Tag Archives: Short Story

Black Library, Book Reviews, Declan Waters, Games Workshop

Book Review – The Long Promise

March 13, 2025 Declan and Eeyore Leave a comment

A Warhammer 40k short-story by Mike Brooks

The Long Promise was released in 2023 but re-released in the free ‘Black Library Celebration 2025’ anthology available in English, German & French either from a local Warhammer store or free from Black Library with most purchases.

This coincides with World Book Day (6th March), and as avid readers ourselves we will be marking this occasion by reviewing all 4 stories in the anthology – and encouraging reading of course!

From the book:

Solomon Akurra, Chaos Lord of the insidious Alpha Legion, infiltrates a Deathwatch watch station. When this most elite and pious of kill teams returns, Akurra offers them the real truth…

Stories of the Alpha Legion can be hit and miss, but one thing they always are is different. With their love of subterfuge, scouting and infiltrating they are unlike any other Space Marine chapter, and Mike Brooks has done well here to bring Solomon Akurra’s motives to life in a short story.

The Deathwatch come back to their watch station and find an Alpha legion vessel and Akurra quickly begins to question them over the vox – will they let him go, to discover what he knows, or will they hunt him throughout the ship and ensure his end?

I very much enjoyed this short story, and one of the interesting pieces was the tie back to a human with our narrator (of sorts) being Tulava Dyne, a sanctioned pskyer who has defected to the Alpha Legion. Importantly this allows the viewer to have a more human perspective on the Space Marines of the Alpha Legion – something that is not always achieved.

And the narrative rattles along at a pace – no wasted words here – such that you reach the end, and really want more of the story. A great sign.

We always encourage people to shop at local bricks and mortar stores, but if your friendly local book store doesn’t have this available, we have a UK Amazon affiliate link & a USA Amazon affiliate link for which Woehammer receives a small commission.

— Declan & Eeyore

Black Library, Book Reviews, Declan Waters, Games Workshop

Book Review – Web of Ruin

March 12, 2025 Declan and Eeyore 1 Comment

An Age of Sigmar short-story by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Web of Ruin was released in 2023 but re-released in the free ‘Black Library Celebration 2025’ anthology available in English, German & French either from a local Warhammer store or free from Black Library with most purchases.

This coincides with World Book Day (6th March), and as avid readers ourselves we will be marking this occasion by reviewing all 4 stories in the anthology – and encouraging reading of course!

From the book:

The Tarantulos Brood are Slaves to Darkness who seek out mutagenic substances to uplift their mortal forms and grow ever closer to the sacred shape of their spidery god. In order to reach the top of their power structure they must demonstrate that they can wrangle the most deadly arachnids into servitude. Follow as one Broodkin seeks out his Chaos tained prey.

When Warcry was released Warhammer Community put one of the models from the Tarantulos Brood on the Rumour Engine… and all the Gloomspite players thought that we would be getting new spiderfang grots… or something. Because spiders were always a Destruction thing. To say that the Destruction community was ‘not happy’ with a Slaves to Darkness unit taking their spiders would be an under statement.

Well Adrian Tchaikovsky brings us a story from the Tarantulos Brood as they are ambushed (unsuccessfully) by a Grot Shaman and are told of the location of a Arachnarok spider who is close to death. The Brood can’t resist and force the Grot to lead them to his spider… who will emerge victorious.

This is another great short story, and has characters that even those new to Age of Sigmar will be able to understand. There are humans worshippping Chaos via a Spider God and Grots (goblins) trying to ambush them and then stop them reaching their version of a Spider God – and Arachnarok Spider (although Tchaikovsky never uses this term).

Could this be the revenge Destruction want from their false spider brethren, or will Slaves to Darkness arise triumphant?

Whilst this is a good story, I again have to question why it was in the compilation for 2025… a quick look at the Games Workshop website to see Warcry and the game itself is ‘Online only’… oh dear!! but you can’t even buy the Tarantulos Brood – they are discontinued. Weird!

But the star rating is for Adrian Tchaikovsky’s writing, not the strange editing decision.

— Declan & Eeyore

Black Library, Book Reviews, Declan Waters, Games Workshop

Book Review – The One Road

March 11, 2025 Declan and Eeyore Leave a comment

An Age of Sigmar short-story by David Guymer

The One Road was released in 2023 but re-released in the free ‘Black Library Celebration 2025’ anthology available in English, German & French either from a local Warhammer store or free from Black Library with most purchases.

This coincides with World Book Day (6th March), and as avid readers ourselves we will be marking this occasion by reviewing all 4 stories in the anthology – and encouraging reading of course!

From the book:

Out for the count and oblivious to the world around him, Gotrek Gurnisson becomes a prime target for the vengeful Slyvaneth. Can the bold riders of the Freeguild Cavaliers reach the stricken baggage train containing the blacked-out Slayer before the forest warriors do?

For those of a certain vintage, they will remember Gotrek (with Felix) as being key adventurers within the Warhammer World (that was). Well, Gotrek is now in the mortal realms of Age of Sigmar and – whilst I don’t think he should be there (he isn’t a god.. really!) – it does give David Guymer a perfect opportunity to explore the Realms through the eyes of someone who only knew the Old World – much like the reader.

Since the proper introduction of humans to the Age of Sigmar setting in the guise of the Freeguild, the Realms are also being fleshed out well, and there is a faction that we (humans…) can consider ours – which is important for story telling.

In this short story, we don’t see Gotrek much – he is instead the basis of an excuse for a story – rather than the main character within it.

And David Guymer does well here – sure it’s short, but there is a little character development here, some enemies, a short battle and an heroic rescue (maybe not in the that order)… and I lost myself for 30 minutes reading it. So I think he got it near perfect!

— Declan & Eeyore

Black Library, Book Reviews, Declan Waters, Games Workshop

Book Review – Visage

March 10, 2025 Declan and Eeyore Leave a comment

A Horus Heresy short-story by Rich McCormick

Visage was released in 2023 but re-released in the free ‘Black Library Celebration 2025’ anthology available in English, German & French either from a local Warhammer store or free from Black Library with most purchases.

This coincides with World Book Day (6th March), as as avid readers ourselves we will be marking this occasion by reviewing all 4 stories in the anthology – and encouraging reading of course!

From the book:

Following the Battle of Signus Prime, the indignation shown by Erebu, Dark Apostle of the Word Bearers, is met with brutal retribution from Warmaster Horus. After having his tattooed visage flayed from his skull, Erebus seeks the power of the the avatars of Chaos to restore his faith in the Dark Gods.

If you like your Grim Dark fiction to be very Dark and exceedingly Grim then this is one is definitely for you. Having someone flay the skin from your skull would kill most mortals, but Space Marines are made of stern stuff, and Erebus even more so.

Rich McCormick does well to show the insidious power and questions of the Dark Gods, as well as Erebus’ communications and discussions with them and – ultimately – where Erebus feels he fits within the Heresy of Horus.

However this is a strange story to chose for the first in this anthology (and indeed inclusion in it at all). World Book Day tends to be aimed at younger listeners and whilst this anthology isn’t directly related to that, it is released along the same time. To be fair to the chaps at the Warhammer store where I picked mine up he did say I probably shouldn’t be reading it to my daughter (2) who was with me at the time… so points there; but overall a strange inclusion in a taster set that parents may be picking up for their kids to see what the setting is about.

— Declan & Eeyore

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