Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame: 2006 and the Rise of the Heresy

The Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame is Goonhammer’s long-term, reader-participation initiative to recognize those novels that have “cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance” to the Black Library.

Through the votes of readers as well as our community panel of community voices, we’ll examine the entire history of the Black Library, induct the latest winners, and vote for the next round’s candidates every other week.

Welcome to the first Springtime installment of the Black Library Readers' Hall of Fame₁! In keeping with the tradition of 'Spring cleaning,' we've tidied up the place just a little. Entering 2006, this little series known as the 'Horus Heresy' has entered the scene, so we want to make sure each section looks its best.

I'm also trying something new with the article titles. Since we've had to split years into two sections to accommodate the tremendous growth of the Black Library's yearly offerings it's been frustratingly clunky. For example, our previous installment was this mouthful:

Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame: The Winners of 2005 (Jan-May), and Books of 2005 (Jun-Dec)

Yeah, say that five times fast, right? Going forward, though, we're going to try to work with titles that are a little more...succinct? We've been at this project long enough now that most folks participating already know what they're getting, and for anyone new to the party it should be quickly apparent once they're in and voting.

As always, feedback is welcome! Now, on to the winners from the second half of 2005!

The Envelope Please

2005 was an interesting year, one that saw the introduction of both the Necromunda as well as the Blood Bowl fiction lines. Neither would prove particularly long-lived, neither able to sufficiently move past their niche and gain entry to the Hall. 40K and Fantasy, of course, marched ever onwards, as evidenced by our trio of inductees this time.

Keri, WH40K Book Club: "Fifteen Hours is not just one of the most renowned Imperial Guard novels of WH40k. It's so renowned because it's outright one of the best, if not the best Imperial Guard novel in WH40k. It starts off appearing like it's going to be yet another one of those books that tells of the hardships of life in the Guard, just in case you didn't know that life in the world of WH40k was full of pain and misery.

"Okay, sure, the life expectancy of any new recruit on the battlefield is fifteen hours. With what anyone who has read any other book in the universe already knows, this comes as literally no surprise. However, Mitchel Scanlon was able to turn this no surprise into something shocking, brilliant, and masterful. I started the book with a slight lump in my throat. I ended the book completely aghast. If you have not delved into this book yet, you can't start quickly enough. Watch your six."

Jay, Goonhammer: When you look at the notable depictions of the Imperial Guard of the era, things looked a bit different than what we've come to expect from our modern-day Astra Militarum. Ciaphas Cain's humor is almost completely atonal and without a modern analogue, while Gaunt's Ghosts and the Last Chancers featured a plucky group of soldiers that managed to come through time and again against the odds (although not entirely unscathed, mind).

None of these centered that real "meatgrinder" feel of masses of human waves dying in their uncountable numbers like Fifteen Hours did. Indeed, the name itself was a reflection of just how lethal this type of service to the Emperor could be, and for that deep thematic influence Mitchel Scanlon takes his place in the Hall."

Jay, Goonhammer: "Dan Abnett's genius with the Gaunt's Ghosts series was his ability for reinvention. A series that simply focused on one battle or another might be entertaining, but the changes that Abnett undertook on one of his most successful series went a long way into elevating it. Necropolis was urban, siege warfare, while Straight Silver took them into the bloody grit of trench warfare. With Traitor General, the preceding book, Abnett put his characters on an infiltration mission, and here in His Last Command we see Gaunt's enemies just as much within his own command structure as on any battlefield. These were risks- and they paid off, as another Gaunt's book enters the Hall."

Parker, Black Library Subreddit: "This is one of my favorite entries in the Ghosts series. We get to see how the imperium treats even its heroes. Gaunt and his team return from a mission to Gereon designed E-Z, essentially meaning a one way mission. Their unexpected return proves not to be what they'd hoped. The Tanith First is no more, and Gaunt's team gets rolled into the new combined unit with the Belladon, under Col. Wilder, while Gaunt returns to his commissariat duties.

"The story shows just how badly Gereon may have damaged them, and the changes it caused in their personalities. It's the first time we get an extended look at Gaunt when he's acting in his singular role as a commissar. On the other side, we get to see how the remaining Ghosts respond to change. I think this one earns its placement in the hall of fame for how well it returns Gaunt and the team to the Ghosts, adds a whole bevy of new characters, moves the overall story forward and ends with Gaunt at the head of a much larger fighting force, paving the way for so much more in the future."

Jay, Goonhammer: "'I am, to put it bluntly, a fan of dwarfs,' noted Gav Thorpe in his introduction to the Special Edition of The High Kâhl’s Oath, written nearly two decades after Grudge Bearer. That's a deep and enduring passion, and Thorpe earned his early bona fides with this highly-regarded faction novel. It was an early example of a non-human POV, an important distinction considering Fantasy's most notable dwarf, Gotrek Gurnisson, was typically portrayed though his companion Felix's lens. Thorpe let the dwarfs breathe on their own in this tale, expanding our understanding of what made them unique and distinct in Warhammer. Little wonder, then, that Black Library readers voted this as the 2026 Reader's Choice Reprint for the Black Library Celebration."

The Ballot: The Class of 2006 (January to June)

This week we look at the novels from the first half of 2006, including the first two Horus Heresy books that kicked off the new product line.

Reminder: this is not a knockout competition. You can vote in as many books as you feel are worthy of inclusion- every book that ultimately gets enough votes will be inducted!

Warhammer 40,000

Image credit: Games Workshop

Book: Dark Adeptus, by Ben Counter

Synopsis: "One hundred years ago, the forge world of Chaeroneia disappeared amidst rumours of corruption and civil war. Now it has returned and the once teeming factory planet is now a silent sentinel floating through space. Is it an empty tomb or a foul nest of Chaos? That is the question facing Captain Alaric of the Grey Knights. The elite daemon hunters are charged with a new mission; to investigate Chaeroneia, determine the presence of any daemonic influence and terminate with extreme prejudice. However, nothing can prepare even the Grey Knights for what they find on the planet's surface. One hundred years of isolation has corrupted the engineer-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus beyond all imaginings, and their monstrous, possessed machines prowl the surface like predators. In order to complete their mission, the Grey Knights must rely on their faith, and trust a ghost lurking in the machine!"

Note: Book two of the Grey Knights series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Death or Glory, by Sandy Mitchell

Synopsis: "Once again, reluctant hero Commissar Cain is catapulted into glory in the fourth instalment of this tremendously popular series. Escaping from a disastrous space battle, the commissar and his malodorous sidekick Jurgen crash-land behind enemy lines. Even the sly Cain can't avoid a straight fight this time, as the only way out is to round up what few troops they can find and fight their way back to safety. Unfortunately, hundreds of thousands of barbaric alien orks stand in their way."

Note: Book four of the Ciaphas Cain series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Faith & Fire, by James Swallow

Synopsis: "In the grim nightmare future of the 41st millennium, the witch-hunting zealots of the the Sisters of Battle stand between humanity and damnation. From the elite Seraphim warriors to the berserk Sisters Repentia, they are the strong arm of the Ecclesiarchy and the brutal hammer of witches. When dangerous psychic heretic Torris Vaun escapes from her custody, Seraphim Miriya is disgraced in the eyes of her fellow sisters and superiors. Following Vaun's trail to the planet Neva, Miriya takes her sisters in pursuit and, along with Hospitalier Sister Verity, starts her investigations. When they uncover a terrifying plot that could threaten the future of the Imperium, is Miriya's and Verity's faith strong enough for them to triumph?"

Note: Book one of the Sisters of Battle series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Warrior Coven, by C. S. Goto

Synopsis: "Captain Octavius and his Deathwatch kill-team return to action in a most unexpected way, as they find themselves in a dangerous alliance... with aliens! The eldar of Craftworld Ulthwe are under attack by the sinster dark eldar, and it falls to Octavius's warriors to fight alongside the lesser evil of the craftworlders to defeat the dark eldar. But can they trust their allies... or themselves?"

Note: Book two of the Deathwatch series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

The Horus Heresy

Image credit: Games Workshop

Book: False Gods, by Graham McNeill

Synopsis: "The Great Crusade that has taken humanity into the stars continues. The Emperor of mankind has handed the reins of command to his favoured son, the Warmaster Horus. Yet all is not well in the armies of the Imperium. Horus is still battling against the jealousy and resentment of his brother primarchs and, when he is injured in combat on the planet Davin, he must also battle his inner daemons. With all the temptations that Chaos has to offer, can the weakened Horus resist?"

Note: Book two of the Horus Heresy series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Horus Rising, by Dan Abnett

Synopsis: "It is the 31st millennium. Under the benevolent leadership of the Immortal Emperor, the Imperium of Man has stretched out across the galaxy. It is a golden age of discovery and conquest. But now, on the eve of victory, the Emperor leaves the front lines, entrusting the great crusade to his favourite son, Horus. Promoted to Warmaster, can the idealistic Horus carry out the Emperor's grand plan, or will this promotion sow the seeds of heresy amongst his brothers? Horus Rising is the first chapter in the epic tale of the Horus Heresy, a galactic civil war that threatened to bring about the extinction of humanity."

Note: Book one of the Horus Heresy series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Necromunda

Image credit: Games Workshop

Book: Cardinal Crimson, by Will McDermott

Synopsis: "With a billion people literally living on top of each other, religious fanaticism has always had a firm stranglehold on the towering hive city of Necromunda. Foremost amongst these fanatics is Cardinal Crimson and he's setting out on a new crusade to hunt down a newcomer to the hive, a man who knows secrets that could finish Crimson forever. Once again it's down to the dashing Kal Jerico and his companions to save the day."

Note: Book two of the Kal Jerico series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Fleshworks, by Lucien Soulban

Synopsis: "In the nightmare industrial underworld of Necromunda, brutal gangs clash in desperate battles to increase their standing with the rich decadent families who occupy the uppermost spire of the teeming hive city. When Uriah Storm has the chance to lay his hands on some high-grade bio-implants he doesn't hesitate to venture down to the most dangerous levels of the city to recover them. There's one snag though: the implants' current owners are still very much alive."

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Warhammer Fantasy

Image credit: Games Workshop

Book: Day of the Daemon, by Aaron Rosenberg

Synopsis: "In a thrilling race against time, Empire archaeologist Alaric and his no-nonsense sidekick Dietrich must find and destroy four Chaos icons before their evil power can be awakened and used to summon a powerful daemon that will destroy the Empire."

Note: Book one of the Daemon Gates series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Fell Cargo, by Dan Abnett

Synopsis: "The oceans of the Old World have fallen silent. The waves are haunted by the Butcher Ship, a nightmare vessel manned by zombies and captained by a daemon lord. Its ghastly crew bring about a reign of terror on the high seas, killing anyone they encounter. When infamous pirate captain Luka Silvaro returns to reclaim his craft and crew, he is given the most important - and lucrative - assignment of his career. Supported by the Prince of Luccini, Silvaro knows he will be able to claim a king's ransom if he can defeat the daemon lord. But he will have to face treachery from within, the dangers of the high seas and the Chaos-infested crew of the Butcher Ship if he is to earn his reward."

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Inheritance, by Steven Savile

Synopsis: "The first in a blood-drenched trilogy that tells the tale of the Vampire Counts, cruel undead rulers of the cursed land of Sylvania. Within the horror-haunted human Empire, the rise to power of the dark and sinister Vlad von Carstein at first goes unnoticed. However, once he has established his rule in Sylvania, a plague of evil is set loose and the land is transformed into a domain of the undead. Can anyone save the land of the living from this bloodthirsty family of vampires and their terrifying undead armies?"

Note: Book one of the von Carstein trilogy.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Tainted Blood, by Nathan Long

Synopsis: "On their third exciting mission, Reiner and the Blackhearts investigate strange goings-on in the city of Talabheim, where the forces of magic are running wild. Can the Blackhearts solve the mystery before the city becomes lost to Chaos forever?"

Note: Book one of the Blackhearts series.

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Book: Vermintide, by Bruno Lee

Synopsis: "When Erwin Rohmer is asked to investigate a set of mysterious thefts, little does he realise that he will be plunged into a nightmare world of intrigue. No one will believe his tales of malevolent, walking ratmen. Branded madman and heretic, he is forced to run for his life. His last option is to turn to the dwarfs - but will this proud, taciturn warrior-race agree to help him?"

Image credit: Games Workshop[/caption]

Blood Bowl

Image credit: Games Workshop

Book: Death Match, by Matt Forbeck

Synopsis: "In a fantasy kingdom where violence is a way of life, the number one sport is Blood Bowl - gridiron football where anything goes. Dirk 'Dunk' Hoffnung and the rest of the Bad Bay Hackers thought they'd taken everything the game of Blood Bowl could throw at them, but now they literally have to play the game of their lives to prevent the destruction of their kingdom."

Note: Book three in the Blood Bowl series.

[poll id="151"]

The Banner of Glory

Finally, here’s a look at all of the current members of this most prestigious Hall!

Thanks for reading and voting, and we'll see you back in two weeks to announce the first crop of 2006 winners!

Footnotes

Or, for readers in Australia and New Zealand, of Autumn!

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Tags: black library | Black Library Readers' Hall of Fame