Dead Winter by C L Werner

More than a thousand years after the Age of Sigmar, the Empire he struggled to create rests on the edge of destruction – the reign of the greedy and incompetent Emperor Boris Goldgather has shaken down the great and prosperous edifice of his erstwhile realm. Without warning, a terrible and deadly plague strikes, wiping out entire villages and leaving towns eerily silent through the long frozen months. As the survivors struggle to maintain order and a worthy military presence, vermin pour up from the sewers and caverns beneath the cities, heralding a new and unspeakable threat – the insidious skaven!

Finding myself reading another Time of Legends novel kind of happened by accident. As we mentioned back here, Liz and I went off to the inaugural Black Library Weekender a few weeks back. There I finally got to meet Clint Werner, the first and only man cool enough to carry off wearing a rattlesnake on his hat. After that, it was pretty much a given that I was going to have a go at something he'd written! 

Dead Winter is set in the Empire at a time when the scurrying hordes of Skaven are setting in motion a grand plan to destroy the world of man. Werner is no stranger to the ratmen of Skavenblight, having penned several novels centred on them already, and there's no mistaking how firm a grip he has on their shadowy culture as things get underway. But there's more to Skaven here- the backbone of Dead Winter lies with the plague-riddled lands of men, where the tightfisted arrogance of Emperor Boris 'Goldgather' is threatening to do the Skaven's job for them. 

What ensues is classic Warhammer- everything either balanced on a knife edge or teetering towards destruction as Werner starts building the pace, bringing together rat-catchers, a plague doctor, a fallen priest of the god of death, Skaven infighting, plagues and the occasional giant spider into an atmospheric whole that bodes very well for the rest of the series (but not so well for the poor Empire!)

Devious, bloody and fun, with a great cast of characters and a rich setting, this was a fast and enjoyable read and I look forward to seeing exactly how far Mr Werner can twist the knife.

You can read an extract here, or visit Clint's website here.

Black Library Weekender - Our Write-Up

We drove up super early to get to the Weekend held up in Nottingham this weekend past.  It was held at the Nottingham Belfry and we were worried about various things, for instance:

Parking
Crowding / Over-crowding
Queues for signings / getting into talks
Food
Quality of rooms

Frankly, it was a doddle.

We arrived at quarter to nine after leaving the house at ludicrous o' clock.  Officially the "doors" opened at ten but there were a few people wandering around touching the books put out on display.  And there was a huge selection of books out on display.  All the gorgeous new hard covers and some print on demand titles too.  And of course, there was all the art you could buy. *swoons*

Mark ran around and picked up a stack of titles to purchase after we got our passes.  It was busy, but friendly and everyone circled the tables in the foyer for ages, choosing and deciding what to get.  I enviously watched one guy pick up several pieces of art and wanted to claw his face off from jealousy but didn't. I know how to behave in company.

From L/R - Christian Dunn, Nick Kyme, Laurie King, Graeme Lyon - Black Library Editors

Whilst the talks were underway, there were also signings. The talks were varied and interesting.  I sat in on the Writing for Black Library panel and I have to say, the questions that were asked this time around, compared to the questions asked at the Black Library Live showed how the audience had taken Christian and Laurie's advice on board from previous talks.  The big news here, for me, really, was that Hammer and Bolter will cease to be later this year.  But! Christian hastened to add that they will still be releasing short stories via the website, every Monday - so you can pay and download them for minimal amounts and get the stories you'd like to read.  He also pointed out that it won't just be the stalwarts writing but also newbies.  Laurie fielded questions about the open submission period and revealed that they got over 3000 entries in that period and that he's worked his way through maybe 1500 of those - it's a long process and he asked everyone for their patience.  Christian mentioned that he would be throwing open the door to some themed anthologies in the future and that it won't be widely announced, but that it would be on the website so it's a good idea to keep an eye out.

The "boys" also told the audience that the best way to get a foot in the door is to be already published - they acknowledged that it was a Catch 22 situation (how can you get published if you can't get published) but they mentioned that if you've been published in an online magazine or an anthology in Real Life to actually mention that in your covering letter and to remember to provide links to the actual product, and not to be vague about it.

I asked the question about them perhaps holding a weekend event or a day event for aspiring writers in order to talk characters and plotting and crafting plots etc. and they said it's something they are thinking of doing for sure, because clearly, looking at the subs they received and the popularity of the Weekender, there is a hunger for this.  So definitely something for the future.  Personally, this pleased me immensely!

Other bits of advice was general - read the guidelines, be thorough, be alert, don't try and do something so new it scares the editors.  Show you can do "traditional" well before attempting to go off the rails.

I liked and enjoyed this talk tremendously - the four editors really gave the impression that they enjoyed what they did and although they joked around occasionally things were professional.  It gave me the idea that writing for BL means that you become part of their family - and that is rather special in this day and age.  Good luck to everyone who'll be going for those open windows in the future! May the scrivening gods be on your side.

Next up, we broke for lunch - you could either order a whopping meal via the bar staff or you could join in in the "packaged" lunch from the main cafeteria which was not too shabby - fresh sarnies, crisps, a drink, a piece of fruit and a choccie for £7.  Enough to sustain you till dinner, basically. It was low key and without much fuss and got some food in your belly.

Mark sat in on one of the immensely popular Horus Heresy talks after lunch (although to be fair he went to all of them) whilst I got some books signed by James Swallow, CL Werner (the coolest guy at the Weekender #fact) and Rob Sanders.  I also told Rob that I enjoyed the talk he did with Andy Smillie, Chris Wraight and Rob Sanders on the Space Marine Battles because he always talks so enthusiastically about the Space Marines and how he enjoys making them 3D characters rather than just killing machines.  I do think Rob is one of the shining stars of BL because he's a writers' writer and clearly enjoys his craft.  This is also true of James Swallow who I think eats, sleeps and drinks story.

As I enjoy the Warhammer fantasy novels I dragged Mark to the Time of Legends panel hosted by Nick Kyme, Chris Wraight, Josh Reynolds and CL Werner.  They spoke enthusiastically about what they're working on, the things that make the series stand out for them and the scope for future additions.
All very exciting.

The Heresy panels were very well attended, and the vibe around the whole series was one of genuine excitement and passion. The various writers and editors took turns sitting in on these and fielded the questions thrown at them with enthusiasm, even on the Sunday morning. Saturday night had seen the writers spitting into two teams to tackle a fun quiz set up by Christian Dunn, with Andy Smillie keeping score in his own special way on a Thunderhawk shaped card. It was very, very funny and a good precursor to a few drinks in the hotel bar afterwards... I called time and retired to our very comfy room while Mark 'took one for the team' and stuck around to chat over a pint or two.

Sunday also saw us sit in on the Gamebooks panel with Christian Dunn, Jonathan Green and Graeme Lyon, which became a wide ranging discussion of the appeal of gamebooks, how to expand it to younger readers who hadn't grown up with them, their appeal and suitability for reluctant readers in particular and things that people would like to see explored in this type of product. It fired up our enthusiasm for the books all over again and we could see Jonathan's eyes lighting up as some of the ideas were fired at them, and he went away muttering about Titans. We can only hope..

Graeme Lyon, Jonathan Green, Christian Dunn

The Big Announcement of the weekend was that the phenomenal talents of Neil Roberts and Dan "Oh God that's the opening line of one of my books"Abnett have been marshalled to produce a 100 page, full colour, hardcover Horus Heresy graphic novel. It'll be set after the events of Dan's novel 'Know No Fear' and should be ready in time for the 2013 Weekender. And the intention is for there to be more than one, and for this to be released initially as a collector's edition shortly before going up for general sale, which is a relief. Neil made a point of stressing how excited he was to be working on the project and that his intention was to make it 'the best graphic novel you've ever seen, a $500 million movie in your hands', and from the glimpse we were given of some of the pages he's done already, I don't think he's kidding:

Tres exciting!

The Belfy had ample parking space for everyone who drove up.  The staff were, as a whole, rather splendid and welcoming and friendly.  They helped and advised where needed and I got the chance to briefly chat to the girl running the bar/ coffee area and she was hugely complimentary about everyone attending BLW2012, saying that everyone came across as so friendly and patient, happily waiting to be served.  This pleased me hugely because not only did they make a good impression on attendees, we made a decent impression on them.  This is rather splendid.

And that's the other thing that made the Weekender gel for us- the people. Sure, the talks were cool, there was loads of loot to buy and drool over but without the right kind of vibe things just wouldn't have gotten off the ground the way that they did. One of the key things that came up in various conversations was how much better a two day event was - it took that awful must-do-everything pressure off, giving both sides a chance to have a chat without stewards having to ask them to hurry along because the queue was growing. It was great seeing the writers being able to walk around and stop and chat or sign things off the cuff, and I'm sure it made a nice change for them too.

Everyone who attended was there because of a shared enthusiasm and as testament to the hard work, dedication and passion of the Black Library crew and the calibre of the product that they are putting out there. This is only going to get bigger and better. Well done guys.

The Great Betrayal by Nick Kyme

Thousands of years before the rise of men, the dwarfs and elves are stalwart allies and enjoy a era of unrivalled peace and prosperity. But when dwarf trading caravans are attacked and their merchants slain, the elves are accused of betrayal and the peace begins to fracture..


This is the first instalment in a new six book series under the banner of the Black Library's Time of Legends series (essentially  the fantasy equivalent of the record breaking Horus Heresy saga) and delves into the story behind The War of Vengeance, the great conflict that would turn the dwarves and elves against each other.  I don't play Warhammer and only have a sketchy idea of the history behind the races, so it seemed a perfect fit to see if this was something that Joe Average could pick up off the shelf and enjoy- more often than not tie-in fiction comes across as having a lot of baggage of the do I need to read all 18 of the previous books to understand it variety. 

The novel opens with a huge, 42 page battle scene illustrating what the dwarves and elves had accomplished together, then switches to the story proper as cousins Morgrim and Snorri explore some of the ancient, abandoned tunnels beneath the mountain stronghold they call home. It's a decision that soon leads to Snorri earning his future nickname 'Halfhand' but it also sets them on a path that neither of them could have foreseen. Snorri, a prince amongst his people, burns with the desire to prove himself to his father, to try and match the glory his father earned in the long years of war it took to secure the mountains against the orks and other menaces that had plagued them. But it is a time of peace, and his ambitions are stymied and his frustration manifests itself in impetuous outbursts and biting retorts, all wedges in a widening gulf between him and his father. Morgrim is his steadying influence, a solid and sensible presence and a good foil for Snorri's brash arrogance.

The Elvish homeland at this time is beset by civil war between the High and Dark Elves, and commando- like parties of Dark Elves are loose in the mountains, seeking to stir things up between the dwarves and the High Elves. Their ruthless cunning and cruelty is matched only by their paranoia and one-upmanship, all of which is shown in the thread of the story that follows one such group. Suspicion and xenophobia soon follow in the wake of the rising bodycount in the hills, and much of the novel revolves around the resultant turmoil as the peacemakers on both sides strive to hold back the mounting tide of anger and fear. Snorri, never a friend of the elves and buoyed by the company of belligerent advisors, becomes the figurehead for the rebellion against his father's edicts while Morgrim fights to moderate his cousin's attitude and to pull his people back from a war that increasingly seems inevitable.

There are multiple storylines woven through TGB that Kyme uses to flesh out his world, providing different viewpoints on the events that Snorri and Morgrim are at the forefront of, expanding the scope of the principal thread of the story, hinting at hidden plots and generally keeping it fresh and the reader hungry. The path that the story follows twists and turns, balancing gentle worldbuilding and intrigue with beautifully savage action and this, combined with a cast of well plotted and interesting characters, is what kept me turning the pages. He's managed to seed the novel with sense of the epic scale of the brewing conflict, making it a meaty and most satisfying read right up to the merciless death that brings TGB to a close. If you've never liked or understood Dwarves, either in Warhammer or general fantasy, you'll be wanting to grow a beard and carry an axe by the time you finish this. It approaches their culture with respect, eschewing cheap shots and short cuts, and in doing so, makes it all feel very 'grown up'.

So, could Joe Average pick up and enjoy The Great Betrayal? A resounding yes- and more than that, he should. This is good, solid fantasy writing that deserves a prominent place on any bookshelf. 

You can visit Nick's website here, or read an extract of TGB here.

Defenders of Ulthuan by Graham McNeill

The high elves have long been the protectors of the Warhammer World, and their homeland of Ulthuan is known for the powerful magic that surrounds it. At the heart of Ulthuan lies a magical vortex, and the mages who created it remain trapped in a space out of time, endlessly working the spell that keeps the world from becoming a seething Realm of Chaos.
 
When Ulthuan comes under attack from the forces of Chaos and dark elves led by the Witch King and the hag sorceress, Morathi, the high elves must hold firm or face disastrous consequences. 

In Defenders of Ulthuan Graham McNeill tells the epic tale of the struggle between good and evil.

Readers, I read myself a Warhammer book (my first ever) and I loved it.  I had no prior knowledge of the world Defenders of Ulthuan is set in, before going in and reading this and although I was worried about it, I really shouldn't have been.  

I felt, as a noob reader and newcomer to the world, that I was 100% safe in Mr. McNeill's hands. The narrative is rich and evocative when it comes to describing the world of Ulthuan.  I was surprised, I admit it, by the strength of the world-building (noob, remember) and how much work went in to setting the scenes and laying the foundations of the story so that towards the end of the book, and the big reveal, you actually do feel the loss and horror of the betrayal. 

DoU easily stands on its own merits as a fantasy novel, regardless of it being a Warhammer fantasy title.  McNeill writes beautifully and goes out of his way to ensure that we recognise and realise how badly things are going for the elves and what the ultimate outcome will be.  

Something that took me by surprise is the (I initially thought) over-use of description.  It is superlative and as a reader it surprised me as I'm no longer used to writers getting away with using such rich descriptions for things - however, I understand why it was done and allowed in Sons of Ellyrion - it's all about building this majestically beautiful world, allowing us to see how definitive and unique it is, making us realise what's at stake here if Ulthuan ultimately falls to the dark elves.  Within the space of possibly two chapters, I got over my "this is overwritten" worries and just fell utterly in love with it and luxuriated in the richness of this world. 

I learned a lot from Graham McNeill in this book - from an aspiring writer's point of view I learned how to set up characters and how to set up bigger stakes through small incidents and how important identifying with characters really are.  From a reader's perspective, I relished the action, the betrayal, the horror and the sheer spectacle of where the story was leading.  

There are multiple points of view in the book but each one very much has it's own voice. Also, there is sexy times! and it it made me grin as it was described lightly and sweetly. *grins* 

I realise this review doesn't really make much sense...but this is what I'd like you take away from this: 

If, like me, you've wondered about reading the Warhammer fantasy titles, I don't think you have anything to worry about.  If you're a fantasy fan, you'll get the world and what's going on here.  The book keeps you paging.  Poor Mark had to sit through me going: OMG! This is happening and omg, do you think this guy is actually the bad buy and OMG! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS PERSON DIES!  <- this is a sign of an involved reader and good writing.  

I have the second title: Sons of Ellyrion lined up to read in the next few weeks.  And I gotta know what happens.  No spoilers, please!  

Read an extract from Defenders of Ulthuan here. 

Black Library Live 2012

This Saturday past saw Liz and I hurtling northwards to Nottingham, a journey where the greatest danger came not from bandits in trees but mile after mile of traffic cones on the M1 (apparently putting cones on the hard-shoulder constitutes roadworks these days, and is considered traumatic enough to warrant a 50 mph speed limit). Despite the best attempts of the Highways Agency, we arrived at Warhammer World with about 15 minutes to spare before the doors opened.

We met up with fellow BL fan Amanda Rutter and joined the queue of chilly but enthusiastic attendees and were soon shuffling through the doors under the baleful gaze of Lurtz. We collected our programmes and Chapbooks from Andy Smillie, who was on door duty (what the hell do they feed them up there?) and headed upstairs to the castle themed main hall, which had been split into the usual gaming hall and a space for the heavily laden tables of Black Library goodies on sale and the signing tables. I left Liz to collect (free) tickets for the panels we wanted to attend while I ducked into the sale area to rifle through the stacks of cool stuff that were on sale. Limited edition art prints vied for space with pre-release titles, limited edition novellas and several titles that were normally restricted to the Print-on-Demand section of the BL website. I picked up a very modest three items, but I was certainly the exception to the rule- most of the people around me were walking around with armfuls of stuff, their eyes glazed in satisfaction.

I quickly stashed the books in the boot of the car and topped up my caffeine levels with a surprisingly good coffee in Bugman’s before we headed to the first panel. Liz and Amanda headed off to the “Writing for Black Library” while I took a seat for “Space Marines”, which was headed by Gav Thorpe (who had quite a full day: he was everywhere) It was a bit of a broad description but, as it turned out, it was a discussion about understanding what made Space Marines tick, and the issues of who, and what, they were, elements which are key in writing them well and ensuring readers could connect with them without diluting the same.

We all met up for the next panel, this one on the Warhammer fantasy setting, this one again helmed by Gav Thorpe, the focus turning to what sets it apart as a fantasy world and why those traits work so well. The discussion ranged from the decline of the Dwarven empire, the classical origins of the elves and the level of despair felt by your average Imperial commoner. It was a good one, and left me wanting to do do nothing more than go grab a pint and settle down with the newly released Gotrek and Felix anthology.

We decided it was a good time for lunch, and after some crafty hovering-with-intent, we managed to snag a table in Bugman’s, which was proving as popular as ever thanks to the reasonably priced plate bending portion sizes and the sheer geektastic pleasure of sitting and having a drink in a place with a dwarven anvil over the fireplace and a mounted Ork’s head sharing the wall-space with enormous canvas maps and banners. Then it was off to a talk about Xenos in 40K, covering such things as the difficulties in writing from an alien’s perspective (and how to get around it), whether Tau were naive or manipulative gits with a darker agenda and pointers about their upcoming submissions window.

A quick break followed before we filed into the very popular panel about the Horus Heresy series, helmed by Christian Dunn and populated by HH stalwart Graham McNeill, Nick Kyme, Rob Sanders and Gav Thorpe. This was largely a Q&A session, and for me the most thrilling moment was Dunn’s reply to the question of whether there were plans afoot to expand the HH into media beyond books and audio dramas – there will be an announcement on this at the Black Library Weekender. For the rest, I was pleased to hear that there were loads of new projects in the offing, including books for the White Scars and the Salamanders. It was interesting to hear how carefully the series is being orchestrated behind the scenes and while it’s frustrating knowing that the final confrontation is years away, it’s simultaneously comforting to know that there are dozens more of these cracking novels ahead.

I left the others in Bugman’s afterwards to spend more time poring over the goodies for sale and admiring the display cases of armies and mock-up models. I also bought some tickets for the raffle to win some of their amazing posters but sadly my luck wasn’t in. Mind you, I’m not really sure what I would have done with a 12 x 6 foot poster at home, but hey, it would’ve been a nice problem to have though!

We said our farewells soon after and began the long drive home, with most of the time spent in rambling conversations about Space Marine psychology and the perils of Warp travel, an awesome side effect of being immersed in such a vibrant, friendly and shamelessly enthusiastic atmosphere. Top marks to the Black Library & Warhammer World crews!

And yes, I’ve already bought tickets for next year.

You can find out more about the Black Library and the Weekender here.

Guest Blog: Justin Hill - How being a nerd turned me into a writer

I "met" Justin last year via Twitter and the blog.  Turns out when we did Viking Week, we had somehow managed to miss his very excellent Shieldwall (Mark reviews it here). And as Justin and I started chatting, it transpired that he's a big gaming geek and has the same sort of background as us, and many of our friends.  And many of our friends and acquaintances are also published genre writers and writers-in-waiting.  So I asked Justin to write me an article for MFB about how his gaming and geekiness inspired his writing and interests.

This here, is the article he sent through. The geeklevels blew my mind.

I was there at the beginning - when the boxed set came out, 25 years ago, with a Crimson Fists Space Marine , shooting his gun and swinging an orc head, that was wearing a Prussian style helmet.  Most visions of the future then saw bright lights, shiny space ships and talking computers.  The Warhammer 40K universe was different.  It was Blade Runner meets Apocalypse Now: a Orwellesque future where Big Brother’s the best man around.  

I had got into gaming through Dungeons and Dragons, RuneQuest.  It’s obvious to me now that character creation, adventure, confrontation, return, recoup and recover – which is essentially what each adventure was – is the perfect template for writing.  Writing is the assumption of other personalities; it’s role playing in its simplest form.   

In my school there was nothing particularly special about playing Dungeons and Dragons: except that it was what the weird kids did after school, in the school library.  Playing for me wasn’t enough.  I went a step further and wrote my character’s adventures down as stories in their own books.  My first characters were the half elf twins Tallan and Tollon; my favourite was an orphan thief called Bergen, who lost his hand to a poisoned lock, and murdered at close quarters with a kukri; and my last major RuneQuest character was an arbalest wielding hard man named Skarp-Hedin, who went on to be a Orlanth Runelord, fighting the long defeat against the Lunar Empire in the wilds around Griffin Mountain.

Watch Toy Story III and you know there’s a time when boys must put away their toys and get into girls and ale.  But I kept my brushes, and kept painting figures, and kept tabs on the hobby from a distance.  But adventure was in my soul, and after university I went to work as a volunteer in the furthest part of the world I could find: rural Shanxi Province, north China, where the wind blows down from the battlefield passes through the Great Wall and the landscape is rich with ruined pagodas and once-rich houses.  It was an adventure of my own.  I rode Mongolian ponies on the steppes; hiked above Tibetan monasteries; stood awed in ancient temples  as incredible and foreign as anything I discovered in the pages of Conan the Barbarian.  And I wrote about these experiences, and then they were published.  And so my dream came true, of becoming a writer. 

There are some stories that happen to you, and some you make up.  My first writing was all about China and Eritrea, East Africa.  And those were very fine books.  They won prizes, and a lot of reviewers said very nice things about them.  They called me a literary writer, which felt like I’d been steered through the open front door – when all the writers I felt in common with were steered round the back to the Tradesman’s Entrance.

I asked my editor the question, one day, ‘What is ‘literary fiction’?’

His explanation was that literary fiction has convincing characters.  But I think it goes further than that.  There’s a snobbery within the ‘literary establishment’ that excludes almost all ‘genre’ fiction from their dwindling club, unless sometimes, it’s a crime story.  And this is regardless of whether there’s convincing characters, or not.  Put an elf or a dwarf or a space-ship in a story, and it’s immediately sub-standard.   How it must irritate the critics that people insist on reading, watching and encouraging more fantastical stories.  Just look at recent mainstream hits: Game of Thrones, Avatar, Lord of the Rings: people can’t get enough of the stuff. 

And no wonder people love these stories.  From myth to legend and religion; Shakespeare to Mallory; Beowulf to Homer to Gawain to Chaucer - stories about the fantastical, the possible and impossible have always been popular.   

I’ve read lots of literary and lots of genre fiction, and I’ve always thought that genre writers wrote better books than their literary cousins.  Which for me begs the question, what makes a good book? 

Like lots of other writers, my first literary love affair was with Tolkien.  He first inspired me to read, and then to become a writer.  It was Tolkien’s ability to create a new world that astonished me.  And when I got to the end of the Lord of the Rings I went back to the beginning, and re-read it for the first time.  And keep reading and learning from it: which is the mark of a real classic. 

Answers to this question ‘What’s a good book’ are hugely personal.  My answer is this: I like books that grab me, entertain me, and keep me turning the pages.  I like strong characters and big decisions.  I like life and death stories, the question of how to survive the modern world.  I like strange worlds, and the choices it gives the characters therein.  I like big worlds, big challenges, and the things they teach me about my life.  These are found in many great ‘literary’ books.  They’re also in ‘genre’ fiction by the bucket load.  And having ploughed through many literary books, I’m sorry to say that its full of writers who can write a beautiful sentence, or even a great paragraph.  But they’re stumped when it comes to writing good stories: the very hardest thing to learn.  

Want a good read?  Give me Tolkien, or Terry Brooks, or Dan Abnett, or Graham McNeill, or George RR Martin, or Julian May, or an old RuneQuest adventure pack any day.  

I wanted to bring the best of genre writing into Shieldwall, so that it was both ‘literary’ and a page turner. I had previously written a fantasy novel under a cunning pseudonym, and it had given me a test run at a very different kind of writing.  It had also taught me something about how to keep the pace ticking over.  And about writing battle scenes and fighting: that action scenes, he struck here and the other man struck there, tend to be very dull reading. 

So I set about teaching myself how to write better.  How to put the reader into the hack and slash and splatter of battle.  And when I tried to imagine what book I wanted it to be I remembered being a boy and my father giving me The King of Athelney, by Alfred Duggan, about his namesake, Alfred the Great.  That book left such an impression that Duggan’s Alfred is my Alfred, and I wanted Shieldwall to be the kind of book dads would give their sons, and say.  ‘Want to know about the Battle of Hastings?  Read this.’

And for it to kindle within them some of the magic Duggan or Tolkien did for me.  And still do. 

***

Superb guest blog, Justin! Thanks very much for taking the time to write it. Find Justin's site here, and his blog here.  Shieldwall is out now from

Defenders of Ulthuan and Sons of Ellyrion by Graham McNeill

Defenders of Ulthuan

The high elves have long been the protectors of the Warhammer World, and their homeland of Ulthuan is known for the powerful magic that surrounds it. At the heart of Ulthuan lies a magical vortex, and the mages who created it remain trapped in a space out of time, endlessly working the spell that keeps the world from becoming a seething Realm of Chaos.

When Ulthuan comes under attack from the forces of Chaos and dark elves led by the Witch King and the hag sorceress, Morathi, the high elves must hold firm or face disastrous consequences.

Defenders opens strongly, quickly setting up the various threads that will combine to form the core of the story, which spans the final weeks before the Dark Elves launch their invasion of Ulthuan, the home of the High Elves.

Central to the story is the relationship between the two main characters, the brothers Eldain and Caelir, which is exlored and expanded on throughout the novel, giving them a depth and complexity that befits personalities that have been maturing for centuries, yet who still suffer from flaws and vulnerabilities that we can relate to. Eldain and Caelir set out on their respective quests across Ulthuan, and McNeill uses the opportunity to bring Ulthuan to life, from the soaring mountains to the endless plains and forests basking in a gentle, endless summer, all in all an idyllic, utopian setting. Importantly, he also manages to put across how intrinsically magical it is, a factor which is central to understanding the threat posed by Morathi.

Admittedly I did get to a point where I was having to grit my teeth at every mention of the Elves' beauty and impossible grace as they wafted across picture perfect landscapes. Fortunately it's a relatively short lived episode and the increasing tension as Morathi's plans begin to swing into motion cancels it out. What you're left with though is a clear image of what is at stake for the High Elves.

Defenders quickly builds up to a shocking cliffhanger ending, one which left me desperate to get home and start the sequel, Sons of Ellyrion.

SoE opens with the repercussions of Caelir's actions shaking Ulthuan even as the Dark Elf invasion gathers pace. As the title suggests, the brothers take central stage again, albeit that this time they share it with the heroes of their age - Tyrion, Imrik and Teclis. But there's carnage aplenty for each of them to deal with as the dark elves push deep into Ulthuan, slaughtering the living and despoiling the land, so it never feels crowded. The action is handled very well and is both plentiful and consistently savage as the High Elves reel under the onslaught.

These are very much High Elf novels, and the Dark Elves aren't given much 'screen time' outside of burning and killing their way across the land. Morathi herself seems to do little more than bathe in blood and gloat about her own evil genius. However, her evil genius is just that (with a generous helping of insanity) and her actions imperil not just Ulthuan but the whole of the old world. Eldain and Caelir are drawn into a desperate attempt to thwart her twisted ambition, and it's here that the care McNeill has put into making us care about these characters pays off, crowning the story with an emotional and bittersweet conclusion.

I finished both novels in a matter of days. Graham McNeill knows how to spin a story, and he's in top form with these. He manages to carry across a real feel for the Elven homeland and their society, whilst keeping it accessible to casual readers and without getting bogged down in too much exposition. You grow to care about the characters, and cheer the 'fuck yeah!' moments when they eventually happen amidst the bloody carnage (of which there's plenty). It's solid, satisfying fantasy action and a stark reminder why he gets to have the epithet 'NYT bestselling author' on the cover.

Broken Honour by Robert Earl

The armies of Hochland are at breaking point. Beset on all sides by the feral beastmen, the safety and prosperity of the province is shattered. These are desperate times. Mercenary Captain Eriksson looks to capitalise on the conflict, buying the freedom of a group of prisoners to form a new free company. The criminals are delighted to be released, but this comes at a terrible price- to fight and die in the upcoming conflict. Eriksson must led his makeshift company into one bloody battle after another, putting his faith in those who gave up on honour long ago. On the battlefields of Hochland, either damnation or redemption awaits them.

Broken Honour opens with the army of General Count von Brechthold taking to the field in what he and they expect to be just another annual cull of the beastmen who infest the thick forests of the province. But there’s a new leader amongst the herds of bestial horrors that await them, and the army is spectacularly destroyed apart from a young nobleman named Viksberg, who refuses to die on that muddy field and flees towards safety.

Shortly thereafter we meet Captain Eriksson, an experienced and cunning mercenary captain for whom the strife that besets Hochland is an opportunity, not a calamity. After some narrow escapes he gets his new free company, a ragtag collection of thieves and murderers, and starts the process of forging them into something that resembles a military unit. But amongst his company is someone who knows the truth of Viksberg’s crimes, and soon they have more than beastmen (whose feral rage comes through very well throughout) plotting their death as the war rushes towards a mighty clash that will see either side utterly destroyed.

The transformation of the criminal mob into the Gentlemen’s Free Company of Hergig is handled well- there’s no quick fix or Hollywood style montage to gloss over the fact that these are criminals that Eriksson is dealing with.

As a setting, Warhammer fantasy has a distinctive flavour. It’s a world constantly under siege by the forces of chaos in all its guises, in the midst of which people get on with their lives, surrounded as they are in equal measures by despair and ignorance, nobility and defiant courage. Robert Earl has managed to capture this atmosphere quite neatly. It’s nothing definite that you can put your finger on, but like a colour built up of several layers of thin paint, it definitely comes through as Eriksson and his men fight to survive against the worst that Viksberg’s spite and the ravening beastmen can throw at them.

I enjoyed the fast pace and vicious action, and consumed it while commuting in over Christmas. It’s a standalone novel that delivers classic Warhammer action, but is very much accessible for anyone unfamiliar with the setting.

God King Trailer

The trailer for Graham McNeill's God King, the sequel to the award winning Empire and Heldenhammer..

..and I just so happen to have a copy waiting for me :)