Tag Archives: Horus Heresy

QUICK REVIEW : Twisted – Guy Haley

In a series the size and scale of the Horus Heresy, it’s inevitable that some characters’ involvement will wax and wane. Such has been the case with Maloghurst the Twisted; introduced at the beginning of the series, he was absent for much of the time up until his return in Vengeful Spirit. In Guy Haley’s Twisted, we look closer at Horus’ equerry as he sees the safety of his position crumble while the legion changes around him. Plagued by the whisperings of the Neverborn, he turns to a dangerous, unlikely source of support.

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QUICK REVIEW : Distant Echoes of Old Night – Rob Sanders

The Death Guard are still somewhat under-represented in the Horus Heresy series, but Rob Sanders’ Distant Echoes of Old Night goes some way to filling that gap. Here we see Death Guard Chaplain Morgax Murnau as he leads a Destroyer squad through a dying world to finish off a detachment of Imperial Fists from a downed ship. The brutal, implacable Death Guard will have to use every awful weapon at their disposal if they are to prise the dug-in Imperial Fists from their tenacious defences.

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Tallarn : Executioner – John French

Ten million tanks! Or maybe one million tanks. Whatever the number, the Battle of Tallarn is famed for the vast numbers of armoured vehicles that were deployed. In his Horus Heresy novella Tallarn : Executioner, John French chronicles the opening sequence of this infamous battle, from the initial virus bombing of the once-verdant world to the early engagements that demonstrated to the Iron Warriors that Tallarn’s population wasn’t going to let them have their world without a fight. Originally available only as a Limited Edition novella, it’s now been re-issued in standard format to coincide with the release of Tallarn : Ironclad, the next in the Tallarn arc.

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QUICK REVIEW : The Gates of Terra – Nick Kyme

Nick Kyme’s ‘quick read’ The Gates of Terra follows Captain Arcadese of the Ultramarines as he stubbornly defends the Ardent Reef from the forces of the Warmaster, in spite of his growing confusion at what’s happening around him. To abuse a famous line : it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a Horus Heresy short story, even one apparently standing on its own, will in some way be linked to at least one other existing story. This story is a great example, as while fundamentally it stands as a single story it is in fact linked with Forgotten Sons from the Age of Darkness anthology, as well as the Garro arc, albeit loosely.

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QUICK REVIEW : Lost Sons – James Swallow

It took a while for the Blood Angels to get involved in the Horus Heresy series, but when they did, in Fear To Tread, almost the entire legion got stuck in. In his ‘quick read’ story Lost Sons, James Swallow looks at what happened to those few legionaries who stayed behind on Baal, their home world. Denied the right to fight alongside their brothers, then cut off from the rest of the legion by the Ruinstorm, all they can do is wait and hope. When fateful news arrives with an agent of the Sigillite, it appears the worst may have happened.
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QUICK REVIEW : Sins of the Father – Andy Smillie

The go-to guy for Flesh Tearers in 40k, Andy Smillie has recently turned his attention to their founding chapter, the Blood Angels, as part of the Horus Heresy series. A prequel to Virtues of the Sons (from the Death and Defiance anthology), his ‘quick read’ story Sins of the Father sees the primarch Sanguinius in a dark mood, reflecting on his future and that of his sons. He sees a bleak future for the Blood Angels, with only Azkaellon and Amit offering even a slender thread of hope.

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QUICK REVIEW : Child of Night – John French

Of all the merits of Black Library’s Horus Heresy series, perhaps its greatest achievement to date is the way it has cast the whole conflict in a new light and reminded readers that it wasn’t just a case of good versus evil and black and white, but very much shades of grey. John French looks at this in a little more detail with his quick read Child of Night, introducing us to Fel Zharost, the ex-Chief Librarian of the Night Lords. Having left his legion after the passing of the Edict of Nikea and returned to the underhive slums of Terra where he was born, he has remained unaware of the civil war ripping the Galaxy apart. Until now.

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Garro : Shield of Lies – James Swallow

Since first appearing in Galaxy In Flames Nathaniel Garro has become something of a fan favourite, as well as the poster boy for the ever-growing range of Horus Heresy audio dramas. James Swallow’s latest contribution to the Heresy series, Shield of Lies is the fifth audio to feature Garro and finds the first of Malcador’s Knights Errant on the orbital plate of Riga, in pursuit of an Administratum scribe who has stumbled across a deadly secret. A small cog within the vast Departmento Munitorum, Katanoh Tallory has paid a heavy price for her hard work and now finds herself caught between the menacing inhumanity of Riga’s mechanical guardians and the uncertain mercy of Garro.

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QUICK REVIEW : Black Oculus – John French

The latest Horus Heresy quick read from Black Library, John French’s Black Oculus is a prequel of sorts to his excellent novella Tallarn : Executioner, which was a limited edition release in 2013 and is sadly still not yet generally available. After the events at the climax of Angel Exterminatus, Perturabo ordered his fleet into the heart of a black hole, deep within the Eye of Terror. Here we get a glimpse of the terrible effects that decision had upon the Navigators who guided the Iron Warriors fleet on that fateful journey that led to their arrival at Tallarn.

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QUICK REVIEW : The Watcher – CZ Dunn

On the twenty-fourth day of Christmas, Black Library gave to us…a Horus Heresy audio drama by CZ Dunn. The final advent short, The Watcher sees one of Malcador’s Knights Errant receive a message in the form of a broken and bloodied Space Wolf. Using his psychic abilities the Knight watches through the eyes of the Wolf as he recalls his Sigillite-ordered mission to ‘observe’ the Night Lords, and the events that led up to his appalling wounding.

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