Warhammer Wednesday: Space Marines - The Omnibus

Black Library recently updated their Coming Soon pages which led to them making this public.

Space Marines: The Omnibus collects together the stories from the Heroes, Legends and Victories of the Space Marines anthologies, plus three long out of print Space Marine comic strips (apparently).

As long-time readers of this blog will already know, I had stories in both Legends and Victories (not to mention Treacheries), so I shall look forward to receiving my contributor copy of this publication in due course.

Meanwhile, you can pre-order your copy here.

All is dust... Update!

Tomorrow - Saturday 5 November - I was hoping to be at GW Salisbury for the Warhammer 40,000 campaign day taking place (based on my Imperial Fists short story But Dust in the Wind) to celebrate the launch of the new Necron Codex.

Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances I am no longer able to attend. However the campaign is still going ahead. If you would like to be a part of the action you need to sign up at the Salisbury store. Things kick off tomorrow at 10.00am.

Once again, I'm very sorry that I won't be able to attend myself but key-timer Matt has promised me plenty of photos which you will be able to enjoy on this blog after the event.

But Dust in the Wind first appeared in Victories of the Space Marines. It tells the tale of Sergeant Hesperus and Squad Eurus as they investigate a distress signal emanating from an ice-shrouded mining colony on the frozen world of Ixya. It is also now available as an ebook.

I'd just like to finish by wishing everyone at the Salisbury store tomorrow good luck and happy Necron-bashing!

All is dust...

I was delighted to learn the other day that on Saturday 5 November (from 10.00am until 2.00pm) GW Salisbury will be holding a Warhammer 40,000 campaign day based on my Imperial Fists short story But Dust in the Wind.

But Dust in the Wind tells the tale of Sergeant Hesperus and Squad Eurus as they investigate a distress signal emanating from an ice-shrouded mining colony, on the frozen world of Ixya.

But Dust in the Wind first appeared in Victories of the Space Marines and is now available as an ebook too. Matt Elliot of the Salisbury store was so inspired by the story that he's created three interlinking missions that reveal what happened after the end of my story.

If you would like to be a part of the action you need to sign up at the Salisbury store. And I'm hoping to be there myself on Saturday 5 November, and will happily sign anything you stick under my nose - within reason!

Maybe I'll see you there...

Mission: Games Workshop - Return to Salisbury

I was in Salisbury yesterday and so stopped by the Games Workshop store there to catch up with key-timer Matt Elliott. I only discovered recently that Matt is an Imperial Fists fan and loved my story But Dust in the Wind (from Victories of the Space Marines).

But there was another surprise in store for me yesterday. The snow board in the Salisbury store is based on the ice-world of Ixya - specifically the Mechanicus facility Aes Metallum - from the aforementioned story and here it is...

More JG ebook releases from Black Library

Black Library are continuing to make more and more of their products available as ebooks and that includes short stories as well as novels.

The first of my Black Library short stories made available in this way (as far as I'm aware) was But Dust in the Wind, from the Victories of the Space Marines collection. Now The Relic, my Black Templars tale from Legends of the Space Marines, it also available, either on its own, or as part of the complete anthology.

Oh, and don't forget I've also got a new Warhammer short story out now in Hammer & Bolter Issue 9.

Mission: Games Workshop - Oxford

So, I found myself in Oxford yesterday (to meet up with the guys from Abaddon/Solaris as well as the guys from SFX magazine) and, as is my wont, popped into the GW store there to say "Hi!" and generally introduce myself.

Manager Robert MacTaggart and key-timer Marcus made me feel welcome and it was great to be able to tell them that I had a brand new Warhammer story out in the latest issue of Hammer & Bolter (which can also read about here).

It was whilst talking to Rob about the new Storm of Magic expansion that I made a throw away comment about the sort of campaigns we could expect see being run in store in future, and then realised that I'd effectively just pitched a great idea for another new Warhammer story. All I have to do now is write it up for my commissioning editor and see what happens. Of course, if I do manage to sell the idea, I'll let you know in a future post.

So thanks again to Rob and Marcus, and I hope to be able to drop by the Oxford store again some time in the not-too-distant future.

Oh, and before I go, if you're in Oxford yourself, you should check out the modified Giants they've got on display at the store along with the pottery Necrons - including a Necron Tomb Stalker. And while we're on the subject of Necrons, if you have a thing for soulless robotic killing machines then you should check out my short story But Dust in the Wind which appears in Victories of the Space Marines.

Victories of the Space Marines - another review

This time from Three Color Minimum...

Next up is But Dust in the Wind. An Imperial Fists story. This story didn't really seem to go with the book title. But Necrons fighting anyone, even the Emperor's Finest usually doesn't go well. Not bad at all.

'This story didn't really seem to go with the book title...' Ahhh, well there you see you haven't understood the nature of the victory... But enough of my whinging. If you've not read it yet why not download But Dust in the Wind from here?

Congrats to Rob Sanders for winning the coveted Best Story in the Anthology Award and Sarah Cawkwell for all the love Primary Instincts has been getting - and deservedly so, I might add.

More love for Legends

The Black Library's Warhammer 40K anthology Legends of the Space Marines continues to receive good reviews. And even those who don't rave over the book are still enjoying my Black Templars short story The Relic - which is nice.

Highlights of the book include The Relic by Jonathan Green, The Returned by James Swallow and At Gaius Point by Aaron Dembski-Bowden.

However, one reviewer was disappointed by the lack of soulless alien robot-forms in the collection.

My only gripe is that we dont hear enough about the "necrons" who (in my humble estimation) are the deadliest "mothers" in the universe therefore making them arguably the most interesting...

Well, that particular reviewer should make sure he picks up Victories of the Space Marines when it comes out, as that contains my Imperial Fists vs Necrons short But Dust in the Wind, which should make him one happy bunny.

You can buy your own copy of Legends of the Space Marines here, and pre-order Victories of the Space Marines (which also contains a story by me) here.

New review of Victories of the Space Marines

Victories of the Space Marines, which contains my Imperial Fists short story But Dust in the Wind, has been reviewed over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review.

Here's what Graeme has to say about the anthology in general:

The first thing to cross my mind when I saw the title was ‘way to spoil the ending of each and every short story in the collection’. The Space Marines win… Ok… Now we know that, is there any point in reading the rest of the book?

The short answer, for me anyway, was ‘yes’ and on the whole I didn’t regret it. You may have a good idea about how things will turn out in each story but that’s almost beside the point really. If you’re reading a Black Library book then you’re after a well written tale (of course) but what you’re also after is a book where stuff happens.

And here's what he has to say about But Dust in the Wind:

Imperial Fists Marines versus the robotic Necrons in a fight to the death. Green’s story shows us in no uncertain terms that even though victory comes with a cost, the fight is still worth fighting. And there’s a face off between genetically powered warriors and tomb dwelling robots which is done in the best possible way. You can’t lose really. (9/10)

Victories of the Space Marines - first review

Thanks to fellow scribe Sarah Cawkwell (who pointed me in the right direction) I've seen the first review of Victories of the Space Marines which includes my latest Warhammer 40K short story But Dust in the Wind.

Here's what Bane of Kings, over at The Founding Fields, had to say about my contribution:

But Dust in the Wind by Jonathan Green

An Imperial Fists Story

Right, we’re coming to the end of this anthology, and we have a third short focusing on the first founding chapters, this time the Imperial Fists, and written by Jonathan Green, whose work includes The Armageddon Omnibus, A Print on Demand collection of Black Templar Novels.

Having not read anything by Jonathan Green in the past apart from a good short story in Legends of the Space Marines, I was pleased to see a new take on the Imperial Fists as I did not, if I am being honest, enjoy Sons of Dorn by Chris Roberson. Now, as Jonathan Green had written about the Black Templars in the past, I was wondering what his take would be on the fists would be.

I must say, that I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it’s good to see that the Necrons are getting more love nowadays, as they are the main enemy that the Imperial Fists have to face.

Now, whereas Black Dawn lacked the epic battles, But Dust in the Wind makes up for it with epic encounters between the Imperial Fists and the Necrons, and comes complete with a tragic conclusion. Despite there being little character development in this short, I felt that I enjoyed it nonetheless, and this has defiantly made me interested in picking up The Armageddon Omnibus.

Rating: 7.5/10

Not sure if he meant 'defiantly' there at the end or 'definitely'. Anyway, it's interesting to hear that Bane preferred my take on the Imperial Fists to Chris Roberson's.

Remember, you can pre-order Victories of the Space Marines here.

We have a winner! - update

It's been almost a fortnight since I announced a winner had been randomly selected to receive nearly a kilo's worth of books, signed by myself, just for joining my forum.

The winner was duly notified by email but I am still haven't heard back from them, nearly two weeks later. I'm going to give the original winner until Monday 7 March to get back to me and if they don't, then I'll be picking a new winner.

So, all you forum members, watch this space...

Black Library Live and Official Doctor Who book signing at the Doctor Who Experience

Two events to check out tomorrow (although probably not both because they're a couple of hundred miles apart).

The first in Black Library Live! which is taking place at Games Workshop's Nottingham HQ. It's an event that celebrates and showcases Black Library's books, audio productions and authors. Available to buy pre-release on the day will be Fall of Damnos, Victories of the Space Marines, Knights of Bretonnia, Age of Darkness, Caledor, Blood Reaver and Garro: Legion of One.

Attendees will also be able to pick up a copy of the limited Black Library Live! 2011 chapbook at the sales stand (as long as stocks last). The event runs from 10.00am until 7.00pm(!), with seminars, signings, and probably some gaming somewhere along the line too. You can find out more about it here.

Secondly is the Official Doctor Who book signing taking place at the Doctor Who Experience at Olympia Two in London tomorrow, between 11.00am and 1.00pm. Justin Richards, Oli Smith and other Doctor Who experts will be there, ready to be grilled on all things intergalactic. My Doctor Who book Terrible Lizards won't be out for a while (more on that later) but I may drop by just the same, so don't forget to bring along your copies of The Horror of Howling Hill and The Official Doctor Who Annual 2010 just in case.

The signings will be held in the café area at the Doctor Who Experience. The signing is a separate event so to enter the Doctor Who Experience you will need to buy tickets, which you can do here.

Victories of the Space Marines... Incoming!

According to some sources there's now less than a month to go before the latest Black Library Space Marines anthology is unleashed upon the world.

In case you didn't know, Victories of the Space Marines includes a story by me - not about the Black Templars this time but the Imperial Fists.

Anyway, just to build the anticipation even further, here's what one kind person had to say about my story in Legends of the Space Marines:

Kyme's, Scanlon's, Goto's, Swallows's, Green's and Bowden's stories were beyond a question wonderfully composed. Mister Green's plethora of unique story twists were wonderful...

You can pre-order Victories of the Space Marines here.

Forum giveaway

How would you like to own these four books, all signed by the author - for nothing?

Well, it's easy. All you have to do is register as a member of my new forum here and when we hit 50 members, I'll put everyone's names into a hat and pull out one winner.

That winner will then receive a copy of Howl of the Werewolf, the new edition of Curse of the Mummy, Pax Britannia: Dark Side and the Warhammer 40K short story anthology Victories of the Space Marines, which contains my Imperial Fists' story But Dust in the Wind. And I'll sign them all too.

So what are you waiting for? Don't delay, sign up today!

Legends of the Space Marines - review round-up

They've been a few nice reviews going up of late concerning the Black Library's Warhammer 40K anthology Legends of the Space Marines. And a few even mention me or my Black Templars short story The Relic in particular. Here are just a couple of them:

**** Four Stars! Author Jonathan Green writes his story from the grand view point of a Dreadnought. I found it to be enlightening to say the least. ****

Kyme's, Scanlon's, Goto's, Swallows's, Green's and Bowden's stories were beyond a question wonderfully composed. Mister Green's plethora of unique story twists were wonderful...

You can buy your own copy of Legends of the Space Marines here, why the forthcoming Victories of the Space Marines (which also contains a story by me) can be pre-ordered here.

Howl of the Werewolf and Victories of the Space Marines

I'm very pleased to reveal the cover for the new edition of Howl of the Werewolf, coming next month from Wizard Books.

As with the other titles in the new FF format, Howl of the Werewolf includes three pre-generated characters. So prepare to meet Johann Ironarm, Wolfrik of Pritzbad and Sabine

Greypelt this September.

And while we're at it, here's the cover for the Black Library's Victories of the Space Marines...

'Featuring a brand new Grey Knights story by Ben Counter, plus James Swallow, Gav Thorpe, C. L. Werner and more...'

... and the 'more' includes a contribution from me, about a squad of Imperial Fists answering a distress call from an isolated ice-locked world. Victories of the Space Marines will be published April 2011.