Short Stories and Comics I Read in August 2026

Here’s what else I read this month besides the Conan and Warhammer short stories I wrote about in my previous posts. 

Solomon Kane: The Blood Countess by Steven L. Shrewsbury (Titan Books, 2026)

Solomon Kane journeys to Hungary to help an old friend whose daughter has been taken by Elizabeth Bathory, the Blood Countess. Not quite Howard’s Kane but I enjoyed the story and the use of a historical figure. It was also interesting to learn something about the term “puritan” and how it was used in the past.

Rating: 3.5/5

“A Ghost Return” by Dan Abnett (from Gaunt’s Ghosts Vol. 1: The Founding, Black Library, 2017)

Gaunt’s Ghosts is a military science fiction series set in the Warhammer 40K universe. I picked up the first omnibus after really enjoying Dan Abnett’s Brothers of the Snake (2007) last year and I figured it was finally time to jump in. Omnibus Vol. 1 collects the first three books as well as some short stories. 

In this story set before the first book, Commissar Ibram Gaunt and his team descend into a planet in search of a shrine while the planet is being bombarded in another location. Of course, things don’t go as planned. An okay story with a definite prequel feeling to it.

Rating: 3/5

Old Moon Quarterly Vol. 6 (Old Moon Publishing, 2024) 

Another interesting mix of dark fantasy and sword & sorcery stories. I’ll post a full review next month.

Rating: 4/5

Conan the Barbarian Vol. 6: Nest of Serpents. Written by Jim Zub, art by Fernando Dagnino. (Titan Comics. 2026)

This collects issues 21-24 of Titans Conan the Barbarian. I went with the variant cover by Greg Staples. Conan and his allies wind up in Stygia manipulated by a powerful sorceress. Great work from author Jim Zub and artist Fernando Dagino, an excellent combination of narration, dialogue, and art. The story is thrilling and fast paced and the art is gorgeous. 

Rating: 5/5

Next month: Cimmerian September!

Some Warhammer Short Stories by Robbie MacNiven

I was in the mood for some Warhammer fiction and “Heartwood” by Robbie MacNiven looked interesting, so I gave it a read. 

Heartwood (Warhammer Age of Sigmar) Black Library, 2017 

A tale of the Sylvaneth, tree-like humanoids in the Warhammer fantasy universe. After a brutal battle against the servants of Chaos and decay, Nellas the Harvester and Branchwych of her clan encounters challenges while on a journey to save her people. An interesting mix of action, worldbuilding, and melancholy, with really enjoyable prose. 

Rating: 4/5

I enjoyed this so much that I decided to check out some more of Robbie MacNiven’s work. The other stories I read are all from the Warhammer 40K universe. 

Redblade (Warhammer 40K Deathwatch: Ignition Book 4) Black Library, 2015 

A young and reckless Space Wolf clashes with his older pack leader as they defend a refinery in the upper atmosphere of a planet against an onslaught of orks. This does a good job of setting up the characters and situation, has some good action scenes, and a solid ending but I never got into the character and setting. I also didn’t enjoy the prose as much as I did in the previous MacNiven story that I read.  That could either be because of the setting, or it could be because this is an earlier story from the author’s career. 

Rating: 3/5

Blood and Iron (Warhammer 40K: Call of Chaos) Black Library, 2015

A warpsmith for the Iron Warriors, Space Marines who have turned to the service of Chaos, attempts to fuse a demon with a Titan, a massive robotic combat walker. I’m thinking that I’m just not into stories that focus on characters on the side of Chaos, but this story does have some well-done worldbuilding with a great twist at the end. 

Rating 3/5 

A Song for the Lost (Warhammer 40K: Call of Chaos) Black Library, 2015

Ulix, a young Imperium of Man military recruit training under harsh conditions seeks solace in the singing of the mysterious Sister D'Fey, as only her song can ease his suffering. Years later we met him again, we learn how he has changed, and we learn more about his connection to the Sister. Okay, forget what I wrote in the previous review. Here’s a story that involves Chaos that I loved. MacNiven knocked it out of the park with this one. Wonderfully dark and twisted. The prose and the creepy atmosphere really drew me in. 

Rating: 5/5

The Reaping Time (Warhammer 40K: Carcharodons) Black Library, 2016 

A space marine group of the shark inspired Carcharodon chapter is sent to a mining colony to investigate after contact is lost with a ship. Mystery leads to savage action and a brutal ending.

Rating: 4/5

Death Warrant (Warhammer 40K: Carcharodons) Black Library, 2017 

As a rogue trader and her team search for an ancient artifact in a temple on a deserted jungle moon, a squad of Carcharodon space marines show up. After they descend into the depths of the temple together, something begins to awaken. An exciting dungeon crawl adventure.

Rating 4/5

All in all, these were enjoyable reads, but while earlier written stories were fine and competently written, the characterizations and the prose in the newer stories really stood out. MacNiven gets better with each story written. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author. 

Four Conan Short Stories from Heroic Legends

Titan Books had a 99-cent sale on a number of their Heroic Legends short stories recently, so I picked up the Conan stories I was missing and I got caught up. 

Conan: The Amulet of Nakamar by Brendan Deneen (Titan Books, 2025)

Shortly after the events of “The Tower of the Elephant,” a young Conan is approached in a tavern and hired to recover a stolen jewel. This felt much too generic and the writing didn’t grab me. I found the constant references to Conan’s childhood training repetitive and some passages seemed to contradict each other. Disappointing. 

Rating: Two swords out of five.

Conan: Marked for Death by Tim Waggoner (Titan Books, 2026) 

Conan and his mercenary companions encounter supernatural trouble after a job gone wrong. I really enjoyed this. A great mix of mystery, action, and horror.

Rating: Four swords out of five. 

Conan: The Treasures of Tortage by Robbie MacNiven (Titan Books, 2026)

I wasn’t expecting a story from the perspective of another character, but the prose grabbed me from the first sentence and never let go. The twist that comes was well done and the ending stuck landing. I'm glad that I didn't read the story description beforehand as it has a spoiler. This is my favorite of the four I read. I loved how Conan is shown using his cunning as well as his strength in this story. 

Rating: Five swords out of five.

Conan: The Green God of Leng by Gavin G. Smith (Titan Books, 2026)

After people across the land are plagued by strange dreams, Conan is asked to help fight off the source of the nightmares. At the end we get a pretty wild final battle. This story has some nice nods to H.P. Lovecraft including the appearance of the Plateau of Leng.  Well done.

Rating: Four swords out of five.

Three great stories of four. Not bad.