Book Review // Horus Heresy - The Primarchs Anthology
I’ve had a rough month, peeps! I managed to catch pneumonia, which has slowed down my Youtubing adventures. But I have gotten some reading and am enjoying these Horus Heresy books. Here we are at Book 20, The Primarchs. Still, 30+ titles to go, plus extras like the Siege of Terra series, the Primarchs and anything else that comes out! I may have to speed up my reading, or I won't finish until 2030. Back to this novel, a classic length novel at 416 pages and has a beautiful cover image; here is the official write-up for it:
Title: The Primarchs
Authors: Multiple - edited by Christian Dunn
Page Count: 416
Format: E-book (Kindle via Amazon)
Fluff: Created in the Emperor's image, the primarchs had long thought themselves to be princes of the universe and masters of their own destiny – they led the Space Marine Legions in glorious conquest of the galaxy, and no enemy of the Imperium could stand against them. However, even amongst this legendary brotherhood, the seeds of dissent had been sown long before the treacherous Warmaster Horus declared his grand heresy.
Gathered within this anthology are four novellas focusing on some of the mightiest warriors and leaders that mankind has ever known – Fulgrim, Lion El'Jonson, Ferrus Manus and the twin primarchs Alpharius and Omegon – and the roles that they may have yet to play in a war which threatens to change the face of the Imperium forever.
Review
After reading the above, it should be no surprise that this book comprises four short stories. The first is centred around Fulgrim and the Emperor's Children. Titled the Reflection Crack'd by Graham McNeil. This story is set post-Fulgrim, soon after Fulgrim becomes wholly possessed by a Daemon of Slaanesh. The story has the Emperor's Children hierarchy finally realizing that something is wrong with their Primarch, and as they seek to uncover the truth, they ultimately each fall to chaos and are led down a darker path. That is a solid entry tale.
This should be the way a Ferrus Manus tale follows on from Fulgrim. Titled Feat of Iron and written by Nick Kyme. Set before the actions of the betrayal and his death, this story has the Iron Hands fighting against the Eldar. In the acts of this war, Manus is captured by the Eldar and is forced to face visions of his future. It showcases the Eldar once again attempting to affect the future and failing—a great story.
Then comes The Lion, written by Gav Thorpe. Thorpe is no stranger to the Dark Angels and creates a wonderfully single-minded lead. It is a well-paced story with some good action, but it suffers from following after two powerful ones. I enjoyed the links to previous tales, and the supporting cast was great, but I felt it was missing something.
The final story is by Rob Sanders and is about the twins Alpharius and Omegon, titled The Serpent Beneath. The tale's primary purpose is to highlight the inner workings of the Alpha Legion. This story helps showcase Omegon, proving how dangerous and intelligent this character is. We watch them battling White Scars and then fighting each other, which, to the Alpha Legion, seems like an everyday thing these days. These action scenes are brilliant; they continue to push the edges of my interest in this legion. I just need to figure out a way to paint them.
With that, the book is over. Overall, it was a great experience and well-paced. The next book in the series is Fear to Thread, and we finally get some Blood Angels.
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