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Hey everyone,

So I'm still in the process of "getting back into 40k" after a long absence and one of the things that happened while I was "away" was that the black library EXPLODED into dozens and dozens of novels.

Now, in the past, I've read my fair share of 40k fluff (okay more than my fair share!) but largely focused upon the Gaunt's Ghosts series (which I still love but, well, its kinda over now.) So these days I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with the sheer volume of choice! To help with this: I would like to hear some good community input on this subject.

What are your absolute favourite 40k novels and why? (excluding Gaunt please, unless you just have to crow about him...which I totally get!)

I've enjoyed the Eldar Path series (Path of the Warrior, Path of the Seer, Path of the Outcast). On the imperial side I've enjoyed the Commissar Cain series (makes for an interesting contrast with Gaunt), but after six books the glow has faded. Really anything by Abnett is good; Titanicus, Eisenhorn series, Ravenor series. Dembski-Bowden's Night Lords books are good. Of the Heresy books, my favorites are A Thousand Sons and Prospero Burns.

Start with the horus heresy trilogy I suggest. Horus Rising, False Gods, and Galaxy In Flames. Great place to start IMO.

Love me some Ciaphas Cain. I think it is well written (and describes what is possibly the only sane Commissar in the Imperium), although unashamedly silly and not exactly "super serius grimdark" like some people picture the 40k universe to be. It fits the classic over the top hilarious dark version I enjoy thinking of 40k though.

Titanicus was the first Black Library book I read. It remains to this day one of the few books I have read, then immediately started over to read again. I will admit it has a couple flaws. It blasts you with Adeptus Mechanicus technobabble you don't fully understand until halfway through the story (I enjoyed figuring it it personally), and I don't want to spoil anything but suffice it to say the ending was a fairly huge case of "oh bugger I need to wrap up the story and make the Imperials win" (then again Abnett seems to do this, the Gaunts Ghosts book with the planet sized superweapon springs to mind).

I have heard great things about Eisenhorn, and I keep meaning to read that series, but there is so much else in front of it in my reading que...

I highly recommend all of these books-

Talon of Horus- The formation of the Black Legion, and good look into how life inside the Eye of Terror operates, along with actually developed chaos space marine characters who aren't cliches or stereotypes. The World Eater in it has a wonderful deadpan and is fairly eloquent. Something you never see with World Eaters.


All three Night Lord books by ADB- Mandatory read for any Night Lords fan, or for somebody who just likes Chaos Space Marines. The slow, tragic deterioration of the squad is wonderful to see, with the main character Talos feeling like the victim of a Greek Tragedy. Born on another world he would have been a hero and champion of mankind.

Eisenhorn- Read it. Now.

Legion of the Damned- Excellent book, easily Rob Sander's best. One of the few 40K books that manages to spend most of the time talking instead of mindless bolter porn, and shows Space Marines at their best in a hopeless last stand. Oh, and the Legion of the Damned make an appearance. It's badass.

Siege of Castellax- Another excellent CSM read, this time a good look into post-heresy Iron Warriors stuck on a planet being besiged by Orks. Displays the politicking and brutal determination of the Iron Warriors along with having the most badass Obliterator in the black library. Also features an additional human angle to it through the eye of slave militia soldiers caught between the Iron Warrior masters and the Ork Horde.

 dementedwombat wrote:
Love me some Ciaphas Cain. I think it is well written (and describes what is possibly the only sane Commissar in the Imperium), although unashamedly silly and not exactly "super serius grimdark" like some people picture the 40k universe to be. It fits the classic over the top hilarious dark version I enjoy thinking of 40k though.

Titanicus was the first Black Library book I read. It remains to this day one of the few books I have read, then immediately started over to read again. I will admit it has a couple flaws. It blasts you with Adeptus Mechanicus technobabble you don't fully understand until halfway through the story (I enjoyed figuring it it personally), and I don't want to spoil anything but suffice it to say the ending was a fairly huge case of "oh bugger I need to wrap up the story and make the Imperials win" (then again Abnett seems to do this, the Gaunts Ghosts book with the planet sized superweapon springs to mind).

I have heard great things about Eisenhorn, and I keep meaning to read that series, but there is so much else in front of it in my reading que...

Your description of the ending was spot on. Very abrupt and honestly left me wanting a lot more. They could have easily made a duology or even trilogy of just this story, and even an entire series of Titan novels. Not enough Space Marine in it, I guess. *rolls eyes*

Still very much worth the read, though. Some great Titan clashing in it.

 PrehistoricUFO wrote:
Still very much worth the read, though. Some great Titan clashing in it.

I agree, the descriptions of giant robots smashing cities apart as they level building-shattering weapons at each other was really great. Felt a lot like I would hope a Battletech novel would be (if any of you are familiar with that universe) but turned up to 11.

Honestly, anything by ADB is a pretty good read.
I'm a biiig fan of The Emperor's Gift.

people tend to bash Graham Mcneil, but I'd also reccomend the story "Storm of Iron"

Battle of the Fang got me hooked on 40k, before that I only read fantasy, wasn't into Sci Fi. Fang was awesome.

Word Bearers trilogy is great for a take on chaos, interesting when they face off against dark eldar/tyranids you almost forget they're chaos and not just loyalist marines some times.

Thanks for the recommendations so far! I'm totally going to track some of those down.

Actually: as far as Titanicus goes, that's kinda what brought me back into the game. I saw it at the bookstore and was like "WOAH! A whole Titan NOVEL!"

Def gonna check out some of the others though. Especially the ones described as "non-bolter porn" ...because honestly I DO get a little sick of nothing but constant descriptions of people shooting at each other.

(I know, I know: In the grimdark there is only WAR! but still...)

I can also suggest Ahriman: Exile and it it's novella and novel sequels. Great reads.

Storm of Iron. That is all.

Storm Of Iron.

Breach. Breach. Breach.

My first suggestion would be to try and find either volume of the Best Of Hammer and Bolter series; this collects everything but the full novels that were published in BL's 2-year-running monthly magazine, and has a smattering of stuff across pretty much every author and setting they have. A lot of the short pieces tie in to other series so it's a good starting point to jump from, and some of the one-shot pieces are just great reads on their own. Some of them are less good, but there are far more hits than misses across the two books, and some real gems.

And I'd also throw in a vote for the first 3 Horus Heresy novels. Well-written, a great story, and one of the most pivotal events in the history of the setting.