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

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Simlex at least has the presence of mind to reevaluate the situation when presented with new evidence. Not all the characters in the novel share this trait. Ironically, this misplaced confidence is one of the reasons the situation is deteriorating, because taking proper steps to solve it would involve admitting that the current approach has failed.

Outgunned (Warhammer 40,000) - Flowers, Denny: 9781789994681

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: What do you hope 40k and Necromunda fans will get out of this by the time they’ve finished it?

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ToW: Without spoiling anything, who are the main characters and what do we need to know about them? DF: The story is told from the perspective of Simlex. He is a protégée, having produced numerous acclaimed picts employing a rather unorthodox approach. For Simlex strives to capture the true face of Imperium, rather than the tightly controlled facsimile favoured by his peers. He believes the God-Emperor is the custodian of truth, and a propagandist’s duty is to reveal it. This naivety blinds him to the political ramifications of his work; many of the Imperium’s servants strive to shroud the truth and will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure his work does not expose their own misdeeds. 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. DF: Most of my stories are set on the planet of Necromunda, a Hive World that long since squandered its natural resources and subsists by harvesting its own toxic heritage. I have played the game ever since the original plastic box set was released when I was a kid and I’ve always loved the setting with its 80’s punk/horror/sci-fi vibe. The lore has undergone revision and expansion in the new edition and there is an awful lot to play with. I’ve particularly enjoyed exploring the world beyond the violence in the Underhive (though naturally that comes up quite a lot anyway!).

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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? DF: I suspect I would be assigned to the Imperium’s equivalent of Lord Flashheart’s Twenty Minuters… 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? ToW: Can you share any insight into what you’ve learned since then, whether in terms of pitching, writing or generally just working with editors, as advice for anyone wanting to write professionally? 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.Thanks SO MUCH to Denny Flowers for sending me a copy of Outgunned in exchange for my honest review. This was a superb and deeply impressive Warhammer 40,000 read that really highlights Flower’s growing skill as a science fiction writer. Containing a unique and highly addictive narrative, Outgunned was an outstanding read that blended an exceptional story with some impressive glances at the wider Warhammer 40,000 universe. I had an amazing time getting through this book and it was one of the more exciting and compelling Warhammer novels of 2022 so far. 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 | Book by Denny Flowers | Official Publisher Page

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. ToW Do you have anything else in the works (whether for BL or otherwise) that you can talk about at all? Flight Commander Lucille Von Shard is an ace pilot in the Aeronautica Imperialis, with a bit of a chip on her shoulder. Follow her as she faces off against the aerial forces of the orks. ToW: What can you tell us about the role of an Imperial propagandist, and the inspirations for the character of Simlex? 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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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. But these skills may prove the only hope of survival, for something vast and terrible lurks within the clouds. The Green Storm approaches. Braving the foetid waters of Bacchus and its rampaging greenskin hordes, Simlex is tasked with producing a cinema-pict portraying Shard as an Imperial hero. Shortly after his arrival planetside, however, he discovers the war effort is in shambles – the Imperium’s overstretched forces are in full retreat, the local planetary governor is desperately downplaying the conflict at every turn, and Shard is an arrogant misanthrope who only avoids sanction due to her consummate skills. Propagandist Simlex has been sent to the (notional) agriworld of Bacchus to make a recruitment film for the Imperium as volunteers are better fodder for the meatgrinder than conscripts. His choice of subject is the Aeronautica Imperialis Ace Lucille Von Shard as who is better than a dashing and faithful hero of the Imperium who daily duels the foul Ork menace in the sky as his focus? At least that what he thinks until he actually meets her...