Book Review // Legion by Dan Abnett
Oh, I am excited about this title. Not only is it about one of the coolest 30K legions—the Alpha Legion—but it was also written by Dan Abnett. This should be an amazing ride.
Book Details
Title: The Horus Heresy - Legion
Author: Dan Abnett
Publisher: Black Library
Type: Paperback
Page Count: 416 (damn weighty book)
Fluff: A Great War is coming, and it will engulf the Imperium of Man. The Space Marines of the Alpha Legion, the last and most secretive of all the Astartes brotherhoods, arrive on a heathen world to support the Imperial Army in a pacification campaign against strange and uncanny forces. But what drives the Alpha Legion? Can they be trusted, and what side will they choose when the Great War begins? Loyalties are put to the test, and the cunning schemes of an alien intelligence revealed in this latest instalment of the ground-breaking SF series by Dan Abnett, as the fate of mankind hangs in the balance.
Review
Okay, it's time for some unsurprising truths. I'm a big Dan Abnett fan. I have a lot of novels by him, and his Sinister Dexter Comic strips for 2000 AD are just a pure joy to read. So far, the Heresy Novels have produced some great stories, but I feel this one is in my top 3 (with Fulgrim & Flight of the Eisenstein so far).
The genuine stand-out part of this story was the viewpoint it was coming from. For once, we followed the action through the eyes of enhanced humans. The tale's main character was John Grammaticus, a constantly reincarnating spy working for the Xeno group, the Cabal. The Cabal seems to be a group of Elder races, with named members belonging to the races of the Aeldari and Xshesian. They collectively have seen the coming war and are attempting to show the Alpha Legion the dangers of Chaos, hoping to sway the legion to their cause. They do this by manipulating the Nurth Culture into completely falling to Chaos and manipulating the Alpha Legion to be in a position to aid the Geno Five-Two Chiliad.
With the forces in place, the Cabal starts raising the stakes but soon seems to lose control of the forces in play. Soon, the plan unravels, and the future is left hanging in the balance, with no clear path.
I found this book an interesting read as it was more of a spy/espionage novel, with plenty of manipulation and intrigue going on. It also hints at the question of which side of the war the Alpha Legion is actually on (which still no one really knows, just like the Dark Angels). This book can easily be read alone from the series, as it is set apart from the series. But for me, it is a true masterpiece in the series so far.
