit of 'Guard on Cultist' urban warfare with the Cultist leader a brilliant 'end of level boss' to pit the Guard against. And if that wasn't enough, my cynical old soul was taught a lesson by a plot that completely wrongfooted me. 'The Last Psyker' was just what I needed for the journey home and I definitely need to bump 'The Children of Gods and Fighting Men' up the TBR pile now.

'Solemnity' - Nick Kyme

Page Count: 21 Pages

Ferren Aerios has seen both victory and bloodshed during the Indomitus Crusade. Battle-hardened and aware of the responsibility now on his shoulders, he returns to Macragge after being made the Master of Rites. In the Hall of Remembrance, he reflects on all he and his Chapter have lost and meets a mysterious stranger.

I'm one of those rare types who love the Ultramarines (with their Ancient Greek/Roman style) but I haven't read many of their books and that really came back to bite me here as I'm positive I'd have got more out this story if I had read more of the 'Indomitus Crusade' books; or at least re-read the Dark Imperium trilogy before reading 'Solemnity'. It's not the story's fault, it's all on me.

Kyme really builds up a good head of steam as far as the atmosphere goes but while I'm sure the mysterious stranger had important stuff  to say, I had no idea who he was (even 'post reveal') and I've got no clue who Ferren Aerios was either. Like I said though, that's on me not 'Solemnity', If you're better read than me, you'll get a lot more out of this story.


'Seven Ships' - Russell Zimmerman

Page Count: 36 Pages

A scrivener writes the chronicle of Lord Fecht – a Death Guard leader forced to take refuge on an Imperial world after a crushing defeat. The tale tells of how Fecht and his small band of warriors manage to conquer this world by degrees, corrupting its population with virulence, and eventually using the planet to spread corruption throughout the wider Imperium.

I loved this story. I've got a soft spot for the Death Guard anyway but anyone who describes a Death Guard marine as wearing 'sickly green armour the colour of a week-old bruise or a month old corpse'? Zimmerman just gets it and he backs up that early shot with more of that same icky ilk along with a cast of characters that are very easy to follow, and not just because they're so slow... ;o)

The outcome may never be in any doubt but 'Seven Ships' clearly prioritizes the journey and I enjoyed the ride. If Zimmerman writes more Death Guard tales (and 'Seven Ships' reads liek a pitch for a longer series so, fingers crossed...), I'll be there to read them.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

‘Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth’ (1992)

Image
Every time Halloween comes round, I promise myself that I’ll watch more horror films and read more horror fiction; we’re halfway through the month and you can see how that’s going so far… There’s still plenty of October left though so lets see how I do from now until the end of the month ;o) First up is ‘Hellraiser 3’ which I watched last night, mostly because I love it (you can tell how this post is going to go, sorry…) but also because it was cheap on Prime and I’m still just on the wrong side of payday. Here goes… TV reporter Joey Summerskill’s life is changed forever when she witnesses the horrific death of a teenager, torn apart by bloody chains. Joey’s search for a story leads her to the Lament Configuration Box but it has already been opened, waking an old evil from its slumber… Now Pinhead walks the earth once more, creating a new army of Cenobites from the transmuted flesh of his victims; his one desire to reclaim the Box. Even with help from an unexpected source, Joey Summers...
Read more

I'm still here! A quick update...

And I do mean a 'quick update'... It's been a hell of a month and my reading goals (along with any reading in general) have all gone belly up :o( I have managed to get a few audiobooks under my belt (thanks, Audible Offer!) but nothing else. I'm going to have another crack at David Wragg's 'The Hunters' over the weekend so, maybe things will change. Fingers crossed ;o) The reason for all of this was the surgery I had right at the end of last month. I really needed it and I'm glad that I finally had it done, it's going to make a real difference going forwards. They did warn me that it was going to be a painful recovery but I was all, 'oh it can't be any worse than it already is...' Gentle reader, it was a lot worse than I thought it would be... In fact... Damn that hurt... I'm definitely on the mend though so hopefully it won't be like this for much longer. Fingers crossed ;o) As you can probably guess though, its killed my reading...
Read more

Books for the TBR Pile... 'Erm, yeah...' Edition

Image
So, all that talk about 'no more books' last week? I sounded like I meant it didn't I...? Well, I did but then yesterday happened and it turns out that last week was a bit of a false start. Turns out that I can't do a little early Christmas shopping without getting myself a little something. And it also turns out that I shouldn't go into charity shops while I'm waiting for my kids' bubble teas... Who'd have thought it? Erm yep, I need to start again :o) In the meantime, lets take a quick look at what I picked up, we might as well... ;o) I've had a copy of 'Promise of Blood' sat on the shelf, for a long time, but never got round to picking it up, just because I wanted to find the other two books first (and just read the whole lot in one fell swoop). Well, the universe gave me a little nudge by placing 'The Crimson Campaign' and 'The Autumn Republic' at eye level when I went into the British Heart Foundation shop. I'd better...
Read more