I offer my opinion on Josh Reynolds’ first contribution
to the multi-author Gotrek and Felix series,
entitled Road of Skulls. Published by
Black Library, this is the thirteenth addition to the flagship series of the
Warhammer Fantasy Universe.
Gotrek and Felix
race to the dwarf hold at Karak Kadrin, finding it besieged by one of the grand
armies of Chaos under the command of Warlord Garmr. When King Ungrim Ironfist
speaks of the legendary 'Road of Skulls' and of the hated foe's attempts to
open a portal into the Realm of Chaos, Gotrek senses that a great doom awaits
him - though it may not be the one he would choose for himself. As the king's
own son leads his army of Slayers to fulfil an ancient prophecy, it seems that
Garmr's hour of victory may be at hand...
Warhammer Fantasy is an awesome world to
return to every now and again with the wealth of stories that Black Library
have to offer, even if it’s been shoved to the side as of late in favour of the
more popular, sci-fi orientated Warhammer 40,000 Universe. There are still some
great offerings to be had from Warhammer Fantasy though, as Road of Skulls, the thirteenth novel in
the popular Gotrek and Felix series,
which was first written by William King (for the first seven novels) and then
Nathan Long (for novels Orcslayer to Zombieslayer). It’s also the first Gotrek and Felix novel not to have ...slayer as the title, with it also being
fairly accessible for new or lapsed readers, as I had fallen behind having only
read the first Volume of stories and the Anthology.
Any Warhammer Fantasy fan will most likely
know the plot of Gotrek and Felix by now – it’s arguably the most popular
series in that setting. Gotrek is the dwarf, the slayer – and Felix is the man
who chronicles his quest to find his doom. It’s a great partnership that has
managed to keep going for over thirteen novels (as well as short stories and
audiobooks), and with Road of Skulls, the
series manages to keep maintain that fresh and exciting feel that made Gotrek and Felix so enjoyable in the
first place as this novel takes the main protagonists to the dwarf hold at Karak
Kadrin, where it is under attack from Chaos Warlord Garmr, who attempts to use
the Road of Skulls to create a portal to the Realm of Chaos.
The main characters relationship continues to
be present and effective. The chemistry between Gotrek and Felix is interesting
and the quest for Gotrek to meet his doom continues to be the main focus of the
novel. With Reynolds being a new writer on this book fans do not need to be disappointed
because this still distinctively feels like the Gotrek and Felix that readers
will be familiar with from the William King days. (I can’t comment on the
Nathan Long stories as I haven’t read them). The side characters are given various
levels of attention as well, which gives readers plenty of time to get to know
the dramatis personae. Whilst this book is mainly focused on action, there are
plenty of good character moments within and with Reynolds making their stories
compelling, the book feels fresh and exciting and not just a boring retread of
stories that have come before.
The pacing is pretty good and there is never
any moment that drags. I kept reading the next chapter after I finished one,
even though I told myself that I’d stop reading there. The book reminds us that
Gotrek and Felix are not invincible characters and there may be a time when we
have to say goodbye to them, with that level of unpredictability always present
– even if coming to this book late, I knew that they would not meet their fate
in this series due to the fact that there were future novels released. Like
most Warhammer stories in both the Fantasy and 40k settings, you can tell that
there probably isn’t going to be a happy ending for these two especially when
the central premise is focused around Gotrek finding his own doom. He’s not the
kind of character who’ll take a ‘happy ever after’ ending – he’ll want to go
out fighting the biggest and deadliest creature that the Warhammer Fantasy
Universe has to offer. Time will tell if that’s the case, though, as I’m sure
that there are plenty of novels left in these two yet.
Even if Road
of Skulls may be completely disconnected from the events of the main
series, it is still something that should be worth checking out – fans of the
series will probably have done so already as I’m a few books late, but for
those of you who have fallen behind like myself this is a great place to start
reading get back on board – and as a result of this, I can’t imagine that it’ll
be very long before I return to the next Gotrek
and Felix novel.
VERDICT: 8.75/10
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