‘Dark Compliance’ – John French (Black Library)

 


I was up against it yesterday (just work this time) so I thought I’d have a little ‘Horus Heresy’ happening in my ears, just to take the edge off everything else ;o) And it worked, to a degree, it turns out that I work better with music in the background rather than an audiobook… Oh well, I’ll know better for next time ;o)

I’ve been getting into John French’s ‘Horus Heresy’ work, for a little while now, so when I saw ‘Dark Compliance’ was there to spend my free Audible credit on, it wasn’t a hard choice to make. Let me tell you about it...

For more than 200 years, the armies of the Emperor of Mankind fought to reconquer the galaxy - led by the superhuman primarchs, the Space Marine Legions brought countless worlds back under the rule of ancient Terra.

Now Horus, once honoured Warmaster and favoured son of the Emperor, has been corrupted by the whispered promises of Chaos. At his command the Imperium is torn apart by a terrible and bloody civil war, the likes of which the galaxy has never seen....

As Horus' rebellion gains momentum, more and more worlds flock to his banner. For some, it is through fear of annihilation; for others, it is out of malicious desire. Any that consider resistance are given one chance to swear fealty. To do anything other is to court disaster and worse.

Accazzar-Beta is one such defier, but in bringing this heavily fortified Mechanicum world to heel, just how far is the Warmaster willing to go and what truly is the meaning of a dark compliance? As two fleets engage across the gulf of the void, Accazzar-Beta will find out.

I’m not quite sure where, in the timeline, ‘Dark Compliance’ sits as it is one of those tales that straddles both past and present events in the ongoing conflict. Wherever it sits though, ‘Dark Compliance’ is a compelling tale that takes a little more of an in-depth look at the civil war as it made its way towards Terra. What really made ‘Dark Compliance’ work for me though what we see of Horus and how he becomes far more than just a Primarch. Horus is already a peerless warrior and master tactician but with his new found allies in the warp, he is able to elevate those abilities to a whole new level… And he does. The ‘first finale’ (I know but, I didn’t know how else to put it) really hits hard and gets you thinking about what these ‘new’ developments could mean for the final battle for Terra. And I loved the way that French leaves the whole thing hanging right at the end, that was the only (and best) way to close ‘Dark Compliance’ and French hits the target just when it’s needed.

I’ll be honest, I had trouble following the ebb and flow of the battle, for Accazzar-Beta, but I was working through project documentation so that’s on me; your mileage will inevitably vary. Overall though, ‘Dark Compliance’ has a lot going for it, plot-wise, and is as well produced and narrated as any of the other Black Library short stories that I’ve listened to (I could listen to 'Mechanicum voices' all day :o) That’s all I’m looking for really and ‘Dark Compliance’ didn’t let me down.

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