Black Library Opens Fan Vote to Choose Next Wave of Reprints

Black Library launched its annual Reader's Choice ballot on March 10, asking the wider Warhammer community to determine which two out-of-print titles will receive new physical editions next year. The format is exactly what it's been: one vote for a Warhammer 40,000 title, one vote for a World of Legend title, and nothing more complicated than that.

The proof that these votes actually move product came built into the announcement. Deathwatch by Steve Parker and Grudge Bearer by Gav Thorpe, last year's winners, went up for pre-order the same weekend the new ballot opened, with new edition previews dropping that Sunday. That's the pipeline in action: community picks a book, Black Library puts it back on shelves.

The 40K shortlist this time around is five titles deep: The Gildar Rift by Sarah Cawkwell, Path of the Archon, Resurrection, The Eye of Medusa, and Crossfire. Of those, The Gildar Rift got the most promotional copy from Warhammer Community, which described Huron Blackheart setting his sights on conquering an entire sub-sector while a battle fleet of Silver Skulls Space Marines, led by Captain Arrun, attempts to stop the Red Corsairs. The World of Legend shortlist was not enumerated in the initial coverage.

The Reader's Choice program has been running for roughly four years. Goonhammer's historical breakdown puts the full winner list at Horus Rising in hardcover for 2022, Simon "Si" Spurrier's Lord of the Night in 2023 alongside Riders of the Dead by Dan Abnett (that year's Fantasy pick, though some copies shipped with pages from both books accidentally mixed together), C. L. Werner's Grey Seer and Dan Abnett's Titanicus in 2024, and then the just-announced Steve Parker and Gav Thorpe pair for 2025. The pattern Goonhammer identified holds: cult classics and series openers keep getting the nod.

Predictably, the ballot announcement sent the Black Library subreddits into recommendation mode. Threads across r/Blacklibrary, r/Grimdank, and r/40kLore started filling with titles people want to see return. The Night Lord Trilogy by Aaron Dembski-Bowden came up repeatedly, with one commenter putting it plainly: "Amazing series. Makes you feel sorry for literal murderers turned demigods one minute, then you're reminded why they're the most terrifying legion the next." Peter Fehervari's Requiem Infernal drew a one-sentence verdict from another reader: "Requiem Infernal is a masterpiece." Mike Brooks' Da Big Dakka generated its own memorable pitch: "That book made me feel sympathy for a Drukhari, I didn't even realise that was possible." On the Necron side, Twice Dead King: Reign got a qualified endorsement: "I loved the doomed politics, and even though the end was a little cheesy, it was still a cool book." The Infinite and the Divine, as always, surfaced with the summary that "Trazyn brought more Pokeballs then Orikan expected."

Fantasy readers pushed for Beasts in Velvet, a psychological thriller set in Altdorf, and the Karl Hoche series, specifically Mark of Damnation and Mark of Mutation, where at least one commenter's response was simply "They were so good... Did they plan to make more?" Ciaphas Cain, predictably, got a mention.

None of those Reddit recommendations are on the official shortlist, of course. The ballot locks you into the candidates Black Library selected. But the discussion threads are worth browsing if you want a sense of what the community actually thinks is overdue for a return to print, and they may inform future shortlists if enough people are vocal about the same titles year after year.