# Fear the Alien Review|Spoilers*



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

The latest anthology of tales from the 41st millennium titled, appropriately, _Fear the Alien_ arrived for me this morning and ive just finished it as I start this review.


_Gardens of Tycho_
The first story is titled _Gardens of Tycho: A Magos Drusher Story_ by Dan Abnett. Set on a backwater world the story follows the unlucky Magos Biologis Valentin Drusher who is picked up by the Magistratum Martial Order Division to aid them with a serial killing case, although it quickly turns into more then just random killins.

This was quite a good short story for its well-paced action, humourus moments and a twist ending that was quite well-done. And a brief hint to _Eisenhorn_ with the appearance of something that readers of the series will definitely recognize.

I give _Gardens of Tycho_ a *3.5/5*, and I hope we have not seen the last of Magos Drusher.


_Fear Itself_
The second story _Fear Itself_ by new Black Library writer Juliet McKenna centres around the Alnavik 'Stone Bears' Imperial Guard Regiment during a Tyranid invasion. The story follows Catmos, the chief surgeon, as he must patch up the wounded and send them back into the slaughter, and must also deal with the psychological scarring that many suffer from the horrors of the Hive Fleets.

This was a good stand-alone story that portrays the Tyranids quite well and gives a new and interesting Imperial Guard Regiment the Alnavik 'Stone Bears' that are "Hard enough to eat rocks and shit gravel!", as the guardsmen put it. However while it was good it did not wow me, this is a solid entry but its not gonna win any awards.

I give _Fear Itself_ a *3/5* and look forward to Juliet Mckenna's future work.


_Promethus Requiem_
The third story is one that many will recognize. Yet another Salamanders short story by Nick Kyme. Prometheus Requiem is set in-between _Fireborn_ and _Firedrake_ and features Tsu'gan on another mission with the Firedrakes. Tsu'gan and the Firedrakes join up with another Firedrake sergeant on a mission to a Space Hulk, and face the ghosts of their pasts and must determine what enemies are real and what are false, while the true enemy stalks the shadows on the hunt.

This was quite a good short story, definitely better then the other Salamander short tales. Featuring an overlap with ADB's _The Core_ the appearance of Lucoryphus and his Bleeding Eyes was quite cool, especially when they tore a Firedrake apart piece by piece. Plus seeing how both stories affect each other was nice.

I give _Prometheus Requiem_ a *4/5* and look forward to _Firedrake_, which I am attending Games Day solely to get it early.


_Mistress Baeda's Gift_
The fourth story was a very interesting one for me. _Mistress Baeda's Gift_ by Braden Campbell follows the Dark Eldar Archon Malwrack as he attempts to win over, and dominate, the widow Baeda who has stolen his affections. However to win such a beauty he must dig deep into his resources and come up with the perfect gift, and that will cost more then he expects.

This was an interesting story. Rather then being set around a huge battle or a deep conspiracy it follows the daily life of a Dark Eldar, and deals with a more emotional side to the twisted kin. While not up to the standards of Anthony Reynold's Dark Eldar, but then again what is, it was definitely enjoyable and another step towards getting the Dark Eldar the attention they deserve.

I give _Mistress Baeda's Gift_ a *4/5* and look forward to more Dark Eldar, we really need more of them.


_Iron Inferno_
The fifth story Iron Inferno by C.L Werner is a first for Black Library, the very first story written from the perspective of an Ork. The story follows Kommando Kaptain Grimruk Badtoof, a Blood Axe Ork, who has joined up with a WAAAGH! that is rampaging through the Izanagi sector and has made planetfall on the capital world Yamato. Grimruk and his Kommando's have their mission and will carry it out, regardless of the risk. A Blood Axe knows two things. One, sometimes you've gotta pull out of a fight to get the job done. And two, there's more to winning then getting killed in a big fight.

This was a very enjoyable story and contained some great Orkish moments. The PDF's strategy was sound but I knew instantly how the Orks would react to it. They made one critical mistake, they assumed an Ork thinks like a human. The only thing that disappointed me was the total lack of Ork dialogue, the speech was never used directly. While Orkish dialect is tough we still love hearing, 'Smash dem gitz boyz!, WAAAAGH!'.

I give _Iron Inferno_ a solid *4.5/5*


_Sanctified_
The sixth story _Sanctified_ written by Mark Clapham follows Magos Kaspel as he repairs the ship Sanctity after its crippling by the Necrons. However the Dark Eldar have slipped aboard and are intent on capturing the ship and taking it back to Commorragh, Kaspel must rely on his technological skills to defeat them and save the Sanctity.

This was quite a good story, and more Dark Eldar which gives me hope for their future, and was a solid entry for the anthology. The skills used by Magos Kaspel to defeat the Dark Eldar was surprising and fitting for a Mechanicus Engineseer.

I give _Sanctified_ a *3.5/5* and look forward to Mark Clapham's future work.


_Faces_
The seventh story _Faces_ by Mathew Farrer, the writer of _Shira Calpurnia_ was an interesting one. Set on a mining rig a group of humans have lost their identities and are acting as different people, memories that are not theirs of a great war, broken promises and hatred between brothers and sisters, are being told through their bodies. And the true actors of this epic play are returning, and do not take kindly to their roles being usurped.

This was, ill admit, a slog to get through. Its confusing at the start and seems to drag on but halfway through it starts to get a lot better and the Harlequin's appearing at the end and retaking their masks was very entertaining. Plus it was a fun challenge to guess which roles the human's were playing based on their words and actions.

I give Faces a *3/5* for a good story but a slow start.


_Unity_
The eighth story _Unity_ by James Gilmer was a very interesting take on a xenos race. The story follows the Guard sniper Tam and the Raven Guard Gesar as they trek across a planet to escape the Tau forces hunting them. Dealing with the sting of betrayal by another regiment who have defected to the Tau. Both of these unlikely partners will see a dark side to the enigmatic Tau that show their true xenos colours.

This story was interesting because of its portrayal of the Tau and their Kroot allies. The Tau are shown to be uncaring of humanity and will gladly sacrifice them to preserve their Tau forces while preaching that their deaths are for the Greater Good. And to keep the Kroot sweet they pay them off with live prisoners and dead bodies for feeding.

I give _Unity_ a *3.5/5* for a good story and showing the true dark side of the Tau. It was only a matter of time.


_The Core_
The ninth story The Core by Aaron Dembski-Bowden returns to the Night Lords in a preview of the future. Set after the upcoming novel _Blood Reaver_ the story follows Talos who now has his own ship the Strike Cruiser Echo of Damnation and is in command of the 10th Company. Taking the advice of Tech-Priest Deltrian the Night Lords infiltrate a Space Hulk hoping to be off with much salvage and something that Deltrian wishes to harvest from the hulk of a Mechanicus craft, locked deep within the hulk. However they pick up more then they bargained for and run into an old enemy.

This is my favourite story of the anthology for obvious reasons but also because it is the first glimpse of big changes ahead for the Night Lords. The Exalted and his Atramentar are nowhere to be seen, although their fate is not confirmed, and the Covenant of Blood is gone as well. Newcomers Lucoryphus of the Bleeding Eyes, a Night Lords Raptor who is a remnant of what he once was, and Variel the Flayer, a former Red Corsairs Apothecary and an original Astral Claw. And the overlap with Prometheus Requiem by Nick Kyme was very cool.

I give _The Core_ a *4.5/5* for an enjoyable story, a well-written overlap, and managing to entertain us and at the same time not give anything huge about _Blood Reaver_ away. I look forward to _Blood Reaver_ even more now, and I hope The Exalted burns.


_Ambition Knows no Bounds_
The tenth and final story of _Fear the Alien_ is _Ambition Knows no Bounds_ by Andy Hoare. Following the junior Rogue Trader Brielle as she and her team venture into an ancient tomb system to plunder and loot what they can. However once inside they face the tomb's guardians and learn that its occupants are not as dead as they assumed.

A good story that gives us some pretty cool Necron action and shows us that ultimately, humans are greedy and stupid, and will disregard danger and the safety of others for a chance at profit. The Necron Lord was awesome and it was nice to see the traditional Necron method that I always imagined they kill people with, disintegration.

I give _Ambition Knows no Bounds_ a *4/5* for a good story and an interesting lesson on humanity's failings.


Overall _Fear the Alien_ has proved to be my favourite anthology with many classic stories and fearsome xenos to threaten mankind. The Dark Eldar getting two appearances and a full short story about them is sweet and promising for their future, and the first Ork story was a success in my eyes and hopefully C.L Werner's next work will be a Ork series, WAAAAGH! ye grots and squigs!.

I give _Fear the Alien_ a *9/10*. My next review will be Andy Hoare's _Hunt for Voldorius_, this is my first full novel by Mr Hoare and features Kernax Voldorius, one of my favourite 40k characters that hadn't been fleshed out until now. I can't wait to start reading.


----------



## Bane_of_Kings (Oct 28, 2009)

Wow, great review, I can't wait to read them myself.


----------



## dark angel (Jun 11, 2008)

Good review. One thing that did stand out to me about it however was the fact you gave _Promethus Requiem_ a 4/5 but _The Core_ 4.5/5. Shouldn't they both be the same, considering that they cross over? Other than that, a interesting review Lord of the Night, I look forwards to reading it myself  

Edit: Oh, and it is certainly nice to see that Andy Hoare hasn't gave up on his Rogue Traders! Though Brielle was my least favourite...


----------



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

I gave _The Core_ a higher rating because it was more amusing then _Prometheus Requiem_. Deltrian's comments to Septimus were pretty funny. And the characters were more interesting, like Lucoryphus and his Raptors, they had some cool names. Shar Gan, Zon La, Vorasha. Even though half of them did not make it.

And the Rogue Trader characters were in his last novels?, hmm. Was there a bodyguard called Quin in the Rogue Trader novels?.


----------



## dark angel (Jun 11, 2008)

That's fair enough, just thought it was a bit.....Strange.

The Rogue Traders were not in his last books, they were _the_ focus of his last novels (_Rogue Star_ and _Star of Damocles_).I cannot remember if there is a bodyguard by that name in the novels, however if I remember correctly, Brielle defects to the Tau in the second novel, so it is probably a prequel to the two books


----------



## Khorne's Fist (Jul 18, 2008)

I first read _The Gardens of Tycho_ when it appeared in issue 46 of Inferno magazine in '05. Unfortunatley Abnett seems happy to leave Drusher with just the 2 outings. Hopefully he'll get some more attention for a later anthology, as he is a very good character.

Nice review BTW.:victory:


----------



## Dead.Blue.Clown (Nov 27, 2009)

dark angel said:


> Good review. One thing that did stand out to me about it however was the fact you gave _Promethus Requiem_ a 4/5 but _The Core_ 4.5/5. Shouldn't they both be the same, considering that they cross over?


Man, this makes the least sense out of anything I've ever read. Two stories describe the same event. That doesn't mean they're written the same way, in the same style, to the same quality, by the same author. 

Is every WWII movie the same because it's WWII, or are they written, directed, filmed and acted completely differently, by entirely different people? Is a film about the same thing exactly the same as every other film about that event? Hell, are even remakes exactly the same quality as the original movies?

You _literally_ scare me.


----------



## World Eater XII (Dec 12, 2008)

I thought about buying this book as i was midly impressed by the legends of spacca mahreens book. 

But i thought i trust the reviews of my favourite BL forum lot.

Defor looks like a good pick up. 

DE making a good appearance is nice, hell they did dark elves n fantasy so why not DE in 40k?


----------



## darkreever (Apr 3, 2008)

Dead.Blue.Clown said:


> Man, this makes the least sense out of anything I've ever read. Two stories describe the same event. That doesn't mean they're written the same way, in the same style, to the same quality, by the same author.


I agree with you, it should not be in any way strange that the two differ, and can get different ratings. It may be more of who is doing the reviewing, their feelings towards the works of certain people, and how it may/may not be surprising about the ratings certain stories got.


All in all, very much looking forward to getting my hands on this book, especially because many of those stories are written by different authors than the usual gang and thats always awesome to see.


----------



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

The primary reason that I preferred _The Core_ to _Prometheus Requiem_ is because _The Core_ has Night Lords. That may sound biased on the surface but there are deeper reasons.

The characterisation of the Night Lords is better, makes for a better story. There is a moment when Septimus catches up to the group and Uzas growls at him as a greeting and Septimus thinks that for Uzas that is being cordial. Plus I really like how Lucoryphus runs on all fours like a beast, makes him look much more threatening.

Plus the style of combat was much better. Lucoryphus and the Bleeding Eyes hunting the Salamanders through the Hulk was much more interesting then the Salamanders storming through the Genestealers and cutting down half of the Raptors. The idea of Lucoryphus and the Raptors leaping through the darkened platforms above the corridors while the Salamanders are unaware below was awesome.

My favourite stories of the anthology are _The Core_, _Iron Inferno_ and _Mistress Baeda's Gift_. Those three are the best ones, at least for me.


----------



## CursedUNTILLDEATH (Apr 25, 2010)

A ork story... Thank you C.L. Werner. More DE and night lords love=cool. A insite into the tau that shows thier evil side? im in:biggrin:


----------



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

nice review mate. 

CP

p.s. *dead.blue.clown* shoot me an email.


----------



## Roninman (Jul 23, 2010)

Looks like have to buy this too... And nice review overall. 

As mentioned earlier people should put (if they can) some other points on reviewing than just the story.


----------



## JamesGilmer (Aug 13, 2010)

Lord of the Night said:


> _Unity_
> The eighth story _Unity_ by James Gilmer was a very interesting take on a xenos race. The story follows the Guard sniper Tam and the Raven Guard Gesar as they trek across a planet to escape the Tau forces hunting them. Dealing with the sting of betrayal by another regiment who have defected to the Tau. Both of these unlikely partners will see a dark side to the enigmatic Tau that show their true xenos colours.
> 
> This story was interesting because of its portrayal of the Tau and their Kroot allies. The Tau are shown to be uncaring of humanity and will gladly sacrifice them to preserve their Tau forces while preaching that their deaths are for the Greater Good. And to keep the Kroot sweet they pay them off with live prisoners and dead bodies for feeding.
> ...


Thanks for the review! I just wanted to say thanks for a well-written review of "Unity", my first BL/WH40K work and something I'm really proud of, even if the distance of a year makes me see things I wish I had done differently.

Thanks for the kind words. While this wasn't my first published piece of fiction, it was my first adventure into the world of WH40K, and I owe all the good stuff to Christian Dunn, who is the kind of editor every writer wants; someone who makes them a better author with every job. Honestly, it's all very common for a writer to praise their editor as a matter of course but I don't think I've had as much fun or learned as much as from working with Christian. He's a diamond geezer and the field needs more editors like him.

I'm a rather recent convert to the Warhammer 40K fold, and I'm still devouring my way through BL's back catalogue as fast as I can read them, and like every writer there's stuff I look back on with "Unity" and wish I'd tweaked here and there, but I had a blast writing it and I hope everyone has a blast reading it.

I find the Tau Empire to be utterly fascinating, and I loved the kroot the instant I read the Tau Empire Codex. As to whether the tau are "bad"...well, they're xenos :victory:

Cheers!

James (Jim) Gilmer


----------



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

Hey there Jim! 

We're glad to have you with us mate. I'm looking forward to getting my copy of Fear the Alien, so i can have a read of your story, from what i've heard here, it really sounds like a good-un. lol

I hope you'll stick around and have a word in some of the discussions around here. that would be swell!

My warmest wishes and greetings,

Commissar Ploss
Fiction and Fluff Mod


----------



## JamesGilmer (Aug 13, 2010)

Commissar Ploss said:


> Hey there Jim!
> 
> We're glad to have you with us mate. I'm looking forward to getting my copy of Fear the Alien, so i can have a read of your story, from what i've heard here, it really sounds like a good-un. lol
> 
> ...


Thanks! I appreciate the warm welcome. At the moment I'm rather snowed under with my day job and some writing projects, but I'll stick my head in from time to time.

I'll be starting a writing blog very soon as many friends and fellow writers have asked me about my experiences working on a work-for-hire franchise and just how I climbed the ladder period, so when I get that up I'll post so interested parties can get a bit of behind the scenes info, and hopefully you lot will see some more WH40K work with my name on it soon.

I've never had an editor take as much time reviewing the first draft of an outline and a manuscript with me than Christian does every time and I get a great rush from bouncing ideas off him and making a story take shape as we go back and forth. I've not had a company where everyone I've dealt with has just been wonderful, and I can't even tell you how utterly FUN the Skype sessions with my editor were, as well as educational, and it's been the sort of experience writers wish for. Each time I go over stuff with Christian I come away a better writer (pssst...don't tell him though, us writers are supposed to be anti-social _Artists!_ suffering for our craft! :wacko

As said, I feel honoured to be a part of the universe for the fans and for the other creators, many of whom I deeply respect and a few I already knew before jumping into this.

One last thing; if you're on the bubble about the book please remember that short story anthos are a bit of a dying breed in todays publishing market. It's utterly fantastic that Black LIbrary still does them, and because FTA isn't a SPACE MARINE antho, there's a good chance it won't get the instant recognition that the SM anthos do. 

If you really like the book make sure you let your friends know about it or write reviews on forums, blogs, or at amazon, et al. I really think this is a cracking collection of stories by people I'm honoured and shocked to be sharing a ToC with and I think the concept alone is fantastic.

Right, enough cheerleading from me, thanks for the welcome and I'll be around when work and insomnia (the reason I'm up at the moment) permit.

Cheers!

James (Jim) Gilmer


----------



## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

lol right then, cheers mate, we're glad to have you around. 

I'll be looking for your blog, be sure to let me know when it's up. cheers

CP


----------



## Karthak (Jul 25, 2010)

Lord of the Night;695369
This story was interesting because of its portrayal of the Tau and their Kroot allies. The Tau are shown to be uncaring of humanity and will gladly sacrifice them to preserve their Tau forces while preaching that their deaths are for the Greater Good. And to keep the Kroot sweet they pay them off with live prisoners and dead bodies for feeding.
I give [I said:


> Unity[/I] a 3.5/5 for a good story and showing the true dark side of the Tau. It was only a matter of time.


I am not amused. The whole *point* of the Tau is that they're supposed to not be as big assholes as everyone else in 40k.


----------



## darkreever (Apr 3, 2008)

Yes, and the point of unity could be that that is simply a facade they put up. And why not? If it is the difference between Tau lives and human lives, which do you think the Tau are going to prefer live?

If there is something in the way of the Tau, how often has the fluff pointed to them being willing to crush that opposition? For the Tau, you are either willing to join and be ruled by them or die at their hands and guns. That is the Tau officially, a seemingly good race amongst the plethora of varying evils in the 40k galaxy; truth is they are no less evil than the rest, they just do a better job at hiding it sometimes. All James Gilmerhas done with his story is give us but one view into just how much of an illusion that may be, just how evil the Tau actually are.


Hell, look at the Gue'vesa, you know many of those people left behind after the Damocles crusade who were faced with joining the Tau or being killed? Yeah those are some great options. Hell the title even stands for helper, more akin to a slave than an equel.


----------



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

The Tau seem like good guys in the dark universe of 40k because of two factors that no other race shares. One, they will offer you a chance to surrender and join them in peace or die, when all other races will just kill you or enslave you in a horrific fashion. And two they have tolerance for all beliefs and ways of life, they believe theirs is better but they dont hate others for believing differently, apart from Chaos, and they seek to 'enlighten' the other races into the better path.

They are just as evil as the others, more evil in fact because Orks, Chaos, Dark Eldar and Necrons will kill you horribly, enslave you for unholy purposes but in the end you keep your faith, your identify. The Tau wipe away identity and faith and replace it with fealty to the Greater Good, a system where you mean absolutely nothing in the wider scheme. At least some Tau are breaking away, Go Farsight Enclaves!.


----------



## Child-of-the-Emperor (Feb 22, 2009)

dark angel said:


> One thing that did stand out to me about it however was the fact you gave _Promethus Requiem_ a 4/5 but _The Core_ 4.5/5. Shouldn't they both be the same, considering that they cross over?


Dude, thats really weird. 



Lord of the Night said:


> The primary reason that I preferred _The Core_ to _Prometheus Requiem_ is because _The Core_ has Night Lords. That may sound biased on the surface but there are deeper reasons.
> 
> The characterisation of the Night Lords is better, makes for a better story. There is a moment when Septimus catches up to the group and Uzas growls at him as a greeting and Septimus thinks that for Uzas that is being cordial. Plus I really like how Lucoryphus runs on all fours like a beast, makes him look much more threatening.
> 
> Plus the style of combat was much better. Lucoryphus and the Bleeding Eyes hunting the Salamanders through the Hulk was much more interesting then the Salamanders storming through the Genestealers and cutting down half of the Raptors. The idea of Lucoryphus and the Raptors leaping through the darkened platforms above the corridors while the Salamanders are unaware below was awesome.


I've only had chance to read _The Core_ and _Prometheus Requiem_ out of the anthology so far, and I wholeheartedly agree with you on this one LotN. _Prometheus Requiem_ was a good tale, but I don't think it matched the level of interest and intrigue that _The Core_ displayed. Lucoryphus of the Bleeding Eyes was a fantastic and captivating character, which really epitomised the Raptor Cults (which to my knowledge havn't really featured at all in any other BL novel) and just how feral and bestial they have become since the start of the Long War. I really got on board with everything regarding the Raptors, from their speech, communication, and even the way they find bipedal walking anathema to them and thus scurry around on all fours. Fantastic characters and a great addition to the Night Lords saga. I can't wait to see much more of them in _Blood Reaver_, and what happens to the Exalted and the _Covenant_.

One thing that _Soul Hunter_ did well was create an intruging society of lowly humans in the bowels of the _Covenant_, establishing their lives, fears and interactions with one another and the Astartes. This passes on into _The Core_ in the way the mortal crew reacted around their new lord aboard the _Echo of Damnation_. So fearful and unused to praise, they were dumbfounded by serving under Talos, another nice touch to the tale.

Back to the comparison between _The Core_ and _Prometheus Requiem_ I also find the interaction between Chaos Astartes much more varied and interesting than that of the interaction and relationships between Imperial Astartes. I know this is something which ADB has a long-term goal of achieveing with his Night Lords series; establishing and developing what relationships are like between Night Lords and Traitor Marines in general, which shows very well through his two protagonist squads, First Claw and Ninth Claw (The Bleeding Eyes). The short, sharp passages of the Elder which we recieved in _The Core_ also gave us a great insight and perspective into the Xenos Genestealers and what drove them aboard the hulk. Something which we didn't get with the Salamanders, _Prometheus Requiem_ seeming like a very simple A>B kind of plot.

Im yet to pass judgement on the remainder of this anthology, but _The Core_ has really cemented itself as a great short story in my eyes. Onto _Mistress Baeda's Gift_ and _Unity_ next, both which sound like they have fantastic plots.


----------



## JamesGilmer (Aug 13, 2010)

Lord of the Night said:


> The Tau seem like good guys in the dark universe of 40k because of two factors that no other race shares. One, they will offer you a chance to surrender and join them in peace or die, when all other races will just kill you or enslave you in a horrific fashion. And two they have tolerance for all beliefs and ways of life, they believe theirs is better but they dont hate others for believing differently, apart from Chaos, and they seek to 'enlighten' the other races into the better path.
> 
> They are just as evil as the others, more evil in fact because Orks, Chaos, Dark Eldar and Necrons will kill you horribly, enslave you for unholy purposes but in the end you keep your faith, your identify. The Tau wipe away identity and faith and replace it with fealty to the Greater Good, a system where you mean absolutely nothing in the wider scheme. At least some Tau are breaking away, Go Farsight Enclaves!.


I usually like to leave the work to speak for itself, but one thing (for those who like the Tau to be a bit on the "good" side (whatever THAT means...I'm skeptical that an entire species could be "good"), is that what we hear about the Tau in "Unity" is completely from the POV of either Gesar (who wants to kill all aliens and obviously has a skewed outlook), Tam (who is inexperienced, afraid, and is going off rumours and a copy of THE UPLIFTING PRIMER that has incorrect info), and the Kroot who is probably a sadistic piece of work and is tormenting the two and trying to drive home how hopeless their situation is.

This is something that happens with third person limited POV, some readers don't realize that even the narrative is from behind the eyes of the POV character, and thus we see it through a filtered lens, and there's no reason that Gesar has the right of it or that the alien helpers/auxillaries such as the Kroot and human allies are all that invested in being truthful under the circumstances.

It's not as if Tau are throwing babies to wolves here...the IG bodies that are found have clearly been killed by violence and belong to the regiment that wouldn't surrender, and the "deal" doesn't have to be a contract as much as an understanding that certain things aren't noticed or talked about (as mentioned in various other sources and fluff).

I don't want to take away from anyone's view of the story...take what you will from it, but there is a bit more going on than at first blush.


----------



## Baron Spikey (Mar 26, 2008)

Well with 40k you're always going to take something from someone, just as what you write will undoubtedly be exactly as someone else would view the protagonists/antagonists, so I say- screw 'em.

You're damned if you, damned if you don't, so just write a good story and to hell with whoever doesn't like your take on the content.


----------



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

JamesGilmer said:


> I usually like to leave the work to speak for itself, but one thing (for those who like the Tau to be a bit on the "good" side (whatever THAT means...I'm skeptical that an entire species could be "good"), is that what we hear about the Tau in "Unity" is completely from the POV of either Gesar (who wants to kill all aliens and obviously has a skewed outlook), Tam (who is inexperienced, afraid, and is going off rumours and a copy of THE UPLIFTING PRIMER that has incorrect info), and the Kroot who is probably a sadistic piece of work and is tormenting the two and trying to drive home how hopeless their situation is.
> 
> This is something that happens with third person limited POV, some readers don't realize that even the narrative is from behind the eyes of the POV character, and thus we see it through a filtered lens, and there's no reason that Gesar has the right of it or that the alien helpers/auxillaries such as the Kroot and human allies are all that invested in being truthful under the circumstances.
> 
> ...


True, in that way the Tau are similar to humanity. They have good but bad does exist. The Imperium is much more pronounced in the bad category while good does exist, but its a minority. While the Tau are the mirror opposite, they have good as the majority but cruel and harsh Tau do exist. That Kroot in the story must have been a cruel bastard, but there are examples of Kroot that can get along quite well with others like Gorok in Ciaphas Cain.

I do understand what you mean though about not talking about it or looking the other way. Races that join the Tau don't do so just because of nobility or genuine care for others, and the Tau are aware of that. They are willing to let the Kroot continue eating people as long as they dont do it in plain sight of others. Thats why the bodies were stored in a converted meat locker rather then just letting the Kroot eat them on the battlefield, so that nobody would see them doing it.


----------



## space cowboy (Apr 3, 2009)

I actually kind of disliked the Ork story. Oddly enough, not the parts from the Ork point of view, but from the human point of view. It mainly had to do with the Japanese references that seemed thrown in but meant nothing to the story.

I understand a desire to take a new direction with a typically very standard western setting, but knowing what I do about Japanese culture and history, I thought the references could have been much more clever, or at least disguised better that the author might not actually know the meaning of the words (even though they may sound cool.) I know it is a relatively minor complaint about what was generally a good story, but it completely took me out of the story and made it harder for me to enjoy (which is really strange for me since I can usually get past that stuff.)


----------



## TheReverend (Dec 2, 2007)

I was quite disappointed by this book, reading it in less than three evenings, as there were probably only one or two good stories. 
If you're going to do a book about the aliens of the 41st millennium it would be good to have a story or two from their point of view. In the Dark Eldar story where this was actually attempted, the evil space elves came across too human, in my opinion.
And man, that Necron story read like all the Necron stories I've come across. Those guys look boring and in all the stories that feature them they sound boring, only the all-father knows why anyone collects them. 
Anyway, as soon as I finished that book I sold it on ebay with a note saying "hope you enjoy the book". I felt bad just giving that guy false hope...

Rev

(PS - reading this back, I sound really scathing, I'm probably over-reacting a little... after all, the world of science fiction isn't known for it's highbrow literature...)

*EDIT* I'm a writer myself, so hate to be critical of other people's work. The general standard of writing in this collection was pretty good. The standard of BL's output is definitely improving over the years as the writers gain experience, and hell, as a writer I know how hard it is to get an agent (let alone a piece of work published by a large publishing house) so I'm happy to continue Black Library's books as long as they continue to keep supporting up and coming talent.


----------



## Child-of-the-Emperor (Feb 22, 2009)

TheReverend said:


> In the Dark Eldar story where this was actually attempted, the evil space elves came across too human, in my opinion.


I agree. _Mistress Baeda's Gift_ really didn't do anything for me. 

I can appriciate that its an *extremely* difficult task to write about a race that are so unlike humanity and have basically nothing in common other than a shared humanoid appearance, but it doesn't even come close to showing just how _alien_ the Dark Kin really are. They could just have been savage and barbaric humans in a system undiscovered by the Imperium rather than Dark Eldar for all the difference it would have made to the story.


----------



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

I enjoyed _Mistress Baeda's Gift_ but I do agree, they weren't very Dark Eldar at all. The best representation of Dark Eldar is Anthony Reynold's _Dark Disciple_, im hoping we'll see more like that, or more from Mr Reynolds himself.


----------

