Wolf King

The Horus Heresy #Novella

by Chris Wraight

The Space Wolves were set upon by the forces of the Alpha Legion before they had even recovered from the Razing of Prospero – hounded to the edge of the Alaxxes Nebula, in desperation Leman Russ called out to his primarch brothers for aid. None came. Now, with their fleet stranded and supplies dwindling, the warriors of the Rout face almost certain death amidst the rust-red clouds of the nebula. But what a glorious end it shall be, worthy of the sagas of old, and Alpharius’s sons will soon learn that a cornered wolf is always the most deadly...

Find out what Russ did next... This novella bridges the gap between 'Scars' and 'Vengeful Spirit' and sees Russ make some hard decisions in the name of victory...

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

112 pages, Hardcover

First published October 2, 2015

About the author

Chris Wraight is a British author of fantasy and science fiction.

His first novel was published in 2008; since then, he has published books set in the Warhammer Fantasy and Stargate:Atlantis universes, and has upcoming titles in the Warhammer 40K setting.

He is based in the south-west of England.

Reviews

[Andrey Nalyotov · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZING! AWESOME! Astoundingly gorgeous novella! The best Horus Heresy stuff in ages. Only 2 novellas from the Horus Heresy are even better - but we are talking the milestones here: 'Aurelian' and 'Serpent Beneath'!
Haven't read such a good story with amazing view on Wolves and their Primarch since the the times of Know no Fear.

If you want to read good book, if you want to have your fix of HH - read 'Wolf KIng' It totally deserve it's praise and shines as a true beacon of hope in the darkness of slow HH releases!

[Dylan Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hot damn I think Chris Wraight might have outdone himself with this one! The story of the Space Wolves extinction was a blast. The characters were extremely well written, the action was intense, and we got a lot of Void War, which I always love seeing when it is done well and boy was it done well here!
Seeing the changes the Heresy has had on Russ was interesting, and seeing his relationship with Bjorn grow was a blast. It's a pity that we didn't get to see anything from the Alpha Legion's POV, but then this was a true Space Wolves story, and it fit the story well! And the Space Wolves saviors was a surprise as well! In a sense!

[RatGrrrl · Rating 5 out of 5]

April 2024 Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order Omnibus XVII Shadow of the Warmaster III Jaws of Defeat (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy series and extras.

How Leman got his groove back.

Distraught from the burning of Prospero, the Wolf King, Leman Russ, feels unmoored from everything he knows, losing himself in introspection and obsessive casting of the runes, while his Rout struggle against the Alpha Legion and questions of allegiance are raised...

I have to say that the combination of The Divine Word, returning to Deliverance Lost, and Corax: Soulforge had me feeling a little of the dreaded Heresy Fatigue, but this was a powerful shot in the arm!

There are few things I love more than a Chris Wraight free to do his thing and unbeholden to plot points! There is something about the way he writes action when he is truly on his game that makes me forget that I don't normally care that much about the action. It just grabbed me by the collar and took me along for the ride. Combining that with some truly incredible writing and revelation about the Great Wolf, his relationship to Fenris, the Emperor, and the persona of the Wolf King he came to embody, and I am the happiest camper!

Does it get a wee bit spooled out and loose at the end? Maybe, but the blistering opening action, the insights into Russ and the relationship between him and Bjorn, and the overall quality of the writing, not to mention just how many of my buttons this story pushes, this is damned near perfect for me.

Awesome scenes!

***

I lack the brainpower for a proper review, so I will return to this, but I bloody loved it!

Just some vivid action mixed with mystery, mythic introspection, and odd bedfellows in Wraight's gorgeous style.

Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 32 Horus Heresy novels (including a repeat), 18 novellas (including 2 repeats), 106 short stories/ audio dramas (including 6 repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 15 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and a short story...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.

[Michael Dodd · Rating 4 out of 5]

For his second Horus Heresy novella, Wolf King, Chris Wraight picks up a story thread left hanging in his novel Scars, returning to the battered forces of the Space Wolves as they take shelter in the lethal twists and turns of the Alaxxes nebula. Hounded by the overwhelming firepower of the Alpha Legion and abandoned by the White Scars, the Wolves find themselves trapped, outmaneuvered at every turn, but while Bjorn and his brothers hunger to bring the battle to the Alpha Legion, their primarch Leman Russ hides himself away from the rest of the legion and broods on their future.

Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...

[Veronica Anrathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've had a bit of a Heresy burnout in the process of reading this so it took me way longer than it normally would, yet I enjoyed it quite a lot after I finally finished it. Interesting to see Russ reflecting, questioning and even reevaluating his thoughts and actions, of course only to a certain point. Might read it again in the future just to make sure I did not miss out on anything due to the pause I had to take.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great insight into Russ and the Wolves, but definitely a connecting tissue book rather than a standalone, I was a little lost at the start (which is more my fault than the book's) Really interesting setting though and there's a stand-out twist which I really enjoyed.

[Matt Argueta · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a solid story following events from Prespero. Seeing the Wolves being chased down was a surprising reversal given their reputation. 

An exhausted and lost Russ working through finding answers was the core bit of the story. Somewhat hypocritical coming from the decimation of the Thousand Sons for their "sorcery", while Russ putting faith into his Bones/Runes and taking the council of a Rune Priest who also fought with "a skull headed staff, firing void lightning at his enemies" during the battle against the Alpha Legion, had me scratching my head. There was a note towards the end however where Russ openly admitted to the hypocrisy there and that it would need to be faced in the future. 

The injection of the Blood Angels and the mystery of the intruder aboard the Hrafnkel was interesting to try and figure out during the main conflict between the Wolves and the Alpha. Was a great short story and feels very important in the grander scheme of the 30k alliances

[Luke Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up after the brief mention of the Space Wolves' clash with the Alpha Legion at Alaxxes in Scars by the same author; while the Wolves and the Legion are two forces I'm not that interested by in the Horus Heresy, I needed the continuity, and this was a satisfying clash between the two which did make you wonder how Russ and his warriors were going to get out of it (though the ending was somewhat disappointing for me...)

Not Wraight's best work (IMO, he's better with the White Scars when it comes to writing loyalists) but a decent enough read to while away the time...

[Brit (Circus_of_Damed) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is supose to be a good place to start with the Black Library books. While reading and understanding this story Requires no previous knowledge I didn't personally find this the best story to start with. This story didn't draw me into the world. While short and relatively fast paced it wasn't able to keep my attention. Now I admit sci-fi is alittle harder for me to get into. That said these characters weren't gripping for me and the story wasn't particularly interesting to fallow.

[John Vance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoa. This was a good read. I guess it’s because of how short it is. Horus Heresy novels have a tendency to drag for me and with the brevity of this book, it never had a chance to slow down. I just kept flipping the pages to what would happen next and then bam! The end. Also, learning a lot about Russ and a certain unnamed legion as well. Really got a bunch of insight in a small package. Read!

[Gary Bake · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story about how dangerous it is to corner the wolf. Turns out it's not dangerous unless the wolf is super lucky.

I read this to find out why the wolves dissapear in the 'scars' book. This book should have been made part of scars or those parts spun out into a seperate book. Anyways we get to see the wolf show some weakness and grow up a little.

[Eric Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolf King is a very fast paced novel about a small series of space battles during a galactic civil war. Wolf King features one of the leaders of an army in the war, Russ, and looks closely at him after he had to make some hard choices during the earliest stages of the war. An absolutely amazing novel in the Horus Heresy series, but tough as a stand-alone story.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first Black Library book I've read (I picked it up because it has a friendly banner at the top of the cover telling me to start here). It was a fun, short ride, but I don't feel like I need to read more.

[Trevor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

[Carl Grider · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool novella about the space wolves.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Tyberius · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do the Bones tell you, my Lord?

[Adrian Dumitru · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short,full of action and intresting but too short ... i would have wanted a bigger book with more answers!

[Ross Cudmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Russ has broken the back of Magnus and Prospero has been sacked. Now the Heresy is underway and the Wolves are being hunted down by the Alpha Legion.

The Wolf King is weary, his brothers betrayal weighs heavily on his mind, and he must come to terms with his own shortcomings. For so long he clad himself in the costume of the Barbarian King, the Emperor's executioner, but now the costume has become the flesh, the act is now reality. He knows that for his Legion to survive they must change, evolve, but first they will have to survive the Alpha Legion!

Fun void-combat and I really enjoyed the characterisation of Russ, and his relationship with Bjorn One-Hand.

[Christian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was, at times, a very strange introspection on the way the Space Wolves see themselves. Russ is a stranger who has adopted and been adopted by Fenris and it is interesting, and a little more disconcerting, to read about his doubts. The Alpha Legion fleet that pursues the Wolves is brutal and the novella ends with a surprise. But, yeah, the idea of the Emperor's Executioners being so deeply flawed is very unsettling. At least, they recognize their failings and will strive to improve themselves.

[Sifi Zonkoid · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an ok 'filler' although how Russ got into his predicament I don't recall. I was disappointed by the attitude shown compared to other primarch's and expected more from such a character. I also understand in a manner, but expected a few more twists.

[Alexander van der Pol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who would have thought.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent addition to the Heresy.