‘Faith In Iron’ – Cameron Johnston (Black Library)

 



Page Count: 37 Pages

Just a quick one today as I’ve got the day to myself and three books (I think) that are a good way along the road to being fully read. I want to see if I can finish at least one of them, lets see how it goes…

In the meantime, here’s a tale that found its way onto my Kindle, back in 2024, and then proceeded to languish unread for the next couple of years. Nothing against ‘Faith In Iron’, if you’ve seen my place, you’ll know that it’s very easy for a book to get lost in the crowd; especially if it’s hidden away on my Kindle ;o) Anyway… I was watching a lore video that mentioned ‘Faith In Iron’ the other day; I put two and two together and realised that I needed to get my moneys worth out of the read. And that’s exactly what I did...

The tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus eschew the weakness of flesh, preferring to show their faith in the Omnissiah by replacing their organics with machine parts. As well as religious, this is practical – disease can't affect the machine… or can it? On the agri-world of Dundas II, Tech-Priest Viridan Shale is dealing with a deadly outbreak brought to the world by the Death Guard. Nothing is safe as the contagion affects flesh and metal alike. With both biology and machinery under threat, she must find a way to defeat the plague and survive. The arrival of Iron Hands Space Marines – who similarly strive to overcome the weakness of flesh – may prove key to the world's salvation… if they are willing to aid Shale and her allies.

If the forces of Nurgle are all about spreading disease, why doesn’t the Imperium just send the likes of the Mechanicus, and other heavily augmented factions, up against them? After all, metal can rust but it can’t rot… Can it? Well, ‘Faith In Iron’ disabuses us of that notion in record time. The Plague God has gifted the galaxy with an affliction that does just that; the good news is that Tech-Priest Viridian Shale has developed a cure, she just needs rescue before cultists reach her…

The ensuing plot is fairly straightforward with a rescue carried out pretty much as you’d expect, given just who (and what) is lined up against the forces of Nurgle. The spectacle, of urban warfare in the 41st Millennium, makes up for an awful lot but the concept itself is a little lightweight, at least from where I’m sat.

What saved ‘Faith In Iron’ for me, was Johnston’s examination of the two Imperial Factions most likely to see baseline humanity as a resource to be expended, which is ironic given that’s who they are fighting these very wars for. What’s perhaps more surprising is that the attitude of the Iron Hands Space Marine is even more rigid than that of the Tech-Priest, choosing to ‘reward’ the survivors of the Dundas 7th in such a way that… I won’t say any more, don’t want to spoil it, only that the ending is very much in keeping with the grimdark setting and worth holding on for. It certainly adds to that ‘grimdark conversation’ and is a nice reminder that life in the 41st Millennium isn’t fair, not one bit.

‘Faith In Iron’ doesn’t do a lot that’s new then, at least not until the end, but it still does its job very well and it’s clear that it wants to be involved in fandom question (there’s nothing like a good ending to guarantee that, ‘Faith In Iron’ is definitely part of that conversation). I only had time for quick reads yesterday, I’m glad ‘Faith In Iron’ was that read ;o)

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