Bookworm Speaks!- Blood of Asaheim Review

Bookworm Speaks!

Warhammer 40’000

Blood of Asaheim 

by Chris Wraight

****

The Story: The Space Wolves are unleashed in a new series.

The feral warrior-kings of Fenris, the Space Wolves are the sons of Leman Russ. Savage heroes, few can match their ferocity in battle. After half a century apart, Space Wolves Ingvar and Gunnlaugr are reunited. Sent to defend an important shrine world against the plague-ridden Death Guard, the Grey Hunters clash with the pious Sisters of Battle, who see the Space Wolves as little better than the enemy they fight. As enemies close in around them and treachery is revealed, Gunnlaugr and his warriors must hold the defenders together – even as hidden tensions threaten to tear their pack apart.

The Review: The Space Wolves! Vikings in Outer Space! The beloved chapter of Game Workshop, return for another amazing adventure. 

Some reviewers have criticized the opening chapters as being too slow and hard to get through. Bookworm will admit that the novel does introduce a lot of characters and names all at once but at the same time it is a good introduction for what its not. Warhammer 40’000 is pretty much a macho power fantasy, known for its epic battles and non stop blood and guts. We don’t get that until the middle. Instead we are given chapters where Ingvar is reintroduced to his old team and realizes how much they have changed, he has changed, and what has not changed, much to his concern. His service in the Deathwatch has given him a new perspective that he is not sure he likes. 

These are very thoughtful chapters and on some level, very relatable. Life goes on no matter what you do and change is a constant factor. That is something the Wolves of Fenris and Imperium of man don’t seem to understand and its to their detriment. We all change and sometimes when we are away for a long time, things that we thought were certain are no longer so. In the modern day or the 41st millennium, this is fact we must all acknowledge. The delivery is somewhat clunky as we are introduced to a great many characters all at once and that we have never met before. 

This is a thoughtful book, that muses on the nature of the Space Wolves, their current status and how they to are beginning to succumbing to the endless war of the 41st Millennium. 

This is where the book’s biggest flaw comes into play. 

One of the biggest criticisms of Games Workshop and Black Library in regards to Warhammer 40,000 is the resistance to change. This book, along with many others, seems to build up to something and then no payoff. It all pretty much goes back to normal near the end. Minor spoilers, but this continues into the second volume. The status quo must be maintained. This is alright for one shot series such as the Space Marines battles but when it deals with the wider universe like this book, its really starting to get old. Any reader with any knowledge of the lore knows that the Imperium of Man is starting to buckle under the strain of stagnation and constant war, somethings got to give if it is to survive. The thing is…the authors keep giving us hints of these throughout the novels and the codexes, but nothing ever comes of them which is very frustrating. This point will most likely crop up in future reviews of Warhammer 40k volumes. 

What is NOT a flaw though is how another aspect of the Warhammer universe is further expanded: The Adeptas Sororitas. The Sororitas are the all-female army of the Imperial Church and they have been the ones long tasked with the garrison of Ras Shakeh. Any story that brings the Space Marines into direct contact with other forces of the Imperium is worth a read in Bookworm’s Book. The Space Wolves in particular have always stood apart from other Space Marines and it is quite the culture shock when the two factions meet. At first there is friction at first, but overtime they slowly grow to respect one another as comrades and even as friends between two characters. The Adeptas Sororitas are a sorely neglected aspect of Warhammer, so it is great that we see them again. 

Final Verdict: Blood of Asaheim and its sequel Stormcaller represent a new chapter of the Space Wolves and while not quite as good as the first Space Wolves series, it is still pretty good. 

Four out of Five Stars

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