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Outgunned (Warhammer 40,000) [Paperback] Flowers, Denny [Paperback] Flowers, Denny

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Though Simlex is the semi-reliable narrator of the novel, the hero and star of Outgunned is Flight Commander Lucille von Shard. A fighter ace of consummate ability, Shard’s skills are matched only by her disdain for her foes, peers, superiors, acquaintances, and virtually everyone and everything else she encounters. In fact, were she a less capable warrior, she would have long since been consigned to a penal colony. Or more likely an executioner. I play various games depending on my time constraints. Currently I’m in my third Blood Bowl league; it’s such a well-designed game and it fits neatly into my gaming time constraints. I’m also painting up some Death Guard that have only been sitting on my painting table for a couple of years, an impressive turnaround for me. ToW: Without spoiling anything, who are the main characters and what do we need to know about them? They say you should never meet your heroes. When Imperial propagandist Kile Simlex is sent to Bacchus to make a cinema-pict about legendary flying ace Lucille von Shard, he discovers she’s not quite what he expected. [1] Related Articles ToW: Can you remember a defining moment when you were growing up, or a particular book or author, that steered you towards science fiction and/or fantasy?

Outgunned (Novel) - Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum Outgunned (Novel) - Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum

Thematically it is a story about stories; the tall tales that are told throughout the Underhive, and what happens when myth meets reality. It is also a story about keeping your word, where most of the main characters are in some way bound by a promise or oath which may not be in their best interests. But honour is at stake, and even in the Underhive giving your word is taken very seriously. ToW: What else can you tell us about what you’re working on, what else you’ve recently had released or what you’ve got coming out over the coming months? Finished Outgunned I will start by saying Denny Flowers is gonna go on my good list he hit it out of the park. Thanks SO MUCH to Denny Flowers for sending me a copy of Outgunned in exchange for my honest review.DF: I recently took voluntary redundancy, so in the last couple of months I have gone from working full time to being primary carer for my son and being a full-on house husband. So cooking, shopping, washing clothes and/or watching The Lego Batman Movie for the sixty-fifth time are all distinct possibilities. I also read and write, though not usually at the same time. However, his biggest threat may come from his chosen subject, as Lucille von Shard is an arrogant and disobedient pilot who has only avoided execution due to her peerless flying abilities. Determined to make the situation work, Simlex attempts to chronicle the reluctant Shard’s skills, while also investigating the strange occurrences on Bacchus. But is even the legendary Lucille von Shard capable of defeating the mysterious enemy waiting for them within the clouds? The Green Storm hungers for combat, and the entire Imperium may shake as it approaches. DF: Caleb Cursebound is the Underhive’s ninth most dangerous man, and a skilled thief, fighter, lover and liar. Probably. There are certainly plenty of stories that paint this picture, though the origin of most of these stories appears to be Caleb himself. He is prone to arrogance, greed, drunkenness, and not considering the consequences of his actions. However, Caleb has one redeeming quality, something rather unusual for the Underhive; in his heart he is a hero. Not because of a desire for glory and fame (though that certainly is a driving force too), but because somewhere under his neuroses and insecurities is a spark of goodness, and an unwillingness to look the other way. There is a third significant character in the story, but it’s difficult to talk about her without straying into the realms of spoilers. Through the novel we learn that there are various approaches to the propagandists’ art, some involving semi-accurate portals of life within the Imperium, others splicing together image and sound to create whatever tale they deem suitable, irrespective of its relation to the truth. Simlex’s insistence of capturing the true face of war is rather unusual, and enough to raise eyebrows amongst his puritanical colleagues. His philosophy is difficult to refute however, as to do so would involve suggesting that the ‘true’ Imperium is a less than ideal place. At the beginning of the tale his star is in ascendance, and he is dismissive of the woefully inaccurate efforts produced by his predecessors. But his philosophy is tested when confronted by the realities of frontline conflict, where idealism clashes with the reality of war.

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I deeply enjoyed the way that Flowers set out Outgunned’s narrative as there are so many great elements to it. Told in a chronicle format from Propagandist Simlex’s perspective as he recalls the events in a more realistic and negative light. This works to tell quite an intriguing tale, especially as you get some hints of the events of the future, and the negative tint that Simlex gives to the book’s narrative was a fantastic overall tone. Despite this interesting narration choice, this novel has a brilliant, fast pace to it and the reader is never left in a dull spot, as there is always some cool action, fascinating intrigue or powerful dive into a character occurring throughout. I loved the balance of story elements, and I must highlight the fantastic moments where Simlex works on his propaganda picts and dives through his recordings of the events around him. I also had a lot of fun with the outstanding ariel combat scenes that are featured through the plot. While they aren’t as heavily featured as you would expect from a book about the Aeronautica Imperialis, there are still some great sequences that were very fun to see. Flowers really captures the magic and brutality of combat in in the air, and I loved some of the crazy scenes that resulted, especially against the ork stronghold. There is also a particularly good fight sequence in the middle of a swamp that was pretty awesome, especially as it showed one character’s particular ingenuity and fighting spirit.

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DF: I always feel like I’m still learning my craft, but I have been praised for my characters and dialogue, as well as my handling of plot, pace and structure. I also have an unpleasantly active imagination. Or perhaps it’s just unpleasant. Either way, directing it towards world building is probably for the best. I wouldn’t like to leave it unoccupied for too long. ToW Do you have anything else in the works (whether for BL or otherwise) that you can talk about at all? I enjoy the subtext of a story, especially in dialogue, where characters may converse on one topic whilst something else unspoken is nevertheless being actively discussed. I also enjoy the moments within stories where a twist changes everything yet makes perfect sense, to the point where you almost want to start the story over just so you can see how the idea was foreshadowed. I would not in any way say I have mastered this skill, but I do enjoy seeding hints and writing the payoff. ToW: What do you hope 40k and Necromunda fans will get out of this by the time they’ve finished it?

Outgunned | Book by Denny Flowers | Official Publisher Page

Iktomi, Caleb’s stoic partner, is of ratskin heritage and has little time for the inhabitants of the Hive. Cold, insular and amoral, Iktomi is nevertheless bound to Caleb by their shared history. A nihilist a heart, she has made her choice to stand with Caleb and therefore will do so to her dying breath, despite the annoyance of his company. Without him, she would probably be far richer, but her life would then be without purpose. And this is probably one of the few prospects that actually scares her.

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ToW: Why this story? Of all the possible stories you could have written about these characters, what made you go for this one? High-flying dogfights unfold in the skies above Bacchus, as the Imperium clashes with orks and an arrogant hotshot uncovers a secret that could doom the entire planet.

Outgunned by Denny Flowers – The Unseen Library Warhammer 40,000: Outgunned by Denny Flowers – The Unseen Library

ToW: The (brilliant) cover has a real WWII war movie vibe – was that the sort of tone you were going for with the book? Can you talk a bit about some of the influences you drew upon while writing this? For a book labelled " A Lucille Von Shard Novel" it takes a surprising amount of time before she plays more than a passing role in this story, but it is none the worse for that. High-flying dogfights unfold in the skies above Bacchus, as the Imperium clash with orks, and an arrogant hotshot uncovers a secret that could doom the entire planet. Denny Flowers: I was born in Kent and never moved. I’m still in walking distance from the house I grew up in. I did go to University in Brighton and then spent a few years commuting to London where I worked in a children’s hospital. My job was collecting and analysing the morbidity and mortality data for children in intensive care, something an acquaintance once cheerfully referred to as ‘The Most Metal Job Ever’. Bleak as it sounds, it was really rewarding (and sometimes heartbreaking) work, but the commute was four hours a day and it slowly killed me. But these skills may prove the only hope of survival, for something vast and terrible lurks within the clouds. The Green Storm approaches.I must admit that while I deeply enjoyed Outgunned’s brilliant narrative, it honestly wasn’t what I was expecting when I first started reading it. Rather than a completely combat/military focused story about battles in the sky, Outgunned is a powerful and intense story that spends just as much time examining the darker aspects of the Imperium of Man as it does facing off against the ork threat. This becomes clear very early on, especially as the opening introduction from Simlex hints at the deceit, cover-up and lies that are to come. However, I was still unprepared for the full extent of the fantastic narrative that Flowers came up with, as he blends a lot of complex themes and components with some exceptional character work and clever universe expansions to create something truly special. Outgunned served as an impressive standalone entry in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, and I deeply enjoyed how self-contained the narrative turned out to be. Flowers also did a great job explaining most of the relevant Warhammer 40,000 elements featured within Outgunned, and I felt that this book can be easily enjoyed by most science fiction fans, although established Warhammer fans will probably get the most out of it. I loved some of the very unique Warhammer 40,000 aspects that Flowers featured in Outgunned, as the author came up with some fantastic new elements that added so much more to the story. I personally thought that Flowers did a really good job examining the Imperium through his character’s eyes, and you really get to see a fun new edge to it. Not only do you get to see the Aeronautica Imperialis in action, which will appeal to many Imperial Guard fans, but you also get a cool viewpoint of the Imperium’s propaganda department. Watching the protagonist dive into the techniques and motivations of the Imperial propagandists is quite fascinating, and it gives another great edge to the already dark and gothic Imperium that make you understand that deep down, they really aren’t the good guys they try to make out. Throw in a fun blast of Imperial politics, as a corrupt planetary governor can manipulate the Astra Militarum for their own selfish ends, as well as some dark viewpoints of the brainwashing of young soldiers that occurred to certain characters, and you have a great, cynical view of the Imperium that I deeply enjoyed. I can’t recall how many times I’ve read Catch 22 (teenage obsession exacerbated it being a set text a few years later), and as soon as I read that Outgunned was occurring in the Yossarian sub sector I was predisposed to enjoy the book. That sort of real-world nod can sometimes be too on-the-nose, but while Outgunned employs some of the same archetypes as Catch 22, it only recalls the spirit of the earlier book rather than retreading it. I’m telling the story through the eyes of an Imperial Propagandist, Flowers gives us a good outsider’s perspective not just on the conflict on Bacchus, but also on the realities of life in the military wings of the Imperium of Man as opposed to how Simlex and his colleagues present it.

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