Living for the Weekend(er)

Well, over the weekend I’ll be in Nottingham for the Black Library Weekender and I’m quite looking forward to it.  The main focus of my time will of course be on the various seminars and signings, but I thought that I may as well mention a few things I’m amped about going into this thing.

The first is the pre-release stuff.  It’s an outside chance, but I’m really hoping that Path of the Incubus will be up for sale.  Four months ahead of release isn’t that long is it?  Definitely looking forward to that.  It’s probably not pre-release, but I’m itching to get my hands on Pariah.  The Inquisitor series by Dan Abnett are still in my mind as the best series (or series of series) in 40K literature and I dearly want to read more about it, even if we know what happens to Zael now…

I’m also enthused about hearing more from Chris Wraight, who has done a really good job with my favourite chapter, the Iron Hands.  He has so precisely nailed my vision of the Iron Hands in Flesh and Wrath of Iron, and although the latter of those titles is a real downer (and Flesh is only a little bit less of one), I feel that they are some of the most ‘pure’ 40K I’ve read.  This universe is cruel, nasty and it hates you.  You are insignificant and your death will mean nothing.  Even the good guys are bastards.  It’s something that most other 40k books shy away from, but something that is key to the universe and that Wrath of Iron bravely embraces.  Anyway, enough of that sales pitch.

I’m hoping to finish the book I’m currently reading (Path of the Outcast, for those that are interested) in time to make a decent start on any of the swag I hope to accrue on this trip.  I’m also hoping to finish it so that I don’t embarrass myself if I try to talk to Gav about it.  His Path of the Eldar trilogy is a really interesting read for anyone who wants to understand the Eldar mindset and explore the Path system.  If you just want a fighty book with cool aliens and shit, however, I wouldn’t recommend it.  I read a review of Path of the Seer claiming that the end battle was good, but it wasn’t worth wading through the gumf and padding in the first half of the book.  It was a bit of the a headshaking moment for me, as the ‘gumf and padding’ is the point of the book.  It’s not an ‘Eldar Battles’ book, it’s an exercise in world-building and the exploration of an alien race.  Anyway, I digress.

It would also be fun to catch up with Sarah Cawkwell and see what she thinks of the new Valkia model (and what took GW so bloody long?).

The thing I’m most looking forward to is just the whole experience of it; hanging out with a bunch of nerds and a few friends and hopefully reinitialising contact with old podcast guests and having a chat with them over some booze.  If any listeners are headed to the weekender and want to say hi, then let me know.  Twitter, email, hollering, the usual methods.

So long!