Book seven in Black Library’s Primarchs series of short novels, David Guymer’s Ferrus Manus: Gorgon of Medusa provides a rare long-form glimpse of the Iron Hands’ primarch. In the middle stages of the Great Crusade, when three primarchs are still to be found and rumours of the Emperor’s future plans are just beginning to circulate, the Iron Hands and Emperor’s Children are performing joint exercises when they hear of the 413th Fleet’s difficulties bringing the Gardinaal empire to compliance. Instead of waiting for reinforcements, Ferrus decides to take Gardinaal himself and send a statement to his brothers and father.
It’s a great premise, and if nothing else it’s fascinating to spend time with Ferrus and his sons at a relatively early stage of the legion’s development – after all, he’s one of the most underrepresented (for obvious reasons) characters of the Horus Heresy. The III Legion provide interesting contrast with the X, playing on the facts of Ferrus’ and Fulgrims’ relationship, but less effective is the inclusion of human characters from the 413th as well. The Emperor’s Children provide a more relatable foil to the dour Iron Hands, which works well, so the human characters feel a bit surplus to requirements. That’s symptomatic of the whole book, which crams in rather too many characters for a novel this length – when viewed critically a couple of the subplots, while enjoyable enough, could probably have been cut to give other characters more room to breathe.
Guymer’s writing style suits the Iron Hands, going heavy on the slightly cold, scientific language to good effect. It’s entirely appropriate, although it doesn’t help them to feel any more relatable – but that’s probably the point. It’s a style of writing, however, which can be hard to follow, especially in scenes with multiple characters. It’s not entirely impenetrable, but does sometimes make you work hard to feel fully involved in a scene. Thankfully, while Ferrus himself isn’t actually in the limelight as much as other primarchs have been in their own books (see the previous comments about too many characters), when he is front and centre the story becomes much more focused and easy to follow. Guymer does a good job of digging into his character, expanding upon what we already know while also revealing some aspects that maybe aren’t what automatically come to mind when thinking of Ferrus and the Iron Hands.
Overall it’s an intriguing book, which – when it clicks – takes a really good look at a character who inevitably receives less attention than others, and a legion whose earlier days really haven’t seen much exploration before. In the Gardinaal empire it also has protagonists who offer a powerful foreshadowing of the Imperium’s – certainly individual humans’ – bleak future. Familiar themes abound – the conflict between Terrans and Medusans, the competition between legions, a primarch’s desire to prove himself to his brothers – but they’re almost all subverted from the norm, to a greater or lesser extent. In those respects it’s a great success, but it’s just let down a little by problems which, while certainly not deal-breakers, do detract from its positives. Considering Ferrus’ limited role in the Heresy this is an important story, and one which suggests that further tales of Ferrus and Medusa could be very much worthwhile.
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