The Unremembered Empire

The Horus Heresy #27

by Dan Abnett

Believing Terra has already fallen to the Warmaster, Primarch Roboute Guilliman founds the Imperium Secundus. The unthinkable has happened - Terra has fallen to the traitor forces of Warmaster Horus Nothing else could explain the sudden disappearance of the Astronomican's guiding light at the heart of the Imperium, or so Roboute Guilliman would believe. Ever the pragmatist, he has drawn all his forces to Ultramar and begun construction of the new empire known as Imperium Secundus. Even with many of his primarch brothers at his side, he still faces war from without and intrigue from within - with the best of intentions, were the full truth to be known it would likely damn them all as traitors for all eternity.

Genres: Science Fiction, 40k, Fiction, Audiobook, Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Ebooks

416 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2013

Reviews

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Saca petróleo de donde no lo hay mientras une muchas líneas de trama de otros libros de la serie.-

Género. Ciencia ficción.

Lo que nos cuenta. El libro El imperio olvidado (publicación original: The Unremembered Empire, 2013 ) nos lleva hasta Macragge, capital de los mundos de Ultramar, donde el desarrollo de la Herejía de Horus y el aislamiento de otros mundos, en especial de Terra, por una tormenta de disformidad de un tamaño e intensidad sin precedentes, hacen pensar a Roboute Gulliman que quizá el imperio haya desaparecido y el propio emperador pueda estar muerto, por lo que piensa en comenzar una nueva organización imperial para salvar lo que pueda quedar del anterior y lo hace sin superiores ni iguales a los que consultar o con los que valorar el asunto. En circunstancias normales, ese comportamiento sería herético, pero si le sumamos que la traición entre Marines Espaciales acecha por todas partes, que también usa tecnología alienígena para buscar soluciones a la situación y que aprueba el uso de legionarios Astartes con poderes psíquicos ante la amenaza del Caos, todo junto hace que su comportamiento pueda ser todavía más sospechoso a ojos de los leales. Vigésimo séptimo libro de la saga La Herejía de Horus.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...

[Sud666 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent addition to my collection of 40K novels giving us the "history" of the Horus Heresy.

As the Heresy spreads, the Ruinstorm of Warp energy has cut off portions of the Empire and occluded the light of the Emperor's Astronomicon. In Ultramaar, Gulliman uses ancient xenos tech to light a beacon to gather the survivors of the Istvaan catastrophe.

But, with the word from Terra cut off- Gulliman must make a momentous decision. To "reconstitute" a Second Empire, in case the first fell. As this is happening a motley mixture of Space Marines begin to arrive. From a squad of Space Wolves to the almost 25 thousand Dark Angels.

This was an especially excellent story in the deep discussions about the set-up of another Empire, as well as the momentous events that happen in this story. From 5 Primarchs (Curze, Sanguinius, Guilliman, The Lion and Vulkan), to the mysterious Cabal and their Perpetuals- to the intra-unit conflicts of the Astartes, it's all here in its glory.

A great bit of information about the tumultuous period right during the height of the Heresy. A must read for all Warhammer fans.

[Chris Berko · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the book where everything clicked in my brain and I was for one enlightened second able to see to absolutely massive F’ing scope of this story!!! Where everyone was placed, the timing, the betrayals, the MFGD awesomeness, I mean cmon. I cannot express how much I love this series and all the other Warhammer 40k books I’ve read as this is truly and sincerely entertaining stuff!

[Simon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, one star is going to be controversial.

The prose is fine. The prose is good.

The problem is where this series is at as a whole. Dan Abnett himself references this in his note at the end, this book is trying to weave together characters and situations from at least a dozen previous novels in this series.

And we're on what, book 26 by this point?

You need a PhD and extensive notes to be able to follow the Horus Heresy. And Games Workshop continue to parcel it out, meager plot development by meager plot development.

This is the other problem. What actually happens in this book?

Basically it's Five Go Mad In McGragge. Five primarchs turn up, and they have a big fight. At the end of which, nothing is resolved, and the story has barely moved on. And that's *it*.

Content wise, there is at best a 50 page short story here.

They *desperately* need to get cracking, I mean, what, are we going to be on book 73 of the series before Horus reaches Earth? It cannot be spun out forever. Yet I fear the bean-counters at GW are absolutely intent on spinning it out forever. Which is sad. Because there have been some cracking stories in this series.

[Milo · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Review: http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/10/...

“The Unremembered Empire explains why Dan Abnett is one of the best Black Library writers out there at the moment, and quite possibly the best. It’s explosive, action packed and a very awesome read indeed despite any flaws it may have.” ~Bane of Kings, The Founding Fields

Far out on the Eastern Fringe, the realm of Ultramar stands alone. Having weathered the Word Bearers’ attack on Calth and the subsequent Shadow Crusade against the Five Hundred Worlds, the Ultramarines primarch Roboute Guilliman now draws all loyalist forces to Macragge as he contemplates a new future for mankind. With the arrival of more and more fugitives from the war that has engulfed the rest of the galaxy, all distinction between friend and foe is lost – isolated from Terra by fearsome warp storms, is Guilliman making a bid for power to rival even the renegade Warmaster Horus?

Let’s get this started by saying that I’m a massive fan of Dan Abnett. He’s my favourite Black Library author alongside Chris Wraight and Aaron Dembski-Bowden and whilst he may not have a 100% track record ( I haven’t enjoyed his Warhammer Fantasy works or Pariah, for example), the amount of books that he’s put out still manages to be nothing short of impressive (with a large number of double figures in the Gaunt’s Ghosts series alone) and The Unremembered Empire was always going to be a must-read for me, especially given the fact that the Ultramarines are one of my favourite Space Marine Legions/Chapters and Know No Fear currently remains my favourite Horus Heresy novel thus so far. And whilst The Unremembered Empire might not quite be as good as Know No Fear, it’s nonetheless pretty damn impressive, easily ranking among the Top 10 books in the series so far and delivers a stunning read that features plenty of awesome Primarch action.

Unremembered_Empire_Horus_HeresyThe first thing to get us off the ground here will actually be what I didn’t like about The Unremembered Empire. Because whilst yes, I did enjoy it a lot, I couldn’t help but notice a few things that I wasn’t too happy with – case in point, the characters. Like Scars, the latest novel in the Horus Heresy series doesn’t spend a lot of time fleshing out its non-Primarch characters to the extent where they can be treated as Loken or Tarvitz-esque figures. A couple from previous books such as Know No Fear show up, true – but with the focus on multiple Primarchs, Abnett overlooks the other characters to the point where I’m struggling to remember their names even though I finished this novel earlier in the week.

However, when he does get characters right, he gets them right. Guilliman is well and truly fleshed out as a character in this book, and for all accounts and purposes, he’s the main character. We’ve never really had a Primarch take the role of a main character before in the Horus Heresy novels (although I’m still yet to read Betrayer), and whilst we’ve had them take center stage for a while (The titular character of Fulgrim, for example), they’ve never really felt like the one main character and it’s here where that impact is really felt. Guilliman is the driving force behind the narrative and he’s pulled off wonderfully well.

This book is a sort-of-sequel to many previous novels. Threads from Nick Kyme’s Vulkan Lives as well as of course Know No Fear are picked up and expanded upon here, and some are more direct than others. There’s plenty of page time from multiple Primarchs and if your favourite books are Primarch-heavy novels then The Unremembered Empire will be perfect for you. Abnett weaves an action packed and entertaining novel that will have you on the edge of your seat, indeed – I finished this book in a couple of sittings, something that I tend to do quite often with the recent Heresy novels. (Know No Fear, Angel Exterminatus, Fear To Tread and Vulkan Lives were finished fairly quickly, for example). Will you understand what happens here without having read them? It’s difficult to say. Probably, yes – although you’re better off giving them a read through first.

However, there are a few flaws that prevent this novel from beating Know No Fear. I’ve already touched on one, and here are two more – firstly, the novel seems to be a lot more rushed than past Abnett books. It’s almost as if he had a word limit for this book and was trying to cram everything in within the last pages to make it all fit nicely together, which was a shame as the pacing as a result felt uneven. The description isn’t your usual Abnett-level detail as well, which makes a change but it would have been nice to see the layer of detail that the author brings to his works there. But with all these flaws, you’re probably thinking that The Unremembered Empire is actually a bad book and I’ve mislead you with the pull-quote. You would be greatly mistaken, as The Unremembered Empire really shines in several cases.

If you’re a fan of the Heresy, then you’ll know that Abnett gets action sequences and this book is no exception. There are several awesome set-pieces that feature among the best battle scenes that I’ve read from Black Library’s books, and they’re done so well that the book never falls into the trap of being labelled as ‘bolter porn’. There’s an even split between the action and the ‘quieter’ scenes as well, as they are delivered with pretty awesome quality that enhances the overall feel of the book. The first two thirds of the book are very well done as well, and even though the third act may seem rushed it doesn’t do enough to drag the book down from being ‘good’ to ‘OK’ – it does weaken the overall outcome of the novel somewhat. And the inter-Primarch scenes are for the most part really strong, and I loved just how many Primarchs Abnett was able to pull off in this novel in order to create a wonderful read. When dealing with such famous characters in terms of lore, there is a risk of getting them wrong – but Abnett nails the likes of Guilliman and Sanguinius very well indeed.

All in all, despite the issues that I had with The Unremembered Empire, it remains a very strong success and I very much enjoyed it (which of course explains the high Verdict). It’s one of the best Ultramarine novels that we’ve been given apart from Know No Fear and is something that should please all Heresy fans. The Unremembered Empire is therefore one of my favourite Black Library novels of the year and I can’t wait to see what Abnett brings to the table next. Top notch stuff.

VERDICT: 4.5/5

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one I was waiting for. I have been waiting to see what happens with the Ultramarines, and in grand fashion Mr. Abnett delivers a hammerblow to the brainpan with this one. The writing is imaginative and decisive, as well as throwing in twists that are amazing, the writer expands on a steamroller set of books that are 27 volumes long now, with much to come I believe. As with his other Horus Heresy novels, Mr. Abnett brings the rain and explores the Empire even more. Can't wait to see what else he will bring us!

[Callum Shephard · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a brief aside before we begin, I’ll freely admit I went into this in the worst of minds. To the old canon of the Horus Heresy, the Ultramarines involvement was over. They had fought at Calth, been given extended focus thanks to Lorgar and Angron’s crusade, and were trapped at Macragge. Beyond short stories the series should have been done with them, as the reason for their later strength was that they escaped the worst of the fighting. Diverting nearly the entire series to Macragge felt less like a true story development and more an effort to keep the spotlight on Games Workshop’s personal mascots than let them become side-lined. Something not helped by the continual shilling of the legion in other novels, keeping them in nothing but a superior-to-all light.

Thankfully for us, Unremembered Empire proves to be anything but an excuse to try and have the Ultramarines show off again; and is an excellent novel.

With the Ruinstorm created by Lorgar to isolate the five hundred worlds of Ultramar, the legion finds itself unable to contact the Imperium at large. Bloodied, beaten but unbowed, Guilliman enacts a desperate move to try and unite what’s left of any loyalist forces and prepare for the worst. Terra could be gone, he could be the last primarch alive, and for all he knows the remnants surrounding Maccrage could be all that is left. The Imperium is over. The Imperium Secundus begins.

To make it clear, Unremembered Empire serves as a nexus point within the Horus Heresy series. With so many books tying into it, many characters arriving from other stories, it serves to connect many distant and unrelated tales. The extremely large ensemble of figures listed in the opening pages is proof of this yet it’s not as bad a point as many would think.

Usually having so many elements introduced would lead to continuity lockout, a point Angel Exterminatus suffered from with the Emperor’s Children, or being extremely overstuffed yet it is handled with care. The book hasn’t been written to purely suit those who read preceding tales or relying upon knowledge of them. Instead they are re-introduced in a manner satisfactory for the story. Going in-depth enough to satisfy a reader’s understanding but not letting exposition get in the way of storytelling. Even minor continuity nods help to smooth this over without much emphasis being placed on them, such as the re-use of “Shakespire” when referring to the Great Playwright’s works. Furthermore, while many characters are present, the focus is kept on a small handful and uses the others as representations of the story’s core theme. They become involved only when necessary, more as a force than as individuals and to represent a major idea within the novel: Unity even in the fact of Chaos.

Rather than being exclusively about the Ultramarines, it would be more accurate to say this book is about loyalists. Scattered forces arrive at Macragge after Guilliman activates a desperate contingency allowing for many vessels to re-emerge from the Warp around the planet. Imperial Fists, Raven Guard, White Scars, Iron Hands, Salamanders, Dark Angels and even one or two figures from traitor legions all make an appearance as a result, all of who are treated with dignity. Rather than effectively having God Mode on as we saw in Betrayer (with a few hundred of Guilliman’s astartes butchering thousands of traitors with ease, building better fortifications than Dorn, Guilliman himself fighting Angron and Lorgar to at least a standstill, and only being defeated as a result of sheer attrition), these are actual Ultramarines. By-the-book soldiers, with no weaknesses but lacking many of the specialist strengths of their brothers. They are just as prone to losses, just as prone to death, but their discipline, control and strategic pragmatism is never forgotten. This is especially clear when Alexis Polux outlines the flaws in Macragge’s defences, which have been built to preserve the world and for open combat rather than full security. No force is treated as innately superior, but instead strategic differences and greater understandings are highlighted.

The story as a whole gives reason as to why there would be greater unity behind Guilliman following the Heresy. It really serves as a prelude to the implementation of the chapters and the scouring, showing the shattered legions becoming used to following him in their efforts to defend the Imperium Secondus. Each of them works as a much more closely united force in small numbers and combines their strengths in ways otherwise rarely seen as divisions of legions. Their willing service to Guilliman is more out of mutual unity than deferring completely to him as their spiritual liege.

Speaking of Guilliman, we see far more into his mind than before and get a true impression of the primarch. Both with his strengths and weaknesses as a leader, he is shown to be an interesting figure and the book does a lot to foreshadow his future potential. Not only exploring his role as a major figure within the Imperium Secundus, but managing to humanise him to a great degree and showing him to be a sympathetic figure. That said, Abentt does go a bit far with his humanisation, to the point where some of Guilliman’s more superhuman elements do seem lost in comparison to other primarchs. There just isn’t enough of an opportunity to truly show off some of his strengths, and as a result he does feel somewhat lacking, especially in comparison to a nightmarish whirlwind of death who arrives on the planet.

Yes, we’re getting onto the weaknesses now. While it has a great first two thirds, the final act of Unremembered Empire is weak by comparison both in the writing department and as a tie-up to events. Much like Priests of Mars, this is very much Unremembered Empire: Part One and lacks closure to its events, instead seemingly relying upon sequels to finish things off. Something definitely not helped with the writing quality seemingly diminishing to the point where aforementioned nightmarish figure is described as “creepy” rather than with Abnett’s usually strong descriptions. Many characters feel as if they’re being driven by snark than personal backgrounds and a few frustrating bits of new canon are added at the last second. Namely one major player in the story strolling in and out of the Warp without protection or defences of any kind.

When new elements are introduced in this final act, they feel rushed or underdeveloped as a result. Lacking in both emphasis and build-up, and almost feeling lazy in execution when they are implemented as a last second development. While there are only one or two of these thankfully, the arrival of one major character the book advertises and the use of a prominent device in a new way both feel underwhelming. A major disappointment given how streamlined and well executed many previous elements were in spite of the book’s heavy continuity with other sources. Furthermore, the blurb on the back of the book does lie, as a major question it asks is dealt with very early on, removing an interesting possibility which could have been explored.

For all its problems, Unremembered Empire is a definite success. It’s one of the best books to involve the Ultramarines in recent years and, even given a problematic ending, still manages to be entertaining. If you have enjoyed the series thus far, and are willing to accept a troubled conclusion, it’s still a must buy. It serves as an excellent sequel to Know No Fear and is definitely a period in the Heresy which needs to be expanded upon more alongside the war outside Ultramar.

[Taddow · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I enjoyed reading this book (and am intrigued by the prospect of what it has introduced during the Horus Heresy- a Second Imperium under the rule of Regent Sanguinius of the Blood Angels Space Marning Chapter), I felt that the events of the book was too busy for a single novel. The various Primarchs (and their inter-relations and personalities), the Perpetuals (which I enjoyed the concept of and the small details, such as speech terms and historic references, that made them easier to relate to as people from "our" time), the grand plan of the Cabal, the mysterious technology of the Pharos (I have my theories) and this "new" Imperium are a lot for one book. The author does a decent enough job of trying to lay all this out in a somewhat understandable format, but the pace (which I thought started out great in the beginning) picks up significantly in the last third of the book and I think this cause some potentially valuable interaction to be undeveloped. Overall, a great read for fans of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.

[Matthew Hipsher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is currently my favorite book in the Horus HEresy series, becoming an instant must read for any fan of the series. It has 4 Primarchs, 3 perpetuals, relics, treason, treachery and everything in between.

An absolute awesome read of the "Unremembered Empire" idea of Roboute Guilliman, a sort of safety valve in case the worst was to happen, Terra being lost to Chaos. It's an absolutely masterfully written story that yet again brings the Heresy into focus as the Xenos and human kind both try and cope with the advances of Horus.

[Arsh Mohite · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was epic as hell. As I venture further into the Warhammer world I keep getting quite excited by all the things I encounter. The characters in this book are so cool. Everyone has insane aura and I’m always excited to see them. Other than that, no notes.

[Garrac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Por si alguien no sr ha dado cuenta, estoy en un ciclo de relectura de la Herejía de Horus. Esta es la primera novela "nueva" que cae, y tiene un ritmo extraño. Se mantiene bien hasta que en el último tercio parece que se está alargando un montón el clímax final, y de repente llega el final en sí, que pega un acelerón de la ostia y te resume en 4 páginas el momento más importante de la novela. Me ha dejado un poco de sabor agridulce

[Dylan Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, The Unremembered Empire. This is probably one of the bigger pieces of lore to be really "new" when it comes to the HH(Though I could be wrong), and man was it a nice thing to read about!
The politics behind Roboute Guilliman's Imperium Secondus, the lighting of the beacon at MaCragge and the arrive of all the lost souls from so many different books was awesome. Guilliman definitely seemed different compared to the beginning of Know No Fear, and getting to see a Primarch that has his doubts and be confronted by some of his brothers on that doubt was awesome. I really loved the involvement of the other Legions in the novel as well, although I do find that the Ultramarines have grown on me with and since the whole battle of Calth. The White Scars were fun, the Space Wolves added some of their own sense of humor, and the groups of Shattered Legions present at MaCragge were great as well, and we can't forget about the continuation of Warsmith Danitoch's story, or that of Alexis the Crimson Fist following his retreat from Phall. They all definitely brought a breathe of fresh air to the Ultramarines, and getting to see where many of them ended up, is always fun.
The arrival of The Lion and his Dark Angels, and therefore the arrival of Konrad Curze, was wonderful. The drama of making sure both sides are still loyal, and The Lion's suspicions that Guilliman was even more traitorous than Horus was great.
Though the real highlight of the novel for me was Konrad Curze. Though his portrayal was very different from what we have seen of him from ADB, this portrayal kind of set aside the whole "fucking insane" bit to be secondary, and let him reap and sow terror in ways that I had not even imagined. Really, it was amazing, and I cannot even imagine what it would be like to be one of the Space Marines that had to (try to) live through that, let alone one of the countless humans who was there and got in Curze's way. Really, it was so damned good. Definitely what brought the book from 4 to 5 stars for me, personally. Vulkan and the story of the Perpetuals also really struck me as one of the better story lines in the book, as I was desperate to know what fate had befallen our beloved Vulkan, who has swiftly become one of my favorite Primarchs of late, and a story with John Grammaticus is always welcome.
Oh, and who can forget Narek? I really can't wait to see where his story goes!
Now the downsides. I really though Sanguinius should have shown up sooner than he did. It was like the last 30 pages that he actually shows up and then he doesn't really DO anything other than take on the new seat of Emperor. I also felt that there was simply too much in this one. Or at least too much for the length of the novel, or the direction that Dan took it.
The Raven Guard, Salamanders, Iron Hands, Blood Angels, and Imperial Fists(with the exception of Alexis) did virtually NOTHING. I mean, even the White Scars only had that one scene of introduction that everyone else had, and they helped chase Curze a little bit, but other than that, they did.... nothing?
I mean, there was so much opportunity for so much more in the novel when it comes to the various Legions, and I think the novel really wouldn't have been any different had most of them not been involved at all. Other than it really made it seem like MaCragge's beacon did make the difference and save lives.

So, even though it wasn't perfect, I did DAMN ENJOY this novel.
Dan is often called one of the greats for a reason, and while he isn't my favorite, he is damn close!

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I love it when a plan comes together." ~ Col. John 'Hannibal' Smith


Dan Abnett has described this as the most difficult novel he has ever written, and it's not hard to see why. The thing about the Horus Heresy series is that it is a collaborative effort, several authors working together to expand a universe populated with a multitude of different characters, locations, and objects. The amount of work put in to maintain continuity in a series that has over two dozen other novels to it's name is truly impressive.

'The Unremembered Empire' could have came out as a stinking pile of ****, encumbered by the weight of so much weight and back story that it just makes no sense. In the hands of a lesser author, that might have been the case. In the hands of Dan Abnett it is made to look effortless. Dan, a multiple New York Times best seller and award winning comic book author has written over 50 novels, several of them within the Horus Heresy series or within the wider Warhammer 40K universe. He knows how to balance drama, story, and action to create a cohesive narrative, and that is exactly what he has delivered with 'The Unremembered Empire.'

Respect has to be given to those that have aided Dan in paving the way up to this novel and also kept him straight with maintaining continuity, but Dan has to take a bow as well. What he has done is produced not just a great book but also opened the door for the next stage of the Horus Heresy series.

In his own words he has described it as a 'Nexus' novel. It brings a multitude of plot threads and characters; throwing them together, mixing them up, redirecting them, focussing them forward for future authors to pick up in further Horus Heresy novels.

This is something the Horus Heresy series has needed. We've been dealing with the aftermath of the Dropsite Massacre and the Betrayal at Calth for over 26 novels. We need the next stage of the story to happen! One of the most enjoyable aspects for myself, being a long standing fan of Warhammer 40K, is that I thought I knew the story of the Horus Heresy off by heart. Reading these novels and finding out that I was wrong was an amazing surprise. To rediscover these characters again is what is going to keep bringing me back, that being said, from the story that I *Know* then I know we haven't come near to the good stuff yet!

With the end of 'The Unremembered Empire' we're finally going to be moving into some truly undiscovered areas before heading to the EPIC Battle Of Terra. I can't wait to see how it all ends because, no doubt, what I thought I knew will be completely different to how it actually goes down.


(P.S. Happy Birthday Dan Abnett - 12/10/2013)

[Edoardo Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK, let me confess at the outset to a bad case of Danlove. I mean, how can I, as a writer, not fall down in abject awe before the Abnett, tapping away 'I am not worthy, I am not worthy' on whatever keyboard lies closest to hand: the Magna Abnett, after all, sits behind his computer in the, somewhat unlikely, environs of Maidstone, Kent, producing an extraordinary stream of novels, stories, comic books and scripts each year (I once tweeted Dan asking if anyone, apart from him, had read everything he'd written and his wife tweeted back to say she had. I was tempted to say greater love hath no wife than that she read everything her writer husband writers, only with the DanMachine, that would be no hardship). On another point: would a future literary biographer (and I'm sure someone will write the DanBio some day) actually be able to read all Abnett's work and still have enough years left in his life to write the biography? I fear he or she would need, in true 40k style, some augmentations to get through everything in a liveable span.

So, yes, this is the basis of my Dandoration. How can one man write so much and still maintain the quality that the Abnett almost always does? Surely there must be a team of Dandroids, closeted in his Maidstone mansion, typing away, hunched over keyboards, server motors overheating as the Danman himself sits back, sucking a lho stick and sipping the finest amasec, directing the operations of his minions. And, come to that, Dan, can I be one of your minions?

As to The Unrembered Empire, congratulations to all the Dandroids that worked on it: superhuman Primarchs slugging it out through the ruins of a megacity is what the Horus Heresy is all about, and the Dandroids deliver.

[Simon Mee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve done my job right, there should be zero sense that this book was arduous and demanding to compose.

I wonder when they knew.

I wonder when the staff at Black Library knew they'd botched this one.  And they must have known at some stage. Abnett's afterword is practically an apology, a lame hope that the reader likes a book that was the hardest for him ever to write, with threads from ten other novels or short stories.

There are a number of elements that could have had a good story built around them.  The aging Euten the chamberlain, giving her advice to a Primarch and the Adeptus Astartes as though she is their equal.  The concept of Perpetuals.  The dialogue between the Lion and Guilliman. Pollux finding his purpose.

The problem is they're all mixed together along with at least a half dozen other elements, and the warping of characters to keep the story moving. Narek, a limited but motivating force, loses the motivating part.  Vulkan is so different from the immediately prior Vulkan Lives that I refuse to believe Abnett had a chance to read it. Curze, a consistently psychopathic serial killer, is still somehow so tonally different here that it's jarring.

There's nothing really to analyse, because I don't believe any of it. It's all so different from "yesterday" that it could all be different again "tomorrow".

This book is surprisingly well rated, but it's a botch job, too much asked of a very talented author.  I guess the extent to which Black Library "knew" will depend on whether they tried this nexus novel again in the series.

[L.L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hacia el final del libro, con la autoproclamación del imperio secundus y regente a Sanguinius. También la trama con Vulkan como que todo se contrajo, demasiado apresurada la historia. Pero me encanto ver la relación de los primarcas "leales" porque tampoco se llevaban todos precisamente bien. Además, de la opinión que tiene Guilliman respecto a Horus.

[mikey · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5

A captivating entry of The Horus Heresy, detailing Ultramar's ambitious and vitally perceived Imperium Secundus plan. Dialogue that will hold you captive until the last page, action beautifully balanced with intrigue and plot, and interactions between some of the most iconic Legions in the setting. Political intrigue mirrored by horrific espionage and dark murder. Abnett's prose are as slick as ever, and his mastery over every Legion is evident within every sentence.

[Tom Pounds · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a really great story. It kept me hooked from the 1st page to the last. I agree with other reviews that you can finally start to see the direction taking shape of the story as it begins its journey to Terra.

[Dylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet Sassy Molassy... that was a hell of a book. For the first time in the entire series (31 volumes and counting), i think this one more than any other kindof assumes you've read the 26 novels that came before it. Previously, it's been fairly standard practice for most fans to just cherry pick the books that featured characters or themes they liked most, written by their favorite authors. Normally that's perfectly fine. There's a lot of reference to other things, but usually not a ton, and if you're already familiar with a lot of what's going on, the details aren't fussy.

This one though... whoa. It's pretty much a direct sequel to 5 or 6 other novels and a dumptruck of short stories and novellas. there is a LOT going on here, and a lot of plot hooks and threads that have been ongoing for 20+ novels, get at least revisited if not expanded on greatly. This book really is a serious nexus point, a major milestone, of the whole Horus Heresy series so far. It also sets up a metric crap-ton of plot hooks to move forward on.

Dan Abnett, is as always, an absolute JOY to read. he's the whole reason i got into the Black Library with his Guant's Ghosts books, back in the day. and he's still knocking them out of the park. really enjoyed this one. easily one of my favorites in the entire series so far.

[Brendan Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

As always this is licensed fiction so unless you're specifically looking for a Warhammer 40k novel don't take this as a recommendation.

The more Horus Heresy books I read by Dan Abnett the less I love his work during the series. Perpetuals and the Cabal are two of the most uninteresting components of the 40k universe. On paper I love them both and think they're full of potential but every time they're in a story I just could not give less of a shit. I really enjoyed all of the parts with Guilliman and Imperium Secundus and I can't wait to see what happens with the Pharos Beacon, but it feels like half of this book was John Grammaticus running around being John Grammaticus. I just don't give a shit. I don't think anyone does.

To top it off the Alpharius Protocol, or whatever it's called, is the dumbest fucking thing since the pod race gambling sequence in Episode I. It's a great device for the plot if I'm supposed to believe The Cabal has collectively suffered from brain damage but not much else.

[Sarah Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lost a star because my heart is broken. So what else is new?

Well all the other girls were reading 50 Shades of Grey(I swear though, I think Vulkan Lives was like 50 Shades of Curze torture), I was on Macragge worrying about what Dan Abnett was gonna throw at me. And trying to not crack Ultramoron jokes.
I was pleasantly surprised with it, interesting characters and as silly as the idea sounded. When Guilliman started to discuss the need of getting a regent for there part of the Imperium it made complete sense.

As far as a stand alone book 5/5. As far as rip out my heart and make me wanna cry 25/5.
After this I think I'm going to reread Horus Rising the beautiful gush that started this tale of heart break.

[Andrew Ziegler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. My only complaint that abnett did not write another 100 to 200 pages to really hammer this one home. This story is an amazing confluence of several of the HH novels and short stories. Legion, Know No Fear, Fear to Tread, Vulkan Lives and several short stories. When all of these disparate story lines come crashing together it is amazing and reminds you that this 27 novel series IS actually all connected.

if only the Black Library could finish it!!!

The last 10 pages of this book overlap with the last 10 pages of Fear to Tread...it is maddening.

But, awesome writing by Mr. A as per usual, awesome characters, awesome action.

[Cory Rathbun · Rating 5 out of 5]

The latest Horus Heresy book, and MAN, what an effort Dan Abnett put into writing this one! The Afterward touches on the complexity of it but fans of the setting will already understand the extraordinary task he finished here in drawing so many story threads into one novel.

One of the best Horus Heresy books, heartily recommended for any Warhammer 40k fan, but it is incumbent upon the reader to be caught up to date with all of the Heresy story to this point - in particular Know No Fear, Fear to Tread, Mark of Calth and Vulkan Lives.

[Emil Söderman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Abnett as usual delivers some pretty good writing (for a tie-in novel, where admittedly the standards are... "different") still, I feel like in this novel he's taken on a bit more than he can chew: So many plotlines interesect in this rather slim volume that not much actually happen. (especially since the main secondary plot feels kind of tacked on, it ends on pretty much the same status as last novel ended with) in addition to some of my favourite plot threads it also unfortunately features some of the less favourite ones, although Abnett makes even those tolerable.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

One that furthers the overall story but also one written in a slightly frustrating fashion for the first read through as the author tries very hard to hide EVERYTHING as you read. A few of the plot lines could have been a bit less mysterious and then the reading would have been more fun. Still a great addition to the story! Next!

[RatGrrrl · Rating 5 out of 5]

April 2024 Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order Omnibus XIII Imperium Secondus I Hope's Kindling (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus series and extras.

As solid as Macraggean muscle on DeviantArt.

Imperium Secondus, the eponymous unremembered empire finds its creation myth here. Macragge and it's Pharos beacon make it a single point of light and stability within a galaxy in flames and throneworld occluded by the Ruin Storm. Disparate and desperate allies tossed on the tides of warpstorms find themselves in the heart of the Five Hundred Worlds under the auspices of Roboute Guilliman. Fragments of Legions have different ideas and missions, including the Vylka Fenryka still policing the Edict of Nikaea on the orders Sigillite. With the Ultramarines and White Scars either reinstating their Librarius after facing enemy sorcerers without recourse or refusing to give up their Weather Magic, much like certain hypocritical lupins, an Iron Warrior maintaining the xenotech beacon with his former Legion's emblem for a face and a blue and red, but yellow all over Imperial Fist in charge of security tensions are high.

Throw a Lion, a Bat, and some Perpetuals into the mix, and bring to a wild embroiling!


It is funny that the final moments of the book are literally the cover.

While Wraight's Scars and The Path of Heaven felt like a taking a significant step forward in the narrative arc with the latter feeling more like necessary and rail-guided vehicle for progress (with Scars being exceptionally great in every way), The Unremembered Empire has the sense of the beginning of a whole new level, while maintaining being a thoroughly entertaining story and one I really engaged with in spite of the spread focus that didn't allow for as much of the intimate, personal emotions of characters that I crave.

It's nice to read some solid Abnett storytelling. He's shown time and again how well he can handle many epic moving pieces and still make it cohesive and coherent without sacrificing quality and depth. He even has a prominent character who is a woman and she's well written and handled respectfully, which shouldn't be a lot to ask for, but after Legion, while Abnett continues to be an author I greatly appreciate, I am always leary of his handling of women. It is worth acknowledging that she is an older and more authoritative figure that might be why, as my least favourite character in the Heresy, despite being so intrigued and hooked on his storyline, John Grammaticus, does take a moment to say hubba hubba while moving through crowds of either refugees or people witnessing a crisis. I did find that I didn't actively hate Grammaticus in this book, so that's definitely something.

On the whole, this is a great book about trying to rebuild and put something in place to keep the Imperium going in the midst of chaos with both a lower and uppercase C. The dialogue is great, the narrative intriguing and entertaining, the characters and insights fully realised, and the action is good and somewhat minimal, but important and epic, which is how I like it. I feel like I have been saying this a lot recently, but this isn't contending for the top slot and isn't one I'm in love with, but the quality and entertainment is absolutely top tier. There just has to be a a floor of what top tier is.

A minor point, but something that is breaking my autistic brain is the different pronunciations of the Lord of Ultramar's name. I always thought it was *row-boot gilly-man*, but it seems Roboute is generally agreed to be *row-boo-tay*, which is fine, though it sometimes is the way I assumed it to be. However, Guilliman, had always been how I thought it was and is in this audiobook, but in some stories I'm hearing *ghoul-leman* like a ghost haunting Fenris. I'm not a canon-worshipper or a precision pernickate, but I am very confused and uncomfortable when I hear the 13th Primarch announced as a spectral wolf.

I really had a good time with this! It is another one that I give full marks without it absolutely knocking my socks off, but I absolutely couldn't put it down and, yeah, really had fun with it.

Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 23.41 Horus Heresy novels, 14 novellas (including 1 repeat), 73 short stories/ audio dramas (including 5 repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 13 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels...this run. I can't say enough good about the way the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project suggestions. I'm loving it! Especially after originally reading to the releases and being so frustrated at having to wait so long for a narrative to continue.

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard pressed for order, Robute Guilliman decides to save what's left of the Imperium by turning his home planet into a warp-capable beacon, attracting all sorts of friends, foes and suspicions. Not even with the aid of Imperial Fists and Iron Warriors could he protect his planet against devious designs and Lion El'Johnson's puppy-eyes, which allow all kinds of dark angles to accomplish making planetfall.

You'd think this novel is about Guilliman's adolescent hubris of Imperium Secundus. However, even the many interwoven narratives of betrayal and loyalty cannot deny that all of this is just Abnett's backdrop to a Batman vs. Killer-Croc spin-off you didn't see coming.

[Troy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. It was refreshing to get to a book heavily involving several loyalists factions. So far in the heresy leading up to this one I feel the books have focused largely on the traitor factions and their progress so it was fun to finally see some loyalist regrouping here. Mainly ultramarines and dark angels but others too. Plenty of primarch action and involvement in this one. Plenty of action and story progression.

[Father Aaron Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dan Abnett back at it again. People are saying that you can probably skip the Imperium Secundus books (this is the first in that storyline) but I wholeheartedly disagree! There are some major reveals here and all the pieces are being set for the final battle. It's also just super fun. Also, my boy John is here and I always love hearing more about him.

[Connor Duke · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fact that UR tied together 7+ seperate storylines and did it THAT well, to then build something so engaging on top of that, blows my mind.

Shout out to my guy Dantioch, Legion Master of the Iron Balls