The Magos

Eisenhorn: Warhammer 40,000 Book 4

By: Dan Abnett

Narrated by: Toby Longworth

Length: 20 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

Book 4 in the Eisenhorn series

Inquisitor Eisenhorn makes his triumphant return in a brand new novel, collected together with every one of the short stories starring the tortured servant of the Throne.

Listen to It Because:

It's a brand new Eisenhorn novel by Dan Abnett! What other reason do you need!

The Story:

Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn has spent his life stalking the darkest and most dangerous limits of the Imperium in pursuit of heresy and Chaos. But how long can a man walk that path without succumbing to the lure of the Warp? Is Eisenhorn still a champion of the Throne, or has he been seduced by the very evil that he hunts?

Warhammer 40,000’s most beloved anti-hero finally returns in a stunning new novel that pits him against his oldest and most constant foe, and forces him to confront the true darkness of his own self.

For the first time ever, the Black Library presents the definitive casebook of Gregor Eisenhorn, collecting all of Dan Abnett’s celebrated Inquisitor short stories into a single epic volume. The stories, some of which have never been in print before, have been compiled and introduced by the author to serve as an indispensable companion to the acclaimed Eisenhorn trilogy, and to act as an essential prologue to The Magos, a brand new, full-length Eisenhorn novel.

CONTENTS

• Pestilence​
• Master Imus’s Transgression​
• Regia Occulta​
• Missing in Action​​​
• Backcloth for a Crown Additional​​​
• The Strange Demise of Titus Endor​
• The Curiosity​
• Playing Patience​
• Thorn Wishes Talon​
• The Gardens of Tycho​​​
• The Keeler Image​​​
• Perihelion​​​
• The Magos​

©2018 Games Workshop Limited (P)2018 Games Workshop Limited

One of Dan Abnett's best

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, although I would say to fully enjoy the book you have to have read the others in the series

What did you like best about this story?

Wrapped up the character Eisenhorn. There is a wee bit of deus machina towards the end but otherwise fantasic book

What does Toby Longworth bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Yes, I love him as a voice actor.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Magos Dursha was the best. Seeing a normal imperial citizen thrust into the enormity that was the closing of this chapter in Eisenhorns career gave the whole story charm and contrast.

Any additional comments?

Read the others in the series (Xenos, Hereiticus, Maleus) before you read this one.

I loved it.

The short-stories seem disconnected at first, just fun filler to flesh out the world, its characters and Eisenhorn himself.

But all of them, in greater or lesser degree, build up the Magos story in ways unseen fully until the end. It felt like going through a short series and as somebody who never read or listened to a single thing in the Eisenhorn series, I damn well will now.

Deepest of the Eisenhorn books

Having read all of the Eisenhorn and Ravenor books and short stories and enjoyed all of them to varying degrees, I can safely say that this one was my favorite. It has the action, the intrigue, the excitement of the other novels, but it's also much deeper and more human. I love books that make me think, that expand my perspective on life in some way. The earlier books were certainly exciting and well written, but I think this is the first one that caused that delicious perspective shift for me. Bravo, Dan Abnett!

Another great Eisenhorn adventure!

If you wanted more Eisenhorn you'll get it, but not fully. He takes almost a side character role for most of the Magos, but it's still a great tale. Toby Longworth took a little for me to get used to, especially his female performances, but by the end I was a fan!

A weak part of a great series.

I really wanted to like this book. The narration, as usual, was fantastic. I just felt the book was kind of jumbled and the tone was all over the place. I enjoyed most of the short stories, but things began to fall apart with the actual new novel. In particular, the title character, the Magos I found to be very annoying and out of place in the overall story. His tone was way too comedic and quippy in a way that wouldn't be out of a place in a Marvel movie. I just don't feel like it fit. Also, I had no idea what he was even doing in the novel, as he didn't seem to have any purpose to the mission the inquisitor was on as opposed to being a contrarian to Eisenhorn. Also, the central...device at the heart of the story felt like a McGuffin that was never explained despite it's importance.

Not as good as the previous 3 books

The character after which this book is named honestly made this book kind of unenjoyable. It’s very odd how in one moment he acts like a complete coward and then very quickly becomes this brave and competent character. There’s not really any progression to it, it’s more like the flipping of a switch. I actually don’t mind him in the 2 short stories he appears in but there’s some odd tonal shift that happens with him in the main novel itself which just kind of takes you out of moment.

Also there’s a few scenes where characters talk about the extreme urgency of the situation and the need to move but then will stand around talking to each other for extended periods of time. Lots of little things like that in this book which just made me roll my eyes.

I also feel like they tried really hard to come up with a reason for why Eisenhorn and his team so desperately needed the magos’ help but again it just seemed a little far fetched. I just got the impression the author loved this character for some reason and was trying to shoehorn him into the main plot.

Somewhat disappointing, but still good

The red thread in the short stories paints a very good picture of Gregor's fall from good man, of integrity who "save a million lives, by starting with one", to a dangerous radical, willing to risk entire worlds, and sacrifice friends, in his private war against chaos

However the last few chapters of the titel story Magos is a bit of a confused mess, which is very sad, as I think it is otherwise a very interesting story

amazing book

after warmaster i was pretty worried about Abnetts future work but this was amazing. truely one of my favorites of his work, I'd highly recommend to anyone that enjoys the eisenhorn/ravenor series.

Heads up

Remember everything! these may seem like disconnected stories for quite awhile but they all intertwine.

A superb entry into the warhammer 40K universe.

This book is a superb introduction to the Warhammer 40k universe. It is an entirely self contained series of short stories and adventures which just happened to systematically introduce the reader to a surprisingly large quantity of warhammer 40K background lore.

Intertwining, lucid and highly entertaining epic

Dan Abnett is generally regarded as the standout author of the Warhammer 40k stable, and rightly so. His contributions to the canon are characterised by quality writing, tight plotting and three-dimensional characters. This set of stories is no exception, though I was initially wrong-footed by the description of 'The Magos' as a collection of short stories featuring Abnett's Imperial Inquisitor, Gregor Eisenhorn. This doesn't really do justice to what is in fact a complex set of intertwining stories that come together ultimately to pose a series of philosophical and moral questions.

Eisenhorn is a sci-fi hybrid of totalitarian secret police officer, Vatican exorcist and Sherlock Holmes. He's featured in several books by Abnett previously but they were standalone stories with beginning, middle and end. This sprawling set of stories spans a galaxy, several decades and is written in several voices, not only Eisenhorn's. Abnett cleverly weaves an overarching narrative that slowly draws the threads of the various stories together. Firstly as repeating characters, ideas and themes in the stories, and then ultimately bringing all the stories together as one in the eponymous 'The Magos'. It's clever, literary stuff and a thousand light years removed from the leaden prose and wooden characters often found in The Black Library's more militaristic output. Such work often feels created purely for consumption by diehard fans of the Warhammer canon. Yet I'd recommend The Magos to anyone with an interest in dystopian science fiction. The stories variously cover ground trodden previously by the likes of David Mitchell, William Gibson, HG Wells and HP Lovecraft. It certainly doesn't require the reader to have previous knowledge of Eisenhorn or the Warhammer 40k universe.

As this is an audio book it makes for something of an epic, totting in at a little over 20 hours. Toby Longworth is a veteran Abnett-narrator and it's easy to see why. His deep, doom-laden yet precise delivery is perfect for this kind of material. The only criticism one could level at his narration is that due to the huge cast of 'The Magos' his range of voices runs a bit dry after a few stories. Several characters are provided with very similar voices or accents which was confusing at times once the narratives begin to converge. This is a very minor point though. Longworth is, like Abnett, a class act and their combined contributions here differentiates 'The Magos' from the standard fare of the genre and places it on a level approaching that of modern sci-fi classic.

The best 40k book

A return to form for Dan Abnett, this is the best work of his for years. Going into it blind it first seemed to be a collection of short stories, but they do all come together eventually.

Fantastic

truely awesome, the segmented shorter story's we're great as travelling tales for listening to when you haven't got poodles of time, Toby again the true voice that shines in any Warhammer performance.

An enjoyable reunion with a favourite character

what seemed at first like a disconnected set of short stories come together in an exciting climax which tie together the various narratives which occur throughout time and space.

A must listen

Can't think of the words for a review atm but this collection of stories kept me interested and wanted to come back for more. Liked how they all sort of linked together in the end very good.

What an end to the series!

After diving into audio books many months ago I had started on GoT after feeling let down by the tv series, 4 books in and hundreds of hours later i wanted to top myself.
Having had a break of a few months it suddenly struck me that i had been a fool! I've been into the Games Workshop hobby since I was 8 and I've read many of the books already.....so why wasn't I listening to the audio books!
With the promise of an Eisenhorn TV series I thought it best to start here. BY THE GOD EMPEROR I was right to do so! the narration is outstanding, length of book is perfect and throwing that into the incredible lore of 40k and you have in my mind the perfect series.
I could not stop listening, I wanted more and luckily for all of us there are hundreds of books from GW.
Having now finished the entire Eisenhorn series and am about to move onto Ravenor I can not recommend these books enough. screw GoT! I have found the audio books for me and want MORE!

An unexpected surprise

I didnt expect the style that this book was written in, it may seem like a mix of short stories (all of which were interesting) but they all coalesce into one whole. Personally, i liked seeing how much Eisenhorn had changed and seeing the story happen from the point of view of the Magos instead.

a great listen

I'm not usually one for Novellas but worked well ,intertwined ,well written , compelling new characters a well and a nice 6 hour book to end on , what's not to love ?

Great feed into Penitent

Took a little while to get going but then hits its stride! Great primer for penitent.

awesome ending for a book.

hope to see a continuation of the story in the near future. gonna check out the other series.