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Hey there,

I just love to read, and paint, so I am looking into combining the two, kinda. So...

Can anyone tell me where to start with the Black Library books? I am very new to fluff, so would like to start at the beginning, if there is a beginning? I currently collect Space Wolves, (don't be a hater) but that is irrelevant, as I won't to read about the 40k universe, not my army of choice.

Any advice would be welcome, cheers,

James, NZ

The Ultramarines series by Graham McNeill is a very good series of books.

I would say start with either the Horus Heresy series or Gaunts Gaunts. With HH you will get to sample a wide variety of authors as well.

Ok, so HH, can you be more specific?

jirc wrote:Ok, so HH, can you be more specific?

The HH novels are a series of books that (somewhat) detail the events that lead up to the Emperor defeating Horus (well, one can only assume that's where BL is heading... ). Start with Horus Rising, as that's definitely the first book. After the first 5, I started jumping around a bit, as the rest of the books aren't quite so related to one another as the first 4-5 are.

I wouldn't reccomend the HH books for a 1st time reader, especially if you are very new to the fluff.


you play Space Wolves. Pick up both Space Wolf omnibuses and read about Ragnar's early career.

Grey Templar wrote:I wouldn't reccomend the HH books for a 1st time reader, especially if you are very new to the fluff.


you play Space Wolves. Pick up both Space Wolf omnibuses and read about Ragnar's early career.

+1

You could also look at Gaunt's Ghosts(I think it's been mentioned already, but meh) for an IG perspective on things. There's also the underrated Brothers of the Snake(about the Iron Snakes chapter; by the same author), and for when you want something more comedic, the Cain books.

Games Workshop's fiction is of highly variable quality. The Horus Heresy books are among the better-written, but to appreciate them fully demands some prior knowledge of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

My strongest recommendation as an introduction would be Dan Abnett's Eisenhorn trilogy; they're relatively free of complex continuity, and give the reader a fairly complete tour of the fictional universe.

If they're still in print, the old Warhammer novels Drachenfels and Beasts in Velvet by 'Jack Yeovil' (a pseudonym of well-regarded critic and author Kim Newman) are also rather more worthy of a read than most of Games Workshop's fiction.

Gaunts Ghosts, all the way! They're my favourite series of books out of all the 40k stories! Then the Ultramarine books, but then, I'm an Ultrasmurf at heart so go figure!

Some of the 'Space Marine Battles' books are pretty cool as well, and being a space wolf player 'Battle of the Fang' would be a pretty nice read for you. They also seem to be slightly easier to read than the HH books.

For "starters" I usually recommend the Dark Imperium anthology; it contains about a dozen short stories about very different characters, allowing you a glimpse into a large range of aspects of the 40k setting.

One thing to keep in mind when reading novels, though, is that at times they do not necessarily "fit in" with certain aspects of the setting as promoted by Games Workshop, whilst at other times lots of novels like to invent new details - which in turn get ignored by GW as well as other novel authors. So be prepared for some inconsistencies and contradictions.

Other than that, enjoy reading!

Lynata wrote:For "starters" I usually recommend the Dark Imperium anthology; it contains about a dozen short stories about very different characters, allowing you a glimpse into a large range of aspects of the 40k setting.

I just wanted to point out that when I followed your link, the first line of the lexicanum page is this:

Dark Imperium is an anthology of short stories by various authors, edited by Marc Gascoigne and Andy Jones. It was first published in 2001 and is currently out of print.

So, maybe not such a good starting point ne?

A good way to get a taster is go to the Black Library website and have a mooch about. Lots of the new books will have a .pdf available of the first chapter or so, so you can have a read and get a feel for the book.

One of my favorite short stories is this one

http://www.blacklibrary.com/Downloads/Product/PDF//m/maelstrom.pdf

It's an oldie but a goodie and one of my personal favorites

Here's one to Eisenhorn which is probably one of the best

http://www.blacklibrary.com/Downloads/Product/PDF//e/eisenhorn.pdf

And my favorite of them all

http://www.blacklibrary.com/Downloads/Product/PDF//d/daemonworld.pdf

PrometheusZero wrote:I just wanted to point out that when I followed your link, the first line of the lexicanum page is this:
Dark Imperium is an anthology of short stories by various authors, edited by Marc Gascoigne and Andy Jones. It was first published in 2001 and is currently out of print.
So, maybe not such a good starting point ne?

Wellll... you can still get it on amazon (that's where I have my copy from), or probably ebay!

I recommend you do not start with the HH series. It's like watching the Star Wars movies in numerical order rather than order of release. You miss the emotional impact of the backstory. Start with one of the inquisitorial series. Ravenor or Xenos by Dan Abnett are the beginning of each trilogy (start with Xenos.) Also, Scourge the Heretic, by Sandy Mitchell.

Another good idea is to invest in a short story compilation. Let the Galaxy Burn is a great one with a ton of short stories on a wide variety of topics. It would let you get an idea for the kind of stories and authors you like.

Jimsolo wrote:I recommend you do not start with the HH series. It's like watching the Star Wars movies in numerical order rather than order of release. You miss the emotional impact of the backstory. Start with one of the inquisitorial series. Ravenor or Xenos by Dan Abnett are the beginning of each trilogy (start with Xenos.) Also, Scourge the Heretic, by Sandy Mitchell.

Another good idea is to invest in a short story compilation. Let the Galaxy Burn is a great one with a ton of short stories on a wide variety of topics. It would let you get an idea for the kind of stories and authors you like.

I don't know... I think the Hours Heresy books are a good intro because their well-written in general (with exceptions). I haven't read any of the above. I think the main thing is you need to know enough about the 40k setting 'modern day' era to understand how the Horus Heresy era is this ancient mythical age. There's a lot more tech, and while it's already baroque and weird (A war photographer doesn't have a camera and a laptop, they have a 'picter' and some sort of dedicated hardware device for editing and such. It sounds crude, but you have to accept that it's actually more advanced than our tech in some ways. It's also the kind of thing that would be awesome to a 'modern' 40k citizen, as in their era 'picters' are all hand-assembled unique devices that the Adeptus Mechanicus probably charges a literal arm and a leg for, although they do come with a servitor-drone to develop the films (they have to do something with the arms and legs, you see). Also, tentacles.

The HH era is a lot more 'down to earth' than the modern 40k. Space Marines are a mix of celebrities and superheros, not the demi-gods to be feared and admired they alter become.