Audio Impressions: The Daemon's Curse, by Dan Abnett and Mike Lee
Narrated by Andrew James Spooner
One of the fun side-effects of quarterbacking the Black Library Reader’s Hall of Fame has been how much more I’ve been exposed to Warhammer Fantasy. Back when I began at Tabletop Battles (formerly Goonhammer), I was much more focused on the 40K side of things. Back when I was frequently reading the genre, my IP fantasy flavor of choice had always been TSR’s, if that gives you any idea of what era I’m referring to.
But this past year has been a year of discovery, and one of the early audiobooks that made a real impression on me was William King’s Trollslayer. I’d grown curious about Warhammer Fantasy in general1 (and Gotrek & Felix in particular), and very quickly I realized how much I’d been missing out on.
Recently in one of the Black Library forums I haunt, someone gave a ringing endorsement of the audio version of The Daemon’s Curse, the first Malus Darkblade book from 2005 by Dan Abnett and Mike Lee. Curious both for the book as well as the opportunity to explore a narrator I hadn’t listed to yet, I gave it a go- and am delighted I did!
The Story
The Daemon’s Curse is essentially the origin story of Malus Darkblade, druchii (Dark Elf) highborn of the city of Hag Graef. Warhammer’s Dark Elves share very similar DNA as the Drow of Dungeons & Dragons, so the book’s endless scheming and betrayals had a very familiar ring.
We open with Darkblade bringing a huge wealth of slaves to court as tribute to his father, the ruler of Hag Graef. Betrayed along the way, he is forced to show up to court empty-handed, and his exposed position leaves him vulnerable to exile or assassination. Desperate to rebuild his power base, schemes with his half-sister to betray their brother, pilfering a relic that can lead the way to a temple in the frigid Chaos Wastes, home to immeasurable power and treasure.
But as perilous as the dangers of the North are, he must contend with the schemes and intrigues of his own warband at every step of the way. And perhaps worst of all, the realization that note every kill is worth the chase.
Giving Voice
The book is read by Andrew James Spooner, and his Malus is every bit as pitch-perfectly iconic as Keeble’s Gotrek. Like many of the other narrators in Warhammer fiction, he has a background rich with voiceover work for television and video games, as well as a smattering of live-actor credits to his name. For Warhammer, he’s lent his voice to Space Marine II, Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin, Darktide, and Total War: Warhammer III in the gaming department, and more notably brought Hendrick Silverwolf to life in WarhammerTV’s Blacktalon series.
Spooner also has a rich involvement with the art of puppetry, including performances in Muppet Treasure Island and 2014’s Muppets Most Wanted. If you’ve never seen the former, take a moment to appreciate the opportunity to work alongside the likes of Tim Curry and Billy Connolly on one of puppetry’s biggest stages. Amazing.
While other narrators have the ability to alter their voice enough to represent an ensemble cast, Spooner’s range was noticeably more limited. The steely menace he imbued Malus with made the book, and while the remaining cast was less distinctive they still earned a passing grade. Fortunately, the book didn’t call for a large cast, and Spooner resisted the temptation to get too lost into vocalizing the Beastmen- something that would probably have sorely tempted Keeble.
Bits n’ Pieces (Possible Spoilers)
Two things really elevated my enjoyment of The Daemon’s Curse, and were more than enough to see me toss an Audible credit at Bloodstorm, the second book in the series. The first was Spooner’s scintillating Malus, and the second was the way that Abnett and Lee wrote him. Malus is thoroughly wicked and irredeemable, an anti-hero in every sense of the word. But he’s not an unfathomable one, and the writers did an amazing job of giving you a window seat to his internal dialogue throughout the book.
Often when we’re treated to a character’s internal workings, it’s in lengthy monologues. There are some benefits to that approach- for one thing, it affords the writer the ability to expand on their character and its backstory- but Lee and Abnett took a different approach here. Through frequent use of short asides and reactions, we’re continuously aware of Malus’s thoughts and suspicions. The face he presents others in the story is blustery and arrogant, so this ‘parallel track’ lets us see the paranoia and scheming that’s running constantly just beneath the surface. Superb work.
This gives us a larger insight into Druchii society, where alliances are temporary, transactional, and often merely a prelude to eventual betrayal. Honestly, it must be exhausting to live like that, and The Daemon’s Curse highlighted that far better than any of the books set in Menzoberranzan that I can remember.
Finally, huge marks to the writers for keeping this fantasy story heavily grounded. Hunger, thirst, injury, and fatigue are constant companions in the story, lending it a gritty realism that at times reminded me of the best elements of survival games.
This was a terrific detour into Fantasy, and while I’m headed back to the Horus Heresy next, it won’t be long before I check in with the next part of Malus’s story. Highly recommended.
By this point, it’s worth noting I’d already taken the latecomer’s plunge into Age of Sigmar, but Fantasy had been one of the last Undiscovered Countries.