Millennia into the Future, in a Galaxy that’s all Grim and Dark…
It’s been a tough couple of days, kind of a mixture of ‘Summer Holidays Stuff’ and getting things in order before my job comes to an end. I’ve still got four weeks to go but I think it’s going to go quicker than I expect. Anyway…
My reading has understandably taken a hit then but you know me. The reading may slow down a bit but it never stops, not entirely ;o) I’ve got anthologies all over the flat, full of short stories that will keep me ticking over, but this time, I picked up my phone and went for a couple of tales from the ‘Horus Heresy’. Well... One tale from the Heresy, one from a little bit beforehand. One that I really got into and one, one that I couldn’t quite see the point of. Lets start with that one first…
‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ – Graham McNeill (Black Library)
Page Count: 43 Pages
Horus Lupercal, ever the favoured son of the Emperor of Mankind, stands ready to lead his Legion against the Ork-held planetoid of Gorro. After nearly two centuries of warfare in the name of the Great Crusade, the many victories of the Luna Wolves have become the stuff of legend. Still, nothing could prepare them for the singular honour of fighting alongside the Emperor himself once more...
‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ is included as part of the ‘Eye of Terra’ anthology and I think that it might have made a little more sense to me if I’d read it there. Try getting a hold of it in paperback though.
Anyway… I’m not saying that the story doesn’t make sense as such. It certainly does in terms of what it recounts, the Luna Wolves assault on the Ork Scrapworld; that’s all pretty straightforward and told in just the manner that you’d expect. That makes for a tale that is full of spectacle and just good, old fashioned, fun to read.
What I struggled with is where it fits into the ‘Horus Heresy’ as a whole; not so much the chronology (which is pretty obvious) but the point of it being in the series at all. It provides a little context to Horus but other than that, doesn’t really advance the series in any way. There’s nothing here that we didn’t know already so while it’s fun to read, it also reads like an exercise in filling in the gaps. And I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t need to see every single little gap filled in (not just for the sake of it anyway), there’s nothing wrong with a tale left half untold. Like I said, maybe ‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ would make a little more sense read as part of the anthology that it was collected in.
‘Gunsight’ – James Swallow
Page Count: 37 Pages
A story set aboard the Vengeful Spirit itself, flagship of Horus Lupercal. A killer stalks the corridors, and a daring assassination attempt is underway. But such attempts have failed before... how will this one prove any more successful?
Now this was more like it :o) It has been a long old time since I read ‘Nemesis’ but I can remember how it ended and I was keen to see where it all went next. Again, Horus’ fate is never in any real doubt but he’s incidental to proceedings. Well, as incidental as an ‘Arch- Traitor’ Primarch can be ;o) No, what we’re here for is to see Vindicare Assassin Eristede Kell slowly buckle under the mental pressure of being trapped on board the ‘Vengeful Spirit’, waiting for the moment to take that vital shot. I think James Swallow did an amazing job of charting that deterioration in Kell, right up to the point where he finally gets the chance to pull the trigger. There are plenty of surprises in store, all set against a backdrop, of the ‘Vengeful Spirit’ that is at least as good as any that I’ve already come across. I’m very glad that I finally got to see Kell’s story reach a conclusion.
My reading has understandably taken a hit then but you know me. The reading may slow down a bit but it never stops, not entirely ;o) I’ve got anthologies all over the flat, full of short stories that will keep me ticking over, but this time, I picked up my phone and went for a couple of tales from the ‘Horus Heresy’. Well... One tale from the Heresy, one from a little bit beforehand. One that I really got into and one, one that I couldn’t quite see the point of. Lets start with that one first…
‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ – Graham McNeill (Black Library)
Page Count: 43 Pages
Horus Lupercal, ever the favoured son of the Emperor of Mankind, stands ready to lead his Legion against the Ork-held planetoid of Gorro. After nearly two centuries of warfare in the name of the Great Crusade, the many victories of the Luna Wolves have become the stuff of legend. Still, nothing could prepare them for the singular honour of fighting alongside the Emperor himself once more...
‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ is included as part of the ‘Eye of Terra’ anthology and I think that it might have made a little more sense to me if I’d read it there. Try getting a hold of it in paperback though.
Anyway… I’m not saying that the story doesn’t make sense as such. It certainly does in terms of what it recounts, the Luna Wolves assault on the Ork Scrapworld; that’s all pretty straightforward and told in just the manner that you’d expect. That makes for a tale that is full of spectacle and just good, old fashioned, fun to read.
What I struggled with is where it fits into the ‘Horus Heresy’ as a whole; not so much the chronology (which is pretty obvious) but the point of it being in the series at all. It provides a little context to Horus but other than that, doesn’t really advance the series in any way. There’s nothing here that we didn’t know already so while it’s fun to read, it also reads like an exercise in filling in the gaps. And I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t need to see every single little gap filled in (not just for the sake of it anyway), there’s nothing wrong with a tale left half untold. Like I said, maybe ‘The Wolf of Ash and Fire’ would make a little more sense read as part of the anthology that it was collected in.
‘Gunsight’ – James Swallow
Page Count: 37 Pages
A story set aboard the Vengeful Spirit itself, flagship of Horus Lupercal. A killer stalks the corridors, and a daring assassination attempt is underway. But such attempts have failed before... how will this one prove any more successful?
Now this was more like it :o) It has been a long old time since I read ‘Nemesis’ but I can remember how it ended and I was keen to see where it all went next. Again, Horus’ fate is never in any real doubt but he’s incidental to proceedings. Well, as incidental as an ‘Arch- Traitor’ Primarch can be ;o) No, what we’re here for is to see Vindicare Assassin Eristede Kell slowly buckle under the mental pressure of being trapped on board the ‘Vengeful Spirit’, waiting for the moment to take that vital shot. I think James Swallow did an amazing job of charting that deterioration in Kell, right up to the point where he finally gets the chance to pull the trigger. There are plenty of surprises in store, all set against a backdrop, of the ‘Vengeful Spirit’ that is at least as good as any that I’ve already come across. I’m very glad that I finally got to see Kell’s story reach a conclusion.
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