Book Book Review: Swords of the Empire - Various Stories

Pages : 253

Edited by Marc Gascoigne & Christian Dunn

Publisher : BlackLibrary

Synopsis

In the grim world of Warhammer, the bloodthirsting followers of the dark Gods ravage the land. It is a dark age, a bloody age, an age of daemons and of Sorcery. It is an age of battle and death, and of the world's ending. Amidst all of the fire, flame and fury it is a time too, of mighty heroes, of bold deeds and great courage!

Swords of the Empire is a storming collection of all-action stories including a brand new Storm of Chaos novella by the award-winning Dan Abnett and a new Zavant the great detective of Aldforf by Gordon Rennie!

Contents

The Vampire Hunters by Robert Earl 30pag

Meat Wagon by C.L.Werner 44pag

The Case of the Scarlet Cell by Gordon Rennie 54pag

Rest for the Wicked by James Wallis 30pag

The Nagenhof Bell by Jonathan Green 28pag

Swords of the Empire by Dan Abnett 46pag

Vampire Hunters is set in the cold freezing lands of Kislev. The story is somewhat confusing but it has a good finale. The writing was good. It was the first book I read by Robert Earl (writer of the bretonnian Florin d'Artaud triology, so far). It was for me a weak story and with Rest for the Wicked the worst stories in the books.

The second story was Meat Wagon features the (un)beloved Witch Hunter Mathias Thulman and Streng (his sidekick). The plot its about some travelers who share a coach who are detoured into a abondonated Sylvanian village and are attacked by a Vampire and his zombies. Meanwhile when they are detouring the WitchHunter asks (order) the drivers to take him along. CL Werner is one of the best writers of Black Library in the Warhammer world. He introduced us the characters in a very good way that aftewards we want to read more not only by Mathias but also others characters.

The third story is "The Case of the Scarlett Cell" by Gordon Rennie. We see the return of the gentleman sage of Altdorf - Zavant Konniger and his man-servant Vido (as previously seen in the book Zavant) - who gets mixed up in a curious case of the supposedly executed serial killer known as the "Reikerbahn Butcher" who won't stay dead - a case of blood, betrayal and hidden agendas Zavant-style. As I have read the Zavant book(a comment will be written in the future), I was anxious to read this particular story and It was GREAT. I love Gordon Rennie way of write and the plots he conjure. Zavant is a mix of a Sherlock Holmes with Indiana Jones and other characters. I think it's the best story along with Swords and the Empire by Dan Abnett.

Rest for the Wicked bringes Dick Grenner and his collegaues from the Pallisades into the skullduggery world of the secret organisation known as The Untersuchung, and the skullduggery surrounding an attempt to assassinate an Elector Count - who can you trust? Apparently no one. This was my first time to read a book with James Wallis.

The Nagenhof Bell puts Torban Badenov and his band of sellswords in yet another dangerous situation. Trying to recrute former comrades-in-arms to fill the holes left by dead team members, Torben and his crew in the small town of Nagenhof. Unknown to them is the fact that a sinister mutant bell-ringer plans to replace the usual bell in the Temple of Morr with a certain brass one recovered after a Skaven attack some years earlier.

This was, also, my first book of Jonathan Green. I have the book the Dead and the Damned which is compilation of storys by Torban Badenov. The written is good and has Skaven which I love. I think this, overall, a good addiction to this book.

Finally Swords of the Empire sees Reikguard Knight Jozef von Kallen and his men travel to the far reaches of Kislev as escort to a Wizard seeking sorcerous knowledge that will help the Empire in the coming Storm of Chaos. But all is not as it seem, and allegiances have a way of changing in the face of the High North and the Dark Gods.

The book was written by Dan Abnett. As everything I have read by Abnett it's great. The plot is well convincing and the writing it's great as everthing written by him. I am portuguese and the writing as some words not familiar to a not english professor or english native. With a dictionary in some words a I finish reading last day. This was the pearl in the book (along with Zavant).

Conclusion

To buy or not to buy. That is the question. If you are thinking of starting reading books in the Warhammer World I would point some out. I love this short-stories colections 'cause it introduce me to some of the writers.

There are several like Lords of Valour, Realm of Chaos, The Laughter of Dark Gods, Way of the Dead and Swords of the Empire. 8.5/10

Book Review: Fifteen Hours - Mitchel Scanlon - Warhammer 40,000

Book Description
A young Imperial Guardsman arrives in the wrong battle on the wrong planet and gets caught in a meat-grinder war. With the brutal ork forces attacking in wave after wave, it is no wonder that the life expectancy of a new arrival is only fifteen hours.

Book Pages : 256
Company : Black Library or Games Workshop

Mitchel Scanlon : UK. His first break was with the Black Library's Warhammer Monthly comic. Since then has written several short stories published in the Black Library's fiction magazine Inferno! and the background book The Loathsome Ratmen and all their Vile Kin.

This is a Guardsman not a Marine... (or Rambo!)

Guard... ATTACK!!! Wow.. I've read this book in two days. For me it's fast 'cause I don't have much time unless you count the trips to work and so...

This is Mr. Scanlon first book. I think he did an exclent work. I've read some reviews in other places (Amazon, Black Library and others) and most of all agreed this is a fast turning book. It's catching and it's not for the feint. I've read some parts that make me feel I was in that battlefield. It remind me some stories about WW I in the trenches. It add some good perpective about the guardsman life and the connection between them and their superiors.

There is one part that blow me away and made me tremble..

"From the corners of his eye Larn caught gimpses of the others around him. He saw Bulaven, a lasgun in his hands taken from other Guardsman. He saw Davir. Scholar. Zeebers. He saw Chalker, his expression cool and detached, working the slide of his shotgun to send round after round into the enemy. He saw Vladek. Medical Oficer Svenk. The cook, Trooper Skench, a laspistol blazing in his one remaining hand as he stood besides others. He saw their faces. Scholar drawn yet steadfast. Bulaven dutiful, Zeebers nervous, Davir spiting obscene and angry oaths at the advancing orks. He saw steely determination and a refual to go easily to death. AS he saw it, Larn felt a feelting shame that he had doubted these men when he had first met them. Whatever their manner they were all wahat a Guardsman should be. Brave. Resolute. Unbending in the gace of the enemy. These were the men on which the Imperium had been built. The men who had fought its every battle. Won its every victory. Today, they were hoepelessly outnumbered. Today it was their final stand. (page 227)

After reading this book, and before as well I prefer the guardsman stories than to Marines stories.

Other reviewer said this was a teeneger writing or something. I agree. It's not like Dan Abnett or Ian Watson. But I guess this "teenager" writing made this book even greater. The common soldier is not a writer or poet. I guess that made us see almost from the eyes of the main character. It was good also 'cause the pages were turning even faster. Overall..

If you want to read about a common guardsman and not a hero like Rambo I would reccomend this book. You won't see here a man who have kill 1001 orks while drinking beer.

Book Review: Inheritance by Steven Savile - The Von Carstein I

Book Description
The first of a trilogy that tells the rise and fall of the most infamous family of vampires in the Warhammer world - the Von Carsteins. When Vlad Von Carstein becomes ruler of the haunted land of Sylvania, a plague of evil is set loose. Can anyone save the Empire from this bloodthirsty family of vampires and their shambling undead armies?

About the Author
(http://www.stevensavile.com/)
British author Steve Savile is an expert in cult fiction, having written for a wide variety of sf series, including Star Wars, fantasy and horror stories. He won the L Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future award in 2002, was runner-up in the British Fantasy Award in 2000, and has been nominated three times for the Bram Stoker award. He currently lives in Stockholm, Sweden.

Vlad Von Carstein of Sylvania

I've just readed this book. It was great. I know, this book only arrives at stores in USA at 31 march, but I've pre-order it from the Black Library and so I've received in middle february.

Well this is a great book that will enrich not only the fans of warhammer but also the fans of vampires. If you play with the Vampire Count I think you will liked it. It won't tell you anything you don't know (About the army) but It will give some depht and history to your army. I think you will like it.

Good Things : The characters and the plot itself. Things to improve in the next books: I think Mr. Savile would do better to take some depht to the vampires and take more time developing it's history. (well this will be fruitless even if he reads it since the second book it's already written lol)

Minor Spoillers Ahead.. Jump ahead

Don't take me wrong. The characters are great... We've got, of course, Vlad von Carstein. We read about it's rise and grow of his empire. How he come to be the ruler of Sylvania and finally the strike on the empire. Something on the story I didn't like. When the thief Felix Mann stole the ring that gave immortality to the Count. It was too damn easy. Then Vlad outburst and strike recklessly the empire fortress and died. It was too quick. Bah.. It was the only thing I didn't like.

Minor Spoillers Ended
Well we've got a lot of characters beside the Vlad and Isabella von Carstein. Inbetween the chapters of Vlad we've the history of this minor characters. We've got Jon Skellan and Stefan Fischer the witch-hunters, Ganz the human chancellor of Vlad. Then we've got Krueger a knight of White Wolf and the thief Felix Mann. And of course other minor characters that appear in some chapters.

In the end it is a great book but it does not finish here. More two books to be released. The next in September. It will be great 'cause some of this characters histories didn't end. I will be awaiting. About the writing: As you know Black Library has a majority of the writters from UK.. A couple of words were unknown to me (I am portuguese) but apart from that the book brings forth the characteristic mayhem of the Warhammer World.