Indefragable Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I got to speak with Jim Swallow 1:1 for quite a while at the recent HH Weekender. Great fellow. I asked him if there was anything he could say about the upcoming Sanguinius Primarchs novel since he had admitted he would get to write it, and he told me the following: “I had an idea that was just approved by [bL leadership]. Essentially, what I want it to be is a single narrative that sums up everything it means to be a Blood Angel. If someone approached it with no idea who or what the BA are or what makes them tick, this tale will put it all on the table for them—glory and tragedy, love and hate, life and death—all at once.” #highhopes Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
dice4thedicegod Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Damn. Why does it have to be Swallow? Other legions get ADB! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250812 Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlisimo Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Damn. Why does it have to be Swallow? Other legions get ADB! No, they don’t. ADB hasn’t written a Primarchs novel. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250822 Share on other sites More sharing options...
m0nolith Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I'm not a fan of Swallow. I really disliked Fear to Tread, and the Garro series although better isn't up to par to other BL writers. I find his characters lacking depth, his villains too cartoony and he has poor worldbuilding. Then again this is happening whether I like it or not, so I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt. I can either be negative or positive about it, and I'd much rather that he succeed in writing a good book than not. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250830 Share on other sites More sharing options...
b1soul Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I cannot give him the benefit of the doubt...his BA work (both 30K and 40K) is utterly mediocre to put it mildly. The quality of his writing isn't going to magically improve. His Garro work is somewhat better, I agree...but still noticeably inferior to what the top BL authours produce. This, along with Buried Dagger, is extremely disappointing news to me. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250841 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Loss Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I really wish somebody else had put his hand up for this,.I'd hoped that French was going to do it after his excellent BA short (I mean, my first hope is that ADB would write everything, but yeah). Then again, maybe they threw a bone to Swallow because he didn't get Sanguinius at the eternity gate (thank goodness). In any case, this is very disappointing news for me. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250842 Share on other sites More sharing options...
m0nolith Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I really wish somebody else had put his hand up for this,.I'd hoped that French was going to do it after his excellent BA short (I mean, my first hope is that ADB would write everything, but yeah). Then again, maybe they threw a bone to Swallow because he didn't get Sanguinius at the eternity gate (thank goodness). In any case, this is very disappointing news for me. I really wish that there would be one novel in the Siege series where the BA are the central legion of the book written by someone who hasn't done a BA book before; ADB, Wraight, McNeill, French, Abbnet, any of those. I know that ADB has expressed his desire to write about Sanguinius at the gate, and I'm hoping he gets to do that (edit: I'm not up on the latest news, has this been confirmed?) , but I also have a faint hope that novel is going to be about the BA as a whole and not just Sanguinius. Save for a few short stories and odd characters like Zephon, the BA have had a pretty poor showing in the BL Heresy series so far when it comes to quality. To be fair I'm fully aware this selfish on my part since I'm a BA player, and more than anything I would want that Eternity Gate book to be good regardless of the subject. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250855 Share on other sites More sharing options...
b1soul Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I thought it was confirmed that ADB woukd get the Eternity Gate. If it's Swallow...LOL, just LOL Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250891 Share on other sites More sharing options...
dice4thedicegod Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Oh man, ADB to get the eternity gate! All my sanguinalias are coming early! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250901 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarl Kjaran Coldheart Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I thought it was confirmed that ADB woukd get the Eternity Gate. If it's Swallow...LOL, just LOL and here I thought I would be able to resist buying the Sanguinius model... Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250927 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roomsky Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 All I ask is that "what it means to be a Blood Angel" is expressed in the form of multiple distinct characters, as opposed to a writhing horde of marines with the same personality + Amit. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250955 Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkChaplain Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Didn't we get a bunch of pieces describing what it means to be a Blood Angel already, from various authors? I'm really worried about this one. Especially looking at how Haley tackled the modern Blood Angels in Dante and The Devastation of Baal, Andy Smillie's post-Heresy Flesh Tearers under Amit, and ForgeWorld coming out with new Legionary-types for Malevolence, I cannot help but worry. As venerable as Swallow's take on the BA may be due to writing some of their first novels, I feel like they have passed him by and grown beyond his scope. ....and if this ends up with another Rafen tie-in, I'll be mad. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5250984 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apothecary Vaddon Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Dare I say the duology Dante and Devastation of Baal are pretty much the definitive BA works as it is... Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251017 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Loss Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 It is not confirmed that ADB has the Eternity Gate. I think it's likely, but we don't know any of the novels for certain apart from Solar War & presumably Abnett having the final book. All we know is that it isn't Swallow doing the EG, because he said as much in person. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251130 Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkChaplain Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Indeedy. People are too quick to jump from "author says he would *like* to tackle subject XYZ" to "author doing XYZ confirmed". I can understand the excitement, but until an author actually gets commissioned or a proposal accepted by the Powers That Be at BL, it's all wishful thinking. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251196 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tymell Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 The idea sounds decent, and I didn't dislike Fear to Tread as much as many seemed to, but I agree with the general concerns. Swallow's past works have felt noticably lacking in distinct, developed characters. I am hoping at the very least to get to see Sanguinius -not- totally defined by being mopey and angsty. It's like seeing my favourite epic power metal band turn into Coldplay :p Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251265 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blindhamster Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I quite like fear to tread overall and rate it higher than a lot seem to. I also liked eisentein and the garro stories after that too. I disliked the 40k novels a lot but I'm happy to give him the benefit of the doubt honestly. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251378 Share on other sites More sharing options...
b1soul Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I had extremelely high expectations for Fear to Tread because of this 10/10 review: http://thefoundingfields.com/2012/08/fear-to-tread-shadowhawk/ So perhaps I am being a tad bit unfair to Swallow. My expectations were set so high and then inevitably disappointed...it just left a bitter taste in my mouth Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251433 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel_of_Blood Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Why the does Swallow have this iron grip on the Blood Angels! I desperately wanted someone else to write them. Now filled with heavy expectations of disappointment for the Angels book. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251487 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel_of_Blood Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I had extremelely high expectations for Fear to Tread because of this 10/10 review: http://thefoundingfields.com/2012/08/fear-to-tread-shadowhawk/ So perhaps I am being a tad bit unfair to Swallow. My expectations were set so high and then inevitably disappointed...it just left a bitter taste in my mouth I read no reviews, my only expectations were that I played Blood Angels as my first army and Signus was a pivotal event of the Heresy. Worst book of the series by a long margin for me. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251489 Share on other sites More sharing options...
dice4thedicegod Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 It isn’t just that Swallow’s characterizing isn’t the best... his whole writing style is overwrought. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251520 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arkangilos Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Swallow, in my opinion, completely fails at “what it means to be a Blood Angel.” Haley’s work for the BA is far superior. Swallow writes good DG, but he completely missed the mark on the BA. That’s why I was so glad Devastation of Baal flat out contradicted the omnibus and retconned it. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251788 Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlisimo Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I wasn’t wowed by Fear to Tread at the time, but I thought it was decent. None of the subsequent novels have done a better job with Sanguinius, imo. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251792 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fedor Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 The main issue i had with Fear to Tread other than some of the BA characters like Raldoron and Azkaellon being flat, was the eventual portrayal of chaos. A planet lighting up with a big chaos symbol, living lamposts etc what the hell was he thinking. That whole scene with the living city was just a trainwreck and he botched the Greater Daemons after a good introduction. Meros was a good character from what i remember though. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251833 Share on other sites More sharing options...
rookie40K Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Fear to Tread audiobook was fantastic. The novel really set the stressful tone with Chaos defying logic that actually shocked the system of the pyscho conditioned space marines to the point of some showing signs of ptsd. This was the first encounter of Chaos for the Blood Angels. I felt there was a lot more to like with this book than not. Although I agree the living world stuff was over the top, I still really enjoyed the book. I’m optimistic about Swallow’s work. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/353696-sanguinius-primarchs-novel-speculation/#findComment-5251967 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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