The Magos

By: Dan Abnett

Narrated by: Toby Longworth

Length: 20 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

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 antihero 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 released 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.

©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.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

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.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Phenomenal work

This masterpiece involves a dozen or so shorter, but still excellent, stories about Eisenhorn and his companions over the span of his career. Along with a certain magos. While it may seem like a series of unrelated tales at first they weave together an essential tapestry that all comes together in the much larger story of magos. All of it crescendoing in a tale of an inquisitor's need to bring holy retribution down upon the ruinous powers and those who bow to them. Toby Longworth is an excellent narrator who brings the characters to life and gives you that level of immersion that makes the ride all the more exciting. Cannot recommend this enough.

A web of stories intertwined into one big ball.

The short stories are like memories to reflect back to before a big decision. It is recommended that you don't binge listen/read the whole book, but instead enjoy the short stories for what they are, and then progress through the main story at your own pace. It is quite interesting how even the most mundane aspects of our lives can affect our future, and it is our job to both learn from it, and become better as people.

The characters have great arcs here, and you'll go from being mildly annoyed to being proud and happy about them. Even characters previously dubbed as static, stoic, and of lacking emotional skills show new face here. Definitely a standout book in the series, and it's a must read/listen for anyone that has previously enjoyed this series.

Dan Abnett took a step into the unknown, made risks, came up with new concepts, and the result is a fulfilling tale of about as much personal growth you can write about emotionless demon hunters. Do not be alarmed, though. There is nothing new here, at least to humanity. Quite the opposite, this book is one of the most grounded and life like works in maybe the whole 40k universe. So much so, that this is a book I would recommend to my mom.

Brilliant story in the Dark millennium

Each story was great on its own, all woven together brilliantly. Toby Longworth's performance enhanced it even more. The book did an excellent job of capturing the grim dark feel of 40k, while still capturing the heroic aspect of those striving to defend against it.

Disappointing compared with other Eisenhorn books

This is not one long story like the other Eisenhorn books. Instead it is a bunch of shorter, uninteresting stories that fail to build up any excitement. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who is looking for another book like the Eisenhorn series. Toby Longworth was great as always.

Another great Eisenhorn book.

It was a bit of a slog to get through the short stories in the beginning. Once I got to the actual book portion, and realized it's all related, I was okay with them. kinda wish I paid more attention now.

This book is a great next step for the most notable Inquisitor. introducing some new characters that you will quickly fall in love with.

Team Amalathian for the win!

I loved this collection but I have to recommend the Ravenor books before listening to the Magos. I wish I started Ravenor before the Magos but I don't regret the wonderful and fantastic collection of tales following the infamous Eisenhorn. Definitely worth the credit!

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.

7 of 7 people found this review helpful

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.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

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.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Eisenhorn faces his past in a thrilling adventure!

Must read for fans! I admit, first I didn't like the fact that the book starts with a few novels, but in the end it was all worth it. The novels arc up through Eisenhorn's past to the story of the Magos. Also, side characters are done so well, great work by the writer! First I thought Valentin Drusher is the most boring character one could ever figure out, but as the story progressed it really engaged me how his character development came through. It was interesting and cool, sometimes even moving!
I believe the peak of the story was the self reflections of Eisenhorn in the end, I loved the references to the past! It really made me feel I came with him all the way from Hubris when he just caught Murdin Eyclone. :)

One more thing: It's a great Warhammer story but it adds a lot of value if you've read other Eisenhorn and Ravenor books too. That way you're closer to the characters.

A stunning return to form

As a massive fan of the series, I felt the conclusion to the Pariah series left a lot to be desired, so I was absolutely delighted to hear that Gregor would return in a new novel.

Abnett does not disappoint, so if you ever read the Eisenhorn and Ravenor trilogies, this will scratch that itch for you.

Best follow uo

This story brings together alot of ideas presented in earlier books and presents them in a way that is entertaining and story driven. Each short story is well written and narrated.

Spoilers for Eisenhorn series books 1-3. I wasn't a fan of how the character development happened in the final book as it felt too fast. Characters were doing wild things that seemed completely against their way of thinking. this book and it's short stories help to fill in that missing development between books.

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 work of utter genius!

Amazing book. Dan Abnett is one of the best writers alive, up there with Gene Wolfe and Neil Gaiman. He is brilliant at creating characters, bringing settings on alien world's to life and writing thrilling and imaginative fiction of the highest order.

I was hesitant at first.

When I saw this on here I was unsure at first having already got some of the short stories in drama form, however I'm glad I bought this in the end. The climax and over arching story spans the entirety of the book and its well worth a listen.

Eisenhorn and Abnett at their best

A well woven series of tales performed by the outstanding Toby Longworth. A must have for any fan!