Black Library: Where to start?

[Heroka Vendile]

Okay so between 40K and Fantasy there are like 900,000 novels. It is enough to get lost in.

What's a good place to start reading them? Say, pick one starting point for 40K and one for WFB. I am interested to hear people's thoughts.

IMHO the best starting points for Black Library are -

40K:
Storm of Iron by Graham McNeil
Daemonworld by Ben Counter
The Founding Trilogy by Dan Abnett (Gaunts Ghosts series, books 1-3)

Fantasy:
Gotrek & Felix, Volume 1
Riders of the Dead by Dan Abnett

on a fantasy note, I hear The Ambassador series was very good as well.

Despite being an avid reader and big 40k fan, my first BL book was Brothers of the Snake, that I got in my goodie bag at BoLSCon. It is a great read, and while I don't have any other BL titles to compare it against, I'd recommend it as a starter since it is a stand-alone, so you don't have to get stuck in a big trilogy or larger and it is by Abnett, one of the better BL writers.

I have to say I was rather disappointed with Brothers of the Snake. Granted, it was good in places and it was nice to see Dark Eldar getting a return to the pages of Black Library as a villain (a first since Graham McNeils' Nightbringer I believe), even if they were a bit flimsy depth-wise. But am I the only person who found chapter 2 to simply be the most terrible bit of Abnett they have ever come across?

[Psychosplodge]

The last chancers books are worth a read, again Gaunt's ghosts, Eisornhorn, and Ravenor are good books. But the most entertaining 40k series has to be the Ciaphas Cain books...
I'd also recommend reading any necromunda book with Kal jericho in it.

And be warned the Inquisition war has a squat in it!(If I remember rightly) Whatever is the world coming to?

[Gotthammer]

And be warned the Inquisition war has a squat in it!(If I remember rightly) Whatever is the world coming to?

They edited him to not be a squat now I believe.

I'd be more worried about the Imperial Fist guy running around the webway getting magic powers from Rogal Dorn each time he stabs himself in the eye (including graphic description of digging out the optic nerve!). And that the ending makes absolutely no sense and the main character turns into a total dick.

The books do contain some really good stuff, but they also contain the assassin dreadnought covered in tiny knives...

[Psychosplodge]

They edited him to not be a squat now I believe.

I'd be more worried about the Imperial Fist guy running around the webway getting magic powers from Rogal Dorn each time he stabs himself in the eye (including graphic description of digging out the optic nerve!). And that the ending makes absolutely no sense and the main character turns into a total dick.

The books do contain some really good stuff, but they also contain the assassin dreadnought covered in tiny knives...

Really?
I must have an older version then lol

[DevilUknow]

I can confirm that the latest printing of the Inquisitor War Omnibus does have a Squat.

And the assassin dreadnaught covered in knives is AWSOME.

As is the accidental exterminatus, the Daemon world where the buildings hump each other and kill their inhabitants, chilling out with the EMPEROR HIMSELF, and the Space Marine demanding larceny because he's bored and wants to scrimshaw space marine bones.

That poo poo is REAL!

[Gotthammer]

It is awesome (awesome like using a dead navigator's magi eye as a map through the webway) - but probably not the best place to start.

Like I said, Watson's writing does lack in areas like characterisation and character consistency and development, but it is superbly atmospheric and contains lots of very cool fluff.

[grimm]

Really?
I must have an older version then lol

No, they've uninquisitioned him back to squat.

[DevilUknow]

whoa whoa whoa

what do you mean "uninquisitored"?

was Grimm edited out in some versions?

[Psychosplodge]

I may have to re read it,

I can't remember the knife dreadnaught lol

[Denzark]

Okay so between 40K and Fantasy there are like 900,000 novels. It is enough to get lost in.

What's a good place to start reading them? Say, pick one starting point for 40K and one for WFB. I am interested to hear people's thoughts.

I often start to read them on the bog...