Warhammer 40k
For those not in the know, Warhammer 40k is based off of a miniatures wargame of the same name, Games Workshop, the company that owns the product, has been releasing stuff for it for something like 30 years now, and on of the things they have always included in the sourcebooks was art, some of it excellent, some of it primitive, and a few paragraphs of "fluff" background information on the characters, faction, and the universe they inhabit. Something about it struck a chord with people, stories began being written, and today the Black Library, Games Workshops publishing arm, makes... rather a lot of money of these books.
They tell stories on a vast scale, describing a universe constantly on the edge of destruction, with mankinds only hope lying with the most totalitarian and oppressive regime ever imagined. And yet it is somehow hopeful, the stories being of triumph over impossible odds, Pyrrhic victories over terrifying foes, or valiant last stands that had no hope of success, but were fought anyway because that is what you do, fight against the darkness. Well, at it's best that is what it is anyway, like any genre with hundreds of novels and dozens of writers, there is a spectrum of quality, my favorite one is Dan Abnett, he's done writing for Dr. Who, the X-Men, and assorted other comics and such, but definitely found his niche in the Warhammer 40k universe. His Eisenhorn series is a fairly accessible way to get into the world, and the Gaunt's Ghosts series is basically WWI battles in space, which is cool.
Most people though, when they think of 40K, they think Space Marines. Genetically engineered superhumans with all the best toys who are sometimes the only beings capable of fighting the threats humanity faces, because in the grim darkness of the far future, most fights are still settled with swords. For that I recommend the Horus Heresy, a tale of how the world of 40K came to be the way it is. Dan Abnett again rights the best stuff and starts the tale with Horus Rising, and it is very mythological, to me it evokes a lot of legends we tell today, particularly Arthurian tales. Stories of an Emperor devoted to bringing his people into a golden age, the challenges they face, the betrayals, and the ultimate failure of the great dream, but still leaving hope for final victory... someday.
That is just what I read into it, if you just want silly fantasy it is pretty much that too, but I like going deeper into something if the author lets you and if you can combine that with pulpy tales of battle and adventure then it works for me really well.
The Dresden Files
A combination of hard boiled modern detective story and high fantasy adventure, Jim Butcher's series follows the cases of Harry Dresden, private investigator and wizard, as he finds the lost, solves murders, gets punched in the face, loses the girl, barely makes the rent, and burns down buildings with magic. Unlike the 40K universe, there is very little deeper meaning to extract from these stories, they are just fun, Harry Dresden is a good guy in the best way, always trying to do what's right and paying for it if need be, and sometimes you just want a story where you now you can root for the good guy and not feel at all conflicted. Currently 15 books long, it doesn't get cliffhangery until about book 10 or so, so they don't have to be read in order, but I still say do it, starts with Storm Front, I'll loan them to you if you want.
I love modern fantasy, it saddens me that there are so few TV shows that do it well besides the Super Hero stuff I talked about earlier this week, and Constantine, which I didn't talk about but you should still watch, there just doesn't seem to be much of a market for this stuff, but man if there aren't a lot of books covering it. Dresden Files does the genre the best, maintaining fun, keeping the ongoing plots going at a good pace, resolving stuff regularly so you don't feel too frustrated, but still moving forward and raisin the stakes when needed, apparently 5 books or so are left in the series, so there might even be a real conclusion too, which is cool.
It doesn't take long when reading to realize that Jim Butcher is a huge nerd, his character is happiest when researching magic stuff, he plays RPGs with his werewolf buddies, can't get/keep a girlfriend, and mostly wants to be left alone with his dog. I think we can all agree that this can touch a chord in a lot of people, regardless of how they are in real life.
That's it for today! More later.
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