Mathias Thulmann: Witch Hunter

This is a good, action/adventure/horror type novel. With sort of a classic (Kill the Goblin! Take his 5gp) feel in the very scary and dangerous Warhamemr world. It is very well written with good pacing throughout. I enjoyed the first half the most because they were going on different missions, fighting various supernatural foes. But the later half when the main story starts, (while interesting throughout) were a little bit more slow-paced. But it should be stressed that as the author says at the beginning introduction that pacing was the most important thing for him and it definitely shows. At first the characters seem pretty one-dimensional "monster fighters" but through the course of the book there are developed fairly well. If you're not familiar with the Warhammer world, that doesn't matter because everything is very well explained and I don't think anyone would feel lost if they didn't instantly know who Sigmar is. Although will say that when I finished the book, I felt both glad to be finally finished with all that violence..... but also wanting to know what happens next...... Hopefully they will make more books soon.

I'm not into RPG's. So I'm not always comfortable with an RPG-based book. But I've been to Warhammer's Old World before -- I`ve read Fell Cargo, and a couple of Dark Blade books. And I do like the main concept of the Warhammer storyline -- a medieval world on the brink of apocalypse where a dark empire, ruled by the descendant of a god, is mankind's only hope against the hordes of Chaos. So I started this book ready for a sword & sorcery tale that I expected to be mildly entertaining. But, Witch Hunter was so much more. Remember when reading was new, fun, and an adventure? C. L. Werner reminds you with these grim tales. Mr. Werner creates a gothic setting with classic horror appeal that really made me feel the characters' dread of Old Night and what might be lurking in the shadows. Matthias Thulmann is a bold hero, somewhat reminiscent of Robert E. Howard's Solomon Kane, but he's also an original and fascinating character of depth. The reader's first impression is that of a cold-blooded zealot who enjoys the authority of his order. However, as the novels progress it's revealed how he cleverly uses arrogance like a weapon and he's a man of honor in a profession that's riddled with ambitious power-seekers, fanatics, and, sometimes, enemy conspirators. As Matthias battles the minions of Chaos, a struggle with personal demons is the price of his noble campaign. I also found Streng, Matthias's hired-sword and torturer, to be an equally intriguing character. More a dog-of-war then a soldier-of-fortune, I picked up hints that Streng's motivation might not always be as mercenary as what Matthias's constant reprimands imply. Matthias and his allies are surrounded by all manner of foes -- human, vampire, mutant, undead, and otherwise -- and each one is uniquely interesting. It's profound how the most dangerous of these villains are the ones with good intentions or just don't perceive their actions as evil. I enjoyed the Witch Hunter novels so much that I went out and bought two more Warhammer omnibuses and A Time of Legends book. I figure if I have only half the fun with them as I did with C. L. Werner's tales, it's money well spent.

The three novels reprinted in this anthology, are three of the best 'Warhammer Fantasy' novels that I have read. A good introduction to varied forces of darkness and chaos in the warhammer setting, as well as a darn good read. Matthias Thulmann is great dark fantasy, and doesn't pull any punches. I enjoyed these books so much I'm in the process of picking up all of the C. L. Werner warhammer books. I would love to see more stories featuring these characters. Black Library I hope you're listening.

This novel follows the exploits of a Witch Hunter fighting the forces of Chaos/Skaven/Undead/etc... in a grim and perilous world. This book is a must read for GM's that want a better understanding of how the forces of darkness operate in this world. I especially like how he fleshes out the villains, gives us their history and shows WHY they are doing what they are doing. While some are outright depraved monsters, many were once people who made a poor choice and ended up on a dark path. For example, a wizard uses a grimoire to try and heal his lord of a nasty disease. Unbeknownst to the wizard, the tome is really a cursed item of the Chaos Lord, Nurgle, and Chaos ensues. I also like how interlinked many of the plots were. Minor seeds of Chaos planted just right can create brilliant results.