Winter is the perfect season for a Black Library binge. Moreover, the archives have room for heroic charges and truly nasty deeds.
This update teases two new full length novels joining that lineup soon. One leans into dark Chaos plotting with the Word Bearers. Meanwhile, the other goes full trench misery with the Death Korps of Krieg. So if your hobby desk needs fresh lore fuel, this is a strong double feature.
Apostle: A Word Bearers Champion Rebuilds From Ruin
The first book is Apostle, and it follows Cerastes of the Word Bearers. He is in a brutal spot, because his band of pious warriors has been wiped out. The force that crushed them is the Order of the Thorn, a battle hardened sisterhood of the Adepta Sororitas. Therefore, any plan Cerastes had to corrupt the scribe world of Legitur is in pieces. If he still wants that world to fall to Chaos worship, he has to start again from the ground up.
However, the planet itself might be his greatest weapon. Legitur is entirely dedicated to producing holy scripture. It is packed with towering paper hives and endless streams of close minded faithful moving between them. Because of that, the book frames the population as simple pawns to influence. Cerastes aims to turn that religious devotion into a tool, and he also wants revenge on the world he once called home. Still, the Ecclesiarchy are the looming threat. If they root out his congregation, they could smash his plans and throw the Word Bearers back into the Warp in defeat.
Apostle is written by David Annandale, who is credited here with The Deacon of Wounds, Mortarion: The Pale King, and Yarrick: The Omnibus. Additionally, it is described as the next full length novel from him. The article says it will be available early next year.
Death Rider: A Commissar Tries to Stop Krieg From Dying the Wrong Way
The second novel is Death Rider, and it puts a Commissar in the worst job imaginable. Commissars with the Death Korps of Krieg have to inspire them, yet they also have to restrain them. Valian Hesh is living that nightmare. He is separated from his own regiment and stranded on the dying world of Rezlan VI.
Hesh is ordered to find the 472nd Siege Regiment of the Death Korps of Krieg and make them withdraw. That would be hard with any unit, but it is almost heresy to the Krieg mindset. Worse, the 472nd are preparing for a final suicidal assault on T’au Empire lines. Hesh’s view is not that lives should be saved for kindness. Instead, if the Kriegsmen must die, they should die effectively. Therefore, he needs the 472nd to escape the doomed planet and spend their lives with purpose later.
However, the article underlines how impossible this may be. It is hard enough to stop one Kriegsman from charging into gunfire. So trying to halt a whole regiment feels like stopping an avalanche with a whistle. The hook question is clear. Can Hesh bring them to heel, or will he and his men burn on Rezlan VI like so many others?
Death Rider is a new full length novel by Rhuairidh James, who is credited with Da Gobbo Rides Again and The Sum of its Parts. Additionally, the article says it will also be available to pre order next year.
Summary
This Black Library update teases two upcoming novels for winter readers. Apostle follows Cerastes of the Word Bearers as he rebuilds after defeat by the Adepta Sororitas Order of the Thorn. He targets Legitur, a scripture producing world full of faithful crowds he can twist, yet the Ecclesiarchy could still ruin him. Death Rider follows Commissar Valian Hesh as he tries to force the Death Korps of Krieg 472nd Siege Regiment to withdraw from doomed Rezlan VI. They want a suicidal charge into T’au lines, while he wants their sacrifice to be spent effectively.
Both books are full length novels and both are slated for next year, with Apostle arriving early and Death Rider heading to pre order later. The article promises more information as release gets closer. So keep checking weekly updates and watch the upcoming Black Library pre orders if you want to grab them fast.
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