The Laughter of Dark Gods (Warhammer Fantasy Stories)

This book reprints 11 short stories taken from 3 other anthologies previously published by Warhammer back in 1989-90. The book starts off with a bang with the story from which this book takes its title, "The Laughter of Dark Gods" by William King. This is quite an excellent tale of one man's descent into the dark life of a Chaos warrior. I'd say that this story, along with the fantastic cover art by Clint Langley which appears to depict the story's main character, are almost worth the price of the book on their own! This is immediately followed by another strong entry which I also liked a lot, "The Reavers and the Dead" by Charles Davidson. A young man watches helplessly as a shipload of pirate reavers heads for his seaside village. Is there nothing he can do? -- You might be surprised what he does do. I liked this one so much I wished it could have continued on into a full novel, as it has the feel of only being the introductory chapter in a much larger story and seemed to end just right when it was getting really good. Next up is "The Phantom of Yremy" by Brian Craig. A mysterious thief is after the magistrate of a small Bretonnian town. Although it has a kind of vibe similar to some of Poe's mysteries, what with its pseudo-French Bretonnian setting, I still found it hard to get into and didn't really enjoy it at all. My reaction when it was over was "yeah, so what?" This is followed by "The Other" by Nicola Griffiths. A tale of two young apprentice healers, a male and a female, it seems like an excuse to go on about the advancement of women in the Warhammer world and the healing powers of women and yadda, yadda. Bleh. Next is "The Song" by Steve Baxter, a story of a halfling private eye pressed into undertaking a dangerous assignment for a sinister elf. Alright I guess, but I preferred the other halfling story later in the book. And I also felt that the tone was a bit too lighthearted for what I was hoping would be a very dark-themed anthology. I wish Warhammer would take more care when choosing the stories for their anthologies so that they really do all fit together better. "Apprentice Luck" by Sean Flynn is the tale of how one bored teenager stumbles onto the road to becoming a mage. OK I guess, but I didn't find the main character particularly likable and this affected my enjoyment of it. "The Light of Transfiguration" by Brian Craig tells the story of a nun's growing fascination with/temptation by some leftover Chaos relics. I liked this one too, quite suitably dark and my 3rd fave in the book. "The Spells Below" by Neil Jones deals with a young woman, her wizard boyfriend and his mysterious little familiar. Her boyfriend has been denounced as a follower of Chaos but she can't believe it. Can she save him? Okay story but not really necessary. "Cry of the Beast" by Ralph Castle is a werewolf tale. An elven maiden is shipwrecked and her brother is missing. Soon afterwards a beast begins attacks. Are the two connected?? Didn'

AND DAMN. It was GREAT. That's really all I remember about the book, but this is worth just that last story about a man who chooses to side with the forces of darkness. Absolutely fantastic.