Tag: Science Fiction

Warhammer 40,000: Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok by Denny Flowers

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer1 Comment

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 1 July 2025)

Series: Warhammer 40,000

Length: 6 hours and 55 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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One of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 authors, Denny Flowers, returns with one of the more entertaining novels of 2025 with Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok.

Denny Flowers is an interesting rising author of Warhammer 40,000 fiction who has so far written several particularly notable books.  Starting with his cool debut, Fire Made Flesh, Flowers went on to write his two exceptional Lucille von Shard novels, Outgunned and Above and Beyond (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2024), both of which are among some of my favourite pieces of Warhammer 40,000 fiction.  I also had a great time with Flowers’s inclusions in Da Red Gobbo Collection, Da Gobbo’s Demise and Da Wrong Type of Green, two hilarious entries that focused the always entertaining orks and grotz.  These short stories were quite hilarious, and it made me very excited when I saw that Flowers had a new Warhammer 40,000 novel focusing on the orks coming out this year with Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok.

Plot Synopsis:

“I made Ghazghkull. Not the Gods. Me.”

Grotsnik comes to the aid of Beastboss Bakum on Hive Prome, and it soon becomes apparent that the Mad Dok is feverishly working on something that could change the fate of ork-kind forever.

READ IT BECAUSE
How wild does a painboy have to be to earn the nickname “Mad Dok”? Find out as you follow Grotsnik – with eager scalpel in hand – as he plans his latest galaxy-changing creation. What could it be?

THE STORY
Da Mad Dok Grotsnik, creator of Ghazghkull Thraka, is a painboy beyond legend. What – and who – he harbours in his formidable brain is a mystery to every ork but himself, and an army of orderlies provides him with a constant supply of flesh with which to tinker.

So, when Grotsnik comes to the aid of Beastboss Bakmun, whose rampage on Hive Prome teeters on the brink of going out not with a Waaagh! but with a whimper, Bakmun can’t believe his luck.

Following a series of increasingly unlikely accidents, however, it soon becomes apparent that the Mad Dok is working on something in the depths of his colossal Painwagon. Something big. Something that could change the fate of ork-kind forever, surpassing Grotsnik’s own forging of the Prophet of the Waaagh!…

Denny Flowers continues to showcase why he is one of the fastest-rising authors of Warhammer 40,000 fiction with this highly entertaining and addictive new novel.  Perfectly taking on the always entertaining Warhammer orks, including the over-the-top titular character, Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok was an absolute hoot from the very beginning, and I laughed my way through the entire epic story.  One of the most hilarious novels of 2025, Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok gets a five-star rating from me due to the pure fun it contained.

Flowers comes up with an exceedingly fun narrative for Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok, which I ended up getting through in a very short amount of time.  As the title suggests, this novel follows the machinations of Grotsnik, an ork dok partially responsible for the creation of the legendary Ghazghkull Thraka, the boss of bosses for all ork-kind.  However, on the outs with his creation, Grotsnik joins up with a small band of orks led by Beastboss Bakmun, who is attempting to invade a mysterious human city.  Amongst this new band of orks is the aptly named Valtun the Patient and his clever grot Ikor, both of whom are very suspicious about Grotsnik’s intentions in joining them, especially once various members of the warband start going missing.  What follows is a hilarious series of events as Grotsnik gathers the material for his grand ambitions, while dealing with the strange humans and monsters within the city they are invading, as well as the unique intentions of other ork characters.  Primarily told through the perspective of Valtun and Ikor, who find themselves stuck in Grotsnik’s murderous orbit, these perspective protagonists slowly learn more about the titular character’s intentions, as well as the unique modifications he has made to himself, which turns him into something truly sinister.

Flowers moves this story along at a very quick pace full of funny interactions, crazy battles and the typical brutish humour that all fans of the orks will appreciate.  The action-packed and regularly over-the-top scenes that emerged were so damn fun, and there is honestly not a single slow moment in this book.  At the same time, Flowers installs a clever story throughout Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok, mostly based around the maniacal machinations of the titular character and his attempt to outsmart the suspicious Valtun.  It all leads up to a very entertaining ending that completely changes your perspective of Grotsnik’s intentions, while also leaving some of the remaining characters in ironic situations.  I personally loved where the multiple character arcs ended up at the end of this book, and while Valtun and Ikor were both great central figures, Grotsnik really stole the show with his weird behaviour, insane experiments, and the hilarious interactions he had with his unsuspecting patients/victims.  An overall awesome and well-written story that is guaranteed to suck you in with its exceptionally crazy characters and entertaining storytelling.

As with a lot of Warhammer 40,000 fiction, Flowers’s Da Mad Dok book is probably best read by established fans of the franchise, who will have a lot of fun seeing the titular character come to life.  Grotsnik’s unique mentality and connection to the most iconic ork character, Ghazghkull Thraka, makes him a very interesting figure to follow for those in love with the Warhammer canon, and Flowers clearly had a lot of fun utilising him in his story.  However, Flowers has already proven himself to be a very good at making his previous Warhammer 40,000 novels accessible to all readers, and this book is no exception.  Most people with a general knowledge of Warhammer lore and fiction can easily dive into Da Mad Dok’s narrative, and the inherent humour of the characters and the ork faction will keep them coming back for more.  I personally loved Flowers’s latest dive into the orks, and his takes on this crazy faction and some of their more distinctive members were both entertaining and accurate to the lore.  As such, Da Mad Dok has a ton of appeal, and I think most readers are going to have an exceptional time with it.

As has become my habit with all things Warhammer, I ended up listening to Da Mad Dok on audiobook, which is easily the best way to enjoy this fantastic and fun novel.  Coming in with a run time just under seven hours, Da Mad Dok is a very easy audiobook to power through, especially thanks to the great narration of Harry Myers.  Myers, who has really impressed me with books like Day of Ascension and The Wraithbone Phoenix, has an outstanding voice for Warhammer 40,000 fiction, which really fits the over-the-top nature of the universe.  He is particularly good at doing ork voices, such as in Da Big Dakka, Warboss and Da Red Gobbo Collection audiobooks, so I was very happy that he leant his voices to Da Mad Dok.  Myers uses some very fun and excessively gruff voices to bring the various ork characters to life, and the multiple laddish tones he employs are very fitting and very funny.  I cannot emphasise just how good Myers’s voice for these outrageous figures is, and I especially love how he changes from his deeper voices for the orks, to the more petulant and squeaky voice for the grot characters.  There is even a cool voice he uses for one of the more intimidating and iconic members of the cast towards the end of the book, which sounds particularly epic thanks to some vocal enhancement.  This great combination of voices, as well as Myers’s entertaining overall narration was extremely awesome, and it really enhanced Flowers’s already fantastic story.  I honestly cannot recommend this Warhammer 40,000 audiobook enough, and it ended up being one of my favourite listens of the year.

Thanks to the outstanding humour and overall craziness of its characters, Grotsnik: Da Mad Dok was a truly wonderful Warhammer 40,000 novel that is very easy to fall in love with.  Denny Flowers excelled at showcasing both the orks in general, and the cruelty and insanity of the titular characters, and the resulting intense and exciting story was a true joy to listen to.  An overall exceptional read, I cannot wait to see what epic Warhammer fiction Flowers writes next.

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Waiting on Wednesday – Pretenders to the Throne of God and Green City Wars by Adrian Tchaikovsky

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Science Fiction, Waiting on Wednesday6 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this latest Waiting on Wednesday post, I highlight the two upcoming books from impressive author Adrian Tchaikovsky that I’m most looking forward to in 2026.

Adrian Tchaikovsky is an extremely talented science fiction and fantasy author who has been wowing audiences with his incredible imagination since 2008, producing an insane number of books during that period.  Known for his Shadows of the Apt, Children of Time, Echoes of the Fall and Final Architecture series, as well as several awesome standalone novels, Tchaikovsky has a truly outstanding catalogue of works to his name, and there are some true classics captured there.  I personally have had the pleasure of reading several of his latest great books, with entries like Service Model (one of my favourite books of 2024), Alien Clay, the novella Orges and the Warhammer 40,000 novel, Day of Ascension (one of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 novels), proving to be quite amazing.

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Some of my favourite books from Tchaikovsky have been the awesome novels of his Tyrant Philosophers series.  A gripping, brilliant and highly amusing series, the Tyrant Philosophers novels are set in a cool fantasy world filled with magic, gods and demons, all with a fun Tchaikovsky twist to them.  Featuring some excellent overlapping characters and events, all set around the dark impact of the Palleseen, an empire of perfection seeking fanatics, who have been conquering the world through elaborate military and diplomatic action. All three current books in the series have been quite exceptional, including City of Last Chances and House of Open Wounds both of which were amongst my favourite books of 2023 (with City of Last Chances being one of the best audiobooks of 2023), as well as the third book in the series Days of Shattered Faith (one of my favourite books and audiobooks from the first half of 2025).  I really love these elaborate and highly entertaining novels, and we’re luckily only a short way away from the next book in the series, Pretenders to the Throne of God.

Set for release in February 2026, Pretenders to the Throne of God will once again focus on the Palleseen expansion as they engage in a deadly siege to expand their power and influence.  Featuring an outstanding plot, Pretenders to the Throne of God has the potential to be another outstanding novel, especially as we’ll get to see the next chapter of a certain character’s troubled journey.

Plot Synopsis:

Arthur C. Clarke winner and Sunday Times bestseller returns to a world steeped in magic – and the Tyrant Philosophers’ campaign to bring reason, logic and ‘perfection’ to it.

As the Palleseen’s campaign to bring Perfection and Correctness to an imperfect world rages on, Eres Ffenegh – ‘the City on the Back of a Crab’ – is the next state slated for conquest. But its citizens won’t give up sovereignty easily.

The siege has dragged into winter and the defenders – both locals and Pal renegades – hold an uneasy alliance against the enemy at the gates, while the Pal army is looking over its shoulder for the next self-destructive dictate of their government back home.

Within the city, Devil Jack, a good man apprenticed to the notorious conjurer known as the Widow, is driven to bargaining with hell to get back what he’s lost. Meanwhile Kiffel ea Leachan is the city’s champion, a child of privilege who’s just lost everything to the invaders. Both must try to survive the siege and make their own destinies in a world that’s cut them loose.

Outside the city, Pal reinforcements have arrived to take the city, but it’s the sort of help that might just damn them all…

This sounds like a very interesting continuation to the Tyrant Philosopher’s series, and it’s one that I’m particularly keen on.  Readers of this blog will know that I love a good siege novel, and I’m going to be very keen to see Tchaikovsky’s take on siege craft in Pretenders to the Throne of God.  No doubt this new book is going to feature a lot of interesting perspectives of the siege from both sides of the wall, and I cannot wait to see what over-the-top array of magical battles, as well as complex political intrigues will engulf both sides of the battle.

While the overarching story of Pretenders to the Throne of God sounds very promising, I personally I am very keen to see how Tchaikovsky continues the tale of one of his best characters, known in this novel as Devil Jack.  The man known as Jack has served as a primary character of all three previous Tyrant Philosopher’s novels, with fate throwing him into different roles and facing dangerous hardships.  However, after losing the demon he loved in Days of Shattered Faith, it looks like the formerly happy Jack is going to go through a rather dark place in this sequel.  I’m almost a little afraid to see how Tchaikovsky will torture Jack in this upcoming novel, but I have no doubt that his character arc is going to be one of the most emotionally charged of the entire novel.  Add in the rest of the complex characters I known Tchaikovsky has dreamt up for this new book, and Pretenders to the Throne of Gods is going to have some outstanding depth based around its protagonists, and probably it’s villains.

Based on how very impressive the previous Tyrant Philosophers books have been, I have very high hopes for Pretenders to the Throne of God in the new year, and it’s going to be something truly special.  One of my most anticipated releases for the first half of 2026, Pretenders to the Throne of God is going to be incredible.

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In addition to the next epic Tyrant Philosopher’s novel, there is another outstanding sounding Tchaikovsky novel that I am very excited to read in the new year, the very fun sounding Green City Wars.  Set for release in June 2026, Green City Wars will see Tchaikovsky present an intriguing and thriller with a unique twist, the protagonist is a talking racoon living in a world of genetically engineered animal helpers.

Plot Synopsis:

In a city of sunshine and secrets, the shadows belong to the animals. One genetically-engineered raccoon races to expose a deadly conspiracy – before it tears his whole world apart.

In a solar-powered future, humans live in luxury, served by unseen Little Helpers – artificially enhanced animals who maintain their perfect green cities. The animals’ golden rule: ‘Do Not Bother the Humans.’ Yet beneath this tranquil facade, a complex underworld of animal politics, crime and conflict thrives.

Enter Skotch, a freelance raccoon investigator. His biggest problem was a lack of work. Now his work may get him killed. And his latest case? Finding a fugitive mouse scientist. But powerful forces are also after the mouse, and they’re willing to kill for his secrets. Can Skotch navigate this treacherous web, outsmart rat gangsters, beat a deadly weasel assassin and keep his pelt intact? More importantly, can he find his quarry before the elusive rodent breaks Rule One in the most apocalyptic way – and shatters their fragile world.

I love the sound of this upcoming novel, especially as I’m keen to see Tchaikovsky take on the noir genre in his own entertaining way in Green City Wars.  The idea of sentient animal protagonists alongside humans in serious fiction is always very interesting, and the above synopsis has seriously put me in mind of the Welkin Weasels series by Gary Kilworth (a favourite of my childhood).  However, Tchaikovsky has put a fun dark twist on it, with the animals being genetically engineered slaves to humanity.  I’m assuming that the whole story will be a compelling crime fiction novel with some great science fiction twists, overlayed with some amusing critiques of humanity, which sounds so very fun.

While featuring one of Tchaikovsky’s more unusual plot ideas, I think that Green City Wars has a ton of potential and I’m very excited for it.  I have no doubt that this awesome standalone novel is going to be particularly funny, and I cannot wait to see how it turns out.

Overall, it is quite clear that Adrian Tchaikovsky has some outstanding novels coming out in the new year, and these are just the main ones I’m currently excited for.  The author also has plans for some other exciting releases in 2026, and I’m going to make a real effort to read as many as possible.  Stay tuned to see how they all turn out.

Warhammer 40,000: Crossfire by Matthew Farrer

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Thriller, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer2 Comments

Publisher: Black Library (Paperback – 1 January 2003)

Series: Warhammer 40,000: Shira Calpurnia – Book One

Length: 320 pages

My Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars

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I finally got around to reading the awesome Warhammer 40,000 novel, Crossfire.  A classic entry in the Warhammer 40,000 canon with a cool crime fiction twist, Crossfire was a great novel that serves as an excellent first entry in Farrer’s Shira Calpurnia trilogy.

In the grim future of the 41st millennium, order and control of the massive Imperium of Man is maintained through the strictest interpretation of Imperial law, with no room for variation or leniency.  The ultimate arbitrators of this law are the dedicated members of the Adeptus Arbites, elite law bringers, trained to weed out corruption, dissent and disloyalty wherever they are deployed.

Shira Calpurnia Lucina, recently promoted arbitor senioris of the Adeptus Arbites, has been assigned to the bustling dockyards of the Hydraphur system.  A glistening gem of Imperial rule dedicated to providing material to the navy, Hydraphur is a seemingly unlikely place for dissention.  But this elite planet harbours dark secrets which come to the surface after a deadly assassination attempt is made in public against Calpurnia amid the distraction and celebration of a major religious festival.

Attempting to uncover who would want her killed after only just arriving on world, Calpurnia begins her relentless investigation.  However, this is no simple case, and soon Calpurnia finds herself forced to navigate the many plots and schemes of the Hydraphur elite.  With more attacks striking close to her and the fate of the whole planet seemingly in the balance, Calpurnia must uncover all Hydraphur’s secrets before the assassins stalking her finally succeed.

Crossfire was an excellent and compelling Warhammer 40,000 novel from Farrer that proved very fun to get through.  Featuring a fantastic plot that is one of the earlier examples of a crime fiction narrative melding with the iconic Warhammer 40,000 universe, Crossfire was a great read and one that is worth checking out.

I liked the captivating story that Farrer came up with for Crossfire, which quickly gets the reader’s attention with a powerful introduction to the protagonist, as she quickly finds herself under fire from a lethal assassin.  Serving as a good start to the main investigation arc, the plot follows the protagonist as she attempts to uncover the identity of the assassin, while also learning more about the planet of Hydraphur.  While a very lore-heavy story, Farrer keeps the plot going quickly and effectively, especially as there are soon more apparent attacks against the protagonist, each of which give her more clues to follow to try and find the mastermind of the plot against her.  At the same time the protagonist gets bogged down in dealing with various other interested parties on Hydraphur, including the planet’s local elites, agents of the Imperial church, the Adeptus Mechanicus and the Inquisition, each of whom have their own interests in finding out who is trying to kill Calpurnia.

While Farrer keeps up a good pace for Crossfire as the plot continues, I do think that he might have overloaded the narrative with details about Hydraphur’s society, as well as the various plots that infest it.  While these serve as good red herring motives for the protagonist to follow, it did overcomplicate the plot at times, which slowed things down even amid some great action sequences.  Despite this, the overall narrative for Crossfire was quite strong, and you get hooked into the continued investigation, especially as the author kept raising the stakes of the case.  After some exciting scenes, everything leads up to the big final confrontation, as the protagonist fully unwinds all the conflicting conspiracies they’ve been forced to encounter.  The conclusion was a sufficiently intense and over-the-top fight, which you need in Warhammer 40,000 fiction, and I liked the clever way the protagonist was able to turn the tables on the antagonist, even if the set-up for it was a little heavy handed.  An overall excellent Warhammer 40,000 plot that nicely tells its own story, while also introducing the character for the larger trilogy.

I’ve previously had a lot of fun with previous Warhammer 40,000 novels that utilise strong crime fiction elements in their story telling, such as Bloodlines by Chris Wraight and Grim Repast by Marc Collins, as there are some outstanding crime narratives in this grimdark universe. Crossfire is an interesting early example of this utilisation of crime fiction in Warhammer 40,000 fiction, and I felt that Farrer did a pretty good job of building a compelling investigation around this fantastic setting.  The resulting story is a layered and intense read that sees the protagonist slowly unwind the case amid various battle sequences and other dark distractions.  The relevant clues, hints and misleading details are well scattered throughout the plot, and I felt there was a good amount of foreshadowing to some of the key plot reveals.  While some story elements and conspiracies came a little out of nowhere, for the most part this was a concise and ordered novel, well told through the perspective of the protagonist.  Farrer excelled at fitting a ton of interesting and heavy lore elements in the plot, and I particularly appreciated how well he utilised his setting throughout the story.  The various plots and schemes of planet’s noble families and prominent organisations, as well as the elaborate religious festival the novel is set around (ceremonial details of which are cleverly included at the start of each chapter), are expertly worked into the larger plot, and it was fascinating to see how they impacted the story and drove the investigation.

One of the more entertaining elements of Crossfire I enjoyed was the narrative’s compelling characters.  The focus is primarily around series protagonist Shira Calpurnia Lucina, the arbitor senioris through whose eyes we see the story unfold.  Calpurnia serves as an interesting central figure, especially as she provides an outsider perspective to the complex setting.  While Farrer writes Calpurnia as a somewhat bullish and highly determined figure that is initially hard to appreciate, I felt that this was an intentional choice by the author, which reflects the typical attitudes of the Arbites in the general Warhammer 40,000 setting.  Forcing her to deal with the more subtle techniques needed for the politically delicate Hydraphur brought in some interesting conflict for Calpurnia, as well as producing some interesting character growth.  Despite this, the outsider status of Calpurnia continues to be a compelling plot feature throughout Crossfire, which Farrer utilised extremely well with his writing.  The rest of the cast, while less prominent, adds some complexity to the plot, and I enjoyed the compelling array of fellow Arbites members, the gentry of Hydraphur, and other prominent figures in the planet’s hierarchy.  I particularly enjoyed the motivations of the book’s eventual antagonist, which had a great hint of madness behind it, and this was an overall excellent group of characters.

While I really enjoyed Crossfire’s compelling story, I must admit that this wasn’t the easiest Warhammer 40,000 novel to read.  The plot details of Crossfire are very dense, and it takes a lot of effort to absorb and follow the story.  I felt this was especially noticeable in the small-print paperback version I had, and you really had to focus to take everything in.  As a result, this one probably wouldn’t be a recommended starting point for a new Warhammer reader.  Farrer utilises a lot of intricate details about the Warhammer 40,000 universe that even people casually familiar with the franchise are going to struggle to follow at times.  While most new readers can probably follow along well enough through context, I would suggest it’s best enjoyed by veteran fans who will probably have a lot more fun with it.

Overall, Crossfire by Matthew Farrer was an awesome Warhammer 40,000 novel, and one that I was glad I finally got the opportunity to read.  A compelling crime fiction novel that makes great use of Farrer’s complex setting, Crossfire proved to be an exciting and interesting read.  While not the easiest novel to get through at times, Crossfire proved to be an excellent piece of Warhammer fiction and I’m hoping to get through the rest of the Shira Calpurnia trilogy soon.

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Star Trek: Lower Decks, Vol. 1: Second Contact

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Comedy/Satire, Comics/Manga, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Star Trek3 Comments

Publisher: IDW Publishing (Paperback – 16 September 2026)

Series: Lower Decks (2024) – Volume One

Writer: Ryan North

Artists: Derek Charm and Jack Lawrence

Length: 144 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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The hilarious adventures of the Lower Decks crew continue in the highly entertaining Star Trek comic, Second Contact, an outstanding and amusing read that will deeply appeal to all fans of the animated series.

I’ve been a little slack with my comic book reading in 2025, but one of the things I was unable to turn down was the first volume of a comic series provide new adventures for one of my favourite Star Trek television series, the comedic Lower Decks animated series.  Second Contact is the first volume of the 2024 IDW Lower Decks ongoing comic series, which follows on from the previously released miniseries.  Written by veteran comic author Ryan North and featuring art from Derek Charm and Jack Lawrence, Second Contact features issues #1-6 of this new series and contains three fantastic and awesome adventures of the chaotic crew of the U.S.S. Cerritos.

Plot Synopsis:
The crew of the U.S.S. Cerritos is back in a new ongoing comic series that’s a big, fun adventure from the hit TV show Star Trek: Lower Decks.

First up, a mysterious ghost ship appears just in time, as Mariner is becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of thrills aboard the Cerritos! The thrill level increases significantly when the team is beamed onto an equally mysterious surface of an unknown world populated by an alien race that wishes to learn more about mentorship…through a battle royale! Enter Jadzia Dax, Montgomery Scott, Kathyrn Janeway, T’Pol, and Jean-Luc Picard as the mentors and the Lower Deckers as the mentees!

The Cerritos’ next mission is a supply run to Tavela Minor, but they first need to stop by the Alecto system to get some supplies to, uh, supply them with. However, just before they warp, they see the Alecto system isn’t only missing; it doesn’t exist. Like at all. Now they have a space mystery at hand: What could cause a whole star system to disappear?

Then, suspicious after the Cerritos docks for its second baryon sweep in the same year, Mariner sneaks into a command meeting. There, the Department of Temporal Investigations tasks the crew with finding a time traveler who is rewriting Federation history at an alarming rate. Mariner finds her friends and tells them what’s really going on…only for the timeline to change around them! Obviously, something has gone wrong with Command’s mission, and per usual, it’s now up to Mariner, Tendi, Rutherford, and Boimler to save the day!

Second Contact was a very fun and compelling addition to the Lower Decks canon that sent its loveable cast on several great new adventures.  Loaded with intriguing adventures, light-hearted character moments and the self-referential humour fans of the Lower Decks animated series will know and love, Second Contact was a great comic I had an awesome time getting through.

North comes up with three great new adventures for these first issues of the Lower Decks comic, which balances fun with some deep cuts into Star Trek lore.  Set during the animated series’ fourth season, the three stories of Second Contact each run for two issues and stand on their own extremely well, with plenty of laughs, crazy moments and some fun looks at the well-established main cast of Mariner, Tendi, Rutherford, Boimler and T’Lyn as well as the main cast bridge crew.

Of these three main storylines in Second Contact, my favourite was probably the first, which sees the Cerritos crew encounter the abandoned U.S.S. Bonadventure, a starship dedicated fans may remember from the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode The Time Trap.  However, the protagonists’ attempts to study the ship go sideways, with the five newly minted Starfleet lieutenants transported to a mysterious planet by the Excalbians in an entertaining homage to The Original Series episode, The Savage Curtain.  With each Lower Decks member paired with an iconic figure from one of the first five Star Trek live-action series, the cast are forced into a hilarious death fight scenario, which goes off the rails in some very creative ways.  North clearly had a lot of fun parodying two classic Star Trek episodes, mainly through jokes about Kirk’s actions, and the references come fast and thick here.  It’s also hard not to laugh at the viciously over-the-top interpretation of some of your favourite Star Trek characters, especially when they engage in a ridiculous, televised death match, all while the main cast critique the resulting tropes, as well as the various inconsistencies in the setting and the places they visit.  This was a very strong starting point for the series, which includes one of my favourite jokes about Boimler, who, after being paired with Picard, mentally requests the ‘Early Picard. Really stern, the super hard-ass Picard. The one who just got the Enterprise and is really mean about it for some reason’, version of the character, due to his issues with authority figures.

North keeps the intriguing narratives coming quick and fast with the next two adventures, each of which are well laid out in their respective two issues.  This includes a satirically science-heavy story, where the Cerritos investigates a disappearing system, only to encounter unlikely life from another universe.  This narrative, which features some great moments for the always entertaining and light-hearted pairing of Tendi and Rutherford, was a particularly touching inclusion, especially as North veers away from the comic’s typical comedic tone to provide a darker, and reflective conclusion.  However, the humour soon returns with the third and final story in Second Contact, which throws the cast into an unlikely time travel story.  A loving homage to Star Trek’s many time travel episodes, this story sees the five main characters chase the bridge crew and a temporal fugitive who are mucking up the timelines in several inventive ways.  Initially forced to navigate through various hostile versions of the Cerritos, filled with some ridiculous alternate alien crews, they eventually journey to classic time travel destinations the Titanic and the Late Cretaceous, all with inevitable hilarious results.  This third story was a very amusing entry that allowed the Lower Decks crew to get another taste of time travel after the hilarious crossover episode, Those Old Scientists, with the comic format allowing for some particularly inventive and over-the-top scenarios.  All three of these stories come together extremely well, and while they mostly serve as standalone adventures, it is a particularly exciting and compelling overall narrative for Second Contact that you can’t turn away from.

I really enjoyed how North pulled these first six issues together, and you get a good look at his style and understanding of both general Star Trek lore and the specific feel of Lower Decks.  The writing within these comic issues was very similar in style and substance to the animated show, with the loveable characters engaged in several bonkers missions with clever and satirical ties to the wider Star Trek universe.  The main cast of Lower Decks are perfectly captured by North’s writing, and I honestly heard all their fun lines in the character’s respective voices from the show, no matter how ridiculous the statement.  The amazing humour of the original animated series is also perfectly emulated in this comic, with a great combination of outrageous moments and references to classic Star Trek lore.  There are some truly amazing comedic moments here, including some hilarious takedowns of previous Star Trek moments, which range from subtle comments from the protagonist, to a full on bloody brawl between five of the franchise’s most iconic figures thanks to ratings-obsessed aliens.  Throw in some additional self-aware commentary at the bottom of each page from a now-omniscient Badgey, who serves as the comic’s narrator, and this was a very funny read, especially if you loved the Lower Decks show.  While they humour and storylines of the comic are geared towards the more hardcore fans of the franchise, Second Contact is open to all readers, and even those who only have a passing familiarity with Star Trek can have a blast with this comic.

The final thing I want to highlight about the issues contained within Second Contact was the fantastic comic art.  Made to emulate the cartoon style of the animated series, the more simplistic panels and content work well to continue the Lower Decks feel in this comic, which I appreciated as a fan of the show.  There are some interesting minor artistic and stylistic changes after issue 2, after Jack Lawrence tagged in, but both artists did a great job replicating the show’s characters, even if they also went in some amusing directions.  I personally loved some of the sequences by artist Derek Charm where he drew some panels in a manner more reminiscent of Star Trek: The Animated Series, primarily to help mock the old-school cartoon.  There are also some extremely exaggerated and evil drawings of several classic characters, including Picard, Janeway, Scotty and more, as they engage in some overly dramatic moments of villainy.  This includes a glorious double spread where these alien duplicates all switch from nice to derange in only a couple of panels, accompanied by some very crazy moments (such as Scotty casually turning the team’s spacesuits into improvised bombs), all of which added to the humour of the story.  The other artist, Jack Lawrence also has some excellent drawn moments in these comics, including a series of trippy science moments, such as a blank section of space suctioning up planets, as well an exaggerated sequence of time travel, which enhanced the narrative of these entries. This great art from Charm and Lawrence was very fun, and I enjoyed their entertaining visual takes on the Lower Decks cast.

Star Trek: Lower Decks contained in wildly entertaining fashion with this great new comic.  Featuring some fantastic stories, amazing humour and awesome artwork, Second Contact was an outstanding first volume in this series, and it was one I had a blast getting through.  Highly recommended for all Star Trek and Lower Decks fans, especially those who like self-aware jokes about this iconic franchise.

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Star Wars: Sanctuary by Lamar Giles

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Star Wars, Tie-in Novel4 Comments

Publisher: Random House Audio (Audiobook – 6 August 2025)

Series: Star Wars – The Bad Batch

Length: 11 hours and 46 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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New Star Wars author Lamar Giles presents an epic and highly entertaining novel that follows everyone’s favourite group of rogue clones, with the Bad Batch focused novel, Sanctuary.

2025 has been an awesome year for Star Wars fiction.  Between the intense political novel, The Mask of Fear by Alexander Freed, and the upcoming Darth Vader-focused novel, Master of Evil by Adam Christopher, there are some interesting and heavy books coming out to further the lore of this iconic franchise.  However, there have also been some highly entertaining entries in this canon, including the fantastic novel Sanctuary.  Written by young adult fiction author Lamar Giles, Sanctuary is the author’s very first Star Wars novel, having previously written a short story in an anthology book.  A tie-in to The Bad Batch animated series, Sanctuary was an intriguing adult Star Wars novel that wasn’t originally on my reading radar.  However, in the mood for an audiobook from a familiar franchise, I decided to check it out, and boy was I glad that I did.

After turning on the Empire and deciding to live their own lives, the members of Experimental Clone Force 99, better known as the Bad Batch, are on the run, taking odd jobs and helping the innocents of the galaxy.  Made up of the grizzled Hunter, brilliant Tech, loveable powerhouse Wrecker and child prodigy Omega, the Bad Batch members have become an unlikely family.  However, after a series of dangerous missions, the members of the squad are tired, especially with their former comrades Echo and Crosshair on their own separate journeys. 

Needing a safe place to rest, the Bad Batch have found sanctuary on the planet of Pabu.  An idyllic settlement hidden from the eyes of the Empire, Pabu appears to be the perfect place for the clones to finally settle down and escape the constant battles.  However, before they can enjoy the peace of their new home, they’ll first have to help rebuild it.  With the settlement desperate for resources after a massive tidal wave, the members of the Bad Batch team up with pirate and self-proclaimed liberator of treasures, Phee Genoa, who promises an easy payday.

Hired to recover a valuable relic from an auction house, the crew’s ploy to steal it is quickly discovered, forcing them to revert to their usual fugitive ways.  However, their escape plan becomes complicated when Phee insists that they take on a second job, ferrying a mysterious couple to safe harbour.  Going against his better judgement, Hunter agrees to take on the passengers, but soon discovers that their new cargo has many secrets.  Forced to contend with an obsessive ISB agent and murderous tycoon with dangerous connections, the Bad Batch will risk it all for their new home.  But have they finally found an enemy too dangerous to defeat?

Sanctuary was an excellent and very entertaining Star Wars novel that proved a lot of fun to read.  Perfectly bringing the characters from The Bad Batch to life for an exciting new adventure, Sanctuary was an outstanding read that featured a compelling and action-packed story of love and life in the Star Wars universe.

Giles pulled together a captivating and very fitting narrative for Sanctuary, the serves as a great addition to The Bad Batch show, while also telling its own unique story.  Set towards the end of second season of the series, right after the events of the 13th episode, Pabu, Sanctuary is a fast-paced, character-driven story that takes the protagonists into the gritty underbelly of the Star Wars universe.  Starting with a very entertaining heist sequence, which goes about as well as any of the team’s plans, the titular Bad Batch and their pirate associate Phee Goena, escape with the loot, planning to sell it to a wealthy buyer.  At the same time, they take on two passengers, pregnant woman Keshiri Sohi and her masked partner Kuuto, who require smuggling across the galaxy.  Giles does a great job setting up all these initial story elements, and he quickly adds in some compelling complications that add some exciting drama to the narrative.  This includes a righteous ISB agent, Supervisor Sendril Crane, who is hunting their passengers, as well as the squad’s potential buyer, Cellia Moten, who would prefer to kill Phee Goena rather than pay her.

After an excellent shootout sequence halfway through the book where the protagonists are forced to simultaneously resist both Crane and Moten, the book slightly slows down as Giles works in some excellent story elements for both the protagonists and antagonists.  This includes growing drama between the Bad Batch and their passengers over their various secrets and lies, which also ties in nicely to internal conflicts amongst the team.  At the same time, Crane finds himself in the sinister orbit of the highly connected Cellia Moten, with the two trying to manipulate the other for their secrets and influence.  After a series of personal scenes for the protagonists that finally get them on the same page, Giles moves the story towards the end game, with the antagonists finding out where they are hiding.  This results in a series of awesome action sequences, with all the protagonists forced to fight to escape.  All the book’s characters, including its two villains, have their moment to shine here, and there are some powerful examinations of the relationship between new characters Crane and Sohi.  After some suitably climatic moments, the book ends on a high note that fans will really enjoy.  Giles also adds in an excellent cameo at the end that serves as a cathartic conclusion to another character’s story, and which I thought was a fitting and fun way to end the book.

I really enjoyed Giles’s writing style for Sanctuary, especially as he managed to achieve a lot in this novel.  Not only do we get a fantastic Bad Batch focused narrative loaded with action, adventure and other exciting Star Wars elements, but Giles also managed to include some powerful, personal moments, as various character dramas from both the show and this specific novel are played out.  The result was a slick and fast-paced novel that quickly draws the reader in with its easy humour and fun focus on The Bad Batch’s entertaining characters.  Thanks to some excellently timed shifts in character perspective, all the key members of Sanctuary’s cast have their moment to shine.  I particularly loved parts of the book that showcased the antagonist’s journey, which served as outstandingly entertaining contrast to some of the more character-driven chapters around the protagonists.  The combination of intrigue and Imperial politics in these scenes, as well as the mind games between to delightfully devious villains, was a true highlight of the book, and it allowed Giles to up the stakes of the plot, especially when it starts diving into some deeper Star Wars elements with some excellent references.

As a fan of The Bad Batch animated series I personally really enjoyed Sanctuary as Giles perfectly captured the tone and humour of the show.  Working as a great tie-in, Sanctuary fills in some interesting gaps between two of the show’s episodes, and the author does an excellent job of examining some of the issues the characters are facing during this period.  While naturally geared towards those familiar with The Bad Batch, Giles ensures that Sanctuary isn’t too show-lore dependent, and most general Star Wars fans will be able to read this book and have a great time.  Indeed, those unfamiliar with the animated series get a good glimpse at the humour and character dynamics in this novel, and it could serve as a good entry point to show.  Even if they don’t, the author also adds in a bunch of references that anyone familiar with Star Wars will be able to appreciate.  I felt that Giles did an excellent job exploring the period the novel is set in, the early days of the Empire a couple of years after the events of Revenge of the Sith, which is one of the more fascinating times in the franchise’s lore, and it was interesting to see how some of the new characters fit into this time.  As such, Sanctuary is going to appeal to a wide range of readers, and it’s a great read for fans of the Star Wars extended universe.

I have already mentioned a few times the excellent character work in Sanctuary as Giles features a great cast for this book.  Naturally for a Bad Batch book, the titular cast get much of the focus in Sanctuary, with excellent portrayals of Hunter, Tech, Wrecker and Omega.  Giles expertly captures their personalities from the show and reproduces them in Sanctuary.  As such, you are given some very interesting insights into the minds of each of these characters at this point in the series, with a particular focus on each clone’s glance towards the future and what they want out of life.  While there are some interesting alternating characters here amongst the cast, including Omega trying to become more independent, Tech’s unlikely romance with Phee, and Wrecker’s simple desire to blow things up, much of the character development for the main cast revolves around Hunter.  Giles spends a large amount of time diving into Hunter’s issues with losing control and no longer being a soldier, as well as some of the resentment he has from Crosshair’s abandonment of the squad.  This results in several fractious family moments, especially as Hunter’s caution tends to put him at odds with the rest of the team’s desires, and his distrust of Phee and their new passengers causes some noticeable friction.  These character dramas are a compelling part of the book’s overall plot, although Giles also does a good job of showcasing the more happy-family version of the Bad Batch, which fans of the show will appreciate, considering we all know what’s coming in a few episodes time.  That being said, I’m not sure I can forgive Giles for his line about Tech’s grapnel gun never failing him.

Aside from the titular Bad Batch, Giles features several additional outstanding characters, including returning show favourite Phee Genoa.  A free-spirited pirate and treasure hunter, Phee was a breath of fresh air amongst the stuffier clone soldier protagonists, and it was entertaining to see the unique interactions she had with the other characters.  Her antagonism of the rigid Hunter was particularly fun, especially as it brought up some much-needed drama, however, it was her relationship with Tech that was a true highlight of the book.  Giles did a good expanding on the feelings hinted at in the show, and they proved to be a very distinctive couple as a result.  I felt this gave some of the upcoming events of the animated series a little bit more of a tragic air, as you try to imagine what could be, and you end up liking them in a very bittersweet way.  The main cast of protagonists were well rounded out by new figures Keshiri Sohi and the masked Kuuto.  Mysterious passengers with secret pasts who cause all manner of trouble for the main cast, Sohi and Kuuto spend much of the book seemingly untrustworthy with their own agendas.  However, thanks to some excellent reveals, as well as a couple of good flashbacks, you grow to understand the complexity around their actions, and they proved to be a compelling addition to the cast as a result.

While I really enjoyed the protagonists, I felt they somewhat got overshadowed by the book’s impressive antagonists.  This includes ISB Supervisor Sendril Crane, a diligent and intense figure on the heels of Sohi and Kuuto.  Crane has a brilliant introduction in this book, which shows off his intelligence and ruthlessness, and he only gets better from there as you come to understand his background as a spy and his obsession with Sohi.  While Crane proves to be a ruthless adversary, he is well matched by Sanctuary’s other main antagonist, Cellia Morten.  An ultra-rich, politically connected tycoon with a penchant for murder, Morten is shown to be an outstandingly deranged figure early on, and she swifty amps up her evilness as the book continues.  Giles does an exceptional job sculpting Morten into the very worst rich villain he could, especially once her motivations for killing are revealed, and it was very fun for to eventual face reality on the real power structure in the galaxy.  While both serve as great antagonists to the main cast, the real beauty of these villainous characters occurs when they interact with each other, which results in a series of manipulative conversations which are thoroughly entertaining.  I particularly enjoyed how Morten continuously got the better of the normally unflappable Crane, especially in their first meeting when she gets out being arrested by asking if he had been sent by her good friend Sheev, with her use of namedropping and connections only getting better from there.  These two antagonists played off each other perfectly, and their battle of wits and cruelty, was even more entertaining than their hunt for the protagonists.  All these great characters added so much to my enjoyment of Sanctuary, and I loved the amazing arcs and interactions that emerged.

Naturally, I ended up listening to Sanctuary on audiobook, rather than seeking out a physical copy, as the audiobook format is the absolute best way to enjoy a Star Wars novel.  I love how incredible a Star Wars novel can sound when read out, and this was particularly true with Sanctuary, as all the awesome action and great characters were so much more impactful and fun in this format.  A lot of this is due to the narration of Marc Thompson, who does an exceptional job voicing all the characters and bringing the entire book to life.  Thompson, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators, has long been one of the top narrators of Star Wars fiction thanks to his brilliant vocal talents and ability to impersonate various characters from the shows (see my previous reviews of Thrawn and Scoundrels by Timothy Zahn and Dark Disciple by Christie Golden).  His skill was on full display in Sanctuary, especially as he perfectly voiced Hunter, Tech and Wrecker throughout this novel, as well as several other characters from the show.  I was honestly so impressed by how he managed to accurately he was able to voice the three main clones from the show, with each of their distinctive but similar voices, coming across so damn close to their voice actor in the show, Dee Bradley Baker.  At the same time, he also does a good take on Wanda Sykes’s character Phee Genoa, and even does a passible voice for Omega, which includes the New Zealand accent of actress Michelle Ang. 

Thompson’s outstanding narration is further enhanced by the fantastic inclusion of Star Wars sound effects and music, which is an outstanding part of all Star Wars audiobooks.  The entire story really comes to life when you can hear crowd sounds and blaster fire amongst the dialogue, while the iconic Star Wars music makes several scenes just a little more epic, especially when they help remind you of moments from the films.  These extra audio inclusions pair perfectly with Thompson’s narration, and it honestly felt like you were listening to an episode of The Bad Batch with this audiobook.  I really enjoyed this full listening experience, and I ended up powering through Sanctuary’s near 12-hour long runtime in no time at all.  This was such a great listen, and this was honestly one of the better audiobooks I had the pleasure of listening to in 2025.

With a brilliant story, fun characters and a ton of action, Lamar Giles’ Star Wars novel, Sanctuary, was an outstanding hit.  An excellent tie-in novel that follows the entertaining characters from The Bad Batch animated series, Sanctuary was an impressive and exciting novel that had me hooked very early on.  A deeply compelling and addictive read, Sanctuary comes very highly recommended, especially on audiobook, and all Star Wars fans are going to have a great time with this awesome read.

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Warhammer 40,000: Final Deployment by R. S. Wilt

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer1 Comment

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 30 August 2025)

Series: Warhammer 40,000

Length: 11 hours and 23 minutes

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Prepare for battle as R. S. Wilt presents his debut novel, Final Deployment, a captivating read that perfectly highlights bloody war in the grimdark future of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

There are few franchises that bring me as much joy as the Warhammer 40,000 series, which follows the numerous factions of the infamously grimdark 41st millennium.  The sheer amount of imaginative stories and tales that are featured in this universe, as well as the talented authors who contribute to it, is quite impressive, and includes some major established writers.  I particularly like how the Warhammer 40,000 publishers also give some interesting opportunities to new authors looking to break into the fantasy or science fiction space.  Many aspiring authors have had their very first novel published in the Warhammer canon recently, and I deeply enjoy reading debuts from these new writers.  Examples of this include Fire Made Flesh by Denny Flowers, The King of the Spoil by Jonathan D. Beer, Ashes of Cadia by Jude Reid, Longshot by Rob Young, Deathworlder by Victoria Hayward and Lord of Excess by Rich McCormick, to name a few.  Many of these debuts are first class reads, and I’ve featured a few on my favourite Warhammer 40,000 novels lists over the years.

Due to my previous awesome experiences with debuts in this franchise, I am always very excited to check out first Warhammer 40,000 novels from new authors, especially those with epic plots.  The latest example of this is Final Deployment by R. S. Wilt, which was the author’s very first novel.  Spinning off from his previously published short story Eradicant, Final Deployment had a very exciting plot behind it that follows the most lethal human soldiers in the grimdark future, the Tempestus Scions.

In the far future, the Imperium of Man battles for survival on thousands of planet-spanning battlefields, with untold numbers of human soldiers fighting and dying every day against monsters, xenos and heretics.  Of these soldiers, none are more deadly or skilled than the Tempestus Scions.  Moulded into unquestionable killing machines from a young age with relentless training and mental manipulation, the Tempestus Scions serve as an elite force with the soldiers of mankind, taking on the missions that no other soldier could complete.

Amongst these Tempestus Scions are the fighters of First Eradicant squad of the Xian Tigers.  Led by Tempestor Traxel and “inspired” by Commissar Fennech, First Eradicant are an unusual regiment made up of several misfit Scions damaged by the battles they have seen.  Deployed to the planet of Rilis, a formerly loyal world now fighting a brutal civil war, First Eradicant is tasked with destroying the rebelling regiments and bringing order to the planet.  Utilising their superior training and equipment, First Eradicant quickly turn the tide against the enemy and being to lead the loyalist forces on Rilis to victory.  However, their success leads them discover the full strength of the traitors, as well as their dark allegiances.

After a disastrous battle that sees their loyalist allies massacred, First Eradicant find themselves facing monstrous opponents even more lethal than they are; three Chaos Space Marines from the Iron Warriors legion.  Determined to slay the ancient, genetically enhanced traitors, First Eradicant take the fight to the Iron Warriors across the planet.  However, with their leader traumatised by past battles and Commissar Fennech playing his own sinister games, can even the best human soldiers in the galaxy defeat the evolved might of the Chaos Space Marines?

R. S. Wilt starts his professional writing career off in explosive fashion with this amazing and compelling debut. Final Deployment was a deeply exciting character-driven Warhammer 40,000 story that followed several highly damaged characters as they attempted to survive the horrors of war. Intense, action-packed and deeply addictive, Final Deployment was an outstanding read that I had an incredible time getting through.

I really enjoyed the epic and deeply exciting narrative that Wilt pulled together for Final Deployment, which perfectly showcases futuristic special forces soldiers going after a deadlier opponent.  Set after the events of the author’s previous short story Eradicant, Final Deployment has a quick and effective start to it, as Wilt first sets the scene for the war on Rilis, before introducing the members of First Eradicant as they literally drop onto the scene.  Each of the protagonists, especially lethal and reckless recon trooper Norroll, gets their moment to shine in these opening scenes, which also work well to highlight Wilt’s intense writing style.  You are soon dragged into the story, and while the initial parts of the book are a tad slow, that changes with the pivotal battle around a third of the way through that sees the Chaos Space Marines arrive in bloody fashion.

Wilt did an outstanding job of changing the tone of Final Deployment after this big moment, as the protagonists find themselves heavily on the backfoot, and there are some notable PTSD elements hitting Tempestor Traxel.  The rest of the novel revolves around the protagonists attempting to hunt down and stop the Chaos Space Marines, no matter how the rest of the war is going.  The story from that point is essentially broken down into three distinctive parts, each of which showcase the very different, but equally brutal, fights against the separate deadly antagonists.  Wilt does an excellent job setting up the scenarios around these battles, which include infiltrating a deadly facility, a brutal ambush by a daemonic possessed foe, and an air drop into enemy territory, and you soon get enthralled in the protagonist’s desperate mission.  These events work extremely well as a sequential and cohesive narrative, and you get really absorbed in the mission of the slowly dwindling group of Tempestus Scions.  Everything leads up to the desperate final confrontation between the protagonists and their deadliest foe, which hits hard and keeps you guessing about who is going to survive.  I felt this entire story came together perfectly, and the ending does an excellent job wrapping up Final Deployment as a standalone Warhammer 40,000 story, with the potential left open for a sequel.  An overall excellent narrative that was quite impossible to put down at times.

While the story is very cool, I also felt that Final Deployment was extremely well written, as Wilt produces a powerful, character-driven narrative that focused on the horrors of war in the grimdark future.  Expertly utilising the iconic Warhammer 40,000 universe in this clever and brutal war story, I loved how the intense personal narratives blended with the more outrageous elements of franchise.  Wilt puts his evident skill at writing brilliant and bloody action sequences to good use in Final Deployment, and the resulting firefights and close combat sequences were some of the more intense and striking you are likely to see in Warhammer fiction.  The author maintains an excellent, fast pace throughout the entire novel, and there wasn’t a single slow moment or inclusion that didn’t play into the story in some interesting or compelling way.  I also appreciated the great use of alternate perspectives, as the story cleverly jumps between several key characters.  This is primarily utilised to showcase multiple angles to the book’s awesome action sequences, which was a ton of fun.  However, I also enjoyed how Wilt took the opportunity to examine the plot from the perspective of several interesting supporting character, including a couple of antagonists.  This helps Wilt to present an even more layered narrative, and it is always really entertaining to see the villain’s reactions to the protagonist’s actions.

Final Deployment is also an excellent and entertaining addition to the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, which works well as an exciting standalone novel.  Despite diving straight into the universe, Final Deployment is accessible to readers no matter their experience with Warhammer fiction, as the author provides a lot of intriguing universe details.  This includes the Tempestus Scions, who serve as the human faction’s ultimate special forces unit outside of the genetically enhanced Space Marines.  The author does an incredible job showcasing the skill and tactics of the Scions throughout Final Deployment, and you really appreciate that they are a highly trained and better equipped regiment.  While Wilt somewhat exaggerates the effectiveness of the Scions and their equipment for narrative purposes (especially carapace armour), you get a realistic sense of these figures in combat, and I appreciated how the characters were slowly debilitated by injuries and losses.  There is also a fascinating look at the harsh training and religious brainwashing these figures undergo, which fits the grimdark Warhammer 40,000 universe perfectly.  Other elements of Warhammer fiction are cleverly utilised here, and I loved the author’s depiction of just how dangerous Space Marines and their chaotic counterparts are compared to normal humans, even the Tempestus Scions.  The damage three Iron Warriors were able to do to the loyalist army, and the lengths the protagonists went to beat them, was so beautifully excessive, and I felt it was an appropriate amount of power scaling.  Thanks to these cool features from the Warhammer 40,000 universe, this book will primarily appeal to established fans of the franchise, although thanks to Wilt’s great writing, new readers will also have a lot of fun with it, even if they didn’t read the author’s previous short story.

While much of the appeal of Final Deployment was its epic story, great writing, and impressive action, I also felt the complex characters helped to make it even more special.  Primarily set around a group of Tempestus Scions, Final Deployment featured an intriguing look at these figures, their damaged pasts, and the struggles they experience on and off the battlefield.  Wilt does an excellent job of splitting the focus of Final Deployment over much of the extended cast, and indeed its nominal main characters, Tempestor Traxel and Commissar Fennech, don’t have that much of the book shown from their perspective.  Instead, most of the story is told through the eyes of other key members of the squad, including Norroll and the squad’s medic, Daviland.  This allows these secondary figures in the squad much more room to shine, and I felt the book was stronger as a result.  Norroll in particularly was quite a fun character.  An overly reckless Scion, Norroll finds himself caught between loyalty to Traxel and his squad, and his own death wish, and it was often really intriguing to see him in the middle of the bloodiest scenes in the book.  Daviland served as an excellent counter to Norroll’s more outrageous perspectives, especially as she is one of the saner members of the squad.  A transplant from another regiment, Daviland provides an interesting outsider’s perspective to the book, especially as she has a lot less mental damage the rest of First Eradicant.  Despite her loyalty primarily being to Fennech, Wilt writes an excellent storyline around Daviland becoming closer to her squad, and I felt that her perspective scenes were some of the more thoughtful and provided some great insights in the minds of the rest of the characters. 

Of the rest of the cast, Tempestor Traxel and Commissar Fennech, had the most presence.  Despite not serving as perspective characters, both were major parts of the book’s plot, and Wilt did an excellent job showcasing their personalities and issues through the eyes of the other protagonists.  This includes Traxel’s mental trauma at once again facing Chaos Space Marines after a previous deadly mission, and his impacted leadership adds an extra layer of difficulty to the protagonists’ mission.  Fennech, on the other hand, was a great portrayal of a classic, cold-blooded Imperial commissar, shooting allies first and never asking questions.  Fennech served an interesting role as both an ally/gun-bearing motivator, and a potential secondary antagonist to First Eradicant, especially as he questions their effectiveness and resolve.  While Fennech’s storyline doesn’t go as far as it could have, and I would have liked seeing some of the book through his steely eyes, I felt that he was an outstanding inclusion to Final Deployment’s cast that added some excellent alternative menace.

In addition to these characters, I enjoyed how the rest of First Eradicant also got their time to shine in this novel.  Featuring a mixture of existing members and later transfers from another squad, each of these characters had their own unique charm, and their compelling interactions added a lot to the novel’s enjoyment.  While there isn’t an excessive amount of development with some of these characters, which is mainly down to the mental indoctrination they’ve gone through, they were still fun to follow.  Just make sure not to get too attached to them, as the death toll in this novel is quite high.  Wilt matches these excellent perspective characters with several additional outsider characters, including several gloriously over-the-top antagonists, and the clash of styles and mentalities increased the overall fun and excitement I had with Final Deployment.

Unsurprisingly, I ended up listening to Final Deployment on audiobook, rather than seeking out a physical copy of the book.  I always find that the audiobook format brings out the very best of the grimdark Warhammer 40,000 universe and the unique characters that inhabit it, and the Final Deployment audiobook was a great example of this.  Perfectly narrated by Andrew Wincott, who previously impressed me with his voice work in Deathwatch: Shadowbreaker by Steve Parker and Huron Blackheart: Master of the Maelstrom by Mike Brooks, the intense action and harsh nature of war featured in Final Deployment really comes through in this audiobook, and I loved hearing all the intense firefight sequences come to life.  Wincott did an excellent job moving this intense story along at a quick clip, while also providing all the characters with distinctive voices that really fit their unique and gritty personalities.  The fun mixture of voices between the battle-weary human soldiers and the more unnatural forces of Chaos was extremely enjoyable, and you really get drawn into the compelling narrative as a result.  I honestly flew through the over 11-hour long audiobook in no time at all, and I loved every second I spent listening to it, especially some of the more brutal and deadly fight sequences.

Loaded with awesome action, damaged characters and an epic narrative, Final Deployment by R. S. Wilt was an incredible read and an amazing piece of Warhammer 40,000 fiction.  A fast-paced novel that follows some intense protagonists through hell and back, Final Deployment was an outstanding debut from Wilt, and comes very highly recommended, especially on audiobook.  I look forward to seeing how Wilt’s writing career continues in the future, and I am sure I will enjoy any additional contributions to the Warhammer franchise.

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Warhammer 40,000: Dominion Genesis by Jonathan D. Beer

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer1 Comment

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 21 September 2024)

Series: Warhammer 40,000

Length: 10 hours and 47 minutes

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Destitute tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus embark on a massive quest for redemption in the excellent 2024 Warhammer 40,000 novel, Dominion Genesis by Jonathan D. Beer.

Beer is a talented rising author in the Warhammer 40,000 fiction space who has so far impressed with two interesting books covering unique spheres of the fandom’s canon.  I deeply enjoyed his first novel, The King of the Spoil, which was a particularly epic entry in the Warhammer Crime sub-series, and which ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2023.  Beer followed up this debut last year with his second novel, Dominion Genesis, an intriguing read that takes place in a very different Warhammer 40,000 setting.  I had an excellent time with Dominion Genesis, although I spectacularly failed to write a review for it last year.  However, with Beer’s third Warhammer 40,000 novel just released, I felt that this was a good time to finally write something about Dominion Genesis, which honestly was an awesome read.

Plot Synopsis:

Gryphonne IV is dead – one of the mightiest forge worlds in the arsenal of the Adeptus Mechanicus, succumbed to the relentless hunger of Hive Fleet Leviathan. Devoured. Lost.

The few magi that survive drift in idleness, robbed of purpose and direction. But there is one who rejects that fate.

READ IT BECAUSE
It’s the gripping tale of an Explorator desperately seeking ancient technologies from humanity’s past as she races against time to restore one of the mightiest forge worlds in the Imperium.

THE STORY
Explorator Talin Sherax seeks ancient and miraculous technologies from humanity’s distant past. When she learns of a fabled relic that could restore all that has been lost, Sherax embarks on a journey, the outcome of which could change everything. Nothing will stand in her way… even if the quest brings her to the brink of heresy.

Dominion Genesis was a particularly intense and compelling entry in the Warhammer 40,000 canon that proves quite enthralling to read.  I like how Beer managed to achieve quite a few things with this book, as he produced an excellent quest narrative with a focus on obsession, trauma and survival, while also cleverly showcasing several different factions of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

Beer came up with a very awesome story that hits a lot of highly emotional story notes early on.  The start of Dominion Genesis was one of the more striking sequences of Warhammer fiction I have read, as the protagonist, Explorator Talin Sherax, is forced to witness the destruction of their home world.  Moving quickly into a time skip, you see a very different version of Sherax several years in the future, as she still attempts to make sense of the destruction while searching for valuable lost technology.  After a great sequence aboard a derelict spacehulk, Sherax finds a clue about a potential artifact that could help to restore her planet.  Going against the orders of her superiors, Sherax leads a crew of human soldiers and Adeptus Mechanicus forces on a quest to several deadly and hidden locations in the galaxy.  Along the way, the protagonists examine their humanity in several different forms, while also being stalked by dangerous alien fighters determined to stop them achieving their goal.

There are some great sequences in the middle of this book, as the protagonist desperately follow the clues into a trap, which shakes all the characters to their core.  After a gruelling sequence of events that help to highlight and move along several, well-constructed character development arcs, the adventure moves to its destructive conclusion.  After another disaster, the protagonists are dropped in amongst a war between rival xenos forces and must journey into the fray to achieve their goal, resulting in a brutal series of battles and the intense conclusion to the narrative.  Beer wrote in some great tragic moments as the protagonists are outmatched at nearly every turn, although many of these sequences work well to provide closure to some of the book’s various character arcs.  The conclusion to Dominion Genesis was as bleak as you would hope for a novel in the grimdark Warhammer 40,000 universe, but it provides some great closure for the main character and will keep readers very satisfied.

I felt that Dominion Genesis was a particularly good addition to the Warhammer 40,000 canon, as Beer provides a thoughtful and complex novel loaded with unique action and damaged characters trying to survive the inherent darkness of the war-torn universe.  Beer ended up producing an intense character-driven story for Dominion Genesis, and I loved the great balance between action, exploration and interaction between certain unique Warhammer races, and the focus on character elements.  I personally really enjoyed the deep dive into the Adeptus Mechanicus, with various character perspectives diving into their culture and thought processes, even though certain sections of the plot need to be altered to emulate the machine nature of the tech-priests.  Beer tried to showcase a more emotional side to the Adeptus Mechanicus in this book, especially through his protagonist which, while different from other portrays of this faction, fits the trauma-rich narrative as all these characters struggle with the loss of their home.  The author also has fun fitting in several of the main alien races of the Warhammer 40,000 universe into the story, including orks, Tyranid, Aeldari and Necrons.  While not a lot of focus is given to understanding them, they serve as good foils to the obsessed protagonists, and it was interesting to see the Mechanicus takes on these different enemies.  In the end, Dominion Genesis proved to be a compelling, and impressive standalone novel that makes great use of its Warhammer 40,000 elements.  However, be warned that this novel is probably better read by more established fans of the franchise, rather than newer readers, as Beer covers a lot of complex lore in a short period of time.

One of the key things I liked about Dominion Genesis was the rich array of compelling characters featured throughout the plot.  Beer does an outstanding job introducing and following several very damaged figures, including the protagonist Explorator Talin Sherax, who finds herself in a depressed state following the opening sequence of book.  Cutting herself off from the technological hivemind used by the rest of Adeptus Mechanicus brethren, Sherax proves to be a brilliantly complex figure in Dominion Genesis, and Beer’s take of her as the depressed member of a group known for having no emotions was really fascinating.  The author also features an interesting array of other Adeptus Mechanicus members who provide great alternate viewpoints to that of Sherax.  I really enjoyed how Beer managed to include a lot of intriguing individualism in these machine-like Adeptus Mechanicus characters, and the range of different opinions and feelings around Sherax and her mission added some interesting drama to the story. 

Finally, I must highlight the human members of the Dominion Genesis cast, who provide intriguing alternate viewpoints to cybernetic protagonists. I particularly enjoyed the focus on a depressed former Imperial Knight pilot, who, after losing his ancient war machine, decides to join the crew of Sherax’s ship.  There are some fascinating focuses on his parallel grief to that of the Adeptus Mechanicus characters, as well as his own self-anger, especially while forced to pilot a seemingly lesser machine.  Beer writes some interesting side plots around this more human character, including his relationship with an Imperial Guard regiment also aboard the ship, and he must balance his need for human contact with his own grief and arrogance.  I felt this compelling collection of distinctive characters helped to make Dominion Genesis really stand out, and I enjoyed seeing their unique interactions.

As with most Warhammer 40,000 novels I review, I ended up listening to Dominion Genesis on audiobook, which is pretty much the best way to enjoy this series.  The Dominion Genesis audiobook ended up being a lot of fun to listen to, and I managed to get through it’s near 11-hour runtime quickly.  It helped that Dominion Genesis was narrated by the very talented Colleen Prendergast, who is becoming the go-to narrator for any Warhammer 40,000 audiobook that features a human female protagonist, such as Justin D. Hill’s Cadia series, or standalone books like Creed: Ashes of Cadia by Jude Reid or Longshot by Rob Young.  Prendergast did an outstanding job bringing the various complex cast members of Dominion Genesis to life, and I particularly appreciated the skill need to voice a variety of cybernetic humans with altered or robotic voices.  This great voice work turned Dominion Genesis into a fantastic listen, and it was very easy to enjoy Beer’s outstanding and lore-heavy story when it was being read out.

Overall, Dominion Genesis was an amazing second novel by Jonathan D. Beer, who did an outstanding job pivoting to a different area of Warhammer 40,000 fiction.  I loved the complex character-driven narrative contained within Dominion Genesis, and this was one of the more enjoyable Warhammer 40,000 novels that came out last year.  I cannot wait to see how Beer continues to develop as a writer in the future, and I currently have a copy of his latest book, Tomb World, in my audiobook queue to listen to.

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Waiting on Wednesday – 30Seven by Jeremy Robinson

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday5 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this week’s Waiting on Wednesday, I highlight an outstanding science fiction thriller coming out in early 2026 with 30Seven by Jeremy Robinson.

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Over the last few years, I have been really enjoying the outstanding novels of Jeremy Robinson.  An interesting author who has who has a fantastic career writing clever, fun, and occasionally terrifying thrillers and science fiction elements novels, including his Antarktos Saga, Chess Team and Nemesis Saga series, Robinson has authored a staggering amount of fiction including additional cool series and standalone reads.

I personally got into Robinson’s work through some of the books in his interconnected Infinite Timeline series, including Tribe, The Dark and Mind Bullet (the latter two of which were amongst my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), all of which were incredibly fun and addictive. I have also started getting into Robinson’s standalone novels, such as last year’s fantastic novel Point Nemo (one of my favourite audiobooks of 2024), and his latest exceptional novel that come out only a couple of months ago, Artifact. Artifact was a particularly epic science fiction thriller, and it has gotten me in the mood for more awesome books from Robinson.

Luckily for me and all other fans of Jeremy Robinson, we don’t need to wait much longer for the author’s next book as the highly prolific writer already has an outstanding new novel coming out very soon.  This new book, 30Seven, is set for release in January 2026, and it has already ensnared me with its cool plot that will mix an alien abduction story with an intense, character-driven thriller story that has an epic hook to it.

Plot Synopsis:

Twenty-eight people are abducted from a lakeside beach―and a killer is among them―in this twisty UFO horror novel from the bestselling author of The Others.

After a year of torment following the loss of his wife, Isabella, to a serial killer with an artistic flair, Marcus Lockwood retreats with his son, Elias, to Moose Hollow―a secluded campground in backwoods Maine―in search of healing. There, a close-knit band of lifelong campers immerses them in a warm, nostalgic experience filled with fishing, canoeing, crackling barbecues, and a taste of normalcy.

When whispers of eerie UFO sightings ignite a vigil on the beach, Marcus and Elias eagerly join the hunt for the inexplicable. But when the sky erupts in otherworldly light, they’ll get much more than they bargained for. A mysterious craft descends, and in one surreal moment, the group is abducted and transported into the unknown. Amid the chaos and disorientation, a gut-wrenching discovery terrifies Marcus:

One of them is Isabella’s killer.

I honestly am already deeply in love with the outstanding plot for 30Seven.  Only Jeremy Robinson could up the ante of an alien abduction narrative by forcing the protagonist to simultaneously deal with a serial killer responsible for his wife’s death.  Watching a likeable Robinson protagonist try to protect his child from aliens and the unknown, while also dealing with the grief and anger this revelation will bring about is going to be so damn powerful and it will be an impressive centre to this novel.  Throw in Robinson’s proven ability to craft fast-paced stories with shocking horror elements, clever, reference-laden humour, and tons of epic action, and 30Seven has so much potential to be a first rate read.

Honestly, after having so much fun with Artifact earlier this year, there was no way I wasn’t going to pick up the next standalone novel from Jeremy Robinson.  However, thanks to the outrageous and captivating plot synopsis above, I am now even more eager to read 30Seven and it is currently one of the novels that I’m most eager for in early 2026.  I have absolutely no doubt I am going to power through this outstanding read, especially if the audiobook version is once again narrated by the legendary R. C. Bray, and I fully expect to give 30Seven a full five-star rating when I get my eager hands on it.

Artifact by Jeremy Robinson

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Thriller3 Comments

Publisher: Podium Audio (Audiobook – 26 August 2025)

Series: Standalone

Length: 9 hours and 56 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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One of my very favourite authors of outrageous fiction, Jeremy Robinson, returns with another intense and horrifying science fiction thriller, Artifact, a captivating and powerful novel I couldn’t get enough of.

Jeremy Robinson is an outstanding author who has a fantastic career writing clever, fun, and occasionally terrifying thrillers, often featuring intriguing science fiction elements.  Best known for his Antarktos Saga, Chess Team and Nemesis Saga series, Robinson has written a staggering amount of fiction over the years, including additional cool series and standalone reads.  I personally got into Robinson’s work a few years ago when I read a few books from his massive, interconnected Infinite Timeline series, including Tribe, The Dark and Mind Bullet (the latter two of which were amongst my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), all of which were incredibly fun and addictive.  I have also started getting into Robinson’s standalone novels, such as last year’s fantastic novel Point Nemo (one of my favourite audiobooks of 2024), which contain some amazing stories.  As such, I was very excited when I got a copy of Robinson’s awesome new novel, Artifact, on audiobook, which sounded extremely amazing.  I honestly started listening to Artifact the same day I found out about it, and boy was I glad that I did.

Plot Synopsis:

In an isolated Alaskan town, the local sheriff uncovers a secret lab where generative A.I. and bioprinting have unleashed grotesque, living anomalies—and now, something monstrous is loose.

Sheriff Colton Graves prefers the quiet life in Raven’s Rest, Alaska, a remote town accessible only by tunnel and home to a hardy mix of locals and secrets buried in the ice. But when a camel wanders down Main Street—its head grotesquely sprouting a dozen eyes—Colton knows his quiet days are over. The bizarre incident leads him to NovaGen, a nearby research facility constructed inside a Cold War bunker, buried in the mountains above town. There, a trail of blood and eerie silence hints at something far more sinister than an escaped animal experiment.

With his deputies—the sharp-witted Tali and rookie Ethan—Colton recruits a few trusted locals, including the unshakable Marit, Tali’s sister, the intimidating ‘Grizz’ Norval, and Edgar ‘Old Red’ Rydell, an aging man plagued by demons from when he worked at the bunker during its covert cold war days.

Together, they investigate the abandoned lab. What begins as a search for missing scientists soon reveals chilling evidence: pools of blood without bodies, cryptic warnings left behind, a bloody six-fingered handprint, and the revelation of a new technology: a generative A.I. capable of printing living organisms. As they descend deeper into the lab, it becomes clear that the answers they seek may come at a terrifying cost—and that what was made in the dark may not be content to stay there.

Jeremy Robinson once again greatly impresses with his new thriller Artifact.  A complex and deeply clever read loaded with weird science, fantastic humour and incredible action, Artifact was an exceptional read that had me hooked very early on and kept my attention all the way to the end.  A particularly intense novel with so many amazing elements to it, Artifact gets a full five-star rating from me, especially on audiobook, and I ended up powering through it so damn quickly.

I deeply enjoyed the compelling and fast-paced narrative that Robinson featured in Artifact, which amps up the intrigue and excitement quickly and keeps it going all the way to the very end.  Starting with an enticing inciting event of a multi-eyed camel arriving in the middle of a snowed-over Alaskan town, the initial narrative of Artifact is quick and effective, with the protagonists quickly realising that something dark has occurred at the nearby and mysterious NovaGen facility.  Pulling together a band of scrappy locals, the group begin their decent into the facility, only to encounter mysterious creatures and tragic death.

Robinson soon takes the novel into twisted science fiction territory as you are shown the variety of experiments taking place in the facility.  In particular, the staff of NovaGen are bio-printing monsters and other creatures, which has inevitably gone wrong.  Forced to put an end to the experiments and save the town from potential destruction, Colton and his team continue to descend the various levels of the facility, all while being hunted by the worst monsters humans can imagine.  The author does an excellent job of building and maintaining tension throughout Artifact’s story, and you are expertly drawn into the personal struggles of the characters as they try to understand and withstand the horrors of the facility.  There are some outstanding twists and sudden deaths as the story draws towards its conclusion, and I enjoyed the mixture of shocking moments and well-crafted reveals many chapters in the making, which results in an outstanding novel where you never quite know what is happening next.  Robinson ends the book on a mostly hopeful note, along with an amusing cliffhanger, and this proved to be an impressive standalone narrative that is guaranteed to entertain.

I felt that the author pulled Artifact together in a very entertaining manner that allowed for the maximum thrills, tension and character development.  Perfectly utilising the first-person perspective that Robinson is so fond of, Artifact is a great standalone read that requires no prior knowledge of the author’s other works to enjoy (although there are a few fun references established fans will chuckle at).  The author does an excellent job of effectively setting out the key elements of Artifact throughout its run, including with the advanced science elements of the book.  These science elements are both compelling and quite interesting, and you can tell that Robinson did a bit of research into the subject.  This research allowed the author to envision some dark and horrifying creations of potentially realistic science, and I loved how the creatures the protagonist encounter was a combination of weaponised efficiency and dark human imagination.

These fantastic science fiction creations, and the dark conspiracy that birthed them, work well with the author’s Michael Crichton inspired scenario, to create a lot of excellent tension and uncertainty that keeps readers constantly on the edge of their seat.  I loved the constant uncertainty of what traumatising event was about to come out of nowhere next, and there are some great twists and reveals scattered throughout this captivating novel.  Throw in a series of particularly thrilling action sequences as the protagonists face off against printed monstrosities and the other disturbing denizens of NovaGen, and there is a lot to love about how Artifact was written, especially as it perfectly enhances Robinson’s fantastic and captivating narrative.

My favourite elements of Artifact were the complex and compelling characters whom Robinson set his narrative around.  Robinson has always excelled at creating entertaining characters, and I think he did a wonderful job pulling together a layered cast of Alaskan outcasts and rogues to fill the pages of Artifact.

The most prominent of these characters is main protagonist Sheriff Colton Graves, from whose perspective we see the events of this book unfold.  Colton is a widowed lawman who enjoys the simple life at Raven’s Rest, but who quickly rises to the challenge when strangeness invades his town.  Effectively established as a compelling and solid centre to the book’s plot, Colton is an easy character to like thanks to his fun humour, clever insights and leadership skills.  However, Robinson makes Colton even more interesting as the book continues by revealing some fascinating character details that are expertly weaved into the story.  This includes a new romance for Colton that helps him to move forward from his dead wife and serves as his inspiration to continue pushing through the horrors of the NovaGen lab.  In addition to this, the story reveals that Colton has autism and hypersensitivity, and these conditions have strong impacts on the plot and the way the perspective protagonist interacts with the world.  Robinson does an exceptional job really diving into these fascinating aspects of his protagonist, and it was clear that the author was trying to showcase the conditions as accurately as possible based on his own personal experiences.  I think that Robinson really succeeded in showcasing these character elements, and while certain aspects are no doubt enhanced to fit in with the science fiction aspects of the book, it was mostly realistic.  I really enjoyed how Robinson made Colton a particularly likeable and relatable protagonist, and he helps to make Artifact a very distinctive read.

In addition to Colton, Robinson loads up Artifact with a great collection of memorable supporting characters who are perfectly utilised in the narrative and add some entertaining spice on top of the protagonist.  Highlights for me include the troubled and mysterious Old Red, a survivalist with dark connections to facility, who serves as the groups guide and secret badass.  I also had a lot of fun with Grizz, a tough, bear-killing lady with the scars to prove it.  Colton’s deputy, Tali, was the perfect backup for the protagonist, while her sister, Marit, proved to be an excellent love interest to Colton, which resulted in some complicated and emotional sequences.  The rest of the cast, including some unique figures found in the bunker, are also quite entertaining, be they friend, bio-engineered organism, or evil antagonist, and I loved some of the amazing interactions that emerged.  I will warn readers not to get too attached to any characters, as most figures don’t last as long as you’d want, but Robinson makes full use of every character he features, even if they only have a brief life in the book.

As with all the previous Robinson novels I’ve enjoyed, I chose to check out Artifact on audiobook, which was a ton of fun.  I have always found that Robinson’s novels come across particularly well on audiobook, and Artifact was no exception as I powered through its near 10-hour long runtime very quickly.  Part of the reason why I had such a great time with this audiobook is the return of one of my favourite audiobook narrators R. C. Bray.  Bray, who has lent his voice to most of Robinson’s audiobooks, is a truly exceptional narrator, and I just love any story read out in his gravelly and distinctive voice.  This was particularly true for Artifact, where the intense action and the horrifying descriptions of the laboratory’s contents were so much more impactful thanks to Bray’s calm and powerful take on events.  Bray also expertly showcases each of the key characters of the novel, and I felt he developed fitting and personal voices for each of the members of the cast.  While I love Bray’s voice for Old Red and the slacker Jimmy, his best work was saved for main protagonist and point-of-view character Colton.  Bray has long perfected voicing Robinson’s various first-perspective protagonists, and he always manages to cover their complex personalities, dialogue and interactions extremely well.  His take on Colton was very moving in Artifact, and I felt that Bray really enhanced Robinson’s depictions of this character’s quirks and unique viewpoints on life.  Due to this impressive narration, and Robinson’s general cinematic writing style, the Artifact audiobook is exceptional, and it’s easily the best way to enjoy this novel.

With all the chaotic action, crazy science fiction elements, and great character I’ve come to expect from Jeremy Robinson, Artifact was an outstanding novel I had a blast getting through.  Featuring a thrilling plot, laden with shocks and monsters, Artifact grabs the reader’s attention early and refuses to let go.  This book comes very highly recommended from me, especially on audiobook, and anyone keen for a horror-filled and deeply intense thriller is going to have an outstanding time with Artifact.

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Waiting on Wednesday – Red Empire by Jonathan Maberry

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday3 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this latest Waiting on Wednesday, I examine one of my most anticipated upcoming thrillers for 2026 with the epic new Rogue Team International novel from Jonathan Maberry, Red Empire.

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I have made no secret over the years about just how much I enjoy the crazy works of author Jonathan Maberry.  A highly inventive author with a knack for awesome action sequences and a love of horror, Maberry has been writing impressive novels since 2006, with his chilling Pine Deep series.  Since then, he has gone on to write a stagging variety of novels, including the zombie apocalypse Rot & Ruin and Dead of Night series, his V-War comic series, as well as several awesome standalone novels like the disturbing Ink.  Maberry has also had fun diving into the fantasy and science fiction genre in recent years, including his exceptional Kagen the Damned dark fantasy trilogy, made up of Kagen the Damned (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2022), Son of the Poison Rose (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023), and The Dragon in Winter (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2024), as well as the science fiction novel NeckroTek (the sequel of which, Cold War, I’m hoping to read soon).

While I’m a huge fan of all the above series, my favourite body of Maberry’s work remains his iconic and long-running Joe Ledger series.  Following the titular troubled protagonist as he works as a part of an elite government special forces team detailed to stopping terrorist attacks or criminal organisations using advanced and unusual technology, the Joe Ledger novels were impressive and complex thrillers with over-the-top science fiction or horror elements. The original series, which ran for 10 books, features some amazing novels, including Patient Zero, The Dragon Factory, Assassin’s Code, Predator One and Deep Silence just to name a few. Each of these novels were amazing reads on their own, although I also got really drawn into the ongoing storylines and recurring villains.

Following the end of the original Joe Ledger books, Maberry continued many of his storylines in the sequel Rogue Team International series, bringing back the major characters and setting them up as independent intelligence operatives working for themselves. This series was also extremely exciting, and I have appreciated the way in which the author has continued some of the complex story arcs and villainous narratives from the first series. The Rogue Team International books have so far featured Rage (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2019), Relentless (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), Cave 13 (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023) and the 2025 release, Burn to Shine, each of which have been pretty damn amazing and filled with some dark and captivating narratives.

Due to how much I love this extended series, I am already quite excited about the next upcoming Rogue Team International book coming out in early 2026, Red Empire.  Set to be the fifth entry in the Rogue Team International series and the 15th overall Joe ledger novel, Red Empire has an intriguing plot that sees an old enemy of Ledger and his organization engage in a new plot to destroy the world, while shocking secrets and ancient mysteries come to light.  Set for release in March 2026, Red Empire sounds amazing, and I am already extremely eager to get my hands on it.

Plot Synopsis:

In the next novel in the Joe Ledger and Rogue Team International series by New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry, the team faces new and old enemies alike as a bioengineered version of The Black Death surfaces.

Hundreds of years after the first waves of the bubonic plague swept through Europe, a new, more dangerous version threatens London. Joe Ledger’s old enemy the Red Empire—reborn as a far more powerful political and military group—has bioengineered a weaponized version of yersinia pestis—the bacteria responsible for The Black Death that killed tens of millions in the Middle Ages.

As Joe Ledger and Rogue Team International race against the clock to put a stop to the Red Empire’s plans, they’re sucked into the strange and mysterious past of the man called Mr. Church. Secrets come to light that make even his staunchest allies wonder who –and more precisely what—Church really is.

With whispers of an elixir vitae—or elixir of life—circling, Joe Ledger and Rogue Team International are facing the highest possible stakes in their work together yet. As the tension builds and the balance between life and death sways precariously, it seems like tragic losses among them might be inevitable.

Oh yeah, I am already very excited for this.  Based on this above synopsis, Maberry has pulled together another intriguing plot for Red Empire, and I’m looking forward to seeing it unfold.  Seeing the return of an old enemy organisation, the sinister Red Empire, is going to be amazing, especially as they attempt to unleash a deadly biological weapon upon the world.  I look forward to seeing the plot revolve around this new battle between Ledger and his foes, and I’m expecting a lot of epic action and intense carnage as a result.

While the focus on the Red Empire and their new strain of the Black Death will be awesome, the part of the synopsis that I, and most long-term Joe Ledger fans, are most interested in, is the section that talks about the secret origins of Mr Church.  Church, the founder and leader of the titular organisation and its predecessor government department, has long been an enigmatic figure, bending world leaders to his will and boasting an insane set of skills and contacts to save the day.  Maberry has strongly hinted about a supernatural origin to Mr Church over the years, including in the shocking final scene of Burn to Shine.  However, the full details of who, or what, Mr Church is, as well as his connection to his chaotic antagonist Nicodemus, has yet to be completely revealed.  From the sounds of the synopsis above, as well as some details revealed by Maberry, it looks like we are finally going to get the full origin story of Mr Church in Red Empire.  I’ve honestly been waiting for this background on one of Maberry’s best characters for years, and I cannot emphasise just how excited I am to finally find out the true tale of Mr Church and the origins of his war against evil.

I think it’s very clear from this long Waiting on Wednesday post that I’m very keen to get my hands on Red Empire next year.  This upcoming Joe Ledger/Rogue Team International novel from Jonathan Maberry sounds so damn cool, and I cannot wait to see all the carnage and trauma that the author will unleash upon his fans with this new book.  Throw in the fact that Maberry is finally going to reveal one of his series’ most intriguing and long-running secrets, and this is already one of the books I most excited to read next year.  I can guarantee that I will be listening to Red Empire the very second it comes out, and I already know I’m going to love everything about it.