Teaser

Something is wrong with the grots. They’re too docile. Too mild-mannered. Too obedient. Such things are antithetical to orks, and Stimma knows there’s only one way to get the grots back on track. What he needs is a Red Gobbo . . .

Review

Red Gobbo, I dub thee slumpbreaker. Or maybe I wasn’t in a slump at all, and had just stumbled across a trio of underwhelming books. Whatever the case may be, Da Gobbo Rides Again was exactly the book I needed to get me back on track. Like Da Gobbo’s Revenge (Mike Brooks) and Da Gobbo’s Demise (Denny Flowers) before it, Rhuairidh James’ Da Gobbo Rides Again is a lovely little festive treat from Black Library.

Like all things orky, Da Gobbo Rides Again is funny. Very funny. There’s the obvious humour of orks whacking each other, and running jokes about the limitations of their culture that will appeal to just about every ork fan. That’s about what you’d expect from orks, especially in a story that features the grots as heavily as these novellas do. However, there’s more to it than that. James has a style of writing that feels very close to Douglas Adams. There are constant asides to the reader, such as the explanation of how an ork says ‘science.’ This puts the narrator at a remove from the story in a way that I adore. It feels almost as if James is spinning the story before our very eyes, with all the interjections and improvisations a chat over some drinks would bring about.

Comedy aside, there are also some interesting titbits of worldbuilding. We get to see the interplay of various ork careers, from freebooter to weirdboy, and all the more mundane ones in-between. More than that, we see how brutality and imagination are the only guiding principles of the orks. Their leader leads because he is the biggest, and it is quite literally unthinkable for anyone to fight someone bigger than them. Of course, all of the characters involved are equally amusing, but it’s the broader sketch of ork society that really shines.

Then there are the grots. We get a thorough investigation of the mythology of Da Red Gobbo, and what his actual goals are, for not every revolution has total victory in mind. To this end, we actually get direct reference to the grot protagonists of the previous Red Gobbo’ novellas, which really helps tie the universe together in an unexpected way. Nevertheless, the comedy antics of the grots in this book alone are worth the price of admission.

It may only be a hundred pages, but Da Gobbo Rides Again is a delightful slice of grimdark comedy, and perfect for Warhammer fans who like a little laughter with their bloodshed.

Book Stats

• A Standalone Novel
• First published in 2023
• Published by Black Library
• Grimdark SF
• 103 Pages