‘Siege of Vraks’ – Steve Lyons (Black Library)

Page Count: 300 Pages

You’ve probably figured it out already but Black Library books have really been there for me over the last week or so. Not that things have been particularly terrible, I’ve just had a lot on and a bit of Warhammer 40K is the only thing that I’ve been able to focus on for more than a few pages at a time. While I’ve been polishing off all those short stories (and a couple of other bits), I’ve had a longer 40K book on the go as well.

I didn’t get on so well with ‘Krieg’ (not a bad book but…) but I’ve read some decent ‘Death Korps’ short stories as well and I’ll be honest, there’s something about these faceless soldiers that will always have me picking up a ‘Death Korps’ book. This time round, Lyons asks the big question… If the crimes of your ancestors are effectively beyond redemption, can you die a hero in the service of the Emperor…?

Vraks has fallen.

Mustering an army from the ranks of the Death Korps of Krieg, the Astra Militarum embarks on a long and desperate siege to save the planet from the madness of an apostate preacher. It will last seventeen years, cost the lives of millions and attract the attention of daemons and heretics alike, but the Death Korps must claw back victory, inch by bloody inch, from the hands of the enemy.

It is on Vraks that the Krieg will earn their reputation as the Imperium’s most ruthless fighters. It is on Vraks that an officer named Tyborc, expecting to die, will find a new way to live. And it is on Vraks that the Death Korps of Krieg will reach their breaking point.

I’ll be honest, the Siege of Vraks lasted seventeen years and at times, it felt like it took a little longer than that to finish this book. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though, I can’t help but wonder if in this instance, Lyons was a little too good at his job…

By its very nature, a siege is a long, drawn out affair and Lyons captures that feeling of futility perfectly with the appropriate movement of troops across the battlefield… and then back again; sometimes making small gains but just as likely ending the day making no gains at all. That is the nature of a war of attrition and fair play to Lyons for embracing that approach wholeheartedly in his writing here. The pacing is glacial but that’s the whole point. Your mileage will inevitably vary as to how this sits with your reading. It took me a while to get through this book but the payoff is that I’d never read such a detailed account of a siege, until now. I was happy with that trade.

One of the reasons that it worked so well for me is that it really opened up the book to Lyons to explore the Death Korps of Krieg and ask that question I posed at the top of the post.

To be honest, there isn’t a lot you can really do with the Death Korps of Krieg other than to keep throwing them into the most ferocious of warfare until the other get ground down. The good news here is that because the siege lasts so damn long, you get to see more of it. That makes for a constant amazing spectacle throughout the whole book, the siege may drag out but the fighting never stops; you can’t ask for much more than that in a 40K book. Having said that, Lyons delivers a little more anyway :o)

Because the siege is a (very) drawn out affair, Lyons has a lot of time to really search out those moments of humanity that make a ‘war story’ more than just a load of guns firing at the same time. And Lyons really delivers here, in particular with Confessor Tenaxus and her prisoner; I thought I knew where that was headed but was still surprised by such a powerful outcome. And this book is full of powerful moments, when you see the parties interested in Vraks the book can’t fail to be full of those moments.

It’s the Korpsmen we’re here for though and Lyons is an expert at telling their tale, as I’ve hopefully shown you. Tyborc’s tale is the most compelling here and Lyon really takes the time to go into that question I mentioned earlier. Can a Korpsman be a hero? Should they be a hero…? The answer is clear from the start but it’s how Lyons explores this that makes ‘Siege of Vraks’ so compelling. It’s a small thing but you start to see what happens if the Krieg think for themselves rather than the collective, whether you agree with the eventual answer is just a part of what makes the book, and the setting as a whole, so fascinating.

I really enjoy reading ‘Imperial Guard’ novels and ‘Siege of Vraks’ now sits quite happily amongst my favourites. I’m looking forward to seeing where Steve Lyons takes the Death Korps of Krieg next.