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Soulblight Gravelords: Masters Of Death
A Warhammer Age of Sigmar Omnibus
Forever cursed to carry a restive taint in their blood, the vampiric carriers of the Soulblight hold sway over legions of the unquiet dead. Packs of dire wolves, scores of zombies, and phalanxes of skeletons follow the aristocracy of blood into battle over the dark places of the Mortal Realms, and while some resist the call of the curse in their veins, others relish it, wishing only to spread their dark gifts to a grateful populace.
READ IT BECAUSE
Get ready to sink your teeth into a host of stories in which the vampiric overlords of the Mortal Realms take centre stage, featuring three novels, and a selection of blood-steeped short stories. The stakes are raised as the legendary Mortarch of Blood, Neferata, and the Mother of Nightmares, Lauka Vai, take centre stage, so settle into your crypt and enjoy.
THE STORIES
Mortarch of Blood tells the tale of the Blood Queen as she holds her domain together through an era of upheaval and internecine warfare.
In The Dominion of Bones, the undead queen fights a war on two fronts, fending off the forces of Chaos and Order, even as a mysterious menace threatens to rise and fill the power vacuum that seems imminent.
The novel A Dynasty of Monsters shifts the focus to the corrupted, monstrous Lauka Vai, who rules her dynasty in a very different way. She joins forces with an enemy to overcome an existential threat in Ghur, the Realm of Beasts.
Also included is a trio of short stories revealing the constant scheming that Neferata is known for as she manipulates her court to her will.
CONTENTS
– Mortarch of Blood (Novel)
– The Dominion of Bones (Novel)
– A Dynasty of Monsters (Novel)
– The Threshold (Short story)
– Obsidian (Short story)
– The Dance of the Skulls (Short story)
Written by David Annandale.
Forever cursed to carry a restive taint in their blood, the vampiric carriers of the Soulblight hold sway over legions of the unquiet dead. Packs of dire wolves, scores of zombies, and phalanxes of skeletons follow the aristocracy of blood into battle over the dark places of the Mortal Realms, and while some resist the call of the curse in their veins, others relish it, wishing only to spread their dark gifts to a grateful populace.
READ IT BECAUSE
Get ready to sink your teeth into a host of stories in which the vampiric overlords of the Mortal Realms take centre stage, featuring three novels, and a selection of blood-steeped short stories. The stakes are raised as the legendary Mortarch of Blood, Neferata, and the Mother of Nightmares, Lauka Vai, take centre stage, so settle into your crypt and enjoy.
THE STORIES
Mortarch of Blood tells the tale of the Blood Queen as she holds her domain together through an era of upheaval and internecine warfare.
In The Dominion of Bones, the undead queen fights a war on two fronts, fending off the forces of Chaos and Order, even as a mysterious menace threatens to rise and fill the power vacuum that seems imminent.
The novel A Dynasty of Monsters shifts the focus to the corrupted, monstrous Lauka Vai, who rules her dynasty in a very different way. She joins forces with an enemy to overcome an existential threat in Ghur, the Realm of Beasts.
Also included is a trio of short stories revealing the constant scheming that Neferata is known for as she manipulates her court to her will.
CONTENTS
– Mortarch of Blood (Novel)
– The Dominion of Bones (Novel)
– A Dynasty of Monsters (Novel)
– The Threshold (Short story)
– Obsidian (Short story)
– The Dance of the Skulls (Short story)
Written by David Annandale.
833 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 19, 2025
6 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 27, 2025
This book is a collection of other books (and some short stories) all written by David Annandale. They range from really great to 'pretty good' and it will likely depend on how you feel about the author's writing style. It took me some time to get used to as it can be rather short and clipped but if you can acclimate to it you are in for some wonderfully creative stories and worldbuilding. All of the stories here involve the vampire Neferata except for one, which I will mention below. If you are interested in the Soulblight Gravelords faction for AoS (especially the royal vampire/skeleton aspect) then this would be the collection for you. I would also recommend it if you are interested in how followers of Khorne function as they are the main enemy in the first 2 books.
Books within this omnibus:
– Neferata: Mortarch of Blood (Novel) - 4/5
The first book here and the one that took the most to acclimate to. It also feels like the authors' first take into writing Neferata and the world as it takes a little bit to get on its feet outside of the opening chapter. But once it gets going, it really gets going. Some really fun ideas in this book and excellent worldbuilding to bring to life Nulahmia, the capital city of Neferatia, where mortals, skeletons, and vampires all coexist. It also highlights a rampaging army of Khorne worshippers, inner empire politics, and a rebellion against the Queen herself.
– Neferata: The Dominion of Bones (Novel) - 5/5
Arguably the highlight of the collection. This is a sequel to the first book in this collection and deals with some of the unintended fallout of Neferata's pride and her actions she took. This time the enemies are not only more followers of Khorne but a full Demon Prince of Khorne who has taken a foothold into the realm of Shyish. There are also Stormcast Eternals becoming unwitting pawns of Neferata, a horrifying look into Nurgle's '''blessings''', another small rebellion with a very fascinating leader, as well as a skeleton Black Knight that surprises even the Queen. It's a large mixing of stories and pieces but it all comes together wonderfully and highlights not only how war would be waged but how a master tactician would wage it.
– A Dynasty of Monsters (Novel) - 3.5/5
This one is an odd one and will likely be dependent on how much you take to the story's core message. This time instead of Neferata we are focusing on Lauka Vai, the Mother of Nightmares. While the former is the height of vampiric royalty and decadent cruetly, Lauka Vai is the embrace of monstrosity and the beastial slaughter inherit to blood drinkers. This story also takes place in a Freeguild city in the land of Ghur and it was a very nice introduction to that land and how it functions. While I did enjoy the characters and the ending was immensely satisfying, I didn't quite get the 'pull' of monstrosity that was argued throughout it and the overall theme of 'above vs below' was beat over your head a tad too much. Lots of telling and now much showing.
– The Threshold (Short story) - 3.5/5
A fine short story. A little bit deus ex machine at the end for my taste, but it was still a fun little read. Just a little funny to read Neferata argue about decadence and art after spending 400+ pages reading how she will let her people die just for her own needs.
– Obsidian (Short story) - 4/5
I liked this one. Pretty predictable and you will see it coming, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. Neferata is a pretty intimidating presence.
– The Dance of the Skulls (Short story) - 4.5/5
A great story to round off the book. Again it suffers a little from 'Neferata is just SO good at what she does' syndrome, but if you have read this far into this massive tome then you likely love the character and won't find an issue with it.
Books within this omnibus:
– Neferata: Mortarch of Blood (Novel) - 4/5
The first book here and the one that took the most to acclimate to. It also feels like the authors' first take into writing Neferata and the world as it takes a little bit to get on its feet outside of the opening chapter. But once it gets going, it really gets going. Some really fun ideas in this book and excellent worldbuilding to bring to life Nulahmia, the capital city of Neferatia, where mortals, skeletons, and vampires all coexist. It also highlights a rampaging army of Khorne worshippers, inner empire politics, and a rebellion against the Queen herself.
– Neferata: The Dominion of Bones (Novel) - 5/5
Arguably the highlight of the collection. This is a sequel to the first book in this collection and deals with some of the unintended fallout of Neferata's pride and her actions she took. This time the enemies are not only more followers of Khorne but a full Demon Prince of Khorne who has taken a foothold into the realm of Shyish. There are also Stormcast Eternals becoming unwitting pawns of Neferata, a horrifying look into Nurgle's '''blessings''', another small rebellion with a very fascinating leader, as well as a skeleton Black Knight that surprises even the Queen. It's a large mixing of stories and pieces but it all comes together wonderfully and highlights not only how war would be waged but how a master tactician would wage it.
– A Dynasty of Monsters (Novel) - 3.5/5
This one is an odd one and will likely be dependent on how much you take to the story's core message. This time instead of Neferata we are focusing on Lauka Vai, the Mother of Nightmares. While the former is the height of vampiric royalty and decadent cruetly, Lauka Vai is the embrace of monstrosity and the beastial slaughter inherit to blood drinkers. This story also takes place in a Freeguild city in the land of Ghur and it was a very nice introduction to that land and how it functions. While I did enjoy the characters and the ending was immensely satisfying, I didn't quite get the 'pull' of monstrosity that was argued throughout it and the overall theme of 'above vs below' was beat over your head a tad too much. Lots of telling and now much showing.
– The Threshold (Short story) - 3.5/5
A fine short story. A little bit deus ex machine at the end for my taste, but it was still a fun little read. Just a little funny to read Neferata argue about decadence and art after spending 400+ pages reading how she will let her people die just for her own needs.
– Obsidian (Short story) - 4/5
I liked this one. Pretty predictable and you will see it coming, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. Neferata is a pretty intimidating presence.
– The Dance of the Skulls (Short story) - 4.5/5
A great story to round off the book. Again it suffers a little from 'Neferata is just SO good at what she does' syndrome, but if you have read this far into this massive tome then you likely love the character and won't find an issue with it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review