Book picks similar to
Shroud of Night by Andy Clark


warhammer-40k
warhammer
sci-fi
black-library

Lucius: The Faultless Blade


Ian St. Martin - 2017
    His name is whispered and cursed across both time and space, a peerless blademaster who even death cannot threaten. He is Lucius the Eternal, blessed by Slaanesh and the greatest swordsman of all the fell Legions imprisoned within the Eye of Terror. With his armies exhausted by unending war and consumed by their own twisted iniquities, Lucius turns to an erstwhile brother of the Emperor's Children to rebuild his strength. Faced with betrayal from without and even from within his own flesh, will Lucius discover something that even one who cannot know death should fear?

Blood of Iax


Robbie MacNiven - 2019
    On the Imperial Hive World of Ikara IX, Chaplain Kastor and Apothecary Polixis, brothers in blood as well as in battle, stand firm against the endless Greenskin horde. But a threat is looming. An invasion like no other assaults the broken city of Shebat, as the crazed warlord Urgork arrives to lay waste to the Imperial forces and capture a Primaris Marines for his own twisted ends. As Kastor and Polixis find themselves separated by the disaster that unfolds, the brothers must turn the tide of war to win the battles that rage within their very natures, as well as those upon the battlefield.

Knights of Macragge


Nick Kyme - 2019
    Amongst these heroes is Cato Sicarius, Master of the Watch and vaunted captain of Second Company. Disaster befalls Sicarius and his brave warriors as their ship, the Emperor’s Will, is lost to the hellish warp, its entire crew believed slain. But Sicarius endures, though he and his men are fighting for their very survival against the denizens of the Great Rift – the daemons and renegades of Chaos. Cast adrift and war-weary, hope appears too distant to grasp until the storm breaks at last and a strange world beckons. As the captain and a band of his chosen warriors descend to the surface seeking aid, they find an isolated land seemingly from an ancient era, one plagued by a terrible enemy. Sicarius will not see this world suffer, and pledges his warriors to the world’s cause, determined to save it, whatever the cost… But what is the dark secret harboured here, and what will it mean for the Ultramarines if they uncover it?Written by Nick Kyme

Sons of the Hydra (Alpha Legion)


Rob Sanders - 2017
    Branded traitor since the Heresy, their motives and actions have always been shrouded in mystery. Alpha Legionnaire Occam the Untrue leads his warband out of its hunting grounds in the Maelstrom on an epic quest for salvation, not just for himself, but for his whole Legion. With the forces of the Inquisition snapping at their heels, Occam and his followers must use all their guile and considerable martial prowess as they make their way to the cold heart of the galaxy, to a confrontation that no one, least of all Occam himself, could have foreseen.Read it BecauseIt's a novel about the sneakiest and most oblique of traitors, written by Rob Sanders, master of the twisty-turny tale. It's sure to make your head spin…

Cadian Blood


Aaron Dembski-Bowden - 2009
    Yet, they cannot imagine what lies ahead ...READ IT BECAUSEAaron Dembski-Bowden's first novel, Cadian Blood is a Black Library classic, pitting a force of plucky Guardsmen from Cadia against a zombie apocalypse.THE STORYWhen the Imperial shrine world of Kathur is blighted by Chaos, the brave Guardsmen of Cadia are sent to reclaim it. The plague of Nurgle has set in deeply on the planet, forcing the Cadians into battle with an innumerable legion of the infected. In the midst of battle, Captain Parmenion Thade is thrust into an unlikely commanding role. Yet, he cannot imagine what lies ahead on Kathur, and just how important it will be to ensure victory there.

Fifteen Hours


Mitchel Scanlon - 2005
    On the battlefields of the far future, only an insane man wouldn’t be. Seventeen years old and still new to the Imperial Guard, he is thrust straight into his first war and must face horrors that his sheltered upbringing could never prepare him for.READ IT BECAUSEIt's a sharp, incisive look at the first hours of war for a new Guardsman, and at all the terrors attendant with that…THE STORYArvin Larn is terrified. On the battlefields of the far future, only an insane man wouldn't be. Seventeen years old and still new to the Imperial Guard, he is thrust straight into his first war and must face horrors that his sheltered upbringing could never prepare him for. The trenches of the 41st millennium are filled with worse things than rats and trenchrot. For one, the world they fight for is being contested by the monstrous barbarian orks. The orks live for battle and know no fear, so it's no wonder that the average life-span of an Imperial Guardsman on this forsaken world is only fifteen hours.

The Lords of Silence


Chris Wraight - 2019
    Armies of Chaos march across the Dark Imperium, among them the Death Guard, servants of the Plague God. But shadows of the past haunt these traitors… The Death Guard have returned to prominence with the return of Mortarion and their fabulous model range, and Chris Wraight's previous work with them (in his Space Wolves novels, notably) makes him the perfect person to delve into their particular darkness.The Cadian Gate is broken, and the Imperium is riven in two. The might of the Traitor Legions, kept shackled for millennia behind walls of iron and sorcery, has been unleashed on a darkening galaxy. Among those seeking vengeance on the Corpse Emperor’s faltering realm are the Death Guard, once proud crusaders of the Legiones Astartes, now debased creatures of terror and contagion. Mighty warbands carve bloody paths through the void, answering their lord primarch’s call to war. And yet for all their dread might in arms, there is no escape from the vicious legacies of the past, ones that will pursue them from the ruined daemon-worlds of the Eye of Terror and out into the smouldering wastes of the Imperium Nihilus.

Avenging Son


Guy Haley - 2020
    Their success or failure may define the very future of the crusade – and the Imperium.READ IT BECAUSEThe brand-new Warhammer 40,000 saga begins here. Experience the Indomitus Crusade and a battle that will be a tipping point for the future in an all-action tale by Guy Haley.THE STORYA great darkness has befallen the galaxy, and the armies of Chaos are rampant. To survive, humanity must retaliate and take back what they have lost. By the will of the reborn primarch, Roboute Guilliman, is the Indomitus Crusade launched – a military undertaking that eclipses all others in known history. From the Throneworld of Terra does the Avenging Son hurl his fleets, their mission the very salvation of mankind.As vessels in their thousands burn through the cold void, the attention of Fleetmistress VanLeskus turns to the Machorta Sound – a region under attack by a dreaded Slaughter Host of the Dark Gods. The success of the Indomitus Crusade will be determined by this conflict, and the desperate mission of Battlegroup Saint Aster, led by Space Marine Lieutenant Messinius. Even then it is but a prelude to the forthcoming bloodshed.

Nexus & Other Stories


Dan AbnettPeter McLean - 2020
    Where the predations of the alien, the witch and the heretic threaten the Imperium, the Angels of Death fight to oppose them.Brother-Sergeant Allectius wages a brutal war of attrition against a seemingly endless xenos foe. But when the vile necrons unleash a mysterious pall over him and the people he protects, Allectius must take his fight beyond the walls… for more than just victory, now their very survival is at stake.Also included in this book is a host of awesome short stories to give you a flavour of the many warring armies that exist within the worlds of Warhammer 40,000.CONTENTSNexus by Thomas ParrottKraken by Chris WraightRedeemer by Guy HaleyThe Test of Faith by Thomas ParrottThe Darkling Hours by Rachel HarrisonLightning Run by Peter McLeanMissing in Action by Dan AbnettThe Crystal Cathedral by Danie WareTo Speak as One by Guy HaleyWhere Dere's Da Warp Dere's a Way by Mike BrooksRedemption on Dal'yth by Phil KellyVoid Crossed by J C StearnsLight of a Crystal Sun by Josh ReynoldsWar in the Museum by Robert RathHeadhunter by Steve ParkerDuty Unto Death by Marc Collins

Ghost Warrior


Gav Thorpe - 2017
    Missing for millennia, the craftworld of Ziasuthra has suddenly reappeared from its sanctuary in the warp, and its denizens wish to make contact. Led by the Spiritseer Iyanna and Yvraine, the Emissary of Ynnead, a small force of craftworld eldar head to Zaisuthra to open negotiations with their brethren. Behind their surface desire to help, however, Iyanna and Yvraine have a stronger motive, they are seeking the final cronesword, which could lie hidden behind ancient web portal on this craftworld. But how co-operative will the mysterious Ziasuthrans prove to be, or do they too have their own agenda?Read it BecauseIt's the first post-Gathering Storm Aeldari novel, and focuses on the new Ynnari faction and their quest to reunite the croneswords and awaken their god.

Warden of the Blade


David Annandale - 2016
    For the first time, discover the origins of this dread task and why only Crowe can be the one to carry it out.Castellan Crowe, Brotherhood Champion of the Purifier order of the Grey Knights, bears a heavy burden – to be the warden of the dread Blade of Antwyr. Its malevolent voice is forever in his head, trying to crack his resolve, urging him to unleash a power he must never use. The toll is terrible, and how long before the incorruptible Crowe is at last defeated? His harrowing task first began at Sandava II… Under the command of Castellan Gavallan, Crowe and his brother Purifiers bring purging flame to a daemonic incursion that threatens to consume the world. What awaits them is more insidious and more powerful than they imagine, and they must reckon too with the machinations of the Blade, as it seeks to destroy its guardian and drown the galaxy in blood.It's a fascinating look at a compelling character, showcasing the duality of the purest of souls as he contends with the corrupting power of an artefact that could damn him and all he holds dear to utter ruination.

Rynn's World


Steve Parker - 2010
    Tragedy strikes when an errant missile destroys the Space Marine's Chapter monastery, killing most of their warriors. With a handful of Crimson Fists left, Kantor must fight the campaign of his life, to defeat Snagrod's orks and prevent his Chapter's annihilation.

The Beast Arises: Volume 1


Dan Abnett - 2018
    After centuries of peace, the Imperium is thrown into panic as worlds everywhere are menaced by orks. In a relentless tide of slaughter, ork attack moons destroy planet after planet with gravity weapons of unstoppable power. On Terra, the High Lords are paralysed by the scale of the threat, and fail to take any effective action. With entire Space Marine Chapters missing or destroyed, does anyone have the will and the power to rise to the Imperium's defence?Read it BecauseFor the first time, the opening chapters of Black Library's epic event series are collected together into one volume. Entire Space Marine Chapters waging war, ork moons over Terra, Imperial Navy manoeuvres – it's all in here!

Dark Apostle


Anthony Reynolds - 2007
    After brutally enslaving the population, they set them to work building a monstrous, kilometres-high tower. What is the Word Bearers' vile purpose, and can they achieve it before the Imperial forces arrive to reclaim the planet?

Mephiston: Blood of Sanguinius


Darius Hinks - 2017
    Only the Lord of Death himself, Blood Angels Chief Librarian Mephiston, has any hope of discerning the fate of this once pious world. After enacting a powerful blood ritual, Mephiston and an honour guard of his fellow Blood Angels reach the stricken shrine world to find it seized by religious civil war. Each faction fights for dominance of a potent artefact, the Blade Petrific, said to be wrought by the Emperor Himself. Yet there is more at work here than a mere ideological schism, for Mephiston believes Divinatus Prime could offer answers to how he became the Lord of Death, he who resisted the Black Rage, and possibly even a way to end the curse of ‘the Flaw’ in all Blood Angels.Read by Richard Reed.