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The Horus Heresy #Audio Drama
Garro: Burden of Duty
As the renegade forces of the Warmaster storm across the galaxy, a very different kind of war rages in the shadows of the Imperium – the Knights Errant, chosen of Malcador himself, move quietly in the dark places where others cannot. Battle-captain Nathaniel Garro makes his way to the Imperial Fists’ mighty starfort Phalanx, seeking out another kindred soul for his elite band of warriors.
1 pages, Audiobook
First published October 1, 2012
2 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
About the author
James Swallow
302 books1,069 followersJames Swallow is a New York Times, Sunday Times and Amazon #1 bestselling author and scriptwriter, a BAFTA nominee, a former journalist and the award-winning writer of over sixty-five books, along with scripts for video games, comics, radio and television.
DARK HORIZON, his latest stand-alone thriller, is out now from Mountain Leopard Press, and OUTLAW, the 6th action-packed Marc Dane novel, is published by Bonnier.
Along with the Marc Dane thrillers, his writing includes, the Sundowners steampunk Westerns and fiction from the worlds of Star Trek, Tom Clancy, 24, Warhammer 40000, Doctor Who, Deus Ex, Stargate, 2000AD and many more.
For information on new releases & more, sign up to the Readers’ Club here: www.bit.ly/JamesSwallow
Visit James's website at http://www.jswallow.com/ for more, including ROUGH AIR, a free eBook novella in the Marc Dane series.
You can also follow James on Bluesky at @jmswallow.bsky.social, Twitter at @jmswallow, Mastodon at @jmswallow@mstdn.social and jmswallow.tumblr.com at Tumblr.
DARK HORIZON, his latest stand-alone thriller, is out now from Mountain Leopard Press, and OUTLAW, the 6th action-packed Marc Dane novel, is published by Bonnier.
Along with the Marc Dane thrillers, his writing includes, the Sundowners steampunk Westerns and fiction from the worlds of Star Trek, Tom Clancy, 24, Warhammer 40000, Doctor Who, Deus Ex, Stargate, 2000AD and many more.
For information on new releases & more, sign up to the Readers’ Club here: www.bit.ly/JamesSwallow
Visit James's website at http://www.jswallow.com/ for more, including ROUGH AIR, a free eBook novella in the Marc Dane series.
You can also follow James on Bluesky at @jmswallow.bsky.social, Twitter at @jmswallow, Mastodon at @jmswallow@mstdn.social and jmswallow.tumblr.com at Tumblr.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 21, 2024
May 2024 Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order (https://www.heresyomnibus.com) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy series and extras - Now in Immaterium of everything outside the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, before moving on to the last Omnibus XXI The Siege of Terra.
A short and bittersweet treat that isn't quite as good as the other Garros, but still pretty good.
On another solo mission for Malcador, Garro has to sneak aboard the Phalanx, fortress vessel it the Imperial Fists...
There's not much to add from my rather cringe initial review.
This is a simple snapshot of the disharmony between the Hands of the Emperor, though much less amusing than that story.
I realised there is a huge amount to say as there's not much going on and what is going on is a bit of a somewhat nonsensical crontriveance for tension's sake. Garro could always tell Dorn to take it up with Malcador and Dorn should know he can't just threaten Garro. The whole Dorn take that he's not locking up his Librarians, but keeping them ready and close is bunk. They could become line troopers and still be at hand and ready to act, and they think they are being punish and don't know his thoughts, so it's all the same to them.
The idea of Garro failing a recruiting mission is a good one and essentially everything here works, it just needs more time and grounding in the thoughts and feelings of the characters because this is surprisingly shallow for Swallow and Garro. Not massively or to the point of being bad or a thing, simply not the usual swallow craft.
Or maybe I'm just knackered and grumpy today. I don't know.
Through the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project and my own additions, I have currently read* all 54 Horus Heresy main series novels (+1 repeat), all 25 novellas (+2 repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, all 17 Primarchs novels, 3 Characters novels, and 145 short stories/ audio dramas across the Horus Heresy (inc. 10+ repeats). Plus, 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and 1 short story...this run, as well as writing 1 short story myself.
I couldn't be more appreciative of the phenomenal work of the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, which has made this ridiculous endeavour all the better and has inspired me to create and collate a collection of Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 documents and checklists (http://tiny.cc/im00yz). There are now too many items to list here, but there is a contents and explainer document here (http://tiny.cc/nj00yz).
*My tracking consistently proves shoddy, but I'm doing my best
***
Initial Review 4/5
Where in previous audio dramas Garro was cast on the role of Ash Ketchum, Burden of Duty, sees the Knight Errant as a member of Team Rocket, charged by Giovanni Malcador with stealing something bright yellow that can emit lightning.
This a short, but bittersweet tale that highlights how much of a mess things are with the Imperium, long before Horus is anywhere near Terra. Malcador sends Garro to infiltrate the Phalanx and use super secret xenos tech to break into Dorn's super duper secret vault. You know, rather than the Sigilite politely asking a question at the next fortification of the Imperial Palace meeting or emotional rooftop rendezvous with the Praetorian of Terra where they weep over how pretty the most opulence, you own everything under sol with your ceramite fist palace was before they had to pave fash paradise and put up a defensive parking lot.
***Spoilers Below, but the audio drama is more of a lore/ mood piece***
Like abysmal father, like terrible son, it is revealed that Daddy Fisto locked his legion's entire Librarius in a special vault after the Edict of Nikea, but it's OK because he loves and values them really, and they are only locked up and stacked away like yellow blocks of gold so they can be close at hand if he decides he needs them. I wonder if this might be a plot point during the Siege of Terra....
Malcador needing to get in on the action by being a shitty stepfather send Garro to do his dirty work and puts him in a position to be murdered by Uncle Rogal and forced to pass passive aggressive and threatening message back and forth between them.
This is a well written and performed fun little tale of the tension and uttery shambolic ridiculousness in the top echelons of the Imperium.
I kinda need a Buster Keaton edit of Dorn reinforcing the palace and the whole facade falling down on him.
A short and bittersweet treat that isn't quite as good as the other Garros, but still pretty good.
On another solo mission for Malcador, Garro has to sneak aboard the Phalanx, fortress vessel it the Imperial Fists...
There's not much to add from my rather cringe initial review.
This is a simple snapshot of the disharmony between the Hands of the Emperor, though much less amusing than that story.
I realised there is a huge amount to say as there's not much going on and what is going on is a bit of a somewhat nonsensical crontriveance for tension's sake. Garro could always tell Dorn to take it up with Malcador and Dorn should know he can't just threaten Garro. The whole Dorn take that he's not locking up his Librarians, but keeping them ready and close is bunk. They could become line troopers and still be at hand and ready to act, and they think they are being punish and don't know his thoughts, so it's all the same to them.
The idea of Garro failing a recruiting mission is a good one and essentially everything here works, it just needs more time and grounding in the thoughts and feelings of the characters because this is surprisingly shallow for Swallow and Garro. Not massively or to the point of being bad or a thing, simply not the usual swallow craft.
Or maybe I'm just knackered and grumpy today. I don't know.
Through the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project and my own additions, I have currently read* all 54 Horus Heresy main series novels (+1 repeat), all 25 novellas (+2 repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, all 17 Primarchs novels, 3 Characters novels, and 145 short stories/ audio dramas across the Horus Heresy (inc. 10+ repeats). Plus, 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and 1 short story...this run, as well as writing 1 short story myself.
I couldn't be more appreciative of the phenomenal work of the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, which has made this ridiculous endeavour all the better and has inspired me to create and collate a collection of Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 documents and checklists (http://tiny.cc/im00yz). There are now too many items to list here, but there is a contents and explainer document here (http://tiny.cc/nj00yz).
*My tracking consistently proves shoddy, but I'm doing my best
***
Initial Review 4/5
Where in previous audio dramas Garro was cast on the role of Ash Ketchum, Burden of Duty, sees the Knight Errant as a member of Team Rocket, charged by Giovanni Malcador with stealing something bright yellow that can emit lightning.
This a short, but bittersweet tale that highlights how much of a mess things are with the Imperium, long before Horus is anywhere near Terra. Malcador sends Garro to infiltrate the Phalanx and use super secret xenos tech to break into Dorn's super duper secret vault. You know, rather than the Sigilite politely asking a question at the next fortification of the Imperial Palace meeting or emotional rooftop rendezvous with the Praetorian of Terra where they weep over how pretty the most opulence, you own everything under sol with your ceramite fist palace was before they had to pave fash paradise and put up a defensive parking lot.
***Spoilers Below, but the audio drama is more of a lore/ mood piece***
Like abysmal father, like terrible son, it is revealed that Daddy Fisto locked his legion's entire Librarius in a special vault after the Edict of Nikea, but it's OK because he loves and values them really, and they are only locked up and stacked away like yellow blocks of gold so they can be close at hand if he decides he needs them. I wonder if this might be a plot point during the Siege of Terra....
Malcador needing to get in on the action by being a shitty stepfather send Garro to do his dirty work and puts him in a position to be murdered by Uncle Rogal and forced to pass passive aggressive and threatening message back and forth between them.
This is a well written and performed fun little tale of the tension and uttery shambolic ridiculousness in the top echelons of the Imperium.
I kinda need a Buster Keaton edit of Dorn reinforcing the palace and the whole facade falling down on him.
July 7, 2017
You can read the full review over at my blog:
https://shadowhawksshade.wordpress.co...
Shadowhawk reviews a new Horus Heresy story by James Swallow which continues the tale of Nathaniel Garro.
“Garro is back again with James Swallow at the helm! It doesn’t get any better than that.” ~Shadowhawk, The Founding Fields
The last time we saw Garro, he was on a mission from Malcador to the blasted ruins of Isstvan III, where Horus Lupercal began his rebellion by purging his forces of all those considered too loyal to the Imperium to be converted to his cause. Garro had returned there long after the fires of that conflict had blown out and this time he was in the company of two new friends, Librarian Tylos Rubio of the Ultramarines and Sergeant Macer Varren of the World Eaters. Things didn’t go exactly as planned for them but they still managed to complete their mission: recover the Astartes known only as Cerberus and bring him back to Terra and to Malcador. Its been a long while ago (a year and a half but who’s counting?) and there have been several Horus Heresy publications since then. James Swallow’s Burden of Duty hits at just the right time to give me and other fans of Nathaniel Garro their much-needed Knight-Errant fix.
As the renegade forces of the Warmaster storm across the galaxy, a very different kind of war rages in the shadows of the Imperium – the Knights Errant, chosen of Malcador himself, move quietly in the dark places where others cannot. Battle-captain Nathaniel Garro makes his way to the Imperial Fists’ mighty starfort Phalanx, seeking out another kindred soul for his elite band of warriors.
Being one of the new shorter format audios, Burden of Duty is only ~30 minutes long, but it serves to fill an important part of the larger Horus Heresy narrative while at the same time being an excellent snapshot in the life of Garro. At a guess, this story takes place between the first Garro audio, Oath of Moment, and the upcoming Sword of Truth, which introduces Macer Varren to the Heresy for the first time, chronologically speaking. I could be wrong, but since there are hints of only Rubio being one of Garro’s new men, I think it stands to reason. Anyways, this time around Garro isn’t off to some other world out in the fires of Horus’ rebellion, but the Phalanx itself, the Imperial Fists legion’s flagship in orbit around Terra. His objective: to infiltrate the massive star fortress and talk to one of the legion’s librarians, all of whom have been kept in isolation from the rest of the legion on Dorn’s orders since the Emperor forbade all use of psychic powers at Nikaea. Once again, things never go according to plan for Garro and he has to find a way to fulfill his objective and still stay on Dorn’s good side.
https://shadowhawksshade.wordpress.co...
Shadowhawk reviews a new Horus Heresy story by James Swallow which continues the tale of Nathaniel Garro.
“Garro is back again with James Swallow at the helm! It doesn’t get any better than that.” ~Shadowhawk, The Founding Fields
The last time we saw Garro, he was on a mission from Malcador to the blasted ruins of Isstvan III, where Horus Lupercal began his rebellion by purging his forces of all those considered too loyal to the Imperium to be converted to his cause. Garro had returned there long after the fires of that conflict had blown out and this time he was in the company of two new friends, Librarian Tylos Rubio of the Ultramarines and Sergeant Macer Varren of the World Eaters. Things didn’t go exactly as planned for them but they still managed to complete their mission: recover the Astartes known only as Cerberus and bring him back to Terra and to Malcador. Its been a long while ago (a year and a half but who’s counting?) and there have been several Horus Heresy publications since then. James Swallow’s Burden of Duty hits at just the right time to give me and other fans of Nathaniel Garro their much-needed Knight-Errant fix.
As the renegade forces of the Warmaster storm across the galaxy, a very different kind of war rages in the shadows of the Imperium – the Knights Errant, chosen of Malcador himself, move quietly in the dark places where others cannot. Battle-captain Nathaniel Garro makes his way to the Imperial Fists’ mighty starfort Phalanx, seeking out another kindred soul for his elite band of warriors.
Being one of the new shorter format audios, Burden of Duty is only ~30 minutes long, but it serves to fill an important part of the larger Horus Heresy narrative while at the same time being an excellent snapshot in the life of Garro. At a guess, this story takes place between the first Garro audio, Oath of Moment, and the upcoming Sword of Truth, which introduces Macer Varren to the Heresy for the first time, chronologically speaking. I could be wrong, but since there are hints of only Rubio being one of Garro’s new men, I think it stands to reason. Anyways, this time around Garro isn’t off to some other world out in the fires of Horus’ rebellion, but the Phalanx itself, the Imperial Fists legion’s flagship in orbit around Terra. His objective: to infiltrate the massive star fortress and talk to one of the legion’s librarians, all of whom have been kept in isolation from the rest of the legion on Dorn’s orders since the Emperor forbade all use of psychic powers at Nikaea. Once again, things never go according to plan for Garro and he has to find a way to fulfill his objective and still stay on Dorn’s good side.
March 8, 2021
Apparently there is a whole set of Garro short stories produced as well produced audio dramas. I would only wish that he would not act like a lunatic and sneak around among friends. The whole drama feels forced, unnecessary and stupid.
"It's a time of war," says primarch Dorn - what is he talking about? It's a non-stop war all the time in this simplistic universe of WH.
Part of the Horus Heresy Humblebundle a while back https://www.humblebundle.com/books/ho...
"It's a time of war," says primarch Dorn - what is he talking about? It's a non-stop war all the time in this simplistic universe of WH.
Part of the Horus Heresy Humblebundle a while back https://www.humblebundle.com/books/ho...
August 18, 2024
I just don't get it.
The plan is for Garro to sneak onto an allied star fortress, spring a recruit from solitary confinement, then for them to both leave on a transport which is openly arriving to collect them.
As they can only leave with Dorn's permission, the whole sneaking on board is utterly pointless and counter productive. Why anger the guy whose permission you need? Why not just openly arrive with orders from Malcador? Never mind the almost certain friendly fire.
The plan is for Garro to sneak onto an allied star fortress, spring a recruit from solitary confinement, then for them to both leave on a transport which is openly arriving to collect them.
As they can only leave with Dorn's permission, the whole sneaking on board is utterly pointless and counter productive. Why anger the guy whose permission you need? Why not just openly arrive with orders from Malcador? Never mind the almost certain friendly fire.
August 1, 2025
Slipping past detection, Garro sneaks onboard the Phalanx. Making his way to the vault where the Librarians of the Imperial Fist have been locked away.
I really enjoyed this story. The Imperium is a gigantic hydra, and all the different heads don't always get along. Malcador the Sigillite and Dorn are at odds with how to apply the Edict of Nikaea in the wake of Horus' treachery. The internal conflict of Imperial politics only adds to the pressure of the Heresy.
I really enjoyed this story. The Imperium is a gigantic hydra, and all the different heads don't always get along. Malcador the Sigillite and Dorn are at odds with how to apply the Edict of Nikaea in the wake of Horus' treachery. The internal conflict of Imperial politics only adds to the pressure of the Heresy.
May 3, 2018
Blah, pointless.
May 4, 2017
A great listen, also this one has no blood or gore in it.
December 18, 2019
Garro is a stowaway on Rogal Dorn’s ship. Will he live when the Primarch discovers him lurking around and killing two servators?
May 14, 2022
Pero que estúpidos son los buenos, se autosabotean constantemente.
September 10, 2023
Interesting view of the librarians.
October 23, 2025
Not amazing. Probably the best part of the story is the fact that Garro fails, for once. It's more interesting when it's brought up again in The Burried Dagger than here, to be perfectly honest.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 21, 2016
An interesting, though short, audio drama continuing Garro's quest at Malcador's orders. This time seeing him come to the Phalanx and the Imperial Fists.
It was an interesting short, and some good insight into the Imperial Fists. I had first thought Dorn stupid and cruel for some of his actions, but now....
Anyways, a good, insightful audio, but nothing that really marked it out as special.
It was an interesting short, and some good insight into the Imperial Fists. I had first thought Dorn stupid and cruel for some of his actions, but now....
Anyways, a good, insightful audio, but nothing that really marked it out as special.
January 8, 2013
Utter garbage the sloppy effort put into Nathaniel Garro with all audio books is unforgivable and this story is the worst shit I have ever heard.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews