Preliminary Bombardment Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Morning fraters, I'm thinking of sending my sister a book from black library. She likes sci fi like dune and enjoyed Joe Abercrombie so dark fantasy too. What 40k novel should I send? Maybe Eisenhorn? Pacific81 and N1SB 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Loss Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 (edited) My pick would be Spear of the Emperor by ADB. I don't think there's a better introduction to modern 40k, and while it is reasonably space marine heavy, it also features a female protagonist and touches on a vast array of themes/issues/factions. Edited September 5, 2020 by Marshal Loss Scribe, Roomsky and Llagos_Tyrant 3 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grotsmasha Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Eisenhorn is good, Gaunt's Ghosts too, even the Ciaphus Cain books. Really any of human-centric stuff is more relatable to newcomers to the setting DarkChaplain, Quixus and Pacific81 3 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob P Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Imperial Glory or 15 Hours Pacific81 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkia the Bloody Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 My first 40k Black Library book was indeed the Eisenhorn series. From there I branched out and I love most of Dan Abnett, especially his Inquisition and Gaunts Ghosts books. I think that is a solid start. I am also very partial towards the Night Lords series, but I think that is on the advanced level and she should ease into the setting first. Eisenhorn is good for this, because it can also be read as a futuristic dystopian crime thriller if she is not familiar with the setting. And it is a very fine story. If your sister is not already into Space Marines, I would not really start with them to be honest (I personally found Space Marines boring to begin with and only came onboard after I dived into the Chaos side of things). Roomsky 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobss Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Spear of the Emperor. Accept no alternatives. It's a solid bit-of-everything look into 40k that touches on a selection box of moments, factions and themes People recommending Eisenhorn in AD2020 - you might as well recommend Ian Watson's Space Marine. Xenos is seriously outdated and even by Dan Abnett's standards it isn't written that well Scribe, Gederas, Allart01 and 1 other 4 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Marshal Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Gaunt's Ghosts if she likes military sci-fi, otherwise Eisenhorn as a more 'grassroots' depiction of the setting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malika666 Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 How is Eisenhorn outdated? It seems to work rather well, even today! Quixus, cheywood, Dagoth Ur and 2 others 5 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aa.logan Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Bloodlines might be a nice way of easing into the universe; it’s also got a pretty Abercrombie vibe with the political mascinations going on to. Roomsky and DarkChaplain 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jings Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 (edited) Imperial Guard stuff is probably the best though. My reintroduction to 40K was through a Youtuber doing fan audiobooks. Guy had an accent so I listened ironically to begin with, but by the time I got to Dead Men Walking and 15 Hours I quickly changed my tune. Those are two of my favourite stories of all time now and (particularly Dead Men Walking) would be a great intro to someone unfamiliar. You've got your classic KILL ALL HUMANS oldcrons, you've got a tragic romance and you've got the Death Korps and most importantly - you have a down to earth layman character through which the utter madness of what's going on can be properly contextualized - something rarely found in Space Marine novels. That's what I'd give a new reader. You literally can not go wrong with Eisenhorn or the Gaunt's Ghosts novels though. I think it's the first Gaunt's Ghost novel that describes a ship being operated and you're like "golly gee, this bad guy's ship sure sounds like an awful place to be on" and then it's like "yeah, this is a standard freighter used by the 'good' guys". Edited September 5, 2020 by Jings Valkia the Bloody 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkia the Bloody Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Spear of the Emperor. Accept no alternatives. It's a solid bit-of-everything look into 40k that touches on a selection box of moments, factions and themes People recommending Eisenhorn in AD2020 - you might as well recommend Ian Watson's Space Marine. Xenos is seriously outdated and even by Dan Abnett's standards it isn't written that well Well, just my two cents, but I actually LOVED Ian Watsons "Space Marine". Yes, it is outdated, but it is a very good book. And I beg to differ on the quality of the writing of Eisenhorn.... however, that is of course entirely a matter of taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jareddm Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Still gonna push Honourbound for newcomers. It's got just the right mix of common tropes and 40k-specific elements to make it super accessible while still doing a good job introducing the setting. Roomsky and Gongsun Zan 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
byrd9999 Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 How about Brothers of the Snake, by Dan Abnett. Well written, very readable, and gives a good impression of how Space Marines and humans relate to each other, as well as how Chapters and Companies are comprised. A good overview of in-universe baddies too: Dark Eldar, Orks and Chaos Cultists. Gederas and Pacific81 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gederas Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Also going to throw my hat in for Spear of the Emperor or the Ciaphas Cain series. Haven't read Honourbound yet, but all of the good reviews of it make me interested in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mc warhammer Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Spear of the Emperor. Accept no alternatives. It's a solid bit-of-everything look into 40k that touches on a selection box of moments, factions and themes People recommending Eisenhorn in AD2020 - you might as well recommend Ian Watson's Space Marine. Xenos is seriously outdated and even by Dan Abnett's standards it isn't written that well beat me to it i'd loan space marine. mostly just to see if we could be friends Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob P Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 (edited) I can understand why people are suggesting Eisenhorn but I've recommended a couple of IG over that because they're completely standalone. I'm not personally a fan of the short story Gaunts Ghosts; not sure they're a great first step. I can understand why people are recommending Spear of the Emperor (even though I didn't rate it) but i would say that's better if you know the setting first. Edited September 5, 2020 by Rob P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelborn Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 As it hasn't been mentioned yet: Space Wolves by Bill King; oldie but Goldie Slightly outdated but hell of a trip. Were among my very first 40k books. Gederas and Rob P 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluntblade Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Battle of the Fang was my first, and while it drops you into a conflict which has been running for centuries, it's very comprehensible and a good book overall. Kelborn and Xisor 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkChaplain Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Eisenhorn & Ciaphas Cain are my go-to recommendations for newcomers. Eisenhorn is good in providing the "Man vs Chaos" angle, exploring the insidiousness of corruption, while providing a very compelling point of view character in a relatable narrative framework. Cain, meanwhile, gets you places, is reasonably light reading with plenty of humor, and introduces a bunch of major factions and mechanics of the setting quite nicely. It helps that there's three omnibuses. Frankly, I'm not a fan of the Spears as a complete newcomer recommendation, though. It's a great enough way to "catch up" to post-Rift 40k, Primaris and so forth, but I cannot imagine it being that relevant for somebody without a firm foot in the setting. It rather expects people to understand parts of the setting that an uninvolved reader will completely miss. Other than that, the Horror and Crime imprints are geared towards general audiences as well, so those are easy to suggest. Pacific81 and Rob P 2 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkimaskMohawk Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Bloodlines. It's generic enough sci-fi without any really weird 40kisms. You literally don't need any understanding of 40k to enjoy it. N1SB, DukeLeto69, aa.logan and 1 other 4 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scribe Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 My pick would be Spear of the Emperor by ADB. I don't think there's a better introduction to modern 40k, and while it is reasonably space marine heavy, it also features a female protagonist and touches on a vast array of themes/issues/factions. Spear of the Emperor. Accept no alternatives. It's a solid bit-of-everything look into 40k that touches on a selection box of moments, factions and themes People recommending Eisenhorn in AD2020 - you might as well recommend Ian Watson's Space Marine. Xenos is seriously outdated and even by Dan Abnett's standards it isn't written that well Spear. Then they also have the back story of ADB's books to read as well. That said, its downhill from ADB for the vast (VAST) majority of the rest of BL books...so. Go out on a high. ;p Marshal Loss 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeLeto69 Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Bloodlines. It's generic enough sci-fi without any really weird 40kisms. You literally don't need any understanding of 40k to enjoy it. I second this. A great way to ease in someone with no idea about the setting. Then some inquisitor books. aa.logan 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkimaskMohawk Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 Bloodlines. It's generic enough sci-fi without any really weird 40kisms. You literally don't need any understanding of 40k to enjoy it.I second this. A great way to ease in someone with no idea about the setting. Then some inquisitor books. The only thing with inquisition books is imo you can get a confusing tone. Eisenhorn books/shorts feel more like law enforcement than the absolute authority you can get from other works; you gotta pick the right inquisitor book to get the proper 40k vibe so there's no whiplash. DukeLeto69 1 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fedor Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 (edited) Go straight to the old visionary classics. The seminal canon. Space Marine The inquisition War Eye of Terror Pawns of Chaos Trying to get someone into 40k with something more generic or too polished is like trying to introduce someone to '70s underground progressive rock music with :cusse like Rush (McNeill would do this) sometimes you just have to go straight to Henry Cow. Or Magma. Edited September 5, 2020 by Fedor Pacific81, Roomsky and Rob P 3 Back to top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boytoy Posted September 5, 2020 Share Posted September 5, 2020 spears seem like a good entry point for modern 40k i would also say that the opening trilogy of the heresy series is quite good, and gives a good historical foundation to the setting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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