Fulgrim: Der perfekte Sohn

by Jude Reid

Ein Warhammer 40,000 Roman

Viel zu lange schon wurde den Emperorʼs Children ihr Geburtsrecht verweigert. Die einst ruhmreiche Legion ist in verschiedene Kriegerscharen zerfallen und dazu verdammt, vergeblich eine Welt nach der anderen zu plündern, um ihre Ambitionen und Exzesse auszuleben. Doch das hat nun ein Ende.

WARUM DU DIESES BUCH LESEN SOLLTEST

Fulgrim stellt seinen Söhnen eine einfache Aufgabe, doch was passiert, wenn sie sich als viel komplizierter herausstellt als angenommen? Ergründe das zerrissene Wesen der Emperorʼs Children und erfahre, wie sie reagieren, wenn die Dinge nicht so laufen, wie sie wollen – ein Roman voller Arroganz, Bruderkonflikte und unterschiedlicher Perspektiven.

DIE GESCHICHTE

Lord Fulgrim – der aufgestiegene Primarch der III. Legion, der Perfekte Sohn, der Wartende Imperator – fordert seine Krieger heraus. Sie sollen die imperiale Welt Tiegel bezwingen und ihm den Kopf des Black Templars bringen, der für ihre Verteidigung verantwortlich ist.

Fulgrims Pläne gehen jedoch weit über die Eroberung eines einzelnen Planeten hinaus und was als schnelle und blutige Offensive begonnen hat, wird zu einer zermürbenden Belagerung. Der Erfolg ist ungewiss und während die Welt um sie herum in Flammen aufgeht und die Legion ihre Waffen nicht nur nach außen, sondern auch nach innen richtet, müssen sich die angehenden Champions eine bitteren Frage Was müssen sie für den Sieg und die Gunst ihres Primarchen opfern und was wird von ihnen übrigbleiben, wenn der Krieg beendet ist?

Geschrieben von Jude Reid
Übersetzt von Bent Jensen

Genres: 40k, Science Fiction, Audiobook

361 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 26, 2025

Reviews

[Yevhenii · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was eagerly awaiting this book and was absolutely devastated.
Even from the short story Perfection and Pain, I had a feeling we were heading toward a naive and foolish main character, and that the perspective of the conflict would be portrayed very poorly.

I’m a big fan of the Horus Heresy series, and I always enjoyed exploring Fulgrim’s internal conflict and struggle.
Here, however, all of that is completely erased. His sons — the followers of the Third Legion — are depicted as utter degenerates.
There isn’t a single compelling character, unlike other works dedicated to the Emperor’s Children.
It feels like a very lazy and dull strategy: dumb down every character — but for what?
Just to make them lose? Just to make them look ridiculous?

In the end, we’re left with a completely overwritten and pre-shaped image of the Emperor’s Children, Fulgrim reduced to a mere afterthought, and once again the ever-triumphant Imperium, this time in the form of the Black Templars.

[James shinton · Rating 1 out of 5]

don’t waste your money

Awful. I fell asleep 4 times reading it. Forgettable characters, dry plot and Fulgrim is barely in it. If I could ask for a refund I would. Seriously, I mean that. This is arguably one of the worst 40k books I’ve read and I’ve read over 100.

[AA_Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

“'No one's going to challenge them. Just another planet torn to pieces while the Space Marines fight their wars. What does any of it matter?'”

I enjoyed Fulgrim: the Perfect Son. It’s a good 40k book. There’s an awful lot to like about it. As the quote above suggests, it’s an example of the more nuanced story that BL have been publishing in the last few years, and perhaps if it leaned into this more it would be a more interesting and significant book. Unlike last year’s Lords of Excess, the Emperor’s Children are sharing the spotlight with the Black Templars, but I think the most compelling narrative thread is following the militia of Crucible. The 3rd Legion are the sort of glorious bastards we’ve come to love in their appearances in BL literature and shine without tipping into caricature. Dorn’s crusaders are suitably grim and don’t pull focus from their traitorous cousins. The book doesn’t fall into the tie-in trap of reading like a catalogue of shiny new toys, and as well as the aforementioned shades of gray also delivers action and some unexpected twists. It’s a solid book that would be one of the better entries in the underrated Space Marine: Battles series. The ending is great, and is a really satisfying and neat payoff that doesn’t feel forced at all- which not all BL books can boast.

I think that paragraph felt like there was a “but” coming because there certainly was one, and it’s not necessarily the fault of the book itself.

This book isn’t a Fulgrim book. He barely features. We learn nothing of his return or time since the Scourging. It’d be pretty straightforward to reskin the Emperor’s Children characters in this book to any legion or traitor warband- they are well-written but lack the gloss that sets them apart from their less excessive peers. For that, see Lords of Excess, which perhaps unfairly, this book can’t escape the shadows of. The Angron novel that came out alongside his lovely new model featured him on the page less, but he suits being an elemental force driving his legion; readers know that his sons want/need to please Fulgrim and seek his approval, this book could have showed *why* but I don’t feel it quite managed that.

Jude Reid has written a book that is very enjoyable and has the kernel of a much more interesting story than many other 40k books. Unfortunately, BL have published it under the name of a major player in the setting alongside a major faction revamp and I fear that for many readers it just won’t meet their preconceptions and expectations.

[Ridel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the better atmosphere and character work I've seen from the Black Library in quite a while. Grimdark really bleeds through the pages when the authors are allowed to write from the villains POV, because then the Imperium isn't treated as some misunderstood white knight. The various Emperor's Children are more than just stereotypes, the smattering of PDF militia and Cadian (sigh) guardsmen add an element of humanity, and then there's the Black Templars crusading it up. Really deciding between the best of bad options.

The downside is that the author sucks at all the military-side of things. You never get a sense of the battle space, nor understand what either side is doing through the war and siege. And let's not bother with army compositions and numbers, that's far beyond the author's cares. Strategy is basically showing and swinging a power sword. It's almost forgivable as the author often doesn't even sketch out the broad strokes. Like, has the entire 3rd Legion shown up on Crucible? What's their plan? No one knows, and I doubt the author considered it. But then the author will spend a paragraph trying to sketch out some epic scene and you realize the scope of ignorance.

The ugliest part of this is the combination of not caring about logistics combined with characters. Various POVs just magically appear where they need to be. There's zero attempt to explain how Fulgrim is in real-space and if there are limits on his power, and Daemons can show up wherever they want and corrupt however they want. All the icons, totems or fetishes that empower Chaos is just tossed out the window as folks do whatever they need to do to make the plot work. And the ending is just a confluence of seemingly random events that the reader can pretend was all the will of some greater deity, but feels more like the author reached their required page count and decided to end the story.

In short, recommended with a lot of reservations, for WH40K fans.

[Jack Neighbour · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book about a battle between the emporers children and the black templars. Not a lot about fulgrim at all.

I enjoyed it but nothing more than bolter p***

[Paul Austin · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a chaos fan, I was pumped to get my hands on a new Fulgrim novel. However similar to the Angron novel, Fulgrim is barely even in the book. instead its the usual trope of chaos betraying each other along with mediocre at best bolter porn.

Ive read nothing from the author since her other books that i know of are about the sisters of battle and Im not a fan of the faction. However from what i've seen on other forums, theres not many good things said about the author's writing in those. Wish i took the hint. Hopefully Black Library moves on from Reid because not only was the book a disappointment but as a chaos fan, we dont get many opportunities for proper chaos books and this was just a waste of time, especially for a main character like Fulgrim.

[Zack Errico · Rating 1 out of 5]

The narrator as always with his words put justice to an otherwise repetitive story. I loved the development of Tamaris as a character, and the rest of the Palatine Blade, but the overall story seemed dull and out of place for a Primarch to care about a world the story to take place on. Seemed very out of character for Fulgrim, as if Jude Reid doesn’t understand the concept of a Primarch. She also made a mockery of the Black Templars, so if you are going into this thinking you’ll find some awesome duels between Templars and Emperors Children, this book is a miss. What a way for Fulgrim to blunder into 40K.

[Sergio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Está bien y tal pero no tiene nada que ver con Fulgrim y me da la sensación de que es una historia que aporta bastante poco al worldbuilding de la franquicia.

[Bryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun but mostly pointless.

We don’t get any returning EC characters, any reason why Fulgrim’s returned or what his plans are, any scenes of Fulgrim’s POV, and the characters are mostly forgettable.

Sure there’s some fun action scenes and all the characters are sympathetic for the most part but there’s nothing really there.

Completely skippable if you aren’t interested in the EC—Hell, even if you are you can probably skip it since it doesn’t add anything to the Phoenician’s character or motivations.

[Anibal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warhammer has always thrived not just on spectacle, but on tragedy. Beneath the bolter fire and grand battles lies a setting defined by loss, failure, and the slow erosion of what might have been. In Fulgrim: The Perfect Son, Jude Reid leans fully into that idea, delivering a story that feels less like a tale of conquest and more like a classical downfall.

At its center stands Fulgrim, though “stands” may not be the right word. Fulgrim is not a traditional protagonist, nor even a constant presence. Instead, he looms over the narrative like a force of nature, shaping events through his expectations and whims. What makes this portrayal especially compelling is the suggestion that his narcissism is not simply innate, but something he has cultivated over time: a self-reinforced belief in his own superiority, even above his father. It’s not just arrogance; it’s a carefully constructed delusion, one that demands constant validation and can never truly be satisfied.

That need for validation becomes the engine of the story. Fulgrim’s challenge to his scattered Legion! Conquer Crucible and slay the Emperor’s Champion; it is not a strategic objective so much as a test, a poisoned prize that immediately turns ambition into rivalry. Unity is never the goal. Competition is.

Into this arena steps Marduk Tamaris, the novel’s true focal point and one of its strongest achievements. Writing compelling Chaos characters is no small feat, but Reid succeeds by giving Tamaris just enough humanity to make his fall meaningful. He is arrogant and cruel, certainly, but also capable of a warped sense of respect and even compassion. In his own mind, he is not a destroyer but a liberator, bringing enlightenment and perfection to a broken world. That belief is what makes his arc so effective, because the story does not simply show him falling…it shows him choosing, again and again, to abandon those better instincts in pursuit of Fulgrim’s approval.

Now: SPOILER ALERT!!!!

Nowhere is this clearer than in his clashes with the Black Templar Champion, Berengar. Their first duel is almost uncomfortable to read: Tamaris postures and performs, seeking attention, while Berengar fights with absolute focus and efficiency. The outcome is decisive and humiliating. But it is their second encounter that truly defines the novel. By then, the war has devolved into chaos, Berengar is exhausted and outnumbered, and yet he still fights with unshaken resolve. Tamaris, in contrast, wins not through growth or mastery, but through betrayal striking from behind, using Berengar’s own blade. It is a victory that encapsulates everything the Emperor’s Children have become.

And that is perhaps the book’s greatest strength: its understanding of Slaanesh not as perfection, but as excess. The Emperor’s Children are not flawless warriors striving toward mastery. They are addicts, chasing sensation, recognition, and impossible ideals. They make poor decisions, sabotage one another, and lose battles they should win, not despite their nature, but because of it. Most damning of all, they remain utterly convinced of their own brilliance throughout.

The Imperium, for its part, offers no clean contrast. Through the Black Templars and the human defenders of Crucible, the novel shows a regime whose brutality and rigidity push even the loyal toward despair. One of the more striking threads involves a defender driven to betrayal not by corruption, but by the belief that anything might be better than the suffering imposed in the Emperor’s name. It’s a reminder that, in Warhammer, damnation rarely comes in a single form.

If there is a weakness, it lies in the supporting cast. Tamaris dominates the narrative so thoroughly that his elite warriors, the Perfecti, often feel underdeveloped by comparison, with only his Apothecary Venakhar leaving a lasting impression. The final act also feels slightly rushed, as if the story accelerates toward its conclusion rather than arriving there naturally. Even so, these are relatively minor flaws in an otherwise focused and thematically strong novel.

As mentioned above, Fulgrim himself appears sparingly, but this restraint works in the book’s favor. Unlike “Angron: The Red Angel”, where the Primarch simply doesn’t appear relevant to the narrative, here Fulgrim although used sparingly it is used effectively.

He does not need constant screen time to define the story; his influence is felt in every failure, every betrayal, every desperate attempt to earn his approval. The sins of the father are written clearly in the sons.

In the end, Fulgrim: The Perfect Son is not about victory, nor even really about Fulgrim himself. It is about ambition without purpose, perfection without meaning, and desire that can never be fulfilled.

You can check through the following link a very interesting interview by the author of the book: https://www.warhammer-community.com/e...

[Nick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Entertaining but a poor choice of title which must form a core part of the dislike a vocal part of the fanbase has shared. The book isn't about Fulgrim or rather it does not take him as a pov or main character which given the title is what you are expecting. rather the book has four, the warlord of an emperors children warband, a chaos sorcerer,a black templars champion who has had a vision of the emperors children legion descending upon the random factorio world of crucible a captain in the local planetary milita being the last POV.

I liked the planetary captains pov the most, the warband leader second but the sorcerer and the black templar were not nearly as engaging. In a way the last two are quite similar in the sense that they are one dimensional obsessed fanatics who have little else going for them. Also concerning the black templar, I have read better takes on these guys. They aren't easy to make relatable but every other line by him is either "HERETIC!" or " the emperor chose me!" he isn't fun or engaging.

Taken as a whole I do like a good siege story, I think warhammer comes out best in a good siege story but that also means it has a lot of competition which is to its detriment. Here too I have read better warhammer sieges. What I did like was the complexity of feelings, allegiances and emotions as described both in the warband leader and the captain's chapters and I think the book would have been better if it has these two as focus point rather then sharing the stage with two more.

Now Fulgrim is in the story but again the title expects him to be more then the spoiled prince playing with his toys, I mean legion. Yeah that is what he does and is, but by setting it up as it did the marketing types at warhammer did set this book up to be a dissapointment to some extent or another. Overall I think it has some good things in there but I got the feeling that somewhere along the way people either pushed for including stuff the author did not care that much for or other way arround the author interpreted the gig in her own way which left a mixed result. Perhaps a bit of both.

Its fine, I had some fun with it but is mid tier at best.

[Vansh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure as to why I hold this book in such a high regard. It's doubtlessly well-written in my eyes. Perhaps my expectations as to how much Fulgrim would be involved were tempered by skimming the other reviews. Perhaps it comes with having low expectations of such a.. character as an iron-hands fan. Or maybe I just haven't read enough 40k fiction (or fiction in general) to have 'high' tastes.

But I came to enjoy this and think the book benefitted greatly from a second-person perspective on Fulgrim and how his sons see him. The amount he makes them suffer for simply his entertainment, the emptiness in his words, how hollow he seems to hold their achievements and frankly anything, the sheer narcissism in that he makes someone feels important only by how much they relate to him.

It was excellent characterization of how whether it be righteousness, ambition, filial piety, chivalry, or any other 'virtue' can be manipulated and taken to its excess. Then again, I read these things in a different way- as 'lessons' rather than solely entertainment so perhaps my vision too, is flawed.

[Magnus Amadeus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quite a disappointment. No shade to the author but I feel like she spent too much time in this novel dwelling on things that didn't drive the story forward. The characters seem to me to be rather uninteresting to follow and more often than not came off rather pathetic, not like the giant chaos infused warriors I've read of in other Black Library novels. The Black Templar and Guard bits were a bit more compelling but I didn't pick up a BT or Guard book. Fulgrim is barely a thing in this book as well, which considering there's a whole interview where it's stated we'll be finding out what he's actually been up to for 10,000 years, added to the disappointment. I'll give it to Jude for her way of depicting gore, wounds and impacts of battle (I mean that literally, she describes how a blade pierces flesh really well) but it turns to the books detriment when you realise you've read how injections pierce a spinal column or a blade cuts through skin for the umpteenth time.

[Victor Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fulgrim is back and here to lead his legion again, but desires a champion, because his father has a champion and Fulgrim is his father's son. In Fulgrim's his eyes, he pure perfection and believes himself better than the emperor, so why not do everything the emperor did but "try" to do it better while sexyback is playing.

Funny enough Fulgrim isn't really a main character. He's more of a side character.

Instead a follows a Blade master named Marduk Tamaris who seeks to become Fulgrim's Perfect Son, which is equivalent to the Emperor's Champion. And yes, The Emperor's Champion named Johannes Berengar.

What is funny, though, is that the Blademaster's are supposedly perfect in their art of slaughter, but the main character, Tamaeis seems to get his arse handed to him time and time again while the Black Templar's are being glazed.

Also there's also a minor plot involving human characters which was a snooze tbh.

[D.R. Hurley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really hoping this book would help advance the overall story in the modern 40k setting, but it has done anything but.

The story itself fine but there’s nothing about what fulgrim has been doing the last 10,000 years, why he’s suddenly returned now or what the loyalist primachs’ reaction might be - Do they even know fulgrim is active again? I don’t know, it doesn’t say.

It’s just another story about taking over another world for no real reason. I was really hoping for some kind of secret agenda reveal at the end or even a cut scene to terra, but again nothing.

I really think they have missed a good opportunity to move things forward.

If you just want to read 40k then it’s fine but if you’re hoping for more in terms of advancing the bigger picture then perhaps wait for the next release.

[Patrick Correal-Winters · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not think Reid did a bad job with this book whatsoever; it was a fun pulpy read with over the top characters and action, including some really good human characters to get us caring more about the stakes of the conflict. The main issue is almost entirely that this book IS NOT A FULGRIM BOOK. I know that is not a unique complaint, but I feel like a 4⭐ book about Crucible and the conflict between Tamaris and Berengar got transfixed by an incomplete plot about Fulgrim returning from the Warp and having a competition between all of his sons. Speaking of the Emperor's Children, where are they? We're told the entire III Legion is on crucible, but we don't even hear mention of ANY established characters.

[Eugene · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, this was one of the novels I was most looking forward to this year. I’ve read a couple of stories by Jude Reid before and wasn’t impressed, so I lowered my expectations. Still, I felt very disappointed when I finished the novel...

I mean, If you enjoy yelling why would you do that? at fictional people and being bored and facepalming during battles, this one’s for you (the action scenes actually are about as thrilling as a nap).

Overall, this book is a masterclass in missed potential.

[Nathan Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Don’t be put off by some of the reviews, it’s definitely worth reading.

Fulgrim was not as involved as I thought however the way he took on the role of master manipulator was perfect, and the scenes he was in really captured his character. Fulgrim was haunting every character even when he wasn’t there, truly showing the unsettling effect he had on other characters.

Tamaris and the Emperors Champion were also really well written and I enjoyed the fight scenes these characters were involved in.

[Maximilian Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. Jude Reid writes the characters in a very flavorful way and I think they are the strongest part of the book. They all have believable goals, thoughts and feelings and it's fascinating to watch the world through their eyes.
Another great thing about this book is how the locations and the environments are described. It's easy to visualize them and follow how the characters act and how the scenes are unfolding.
If you like Emperor's Children and/or generally great 40k stories, I'd highly recommend reading this one!

[Brady Wilder · Rating 1 out of 5]

Somehow worse than the Angron book.

Was expecting to at the very least have Fulgrim react to his brother Guilliman's return. Especially considering they built some rivalry against each others (which is well narrated in Guy Haley's Plague War series) but no. Just some bad bolt-porn.

Fulgrim is sitting in the background. Ian St Martin did a much better job at portraying the ECs in his Lucius work (The Fautless Blade for example).

Don't waste your money.

[Stephen Paish · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title can be a bit misleading, but it is still a great story.

Jude Reid takes the reader inside the III legion and pulls back the curtain on the jealousies and motivations that keep the Emperor's Children moving forward. The main protagonist is interesting and undergoes quite the journey throughout the book.

While the mortal cultist sub-plot is interesting, there are times when it drags the pace of the story.

Overall an interesting read. Just wish it had a different title.

[Matt TB · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favourite heretic novel.
Wasn’t awful but not a patch on the likes of the Black Legion or Ahriman books.

I enjoyed it as a way to tie the Emperors Children in returning to the galaxy as unified force under their genesire, I just didn’t quite enjoy any of the main characters but I wonder if that’s the point- imperial space marines and traitors being as intensely unlikeable as each other?

Worth a read for backstabbing slaaneshi action.

[Alberto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lo único que critico es el nombre del libro. Fulgrim? Apenas aparece como en cuatro escenas. No es para nada el personaje principal del libro en cuestión. Ni un flashback como para decir que lo comprendimos un poco más a él y su historia. Pero si lo leemos sin expectativas, realmente esta muy bien. Una buena introducción al personaje de Tamaris y su lucha para convertirse en el campeón de la tercera. Amé a Mauvais, y el esquema de alianzas y traiciones a su alrededor.

[Paul Sparks · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a legion that claims to be perfect the characters in this are anything but, maybe their degeneracy has caused this or maybe they were never that perfect to start with, fulgrim is shown as a petulant daemon primarch, nothing new there, for me the ancillary characters were by far more interesting and by that I mean the militia not the templars or cadians
Narrated with aplomb

[Skywatcher Adept · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the most anticlimactic Primarch return to 40k novel ever. I feel pity for all the Emperor’s Children players who were excited for Fulgrim’s comeback story. And if someone was wondering whether to start a new army, they can simply give up buying the new line of EC models after reading this book. It's that bad.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that seems to be getting review bombed, as a longtime Emperor's Children fan, I had a great time with this book.

The rare Black Library book that showcases how cruel the Cadians can be, especially when paired with the Black Templars.

A book about egotistical bastards all preening for the love of an uncaring demigod looking to entertain himself.

[Jack Parsons-Morrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointingly a book not about Fulgrim. I was hoping for a book about Fulgrims warp shenanigans and being a scourge on the imperium. What we got was a pretty slow story about the usual chaos betrayals. Whilst it fits in the usual story telling of chaos. it just seems to be a story that is re-hashed re-shaped and boxed up and re-printed.

[Nez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid book. I can see why other readers are frustrated with the direction the III Legion takes here (if you can call it that), but that's the point of the Emperor's Children, unfortunately - children and degenerates in the bodies of demigods, forever chasing the next high and their primarch's false love in equal measure.

[Alesha Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

The books gets some details like scale wrong and that seems to bother allot of people.
I get it, but looking besides that I think it was an enjoyable book.
its a bit strange it doesnt focus on Fulgrim as the title implies.

I enjoyed the character Tamaris for most of the book. His banter with loyalists was great.

[Brady Gilbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, heard a few negative things but was pleasantly surprised. The story and setting was good, and I thought the main protagonist was really good and really well written. What happens to them is really clever and love how it ties in with ‘the perfect son’ on many levels. Very close to being 5 stars.