Warhammer 40,000: Interceptor City by Dan Abnett

On April 5, 2025July 8, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer5 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 22 February 2025)

Series: Sabbat World Crusades/Warhammer 40,000

Length: 15 hours and 35 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Take to the skies once more as legendary Warhammer 40,000 author Dan Abnett presents another ambitious and rip-roaring novel of dogfights and explosive characters in the incredible novel, Interceptor City.

Dan Abnett is an author who I have mentioned multiple times in this blog, primarily because he is one of the best and most prolific writers of Warhammer fiction. Abnett’s impressive work is a substantial pillar of the extended Warhammer 40,000 universe, especially with his entries in the Horus Heresy range, as well as his own various unique series, several of which are amongst some of my very favourite pieces of Warhammer 40,000 fiction. This includes his outstanding Eisenhorn novels (Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus), his long-running Gaunt’s Ghosts books (First and Only, Ghostmaker, Necropolis, Honour Guard, The Guns of Tanith, Straight Silver and Sabbat Martyr), as well as gripping standalone titles like Titanicus. However, one of his very best books is the exceptional Double Eagle, for which Abnett has just released a sequel.

Double Eagle was an incredible novel first released in 2004 that sought to add a new, unique vantage point to the author’s Sabbat Worlds Crusade, the massive, multi-planet war served as a background the Gaunt’s Ghosts books. Double Eagle followed members of a regiment of fighter pilots as they sought to control the skies above the Sabbat Worlds. An intense, beautifully written, character-driven novel, Double Eagle got an easy five-star rating from me thanks to its outstanding and epic dogfights and examples of fighter-on-fighter combat. Double Eagle was easily one of the best Warhammer books I have ever read, and I was very excited to find out that Abnett was finally releasing a sequel.

The Emperor protects, the Aeronautica remembers!

It has been more than 20 years since the battle to save Enothis and the Sabbat Worlds Crusade continues to rage, with millions of soldiers from the Imperium of Man fighting and dying to claim the planets from the arch-enemies grasp. For some the crusade seems like a distant event, but for those on the scarred planet of Lysander, war is a daily occurrence, especially as the air forces of Chaos constantly seek to destroy the Imperial defenders with massive bomber flights. The latest front of this campaign is the ruined hive city of Vesperus, which the enemy is using as cover to launch bombing attacks where the Imperials least expect it. In response, the fighter pilots of the Aeronautica Imperialis have been ordered to secure the destroyed spires and massive building and turn Vesperus into a city of interceptors.

Into this precarious warzone flies former famed fighter pilot Bree Jagdea. No longer the heroic ace who led her squadron to victory on Enothis, Jagdea now only pilots cargo haulers, determined to stay out the fighting. However, an encounter with an old comrade leads her back into danger when she agrees to help the war effort by driving a needed replacement fighter to the Circus 66 squadron, currently serving in the ruins of Vesperus. Planning to leave immediately after dropping off her precious cargo, Jagdea instead finds herself conscripted to join the ranks of the squadron as they face overwhelming odds against massed opposition from the forces of Chaos.

With no way out of the fight, Jagdea must once again contend against opponents in the sky if she wants survive and escape this new hellish posting. However, this is not the air combat she is familiar with, instead the fighting in Vesperus is a cramped and deadly affair as their fighter aircraft must fight amongst the devastated and towering buildings of the Hive, where even the slightest error could result in death. Forced to adapt to the new urban conditions Jagdea attempts to bring out her former skills and talent to survive the enemy all around her. But with mysterious deaths haunting the squadron and the addictive thrill of danger once again luring her in, can Jagdea once again become a hero, or will she finally face her fate in the sky?

Well damn, now that’s how you do a sequel! Dan Abnett continues to showcase why he is one of the very best authors of Warhammer fiction with the exceptional Interceptor City. A particularly intense and captivating read that brings back one of Abnett’s best protagonists, Interceptor City was everything I hoped it would be, and more, as this novel simply blew me away. One of my new favourite Warhammer 40,000 novels, Interceptor City gets a very easy five-star rating from, and I love the unique direction Abnett took this long-awaited sequel.

I have so much love for the narrative in Interceptor City, especially as Abnett decided to provide something very special for this sequel. Abnett could have produced another open-skied flying story set right after the events of Double Eagle, and this probably would have been good enough to keep most Warhammer fans happy. Instead, the author decided to raise the stakes in a big way by producing a deep and intense character-driven novel that brings back and focusses solely on a traumatised and retired version of his previous novel’s protagonist 20 years after the events of the first book, and places them into an impossible combat situation amongst suffocating spires and devastated city blocks to produce some outstanding action.

Told exclusively from the point of view of protagonist Bree Jagdea, Interceptor City went in some very interesting directions that bring the reader quickly into the fray. Effectively setting up the unique situation on Lysander and Jagdea’s current emotional state, the story soon introduces some of the key supporting characters, before bringing Jagdea to the thick of the fighting in the devastated hive city of Vesperus. Forced by circumstances to once again fly in combat, Jagdea finds herself in a new craft alongside an insane group of pilots trying to survive against impossible odds. This results in the powerful main body of the plot as the traumatised Jagdea attempts to survive in an array of lethal fights amongst the massive, destroyed buildings of the Vesperus hive.

Abnett works in some incredible aerial sequences throughout Interceptor City, and you really become absorbed in the elaborate flying duels amongst the ruined buildings. There is a great character-driven story here as Jagdea remembers her old instincts and slowly adapts to the new flying conditions she is forced to fight in. At the same time as the brilliant action sequences, Jagdea also gets to know the other eccentric members of her new squadron, and there are some amazing character moments as she tries to understand their desperation, insanity and unique methods, while also trying to improve the survival rate of the less experienced pilots. The flying scenes get more intense as the plot continues, especially as Jagdea regains her confidence, and you begin to understand more of the squadron’s madnesses. There are some truly impressive story moments here, including a harrowing survival sequences and multiple complex aerial fights, that are cleverly worked together into one coherent and compelling plot. Thanks to a great subplot, the later part of the book has a darker edge of mystery that requires to protagonist to try and understand the deeper motivations of the supporting cast. While the solution of this mystery is somewhat obvious, it proves to be very well set up, and Abnett utilises it to masterfully increase the novel’s tension and stakes. Interceptor City ends on a dark but fun note, as Abnett bucks against the expected final confrontation and allows the protagonist to end events on her own terms in a very over-the-top fashion. This proved to be an extremely addictive narrative that really dives into the heart of the protagonist and provides some powerful and action-packed moments.

I loved this amazing Warhammer 40,000 novel, and I felt that Abnett presented it in such an impressive way. Cleverly settling in as a standalone novel amongst the author’s other Sabbat World Crusade books, Interceptor City features a somewhat different style from Double Eagle, which works to make this sequel stand out on its own. Rather than the extensive, multiple viewpoints that Double Eagle featured, Interceptor City is told exclusively from the perspective of the damaged protagonist Bree Jagdea. While this does mean that you don’t get the full-picture war story that made Double Eagle cool, it allowed Abnett to really dive into his impressive protagonist’s story and showcase her personality and emotional state. This ensured that this sequel was a particularly powerful and complex read, especially as Jagdea is a shadow of her former self after burning out as a pilot and crashing at her peak. Now back into the cockpit, Jagdea is forced to come to terms with her own fears and doubt, as well as try the legacy of her past actions. Abnett did an exceptional dive into Jagdea’s mind throughout Interceptor City, and he utilised the sole viewpoint to really explore her fears, hopes and the reasons behind her retirement. This proved to be quite exceptional, and while readers are advised to read Double Eagle first to see this protagonist at her flying peak, new readers can easily dive into Interceptor City and appreciate its powerful emotional heart. Throw in an over-the-top cast of eccentric pilots and killers with some additional complex and fascinating stories that the protagonist gets to know and trust, and Interceptor City has an impressive amount of character work that I found really fascinating. Abnett layers this was a very grimdark tone, which allows the reader to full appreciate the desperate situation the protagonists are, and readers come away with an intense and impressive appreciation for the story.

While the great writing and the impressive focus on the protagonist’s mind ensures Interceptor City had an amazing story, the true highlight of this book is the outstanding depictions of aerial combat. Abnett somehow managed to exceed his various impressive aerial sequences from Double Eagle in this sequel, and the resulting scenes of fighter-on-fight combat were so damn impressive, especially as the author describes them in exceptional detail. The change of scenery from open skies to cramped urban flight conditions was extremely smart, and it ensured that Interceptor City’s flight scenes really stood out. While the protagonist isn’t facing the overwhelming numbers of enemy fighters she encountered in Double Eagle, she is now forced to deal with small groups of skilled pilots amongst the wreckage of Vesperus, flying at impossible speed where even the slightest mistake could lead to death. This results in some extremely nerve-wracking and claustrophobic sequences, as the protagonist tries to simultaneously fight and survive the dangerous environment she is flying through. These fight sequences were so damn cool, and I loved how Abnett slowly improved the protagonist’s performance with each flight to reflect her growing confidence and mastery of the new location. It is honestly impossible to stop reading Interceptor City during any of these sequences, especially the massive high-stakes ones at the end, and I frankly could not believe how Abnett made the dogfights and flying scenes even more epic in this outstanding sequel.

As is my preference with all things Warhammer, I chose to check out Interceptor City on audiobook rather than seeking out a physical copy. Warhammer audiobooks are so damn good, and I love how well the elaborate and dangerous Warhammer 40,000 setting comes across when it is read out by a skilled narrator. Abnett’s Warhammer 40,000 novels are a great example of this, as his compelling character and intense, tailored action really comes across on audiobook, especially in the hands of one of my favourite narrators Toby Longworth. Longworth, who has lent his voice to most of Abnett’s books, really understands the best way to present the author’s fantastic narratives, and I love his cool take on all his Warhammer novels. This was particularly true with Interceptor City, as Longworth did a masterful job bringing this complex tale to life, moving the main plot along at a quick pace and ensuring the action sequences were as epic as possible. The passionate way he reads out the complex dogfights is just brilliant, and I found myself getting more and more drawn into these scenes as Longworth effortlessly vocalises every turn of the fighter and every lethal explosion in a tense and powerful manner. You really got a sense of the protagonist’s desperation and the claustrophobic flying conditions she experienced thanks to this narration, and I was honestly on the edge of my seat for some of these outstanding sequences. Throw in Longworth’s great array of compelling voices, which perfectly match the character they are assigned to, unique space accents and all, and the full impact of this amazing Warhammer 40,000 novel really comes out in the audiobook format. Coming in with a run time of 15 and a half hours, Interceptor City is an epic audiobook to get drawn into, and I powered through this format in no time at all. I actually wished it was a longer audiobook, it was that much fun, and as such I cannot recommend this format enough.

Dan Abnett was once again on fire with this exceptional and impossibly impressive Warhammer 40,000 novel. A worthy sequel with its own incredible narrative, Interceptor City was a blast from start to finish and I had such a great time getting through this ambitious read. Powerful, exciting, and loaded with some of the best Warhammer action sequences you are likely to read, Interceptor City comes highly recommended, and this might be one of my new favourite books. I cannot wait to see what awesome Warhammer 40,000 novel Abnett writes next, and I hope we don’t have to wait another 20 years to see a new aerial adventure from this amazing author.

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Warhammer 40,000: Double Eagle by Dan Abnett

On October 18, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer16 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 January 2004)

Series: Warhammer 40,000/Sabbat Worlds

Length: 10 hours and 16 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The master of Warhammer fiction, Dan Abnett, takes to the skies with the deeply addictive and ultra epic fighter pilot novel Double Eagle.

Readers familiar with this blog will know that I have been extremely damn obsessed with Warhammer fiction the last couple of years, having spent a substantial amount of time reading and reviewing numerous books from the franchise. Of the many Warhammer fiction authors I have read during this period, one of the most impressive is the legendary Dan Abnett, who has written so many exceptional and powerful books around the franchise, including several series considered to be the seminal texts of the extended universe. I have had a ton of fun with many of his books, including his brilliant Eisenhorn trilogy (Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus), and he has multiple entries in my current favourite Warhammer 40,000 books list. However, his best-known series is the iconic Gaunt’s Ghosts books, which I am currently in the middle of reading.

The Gaunt’s Ghosts books are a beloved and key series of Warhammer 40,000 fiction that seeks to give readers a moving look at the lives of the frontline human soldier in this grimdark universe. Set in an extended, multi-planet campaign, known as the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, the Gaunt’s Ghosts books follow a ragged regiment of soldiers as they attempt to survive the dark servants of Chaos coming for them. I am having an exceptional time reading the Gaunt’s Ghosts series, and in 2024 alone I have read two particularly epic entries, Straight Silver and Sabbat Martyr. However, before I dive any further into the series, I decided to read the spin-off novel, Double Eagle, which I have had on my to-read list for a while now. Double Eagle was an interesting and unique novel that follows members of an airmen wing who were introduced in the fifth Gaunt’s Ghosts book, The Guns of Tanith. Set after their mission with the Ghosts, Double Eagle follows these pilots, including a few characters from The Guns of Tanith, in a brutal new campaign.

War has engulfed the Sabbat World system as the forces of the Imperium of Man attempt to reclaim multiple worlds invaded by the forces of Chaos. After years of fighting, the Imperium’s crusade has reached a tipping point, with victory or defeat for the entire campaign hanging on the results of a few key battles. While the fighting is fierce throughout the system, nowhere is it more desperate than the beleaguered world of Enothis.

After failing to conquer the Chaos footholds on Enothis, the infantry and armoured forces of the Imperium are in full retreat, attempting to traverse miles of hostile terrain to return to safe territory, all while being harassed by relentless enemy aircraft. With the fate of the planet in the balance, the commanders of the crusade deploy multiple squadrons of Imperial fighters and bombers to Enothis to turn the entire conflict into an air war. If the Imperial pilots can hold back the advancing tides of Chaos and allow the ground forces to regroup the war for Enothis may be won. But if the airmen fail, then Enothis and the entire Sabbat Worlds campaign is doomed.

Amongst the pilots sent to Enothis are the elite flyers of the Phantine Air Corps. Veterans from the recent war to liberate their home planet of Phantine, the pilots of the Phantine Air Corps are determined to do their bit in this new conflict. But the battle for Enothis will be unlike anything seen before, as thousands of Chaos aircraft descend on the planet, hoping to obliterate the defenders. Severely outnumbered, can even the dogged Phantine pilots hold back the approaching tide of dark air machines before the planet is conquered, especially with an unnaturally skilled Chaos ace stalking the skies, determined to bring every opposing pilot down in flames?

Just when I think that Dan Abnett couldn’t impress me even more, I go and read Double Eagle. A brilliant, intense, and exceptionally well-written novel that focuses on a particularly cool aspect of the Warhammer universe, Double Eagle blew me away with its great characters and elaborate air combat sequences. I had an incredible time with Double Eagle, and it gets an easy five-star rating from me.

I deeply, deeply enjoyed Double Eagle, as Abnett took the brief of a Battle of Britain-inspired Warhammer 40,000 story and applied his usual impressively detailed style and powerful character-driven storytelling to produce an outstanding and addictive read. Perfectly spinning off from the previous Gaunt’s Ghosts books and bringing the reader to another adventure in the expansive Sabbat World Crusades, Double Eagle has a brilliant narrative loaded with action that goes hard and fast for your feels and refuses to let go once it has you firmly in your grasp.

Double Eagle starts off quickly, getting the reader across the brutal new campaign and the importance of the aerial war that emerges, you are soon introduced to multiple characters and shown some initial awesome sequences with some explosive dogfights. From there the story moves at a fast but smart pace, as you follow several distinctive and often overlapping character arcs throughout the length of the brutal campaign on Enothis. You really get dragged into each major protagonist’s story as they attempt to survive the flying war. There are some excellent battle scenes in this first half of the book and Abnett really shows how epic he can make a fighter pilot dogfight very early on. The characters each experience some highs and lows in the first half of the book, and it doesn’t take you long to get attached the protagonists and their complex personal tales within the confines of the main story.

However, it is the second half of the book where everything comes together perfectly. Each of the protagonists experience some version of personal loss or difficulty, and the impact of the war slowly drains them, taking them to some dark places. Abnett sets up a brilliant underdog narrative around the protagonists, as the massive fleet of Chaos airships seek to crush them. You can really see the parallels between this narrative and the Battle for Britain at this point, especially as the tired and severely outnumbered Phantine fighters and their local allies attempt to hold back the overwhelming and often Germanic-inspired forces coming for them. Everything leads up to a massive final confrontation, as the protagonists engage in a series of brutal and drawn-out dogfights and aerial confrontations as we lead up to the finale. While a couple of the character arcs leading up to this are a tad unsurprising, the way that Abnett writes them makes you love every second it. The author brings everything to an epic close with continued and captivating action that honestly is impossible not to react to at times. There are some very powerful moments at the closes, especially when some characters get everything they want, and you come away from Double Eagle wishing Abnett had made this book even longer.

Abnett once again masterfully crafts his compelling narrative together in such an effective way that I honestly just couldn’t stop listening to this book. Making excellent use of multiple complex perspectives, you are swiftly drawn into the lives of several ordinary soldiers drafted into the deadly aerial war against a massive opposing fleet. Featuring a range of complex characters arcs, Abnett expertly balances the character-driven plot between the various perspectives, while also featuring an epic war story that hits in all the right places. Abnett’s use of quick-fire perspective changes works to create an excellent and fast-paced narrative, and it works especially well in some of the novel’s more intense sequences. Speaking of action, you can’t talk about Double Eagle without discussing the amazing and epic aerial fight scenes and dogfights that make the book so damn distinctive. Abnett did a remarkable job of harnessing the energy and feel of classic World War II fighter combat and bringing it into the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Featuring many, many awesome sequences of aerial combat, Double Eagle really feels like you’re in a futuristic Battle for Britain as you witness fights between small groups of fighters fending off mass raids from Chaos forces, as well as sequences from the perspective of Imperial bombers. The resulting dogfights between advanced fighter craft works so damn well in the context of the story, and you are treated to some truly epic sequences. I was constantly enthralled by the brilliant aerial combat and flight sequences, and Abnett did an exceptional job expressing the intensities of flight, the ultra-fast pace nature of the combat, and the craziness of a massed aerial battle. I could have honestly spent many, many more hours listening to Abnett’s descriptions of aerial combat, and there are so many excellent writing elements to this book that drag you in.

Double Eagle also proved to be an interesting and particularly strong Warhammer 40,000 novel that is really going to appeal to a wide range of readers. Spinning off from the Gaunt’s Ghosts books, Double Eagle is tailor made for fans of the original series, although familiarity with the Gaunt’s Ghosts books isn’t necessary to enjoy this epic book. While there are a few references, returning characters, and discussions about the overarching Sabbat Worlds Crusade, for the most part any reader can easily dive into Double Eagle and follow the story with no issues at all. As with most tie-in books in the franchise, Double Eagle is best enjoyed by existing Warhammer fans, who will once again enjoy Abnett’s compelling insights into the canon. I know that I really loved the exploration of Warhammer 40,000 air combat, and I loved how Abnett explored the physics, as well as the reasons why aerial fighters are still utilised in a universe where space travel exists. However, I also felt that Double Eagle would serve as a pretty good entry point to any new readers interested in finding out why the Warhammer 40,000 universe is so damn cool. Indeed, readers who are a fan of aerial focused military fiction or World War II fighter combat fiction can very easily jump into the new world here, as Abnett really presents a tale they would enjoy. I need to read more Warhammer books from Abnett (I have several currently in my queue), and I currently very excited to read the recently announced sequel to Double Eagle, Interceptor City, which is set to be released later this year.

I found that the writing element that really brought Double Eagle together where the excellent characters at the heart and soul of the plot. Focusing on several intriguing pilot characters, Abnett dove into the mindset of these flyers and did an amazing job capturing their love of the air and their desire to be the best. However, as the book continues, you see a darker side to many of these characters, as the toil of war drags them down into their own mental hells. While it did take me a little while to get across every protagonist, I eventually got drawn into the excellent character-focused storylines that Abnett set up in Double Eagle, and it was great to see the return of several characters introduced in The Guns of Tanith. This includes the Phantine flight commander, Bree Jagdea, and the bombardier Oskar Viltry. Jagdea proves to be a great centre for much of the plot, and her steady determination to keep her flight together and survive the various rigors of war, really strike a chord with the reader. Viltry’s narrative is a little more complex, as the veteran pilot is suffering from trauma after being shot down and captured in The Guns of Tanith. Certain about his own impending death, Viltry spends much of the book as a morose and depressed figure, until he finds someone worth living for. Viltry’s storyline proves to be particularly heartfelt, especially as he has a relatively nice romance angle, and I felt that Abnett really captured his trauma and desire for a better life.

Aside from Jagdea and Viltry, Double Eagle also features several other impressive perspective characters who really bring the narrative together. This includes young Phantine pilot, Vander Marquall, who serves as a major protagonist. A rookie pilot fighting in his first campaign, Marquall has a massive desire to prove himself. His obsession with becoming an ace and being respected becomes an overwhelming part of his character, and you find yourself occasionally disliking him, while also simultaneously cheering him on. Thanks to his interactions with the other characters, Marquall gets some much-needed perspective at times (that scene with his mechanic at the end was brilliant), and I felt he had one of the most complex, dark and relatable storylines in the entire book. Abnett rounds out the characters with local pilots August Kaminsky, a wounded veteran no longer allowed to fly, and Enric Darrow, a rookie without a plane after getting shot down in the opening scenes by the novel’s big bad. While parts of Kaminsky and Darrow’s storylines are a little predictable, you really get invested in their various battles, especially as Abnett produces some interesting character moments and interactions for them. I especially loved the hilarious exchanges between Kaminsky and Jagdea during one fun sequence, and Darrow proves to be a very likeable and determined young character to get behind. These main characters, plus an excellent supporting cast, were great to follow in Double Eagle, and it will be awesome to continue at least one survivor’s story in the upcoming sequel.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that I ended up listening to Double Eagle on audiobook, as there is frankly no better way to enjoy an epic Warhammer 40,000 novel. While I always gush about how much I enjoy a Warhammer audiobook, I frankly really need to emphasise just how impressive and exceptional Double Eagle was in this format. The many, many aerial combat sequences come across so damn well when they are read out to you, and I loved how easily it was to visualise the fast-paced and exceptional flight scenes. You really get lost in the battles when you listen to them, and I was frankly buzzing the entire time I was listening to Double Eagle. Part of the reason this audiobook was so damn good was the inclusion of one of my favourite audiobook narrators Toby Longworth. Longworth has lent his voice to most of Abnett’s Warhammer 40,000 novels in recent years, and frankly the two are a match made in heaven. The story comes across so effectively in Longworth’s voice, and he really makes every scene, especially the exciting action sequences, that little more epic. I also really love the fantastic and compelling voices he uses for the various characters. While a couple of character voices sounded the same as those Longworth used in the Gaunt’s Ghosts audiobooks, I felt that they perfectly fit every figure they were assigned to, and you really get drawn into the matching character arcs as a result. Frankly this audiobook was perfect, and I had so much fun listening to it. With a run time of just over 10 hours, the Double Eagle audiobook is very easy to power through, and that is exactly what I did.

With an elaborate, powerful and addictive story about glorious battles in the sky, Double Eagle was a particularly epic Warhammer 40,000 novel that proves impossible not to fall in love with. Another exceptional novel from Dan Abnett, who once again shows why he is one of the best authors of Warhammer fiction, Double Eagle had me hooked from the very first chapter, and I honestly couldn’t stop reading it until the very end. This book comes very highly recommended, and I cannot wait to read the sequel later this year.

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Skyward by Brandon Sanderson

On December 28, 2018August 16, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Young Adult26 Comments

Publishers: Gollancz

Audible Studios

Publication Date – 6 November 2018

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Legendary fantasy and science fiction author Brandon Sanderson once again delivers an incredible five-star read with Skyward, a brilliant young adult science fiction story that follows the journey of an energetic young protagonist at she attempts to claim the stars.

As of right now, I have only had the opportunity to read one of Sanderson’s novels, the epic fantasy book, The Way of Kings, which was easily one of the best fantasy reads of the last decade and which I gave a five-star review here. After enjoying The Way of Kings I was keen to see how Sanderson’s writing ability translated to the young adult science fiction genre. I have to say I was in no way disappointed, as Sanderson once again creates an amazing and exciting piece of literature, all set within an incredibly detailed new fictional landscape. Skyward is the first book in Sanderson’s planned Skyward series, which is to be made up of a total of four books. The second book in this series, Starsight, has apparently already been written, with a release planned for November 2019, while the third and fourth books, both yet untitled, already have tentative release dates in 2021 and 2022. Starsight is already on my must-read list for next year, and will appear in my Waiting-on-Wednesday series of blog posts the moment the cover gets released.

Far in the future and on another planet, humanity has been under constant attack for hundreds of years. A mysterious alien race known as the Krell pursued the human fleet across the stars, forcing it to crash on a desolate planet. Those humans that survived were forced to flee below the planet’s surface, hiding in caves and only re-emerging when they gained the ability to create space fighters capable of fighting off the alien craft. Now the Defiance Defence League (DFF) fights a constant war against the Krell, who are determined to wipe out the DFF’s main base and the production facilities beneath it.

Since she was a young girl, Spensa Nightshade has always dreamed of becoming a DDF pilot, the elite defenders of humanity, in order to claim the stars. However, years ago, her father deserted during the most famous battle in DDF history and was shot down by his comrades. Having been forced to live for years as a daughter of a coward, Spensa is eager to forge her own heroic destiny, but the DDF will never accept her into their flight program.

But with the war going badly and new pilots needed, Spensa is given a chance to join the DDF, thanks to the actions of her father’s old wingmate. Joining a class of misfit cadets who dub themselves Skyward Flight, Spensa learns to fly the DDF’s ships against the Krell and quickly shows her determination and skill. However, her father’s legacy is constantly weighing her down, whether by the sabotage of the DDF or the constant fear that deep down she might also be a coward. With the Krell attacks getting worse, will Spensa find her place as a pilot, or will a terrible secret from the past come back to haunt her? And through it all, what role will the ancient spaceship Spensa discovers have on the fate of humanity?

I not only received a physical copy of Skyward from Hachette Australia, but I also listened to a copy of this book in its audiobook format, which is narrated by Sophie Aldred and goes for just a little over 15 hours. Both versions are pretty cool. The trade paperback version of this novel contains a couple of great maps at the start of the novel that some readers may find useful when it comes to navigating around the story. There is also a series of intriguing drawings throughout the book that show off several of the ships, both human and alien, that are featured in the story, all of which are juxtaposed against the main ships that the protagonist and her wingmates train and fight in. The later parts of the book also contain some fantastic illustrations of flight manoeuvres and abilities, which prove informative when utilised with Skyward’s many aerial flight sequences. I personally preferred the audiobook format of Skyward to the physical copy, as it allowed me to enjoy the many action-packed aerial scenes a whole lot more. I also loved the narration by Aldred, who was able to create a number of excellent voices for the book’s various characters.

The reason I am giving Skyward such a high-star review is because it is an incredible piece of young adult science fiction that not only has an amazing story but which also contains several outstanding characters and some of the best ship-to-ship action sequences I have ever seen, all of which is combined with Sanderson’s trademark knack for large-scale world building.

I had a lot of fun with the story contained within this book, as Sanderson sets forth a layered and powerful narrative for the reader to enjoy. Told primarily from the point of view of the protagonist, Spensa, Skyward contains a fantastic coming-of-age storyline set within a flight academy where the cadets learn how to fly in defence of their planet. I always love a good school based learning narrative, and Sanderson has created an outstanding version of this, where the main characters spend most of the story learning the theory behind flying, while also engaging in real-life combat situations as they train. As a result, there are heartbreaking losses, great emotional connections forged, and secrets and hints about the overall story slowly released to the reader, all while the protagonist is forced to contend with the machinations of a biased authoritarian figure who even gets to narrate a few chapters to highlight the reasons for her actions. Overall this is an addictive and exciting story that will really stick in the reader’s imagination.

Sanderson has once again created a detailed and captivating new world in which to set his new series. The book is set within a new planet that humans from Earth crashed upon years ago in the past, fleeing from a mysterious alien force. For years the humans lived a nomadic lifestyle in the caves beneath the planet before finally fighting back using newly fabricated fighter craft. Sanderson has created a fantastic world to host this story, exploring a society forced to live in caves and eventually creating a military base on the surface. I love how the author has created a ton of new societal rules and features, as well as a world above and beneath the surface of this alien planet. There is also some really cool and unique technology that comes into play throughout the book, especially in the many aerial combat sequences. The aliens are mostly a mystery for the entirety of the novel, although I did really enjoy the reveals about them. I imagine Skyward’s fictional universe will be expanding out in the future instalments of this series and I am very excited to see where this goes.

Some of the best things about this book are the excellent characters that the author has populated his story with. Of particular note is the main protagonist and point-of-view character, Spensa, who is a really fun and complex character to see this story through. Spensa is a great character whose life has always been defined by her father’s legacy. As a result, she puts on an extremely brave and aggressive front to everyone she meets as she tries to convince people she is not a coward. Because of this, Spensa is quite an eccentric character, spouting out long expositions about how she will harm her opponents, which is quite amusing at times. However, as the reader gets further into the book, they find out how vulnerable she truly is, as deep down her father’s actions and legacy have had quite an impact on her. As she progresses into flight training and becomes more and more like her father, she must content with the trials of war, emotional issues with her friends and loved ones, the DDF’s indoctrination against cowards and the secrets that have been kept from her. The internal conflict and fear that follows is really well written by Sanderson and forms a captivating emotional centre for this amazing narrative.

Quite a lot of time is spent looking at the other cadets that make up Skyward Flight. Each member of this flight has a unique personality and is given a callsign to make them more distinctive. There is a fun camaraderie between these characters, and they form quite a close-knit team. Sanderson spends significant time building up several of these characters, and Spensa, much like the reader, gets quite attached to them. As a result, when tragedy hits the team, there are some significant emotional blows that come with it. I liked how the different friendships and relationships help Spensa grow as a character, as she started out the book a bit of a loner. These side characters are absolutely fantastic, and add another great emotional feature to Skyward’s story.

While Spensa and Skyward Flight are all great characters, my favourite character in all of Skyward had to be the sentient spaceship, M-Bot. M-Bot is an advanced spaceship who, for various reasons, is obsessed with mushrooms, spends much of the book cracking bad jokes and forms a close relationship with Spensa, the human who discovers it. M-Bot has to be one of the funniest and quirkiest characters in the whole book, providing several of the book’s best jokes and funniest lines. The ship’s relationship with Spensa is really well written, as it attempts to balance its existing command code with its new friendship. This results in some amazing scenes, and I never thought before this book that I would get emotional about a spaceship. M-Bot is particularly great in the audiobook version, as Aldred gives the ship an excellent Irish accent that really fits the character’s personality perfectly and makes M-Bot stand out throughout the book.

Easily my favourite thing about Skyward has to be the insane and incredibly well-written aerial combat sequences that fill this book. All of the battles take place within the planet’s atmosphere among falling debris fields, resulting in some elaborate and exciting dog-fights between the DDF fighters and the Krell. Quite a number of battles feature throughout Skyward, as the protagonist and her companions attempt to stop the Krell destroying humanity’s only hope of leaving the planet. The author spends significant time exploring the physiology of these aerial fights, including the various tactics, training and technology utilised by the DDF and the Krell. In particular, Sanderson has created some unique technology to help create some truly amazing combat sequences, including light-lances, which are energy beams that the DDF fighters use to not only throw Krell fighters around but to also help their ships do precise and elaborate manoeuvre around the falling debris. I also loved how Spensa and her flight got better as the book progressed, reflecting their training and their ability to work together as a team. All of these battle scenes are fast paced and incredibly well written, and the reader constantly finds themselves placed into the middle of these epic battle sequences. I found that the audiobook version of Skyward was particularly effective at bringing me into these combat scenes, and I was often on the edge of my seat as I listened to them. There are a number of these amazing sequences throughout the book, whether they were real battles or simulations. Highlights for me have to be a high-speed chase through a giant, ancient factory crashing down to the ground, or the final high-stakes battle that serves as an epic conclusion to the whole story. These battles are truly an amazing feature of Skyward, and I cannot wait to see what incredible aerial battles feature in the future books of this series.

Skyward is one of my favourite books of 2018 and is definitely one of the best young adult books I have read this year. Brandon Sanderson once again cements his legacy as one of modern fiction’s best fantasy and science fiction authors, as readers are treated to an epic science fiction read set in a rich and detailed new world. Featuring some amazing characters and outstanding depictions of aerial combat between humans and aliens, this book comes highly recommended. I have made no secret about how much I am looking forward to future entries in this series and cannot wait to see where Sanderson takes this story next.