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Warhammer Crime #Anthology
Once A Killer
A Warhammer Crime Anthology
In the sprawling hive city of Varangantua, crime lords and gangers, law enforcers, and vigilantes live cheek-by-jowl – killers, thieves, and worse from all echelons of society doing what they can to survive.
READ IT BECAUSE
Return to Varangantua, a decaying hellscape where only the ruthless prosper.
In such a choking and claustrophobic environment, neither law-maker nor law-breaker is safe from dark desperation or suspicion. The tension is palpable, and the threats are real.
THE STORY
In Once a Killer, Always a Killer by Mitchel Scanlon, Sanctioner Kirian Malenko goes after a former pit fighter on a killing spree, but knows more about the killer than he cares to admit, Chains by Jonathan D. Beer sees a cartel and a gang lord go head to head for the release of a valuable prisoner, and in Slate Run by Mike Brooks, a bodyguard gets more than she bargained for when she is hired for a gilded function…
These collected tales of murder, betrayal, and corruption also contain stories from Nick Kyme, Denny Flowers, Jude Reid, Gareth Hanrahan, and Victoria Hayward.
Welcome to Varangantua – watch your back.
- Chains (Short story) by Jonathan D Beer
- Slate Run (Short story) by Mike Brooks
- No City for Heroes (Short story) by Victoria Hayward
- Clear as Glass (Short story) by Denny Flowers
- Skeletons (Short story) by Nick Kyme
- Once a Killer, Always a Killer (Short story) by Mitchel Scanlon
- Grit in the Wheels (Short story) by Gareth Hanrahan
- Habeas Corpus (Short story) by Jude Reid
In the sprawling hive city of Varangantua, crime lords and gangers, law enforcers, and vigilantes live cheek-by-jowl – killers, thieves, and worse from all echelons of society doing what they can to survive.
READ IT BECAUSE
Return to Varangantua, a decaying hellscape where only the ruthless prosper.
In such a choking and claustrophobic environment, neither law-maker nor law-breaker is safe from dark desperation or suspicion. The tension is palpable, and the threats are real.
THE STORY
In Once a Killer, Always a Killer by Mitchel Scanlon, Sanctioner Kirian Malenko goes after a former pit fighter on a killing spree, but knows more about the killer than he cares to admit, Chains by Jonathan D. Beer sees a cartel and a gang lord go head to head for the release of a valuable prisoner, and in Slate Run by Mike Brooks, a bodyguard gets more than she bargained for when she is hired for a gilded function…
These collected tales of murder, betrayal, and corruption also contain stories from Nick Kyme, Denny Flowers, Jude Reid, Gareth Hanrahan, and Victoria Hayward.
Welcome to Varangantua – watch your back.
- Chains (Short story) by Jonathan D Beer
- Slate Run (Short story) by Mike Brooks
- No City for Heroes (Short story) by Victoria Hayward
- Clear as Glass (Short story) by Denny Flowers
- Skeletons (Short story) by Nick Kyme
- Once a Killer, Always a Killer (Short story) by Mitchel Scanlon
- Grit in the Wheels (Short story) by Gareth Hanrahan
- Habeas Corpus (Short story) by Jude Reid
320 pages, Paperback
First published October 21, 2023
21 people are currently reading
132 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan D. Beer
12 books15 followersJonathan D. Beer is a science fiction and alternative history writer, whose stories for Black Library include the novels THE KING OF THE SPOIL and DOMINION GENESIS, and several short stories.
Equally obsessed by the nineteenth century and the 41st millennium, he lives with his wife and assorted cats in the untamed wilderness of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Equally obsessed by the nineteenth century and the 41st millennium, he lives with his wife and assorted cats in the untamed wilderness of Edinburgh, Scotland.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 1, 2023
Solid cyberpunk noir.
October 4, 2024
A purported warhammer 40k offering. Most all of the lead characters were female. The first two short stories read exactly as if it was a male in the role. I realized after a bit it was female, but it looked all the world like wh40k retroactively changed the characters from male to female in order to get their DEI dose in. While I will say the writing was tolerable, i really am not interested in reading about female characters. I am not a female. Maybe they should create a female-reader only wh40k section? That might be nice. That way us guys don't waste money on a book which is promoting DEI. With this being the second book from wh40k that had LOTS of female leads, I am expecting I will have to cancel on reading wh40k. A very sad day if that happens. But, why is wh40k trying to appeal to the serious smaller part of their audience?
December 19, 2023
Once a Killer. An anthology of almost-new Warhammer Crime stories.
Chains – Jonathan D. Beer
A bad bandit secretly kept and abused a psyker boy. He was found by Melita Voronova, an infobroker, but the boy transferred his memories into her head and forced her to kill him. Now Melita is suffering from "phantom memories" and wants to take revenge on the bad bandit. The story will tell about her path to revenge. It reminded me a lot of Mark Collins' Cold Cases - a minimum of action (or rather, there is none at all), but instead a lot of dialogue, grim descriptions of the environment and life in an district where the law hardly ever sets foot. In addition, here you will get acquainted with Melita and several other characters who will later appear in Beer's full-length novel The King of the Spoil.
Slate Run – Mike Brooks
A good action in the best Brooks' traditions. Sorena Varlon, a Militarum veteran, is hired to be a "one-night stand bodyguard" for a wealthy countess and accompany her to a "guilded fancy party". However, the countess turns out to be an old Sorena's "acquaintance", and the evening quickly turns into a battlefield. Check it out if you are tired of noir detectives.
No City for Heroes – Victoria Hayward (first new story)
The son of a wealthy industrialist family became obsessed with Guilliman, put on a power fist and a jump-pack, and went to administer justice on the streets of the city. The only problem is that he was murdered, and all traces lead back to Lex's bastion. The furious father gives the probation officers a day to investigate, or his own troops will take control of the bastion. So detective Agnar has to find the criminals as soon as possible, but... Do they even exist?
Clear as Glass – Danny Flowers
A newly appointed probator and a seasoned enforcer walk into a bar... And no, this is not the beginning of a joke, but the tie-in to what is, I think, the most tense story in the anthology. The officers need to interrogate an informant from a large cartel to find out the secret of a recent failed raid. But is the informant telling the truth? And is the suspicious enforcer hiding something? Almost the entire story is one big dialogue, but it's 100% not boring and i really love it.
Skeletons – Nick Kyme (second new story)
Once again, Kyme shines in Crime. Enforcers under the command of a whole castellan, Seraf Ciastro, storm a bunker where a powerful criminal mastermind is holed up, rumoured to have an old machine that can intercept any vox-conversation. All in all, this is another well-written action with a bit of intrigue and an unexpected twist, diluted with the protagonist's brief but rather grim memories of the Guard service.
Once a Killer, Always a Killer – Mitchel Scanlon
A novella in two parts, but also the cherry on top of this collection. Kirian Malenko, a sanctioner with a dubious biography, is in pursuit of a killer who is slaughtering people in the streets without hiding. But are his victims really so innocent? Kirian will have to figure it out, as well as put to rest the ghosts of the past that have returned to him in the form of a brutal killer.
Grit in the Wheels – Gareth Hanrahan
As for me, this is the weakest story in the collection, which is not surprising, since it was written for the small format of White Dwarf. Three sanctioners are sent to suppress a cult and get into a few shootouts while looking for the cult leader. That's pretty much it. Don't get me wrong, I love Hanrahan's work. His View from Olympus is still one of the best Crime stories for me. But I think if he was commissioned to write a full length new story, it would be much better.
Habeas Corpus – Jude Reid
Another short story from White Dwarf, and also the backstory of the probator Calix, who will later appear in Reid's big story from The Vorbis Conspiracy. In the meantime, detective Calix must investigate the disappearance of the son of a noble family right from the cell where he was imprisoned on charges of possessing psychic powers.
Chains – Jonathan D. Beer
A bad bandit secretly kept and abused a psyker boy. He was found by Melita Voronova, an infobroker, but the boy transferred his memories into her head and forced her to kill him. Now Melita is suffering from "phantom memories" and wants to take revenge on the bad bandit. The story will tell about her path to revenge. It reminded me a lot of Mark Collins' Cold Cases - a minimum of action (or rather, there is none at all), but instead a lot of dialogue, grim descriptions of the environment and life in an district where the law hardly ever sets foot. In addition, here you will get acquainted with Melita and several other characters who will later appear in Beer's full-length novel The King of the Spoil.
Slate Run – Mike Brooks
A good action in the best Brooks' traditions. Sorena Varlon, a Militarum veteran, is hired to be a "one-night stand bodyguard" for a wealthy countess and accompany her to a "guilded fancy party". However, the countess turns out to be an old Sorena's "acquaintance", and the evening quickly turns into a battlefield. Check it out if you are tired of noir detectives.
No City for Heroes – Victoria Hayward (first new story)
The son of a wealthy industrialist family became obsessed with Guilliman, put on a power fist and a jump-pack, and went to administer justice on the streets of the city. The only problem is that he was murdered, and all traces lead back to Lex's bastion. The furious father gives the probation officers a day to investigate, or his own troops will take control of the bastion. So detective Agnar has to find the criminals as soon as possible, but... Do they even exist?
Clear as Glass – Danny Flowers
A newly appointed probator and a seasoned enforcer walk into a bar... And no, this is not the beginning of a joke, but the tie-in to what is, I think, the most tense story in the anthology. The officers need to interrogate an informant from a large cartel to find out the secret of a recent failed raid. But is the informant telling the truth? And is the suspicious enforcer hiding something? Almost the entire story is one big dialogue, but it's 100% not boring and i really love it.
Skeletons – Nick Kyme (second new story)
Once again, Kyme shines in Crime. Enforcers under the command of a whole castellan, Seraf Ciastro, storm a bunker where a powerful criminal mastermind is holed up, rumoured to have an old machine that can intercept any vox-conversation. All in all, this is another well-written action with a bit of intrigue and an unexpected twist, diluted with the protagonist's brief but rather grim memories of the Guard service.
Once a Killer, Always a Killer – Mitchel Scanlon
A novella in two parts, but also the cherry on top of this collection. Kirian Malenko, a sanctioner with a dubious biography, is in pursuit of a killer who is slaughtering people in the streets without hiding. But are his victims really so innocent? Kirian will have to figure it out, as well as put to rest the ghosts of the past that have returned to him in the form of a brutal killer.
Grit in the Wheels – Gareth Hanrahan
As for me, this is the weakest story in the collection, which is not surprising, since it was written for the small format of White Dwarf. Three sanctioners are sent to suppress a cult and get into a few shootouts while looking for the cult leader. That's pretty much it. Don't get me wrong, I love Hanrahan's work. His View from Olympus is still one of the best Crime stories for me. But I think if he was commissioned to write a full length new story, it would be much better.
Habeas Corpus – Jude Reid
Another short story from White Dwarf, and also the backstory of the probator Calix, who will later appear in Reid's big story from The Vorbis Conspiracy. In the meantime, detective Calix must investigate the disappearance of the son of a noble family right from the cell where he was imprisoned on charges of possessing psychic powers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 30, 2023
Probably on par with No Good Men but not as strong as Broken City. Of those not released previously as digital shorts Reid’s very short story is probably the strongest followed by Kyme. Most leave the door open for follow up stories so it will be interesting to see which get picked up moving forward.
May 13, 2024
Lots of interesting short stories all with different plots and characters, some more interesting than others but all extremely well written. Was hoping for a little crossover/ connection between the stories but unfortunately didn’t spot any. They all take place in the same ‘city’ but really they could all be set in different places and the reading wouldn’t change.
May 21, 2025
A mixed bag of mostly good!
Great stories, but Once a Killer definitely is the centerpiece that holds it all together. The first three were a little too short to develop appreciation, but OaK knocks hard for a sci fi noir in the 40K universe.
Great stories, but Once a Killer definitely is the centerpiece that holds it all together. The first three were a little too short to develop appreciation, but OaK knocks hard for a sci fi noir in the 40K universe.
November 19, 2023
Good pulp crime novel set in grimdark future.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 17, 2023
I love these little anthologies, and always such a great through line... but the best part? Discovering excellent new authors.
July 29, 2025
a good book about crime in the Warhammer 40k universe, especially with no astartes involved.
a few good stores,but the main title story by Mitchel scanlon is the best!
a few good stores,but the main title story by Mitchel scanlon is the best!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews