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Cooked Auto posted:It's more likely that their editors will say no I feel. We already know that they have the final say in what books they write and more. True but the reason they'd say no (apart from shooting down authors who want to overthrow the canon or write things GW doesn't want spelled out, like what happened to the missing legions) is because they don't think it'd sell. If someone pitched the idea of writing a slice-of-life novel about some mid-level Administratum functionary going about her boring job, dealing with ordinary marital stresses and trying to guide her kids through their equally mundane challenges, the editors are going to decline it, not because they're ideologically opposed but because they can't make any money off it. (And yes I know people in this thread would read it but that's an outlier). If Black Library thought they could make money publishing stories in which the most violent scene is when someone raised their voice in an argument, they would. Also, some general thoughts. I took a long break from 40K (I was flirting with depression and the grimdark wasn't helping, now I'm in a committed relationship with it and I can enjoy the warhammers again) so I started catching up with things early this year. I think the big plot developments with regard to Cadia, the Great Rift, Indomitus etc are a good thing for enabling a wider variety of storytelling in the setting. Or at least potentially a good thing, GW may always squander the potential depending on how they move forward. Before the shakeup, the entire theme was about inching closer and closer to midnight, and that constrains things. The strength of 40K has always been that the galaxy is big enough to write whatever you want without being hemmed in by someone else's story - now there's the far side of the rift where things are basically back to Old Night and you can really play up the isolation and desperation, but on the Terran side, the replenished strength of the Imperium under Guilleman lets you tell some new stories, stories that aren't predicated on teetering on the verge of collapse. The Twice-Dead King stories do a really good job using this, suddenly it's the xenos who are fleeing the staggering might of a Crusade fleet instead of the humans fleeing a Waaagh, it's a great new spin. Indomitus, potentially, gives the Imperium a chance breathe for a second and to say "We've been doing this wrong." And that lets you delve into stories where the enemy isn't an Ork or a Chaos marine, but the ossified evils of the Imperium itself. Where this can get complicated and interesting is that unlike the real world, where "witch hunt" is a term of scorn because witches aren't real, 40K witches are very real and will drag your whole planet to Hell if given a chance. This could be really interesting and I'm hopeful it'll get explored. But it may not sell, or may not be expected to sell, so why have a skilled author like Rath or Brooks spend their time writing it when they could be writing about super cool assassins or whacky Ork hijinks? I'm hopeful that there's a lot more good 40K fiction ahead. But I've already stated my stance on hope.
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Nov 2, 2023 18:12
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If you get the ebook on Amazon they release to the Kindle at 11PM CST Friday night. I'll be up late reading.
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Nov 2, 2023 18:22
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Dick Trauma posted:I do not maintain a goddamn spreadsheet of Warhammer books just to SKIP to the end! You can't read the entire Heresy, that's peak sickos
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Nov 2, 2023 18:31
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I would STRONGLY recommend to NOT read every Heresy book
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Nov 2, 2023 18:33
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hey guys what's up
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Nov 2, 2023 18:42
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sharknado slashfic posted:You can't read the entire Heresy, that's peak sickos I skipped from Master of Mankind to Saturnine  Then I went back and read the ones that were considered at least decent. Slaves to Darkness shouldn't be skipped, in my opinion, if for no other reason than because the cover subtitle is "Chaos Undivided" and the entire book is about them scheming and backstabbing each other.
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Nov 2, 2023 18:57
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sharknado slashfic posted:You can't read the entire Heresy, that's peak sickos I originally made the spreadsheet to track the recommendations from this thread, and as my interest increased and I started to plow through books I added a sheet to track the ones I'd read, and then I started to get the various series organized so I could read things in the proper order. So I'm definitely skipping books if the thread or online reviews were bad, and adding well-regarded books even if the subject or author do not usually appeal to me. I switched to 100% ebooks a few years ago so everything also goes into my Caliber library with basic tags.
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Nov 2, 2023 19:40
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I read every single heresy book and novella etc and regret nothing. I wouldn't do it again and there was some real dogshit but I'm glad I did.
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Nov 2, 2023 19:54
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I'm missing some novellas and such to be fair, but I don't regret anything either. And I need something to do between teatd 2 and 3, so I've got time for the rest.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:13
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Finally finished Cypher, that was an interesting ending.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:19
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Reading End and thd Death Vol 1 and the way Abnett laid out the book is really making it feel like I'm flying through this brick at breakneck speeds and I'm not even a fast reader. Every chapter has been like 5 or 6 pages.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:29
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I am reading Pariah and it is torture waiting for the twist or reveal to happen because none of this makes any sense so far
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Nov 2, 2023 20:32
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Pron on VHS posted:I am reading Pariah and it is torture waiting for the twist or reveal to happen because none of this makes any sense so far Oh man I'm crazy jealous. Getting to read Pariah again for the first time would rule.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:36
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Pron on VHS posted:I am reading Pariah and it is torture waiting for the twist or reveal to happen because none of this makes any sense so far Oh man, that loving rocks. You're in for a good time.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:41
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If you go into Pariah expecting it to be the opening of the Ravenor-versus-Eisenhorn capstone of the Ravenor and Eisenhorn trilogies, you're going to be real disappointed, as I was. If you go into it expecting a weird story loosely related to Ravenor and Eisenhorn you'll probably enjoy it more.
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Nov 2, 2023 20:46
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Yeah, they didn't do it any favours initially labeling it as "Eisenhorn vs Ravenor 1" instead of "Bequin 1".
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Nov 2, 2023 20:51
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Kylaer posted:If Black Library thought they could make money publishing stories in which the most violent scene is when someone raised their voice in an argument, they would. Some authors like to put in slices of life with their side characters. In one of the Ravenor books there's a city cop who lives with her uncle, once a great composer he's been lost to what looks like Alzheimers. It adds a lot to the story and adds a strong human element to the setting. I'll gladly read as many of those asides as writers care to put in their books.
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Nov 2, 2023 21:11
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btw are there places beyond BL and Amazon that are good for grabbing ebooks? I've generally gone physical or audio for most of the stuff I've read, but I'm probably gonna read Ravenor and beyond on e-ink.
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Nov 2, 2023 22:08
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mllaneza posted:Some authors like to put in slices of life with their side characters. In one of the Ravenor books there's a city cop who lives with her uncle, once a great composer he's been lost to what looks like Alzheimers. It adds a lot to the story and adds a strong human element to the setting. I'll gladly read as many of those asides as writers care to put in their books. I absolutely agree, they make the experience far more real and interesting than an endless litany of violence*. But I'm talking about a whole book of that, no violence, no big plot, just everyday problems as experienced in the grim dark far future - I don't think it would sell and, because it wouldn't sell, I don't think Black Library would greenlight it. I used to write short fanfiction pieces about 40K and the everyday life aspect was something I really enjoyed digging into in those. *Not to be confused with the Endless Litany of Violence which is a Lunar-class cruiser assigned to Battlefleet Obscurus.
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Nov 2, 2023 22:19
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Isn't that basically what the Warhammer crime label is? Sure there are some hardboiled detective shootouts but a major plot point in bloodlines is a guy trying to talk his kid out of joining the guard.
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Nov 2, 2023 22:24
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Kylaer posted:I absolutely agree, they make the experience far more real and interesting than an endless litany of violence*. But I'm talking about a whole book of that, no violence, no big plot, just everyday problems as experienced in the grim dark far future - I don't think it would sell and, because it wouldn't sell, I don't think Black Library would greenlight it. Quoting myself from way back: NihilCredo posted:The Strange Demise of Titus Endor by Abnett is the best piece of 40K fiction I've ever read and it stands entirely on its own (though it spoils a minor plot point from IIRC the second or third Eisenhorn book). Just for completeness's sake, I still consider it the best piece of 40K fiction I've ever read, despite having since dug into ADB and Fehervari, both of which I consider to be better writers than Abnett.
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Nov 2, 2023 22:41
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Titus Endor was so good I almost felt bad for a member of the Space Gestapo. Great story
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Nov 2, 2023 23:14
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It's definitely one of those individual preference things. I read Titus Endor and the whole time I was waiting for something to happen. And nothing did, so I found it not to my taste at all. I would have absolutely no interest in a pure slice-of-life novel, either; it would need a spin, like a comedy or something. I didn't like Pariah nearly as much as any of the Eisenhorn or Ravenor books despite the prose in Pariah being extremely well done; I liked it better on the re-read than I did on the first pass, but I'd still rank it below anything in the prior two trilogies. I'd also rank Penitent higher than Pariah, because it's more about 40K and less about Gormenghast (I think that's what people have said he was writing in the style of, I may be wrong, but I do remember there was a consensus that Abnett was deliberately seeking to imitate some particular historic novel in his writing style and I seem to recall it being Gormenghast). I have enormous respect for Abnett's talent as a writer, and his ability to consciously flow between these different writing styles, but that doesn't mean I always enjoy what he chooses to produce. AnEdgelord posted:Isn't that basically what the Warhammer crime label is? Sure there are some hardboiled detective shootouts but a major plot point in bloodlines is a guy trying to talk his kid out of joining the guard. I haven't read any of the Crime books yet, I'm still working my way through years worth of books. I've got a bunch of stuff by Chris Wraight that I'm currently catching up on. I jumped into Fall of Cadia as soon as it was released though because The Infinite and the Divine was so good. Kylaer fucked around with this message at 23:53 on Nov 2, 2023 |
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Nov 2, 2023 23:48
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I love that they gave abnett like 2000 plus pages to write the last book of the heresy Two more days Like it’s really silly we are getting an entire novel just to cover what can’t be like more than a few hours of time E is already on the Vengeful Spirit !!
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Nov 2, 2023 23:52
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Time no longer exists 
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Nov 2, 2023 23:54
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The Vengeful Spirit is like a whole world unto itself now. It's an interface between the warp and real space, it's like the eye of terror in miniature. It's impossible for it to be anything else, because it is the chariot of an arriving God.
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Nov 3, 2023 04:03
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wiegieman posted:The Vengeful Spirit is like a whole world unto itself now. It's an interface between the warp and real space, it's like the eye of terror in miniature. It's impossible for it to be anything else, because it is the chariot of an arriving God. that's what your mom calls my camry
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Nov 3, 2023 04:12
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wiegieman posted:The Vengeful Spirit is like a whole world unto itself now. It's an interface between the warp and real space, it's like the eye of terror in miniature. It's impossible for it to be anything else, because it is the chariot of an arriving God. Seems bad
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Nov 3, 2023 05:44
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Kylaer posted:I took a long break from 40K (I was flirting with depression and the grimdark wasn't helping, now I'm in a committed relationship with it and I can enjoy the warhammers again) so I started catching up with things early this year. It's good to know you're better! And, it's interesting how this dynamic works. For me, Horus Heresy has been kind of a comfort series that I've often gone to anytime I'm feeling down, as opposed to times I'm more even-keeled. Before I started reading it I was averse, because the premise sounded so cynical and even somewhat mean-spirited, but after giving it a chance, it became clearly more like over-the-top mythic tragedy mixed with big dumb galactic soap opera.
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Nov 3, 2023 06:55
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Improbable Lobster posted:Seems bad It comes with a free frogurt
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Nov 3, 2023 08:10
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Gravitas Shortfall posted:It comes with a free frogurt That makes your stomach grow a hundred legs and causes it to eat its way up to your brain yeah
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Nov 3, 2023 10:54
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Black Griffon posted:btw are there places beyond BL and Amazon that are good for grabbing ebooks? I've generally gone physical or audio for most of the stuff I've read, but I'm probably gonna read Ravenor and beyond on e-ink. I have a Kobo reader and mostly buy stuff directly on the Kobo store. They regularly have Black Library books on sale. Not sure how easy it would be to buy on there and read on a different device, though I'd be surprised if there wasn't a way of converting the files into regular EPUBs via Calibre.
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Nov 3, 2023 11:22
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Badly Jester posted:I have a Kobo reader and mostly buy stuff directly on the Kobo store. They regularly have Black Library books on sale. Not sure how easy it would be to buy on there and read on a different device, though I'd be surprised if there wasn't a way of converting the files into regular EPUBs via Calibre. Yeah I imagine Calibre would be able to handle it. I'll check it out, cheers!
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Nov 3, 2023 11:25
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Mazed posted:It's good to know you're better! And, it's interesting how this dynamic works. yeah, 40k style poo poo doesnt really depress me. i can understand why some people are, but its such heigtened hell horror poo poo that its just too unrealistic and nuts. there are moments/books that are. like i found the whole Genestealer cult book realativly depressing on various levels but it was pretty good. but yeah i agree with that. i like 40k because when its well written its genuinly greek tragedy poo poo but bigger and everyone is usually more of a prick somehow. also you can debate lore and topics. but yeah if your already depressed and you read something meloncholly or depressing then it can gently caress you up for a while or at least get way way deeper. I read last unicorn for the first time a couple months back while i was having depression over my job and holy poo poo that book kicked the poo poo out of me and its not even a depressing book really. Dapper_Swindler fucked around with this message at 13:31 on Nov 3, 2023 |
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Nov 3, 2023 13:21
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tomorrow I’ll have to hit the snooze button on this thread to avoid spoilers but I am very excited for End and the Death 2: End and Die Harder
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Nov 3, 2023 13:31
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DAD LOST MY IPOD posted:tomorrow I’ll have to hit the snooze button on this thread to avoid spoilers but I am very excited for End and the Death 2: End and Die Harder Spoiler alert: Horus is a prick
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Nov 3, 2023 13:37
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Finished Pariah. Am I to assume that Deathrow is an Alpha legion space marine who works for Eisenhorn?
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Nov 3, 2023 13:50
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Pron on VHS posted:Finished Pariah. Am I to assume that Deathrow is an Alpha legion space marine who works for Eisenhorn? Yes.
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Nov 3, 2023 13:51
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End and the Death 2 spoiler: Horus is bald and foolish
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Nov 3, 2023 13:59
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Angry Lobster posted:End and the Death 2 spoiler: Horus is bald and foolish Big reveal for part 3 DO NOT READ: Horus gets a hair transplant
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Nov 3, 2023 14:02
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