Silver Skulls: Portents by S.P. Cawkwell

Bookworm Speaks!

Silver Skulls: Portents

by S. P. Cawkwell

Acquired: Barnes & Nobel Booksellers

Series: Warhammer 40,000 Novels

Mass Market Paperback: 431 Pages

Publisher: Black Library

Language: English

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The Story: The Silver Skulls Space Marine Chapter deploy on the world of Valoria Quintus to combat an insurrection backed by the dread forces of the Traitor Legions

The Silver Skulls Space Marine Chapter deploy on the world of Valoria Quintus to combat an insurrection backed by the dread forces of the Traitor Legions. Sent there by the visions of their Prognosticars, the mysterious psykers whose premonitions decree the path forged by the Chapter and the wars that they wage, they expect victory to be swift and easy. But they have not reckoned with their own allies, the servants of the Inquisition who are interested in the Prognosticars, their importance within the Chapter and the possibility that the Silver Skulls may be being manipulated by the very powers they fight against…

The Review: The first story where we saw the Silver Skulls was the Gildar Rift novel.

While the Gildar Rift was an enjoyable read, like most of the Space Marine Battles series, it was more of a “day in the life” story. We got to meet the Silver Skulls but aside from a few details, we never really got to know them. This is what this book rectifies. The reader finally gets down deep into the nitty-gritty and we really get to explore what it means to be a Space Marine of the Silver Skulls Chapter. We see their Fortress Monastery, explore their homeworld and the people who live there. Meet their Chapter Master and more important, we get into the minds of the Prognosticars, the warrior-oracles that serves as the backbone of the Chapter’s battle doctrine. 

Slight spoilers here, but when we get a POV chapter from one of the Prognosticars, we finally get the truth of how they actually operate and the similarities they hold to other “oracles” from history.

Throughout the text, we receive briefs in form of transmissions from the Inquisition. Under the guise of priority transmissions, we are given exposition that explains the new parts of the lore that are introduced. These are some of the best ways to introduce new info without it becoming tedious. They fit into the story in a way that fits the canon. 

Anyway, how this story benefits compared to the previous novel is how much more the character’s are developed. The main character is a Space Marine named Gileas who is something of an outcast due to the fact that he was recruited from a native tribe that normally does not offer recruits and the method of his recruitment was unusual. (Which is very fascinating). He is a young sergeant who is coming into his own among the Chapter and while skilled is eager for greater glory. This immediately sets him up as good character as the scenario he is in is very relatable. These are kind of Space Marine stories that work the best. We see past the power armor and bravado and the brothers inside and how despite being lauded as being a higher class of human being, they are still vulnerable to the same vices and sins as the mortals whom they think they are so superior to. Perhaps the reason they seem to be better than the average Joes and Janes of the Imperium because they live longer and can endure more and thusly learn from their lessons. 

The reader travels alongside Gileas during the story and we see him grow as a character, due in no small part that he helps trains new Battle Brothers. The best stories are one where we watch characters grow and we get plenty of that in this story. 

One thing that deserves to be mentioned is that the “S” in S.P. Cawkwell stands for Sarah. This book was written by a woman, the same one that wrote ‘The Gildar Rift.’ While Bookworm loves Warhammer 40k, he does acknowledge that women are sorely underrepresented in the lore as well as the fandom, at least from his perspective. To support a female author in this franchise can only help with that issue. 

Building off on that,  the focus may largely be on the male Space Marines, there are plenty of strong female characters to be had within this novel. We see a lot of female Inquisitors, Bookworm has just realized and they work well in that role. Ruthlessness from a woman feels a bit more authentic. 

If this book has any flaws, it is one that is pretty common amongst tomes of the Black Library: Too much at once. The book’s middle is not as memorable as the beginning and the ending. Not due to a lack of story caliber, simply because there is a lot of story to remember. A lot of bolter fire, a lot of blood, a lot of characters with their own perspectives, and it all moves very briskly. The last part is not necessarily inimical to the story. If anything, it made the story into a page-turner. It all goes by so quickly, that it all tends to blur in the readers mind. Upon thinking about it, aside from a few key details, most of the story in the second act is a little muddled in Bookworm’s Mind. 

Final Verdict: Silver Skulls: Portents is a fast-paced, action-packed, read that gives the reader everything they love about Warhammer 40,000. The characters are deep and fleshed-out and we meet a fascinating Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. 

Five out of Five Stars

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