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The Horus Heresy: Primarchs #4
Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia
While crusading to build the Imperium, Perturabo, mercurial primarch of the Iron Warriors, hears ot turmoil on the world where he was raised, and abandons the crusade to return home and save his people.
Born to a life of political conflict, Perturabo was always considered a child prodigy among the people of Olympia – indeed, his philosophical and scientific works were beyond compare. But then, after his rediscovery by the Emperor and decades of thankless military campaigning on the Great Crusade, the primarch begins to resent his Legion’s place in the Imperium. When word reaches him of turmoil on his adoptive home world, he orders the Iron Warriors to abandon their campaign against the alien hrud and crush this emerging rebellion by any means necessary...
Focusing on Perturabo during his youth on Olympia, in the Great Crusade and upon his return to the world that defined him, this is a definitive look at what makes the master of iron tick.
Born to a life of political conflict, Perturabo was always considered a child prodigy among the people of Olympia – indeed, his philosophical and scientific works were beyond compare. But then, after his rediscovery by the Emperor and decades of thankless military campaigning on the Great Crusade, the primarch begins to resent his Legion’s place in the Imperium. When word reaches him of turmoil on his adoptive home world, he orders the Iron Warriors to abandon their campaign against the alien hrud and crush this emerging rebellion by any means necessary...
Focusing on Perturabo during his youth on Olympia, in the Great Crusade and upon his return to the world that defined him, this is a definitive look at what makes the master of iron tick.
221 pages, Hardcover
First published April 3, 2017
79 people are currently reading
1130 people want to read
About the author
Guy Haley
281 books732 followersGuy Haley is the author of over 50 novels and novellas. His original fiction includes Crash, Champion of Mars, and the Richards and Klein, Dreaming Cities, and the Gates of the World series (as K M McKinley). However, he is best known as a prolific contributor to Games Workshop's Black Library imprint.
When not writing, he'll be out doing something dangerous in the wild, learning languages or gaming.
When not writing, he'll be out doing something dangerous in the wild, learning languages or gaming.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews
September 25, 2017
Listen guys, this was FANTASTIC. This was so much more than I thought it's gonna be after reading previous three Primarchs books, but it was EXACTLY what I originally expected from the series. I haven't read many of Guy Haley's work yet and I was rather critical of his Night Lords short stories, but this one just blew me away. Wonderfully written, through this book we get to know the Lord of Iron like never before, from his upbringing on Olympia to his infamous downfall... also on Olympia. Reading it was a total pleasure and a tragedy through and through. I feel like the Iron Warriors is one of those legions that often lack depth and dimension when they appear in the novels, but here they are portrayed beautifully. We follow Perturabo, a tragic genius that he is, becoming his own greatest enemy. We also get to experience a "prequel" of a sort to one of my absolute favorite short stories, The Iron Within by Rob Sanders, and learn the details behind the painful condition of Barabas Dantioch aka Badass King of Badassery. And we meet the warrior-poet, Venerable Vastopol! It was intriguing and intense, I can hardly even think of a single weaker link. I know this review is all over the place, but it's 2 a.m. and I just can't squeeze my excitement into a short post without giving away all the spoilers. It's a must read and you will love it, I promise.
From iron cometh strength.
From strength cometh will.
From will cometh faith.
From faith cometh honor.
From honor cometh iron.
This is the Unbreakable Litany. May it forever be so.
From iron cometh strength.
From strength cometh will.
From will cometh faith.
From faith cometh honor.
From honor cometh iron.
This is the Unbreakable Litany. May it forever be so.
January 23, 2020
I was waiting for tales about Primarchs' past on their foster worlds, before being recovered by the Emperor and joining their Legions, from this Horus Heresy spin-off series.
Previous three novels ranged from ok (Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar) to excellent (Leman Russ: The Great Wolf) but Perturabo: Hammer of Olimpia is just first one nailing that, being exactly what I wanted and expected from this series.
And it does it in a totally glorious way, with two connected storylines about Perturabo's youth on Olympia and his tragic later return there two centuries later, full of resentment about his Legion’s place in the Imperium and in the Great Crusade.
And what happens in the middle, with the Iron Warriors engaged in a war they could not win against time-warping xenos Hrud, was excellent too, with so many known and well appreciated faces from previous HH novels having their moment of glory or shame, from Triarch Forrix to ultimate badass fan favourite Warsmith Barabas Dantioch, shining for good in mr. Guy Haley's skillful hands.
A well written insight about who really is the Lord of Iron, his temper, motivations and doubts with exceptionally well fleshed characters old and new.
Just one of the best Horus Heresy tales ever.
June 9, 2017
I remember when BL polled their audience at one of the Lives about whether or not people wanted a Primarchs Origins series; every hand shot up. The assumption when these stories first began to be announced was that these stories would be origin stories. As time passed, though, it became clear that they were not. Guilliman was a standard action and character study, Magnus was a brooding revisit to many old friends, Russ was a legendary moment immortalised and expanded.
Perturabo bestrides expectations, as it is both a Perturabo origin story and a telling of two of his most infamous undertakings; the purgings of the Hrud and the cleansing of Olympia.
Immediately we are thrown into the youth of Perturabo, as a precocious not-quite-child, following on directly from the Theogonies section of "Angel Exterminatus." AE remains the definitive character study of Perturabo, but Haley plays off of it deftly. He creates a brooding and tortured youth, whose disconnect from humanity leads to his greatest triumphs and agonies.
These vignettes in his past are contrasted with some grittily brutal war in the present. The Hrud pose a unique threat in how they manipulate time, and we see proud warriors reduced to nothing beneath their influence. We are also reintroduced to Barabas Dantioch; heroic Warsmith of the later Heresy. Haley continues to wield him well, displaying his conflict as ably as he does his future loyalty.
Ultimately the crux of Perturabo's character is his fear of perceived failure, much as the early depictions of Horus. He is such a deeply thoughtful and logical character, yet spends a great deal of his life working on projects that will never come to life. He is a man at war, eternally yearning for the ultimate expression of peace- his nature makes him believe that that is better weaponry and the threat of violence.
When it comes, though, it is no real deterrent and so the warrior becomes his own worst enemy, his own nemesis.
This is a surprisingly thoughtful novel; burning slow and racing hot as it alternates its plots. I had worried that it was trying to be three different books, but it balances it well. Haley's prose is a delight and his insight is welcome, even if it sometimes extends to lifting Plato wholesale for this Grecian world. Olympia simmers with paranoia and intrigue beneath his pen, mild worldbuilding bringing it to a sumptuous life previous depictions have shied away from.
A minor quibble would be that we're never even made aware of the Word Bearer presence with them, hinted at in "The First Heretic", not even as a passing mention, though that is more the pedant in me talking. On a similar note, it would have been nice to see; or have a push towards, the scene where Horus vindicates Perturabo.
All in all, this book comes the closest to what we expected this series to be while simultaneously veering from it to be more like "Leman Russ". At once we are presented with Perturabo as he forms and as he is finished; as he is shaped for his ultimate destiny. While it does not always surpass the exemplary work done on the character in "Angel Exterminatus", it uses that novel as a framework on which to develop and add, giving the existing lore additional layers and depths.
Perturabo bestrides expectations, as it is both a Perturabo origin story and a telling of two of his most infamous undertakings; the purgings of the Hrud and the cleansing of Olympia.
Immediately we are thrown into the youth of Perturabo, as a precocious not-quite-child, following on directly from the Theogonies section of "Angel Exterminatus." AE remains the definitive character study of Perturabo, but Haley plays off of it deftly. He creates a brooding and tortured youth, whose disconnect from humanity leads to his greatest triumphs and agonies.
These vignettes in his past are contrasted with some grittily brutal war in the present. The Hrud pose a unique threat in how they manipulate time, and we see proud warriors reduced to nothing beneath their influence. We are also reintroduced to Barabas Dantioch; heroic Warsmith of the later Heresy. Haley continues to wield him well, displaying his conflict as ably as he does his future loyalty.
Ultimately the crux of Perturabo's character is his fear of perceived failure, much as the early depictions of Horus. He is such a deeply thoughtful and logical character, yet spends a great deal of his life working on projects that will never come to life. He is a man at war, eternally yearning for the ultimate expression of peace- his nature makes him believe that that is better weaponry and the threat of violence.
When it comes, though, it is no real deterrent and so the warrior becomes his own worst enemy, his own nemesis.
This is a surprisingly thoughtful novel; burning slow and racing hot as it alternates its plots. I had worried that it was trying to be three different books, but it balances it well. Haley's prose is a delight and his insight is welcome, even if it sometimes extends to lifting Plato wholesale for this Grecian world. Olympia simmers with paranoia and intrigue beneath his pen, mild worldbuilding bringing it to a sumptuous life previous depictions have shied away from.
A minor quibble would be that we're never even made aware of the Word Bearer presence with them, hinted at in "The First Heretic", not even as a passing mention, though that is more the pedant in me talking. On a similar note, it would have been nice to see; or have a push towards, the scene where Horus vindicates Perturabo.
All in all, this book comes the closest to what we expected this series to be while simultaneously veering from it to be more like "Leman Russ". At once we are presented with Perturabo as he forms and as he is finished; as he is shaped for his ultimate destiny. While it does not always surpass the exemplary work done on the character in "Angel Exterminatus", it uses that novel as a framework on which to develop and add, giving the existing lore additional layers and depths.
August 16, 2017
Review also published here
Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia is the best Primarchs novel to date (or at least up to Lorgar, which recently dropped in a limited edition. I won't be reading that for a while). I feel like I'm repeating that with every book in the series, but here I can say without a doubt that Guy Haley moved me more than any of the previous authors managed to. Not just because it is a stellar, character-building novel about one of the most underappreciated Primarchs of the Heresy, but also because it struck home on a very personal level.
The novel is split into two plotlines which obviously relate to one another but still divided by almost two centuries. Both focus for the most part on Perturabo and draw different pictures of the Lord of Iron, without making the character's incarnations indistinguishable from one another.
The major plotline plays out just before the outbreak of the Horus Heresy, mere years before the disastrous betrayal at Isstvan. Perturabo and his Legion are throwing themselves into the meat grinder at the tail end of the Great Crusade, attempting to contain and exterminate a Hrud migration. I cannot remember if we ever actually saw Hrud in action in a Black Library novel - I kinda doubt it. This alien race existed for a long time, of course, and was even covered in the ancient lore tome Xenology, but the most we got was a throwaway reference here and there. The most recent examples I can think of are in fact the Horus Heresy stories featuring Barabas Dantioch, Warsmith of the Iron Warriors. Dantioch, to my delight, is a key figure in this novel, leading right up to The Iron Within by Rob Sanders from the Age of Darkness anthology.
The Hrud are a menace upon the galaxy. They don't function in the typical way beings of flesh and blood might - they distort time, travel through it and their weapons and mere presence produce warped fields that can turn humans to dust within moments, or age them for thousands of years. Fighting them proves not only a logistical nightmare, but utterly devastating in morale. This is the campaign that really broke the Iron Warriors, after decades of chafing at being handed dirty, thankless jobs.
We've heard about Perturabo's belief that the Emperor and the Imperium at large neglected him and his Legion, didn't appreciate them and used them poorly, but we never really saw why they might think that. It is one thing to be told they got bad tasks set for them, and another to truly experience how bad it could get. The Hammer of Olympia is that story that the setting, the Legion and the Primarch desperately needed. This is a vital tale to fully appreciate just what would motivate the Lord of Iron, previously shown as so enthusiastic in Graham McNeill's Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero , to break his oaths and side with Horus Lupercal. It does so marvelously.
Haley's writing of the Hrud and the way they defiend time and space reminded me of another novel of his, namely Champion of Mars ; I don't want to ruin the twist of that particular scifi adventure for you (though I will say that you should go out and read it, the Kindle edition on Amazon should go for about 3 bucks only and it was very well worth more than that), but there are certain parallels to be drawn. Haley is no stranger to timey-whimey topics and I felt that the whole theme was handled very competently.
Through Dantioch, we see the meat grinder itself, the Legion's doubts and misgivings, and the price Perturabo's sons had to pay for going against their lord's own arrogance and martyr complex. I honestly love that Haley got a chance to show this fallout, after the excellent job he did with the Warsmith in Pharos . Barabas Dantioch, ever since The Iron Within, has been one of my favorite characters in the franchise. The past two years have seen him a hero with a big legacy, so it felt satisfying to follow a younger Dantioch for a change.
On the other side, we get to see Perturabo's early days. We see him arrive at his foster father's court on Olympia, grow up with, if not really under, the Tyrant of Lochos. We see him achieve great marvels and defy culture and religion. We see him reshape his adopted home world, while growing stronger in mind and body. However, we also see him shaped by the court intrigue, the paranoia of Olympia's tyrants, the assassination attempts, the heathen beliefs of priests and demagogues. We see him butt heads with his father Dammekos, bond with his sister Calliphone, and grow ever more petulant, cynical, bitter and untrusting.
Perturabo grows up feeling appreciated only for his many talents, yet not really seen for what he truly is. He feels used and abused, despite all the status and fame thrown at him. He comes to despise many aspects of his home world, subjugating it while lacking the passion to really lead it himself. He thinks others fools, and even his sister, the one person he seems to bond with, cannot be fully trusted. He keeps looking for the stars and awaits the Emperor's arrival, neglecting his subjects in turn.
Things obviously go south before long, and if you've followed the Heresy for a while, you'll probably know how things end for Olympia. I found the final chapters dealing with the Primarch's return home to be hard-hitting, uncompromising and utterly suitable to express the Legion's fall from grace while also showing them as conflicted, complex creatures with broken spirits. The Lord of Iron let his heart grow hard and weary, and it shows on his Legion and their relationship with him.
There is an exchange towards the end, between Perturabo himself and his sister, which really hit a nerve and made me reflect on the Primarch and even myself:
The entire chapter and Perturabo's conversation with Calliphone are, in my eyes, the definitive exploration of Perturabo. Everything Haley built up throughout the novel, everything we've seen in the past, is boiled down and addressed in their argument in one shape or another. I cannot possibly express just how incredibly satisfying Guy managed to sketch the Lord of Iron in that chapter alone. Even without everything else in this book, that single chapter highlights the qualities and faults of the titular character better than anything else printed about him to date. It instills an understanding of the character that goes beyond what McNeill managed in Angel Exterminatus and turns Perturabo into simultaneously one of the most tragic figures of the franchise, but also one of the most damned and twisted. Haley understood Perturabo on a fundamental level that I can only applaud.
To be frank, this is one of the few books that made me feel utterly fulfilled. It ticked all the boxes I was hoping it would. There was brutal, uncompromising action, disastrous arrogance, tragedy in motion and a sense of fully fleshed out complexity about the titular character that every single novel in this Primarchs series should be striving for. The Hammer of Olympia reaffirmed once more just how spectacular an author Guy Haley is, in my opinion. He understood the Lord of Iron and all his disparate depictions and was fully able to knit them together in a wholly compelling rendition. Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia stands tall next to the best the Horus Heresy series has to offer.
Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia is the best Primarchs novel to date (or at least up to Lorgar, which recently dropped in a limited edition. I won't be reading that for a while). I feel like I'm repeating that with every book in the series, but here I can say without a doubt that Guy Haley moved me more than any of the previous authors managed to. Not just because it is a stellar, character-building novel about one of the most underappreciated Primarchs of the Heresy, but also because it struck home on a very personal level.
The novel is split into two plotlines which obviously relate to one another but still divided by almost two centuries. Both focus for the most part on Perturabo and draw different pictures of the Lord of Iron, without making the character's incarnations indistinguishable from one another.
The major plotline plays out just before the outbreak of the Horus Heresy, mere years before the disastrous betrayal at Isstvan. Perturabo and his Legion are throwing themselves into the meat grinder at the tail end of the Great Crusade, attempting to contain and exterminate a Hrud migration. I cannot remember if we ever actually saw Hrud in action in a Black Library novel - I kinda doubt it. This alien race existed for a long time, of course, and was even covered in the ancient lore tome Xenology, but the most we got was a throwaway reference here and there. The most recent examples I can think of are in fact the Horus Heresy stories featuring Barabas Dantioch, Warsmith of the Iron Warriors. Dantioch, to my delight, is a key figure in this novel, leading right up to The Iron Within by Rob Sanders from the Age of Darkness anthology.
The Hrud are a menace upon the galaxy. They don't function in the typical way beings of flesh and blood might - they distort time, travel through it and their weapons and mere presence produce warped fields that can turn humans to dust within moments, or age them for thousands of years. Fighting them proves not only a logistical nightmare, but utterly devastating in morale. This is the campaign that really broke the Iron Warriors, after decades of chafing at being handed dirty, thankless jobs.
We've heard about Perturabo's belief that the Emperor and the Imperium at large neglected him and his Legion, didn't appreciate them and used them poorly, but we never really saw why they might think that. It is one thing to be told they got bad tasks set for them, and another to truly experience how bad it could get. The Hammer of Olympia is that story that the setting, the Legion and the Primarch desperately needed. This is a vital tale to fully appreciate just what would motivate the Lord of Iron, previously shown as so enthusiastic in Graham McNeill's Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero , to break his oaths and side with Horus Lupercal. It does so marvelously.
Haley's writing of the Hrud and the way they defiend time and space reminded me of another novel of his, namely Champion of Mars ; I don't want to ruin the twist of that particular scifi adventure for you (though I will say that you should go out and read it, the Kindle edition on Amazon should go for about 3 bucks only and it was very well worth more than that), but there are certain parallels to be drawn. Haley is no stranger to timey-whimey topics and I felt that the whole theme was handled very competently.
Through Dantioch, we see the meat grinder itself, the Legion's doubts and misgivings, and the price Perturabo's sons had to pay for going against their lord's own arrogance and martyr complex. I honestly love that Haley got a chance to show this fallout, after the excellent job he did with the Warsmith in Pharos . Barabas Dantioch, ever since The Iron Within, has been one of my favorite characters in the franchise. The past two years have seen him a hero with a big legacy, so it felt satisfying to follow a younger Dantioch for a change.
On the other side, we get to see Perturabo's early days. We see him arrive at his foster father's court on Olympia, grow up with, if not really under, the Tyrant of Lochos. We see him achieve great marvels and defy culture and religion. We see him reshape his adopted home world, while growing stronger in mind and body. However, we also see him shaped by the court intrigue, the paranoia of Olympia's tyrants, the assassination attempts, the heathen beliefs of priests and demagogues. We see him butt heads with his father Dammekos, bond with his sister Calliphone, and grow ever more petulant, cynical, bitter and untrusting.
Perturabo grows up feeling appreciated only for his many talents, yet not really seen for what he truly is. He feels used and abused, despite all the status and fame thrown at him. He comes to despise many aspects of his home world, subjugating it while lacking the passion to really lead it himself. He thinks others fools, and even his sister, the one person he seems to bond with, cannot be fully trusted. He keeps looking for the stars and awaits the Emperor's arrival, neglecting his subjects in turn.
Things obviously go south before long, and if you've followed the Heresy for a while, you'll probably know how things end for Olympia. I found the final chapters dealing with the Primarch's return home to be hard-hitting, uncompromising and utterly suitable to express the Legion's fall from grace while also showing them as conflicted, complex creatures with broken spirits. The Lord of Iron let his heart grow hard and weary, and it shows on his Legion and their relationship with him.
There is an exchange towards the end, between Perturabo himself and his sister, which really hit a nerve and made me reflect on the Primarch and even myself:
"Always you do things the most difficult way, and in the most painful manner. You cultivate a martyr’s complex, lurching from man to man, holding out your bleeding wrists so they might see how you hurt yourself. You brood in the shadows when all you want to do is scream, 'Look at me!' You are too arrogant to win people over through effort. You expect people to notice you there in the half-darkness, and point and shout out, 'There! There is the great Perturabo! See how he labours without complaint!'"
The entire chapter and Perturabo's conversation with Calliphone are, in my eyes, the definitive exploration of Perturabo. Everything Haley built up throughout the novel, everything we've seen in the past, is boiled down and addressed in their argument in one shape or another. I cannot possibly express just how incredibly satisfying Guy managed to sketch the Lord of Iron in that chapter alone. Even without everything else in this book, that single chapter highlights the qualities and faults of the titular character better than anything else printed about him to date. It instills an understanding of the character that goes beyond what McNeill managed in Angel Exterminatus and turns Perturabo into simultaneously one of the most tragic figures of the franchise, but also one of the most damned and twisted. Haley understood Perturabo on a fundamental level that I can only applaud.
To be frank, this is one of the few books that made me feel utterly fulfilled. It ticked all the boxes I was hoping it would. There was brutal, uncompromising action, disastrous arrogance, tragedy in motion and a sense of fully fleshed out complexity about the titular character that every single novel in this Primarchs series should be striving for. The Hammer of Olympia reaffirmed once more just how spectacular an author Guy Haley is, in my opinion. He understood the Lord of Iron and all his disparate depictions and was fully able to knit them together in a wholly compelling rendition. Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia stands tall next to the best the Horus Heresy series has to offer.
August 7, 2017
This is the fourth book in the Horus Heresy: The Primarchs series. It will come as no surprise that I enjoyed this one as I have all of the books in this series so far. The story here is set to describe the Primarch of the Iron Warriors Chapter. He and his sons are entrenched in a vicious war against a xenos race know as the Hrud. These strange beings actually have a natural temporal anomaly field that comes from their unnatural molecular makeup that causes time to distort and bend near them. The more of them you have together, the stronger this field becomes. The Hrud weapons are also temporal in nature and have weird effects. Iron Warriors fall in close combat, withered and dead of old age, their armor and weapons corroding after just a few seconds when near this strange xenos threat.
And the war is not going well, at all...
The Emperor charged Perturabo and his legion with scouring a system of the Hrud and they are failing. They realize the folly of their actions when their devastating attacks and destruction of the Hrud forces an early migration of the creatures from one planet. This draws the Hrud fleet to the system and triggers yet another unbelievable event. The main Hrud city actually burrows out of the planet surface and is discovered to be a massive orbital lander, carrying the Hrud breeders and younglings to safety. Perturabo's fleet is then struck with the full force of the main temporal cannons of their warships, and more Iron Warriors and ships are lost. In fact, the Primarch himself barely escapes, by burning through one of his one legion ships to get away and clear the explosion of the planet torn apart with temporal radiation.
Soon after the decision is made to continue the crusade against the Hrud, a new event happens. Iron Warriors find the Primarch to deliver a stern bit of new. Olympia has left the Imperium. This is the homeworld of Perturabo and he immediately changes his plans and burns his whole fleet back to Olympia. When he gets there, the Regent of Olympia hears the complaints and arguments of both sides of the conflicts. Perturabo loses his temper and declares war on the humans of his homeworld. His legion takes to this with relish, killing one in ten to begin with, and any and all who resist. Women, children, no one is safe. It takes many days of this, including Perturabo destroying his own home city, whom he designed the defense for, before he is overwhelmed by his mistakes and kills his sister, who is trying to explain his temper and folly. She gets to him and wracks his soul and conscience with her final words before he crushes the life from her. This act causes the Iron Lord to falter and make him see the depths of his weakness and he stops the assault. This act also plants the seed within Perturabo, wherein he begins heretical thoughts and realizes that the Emperor has caused him to become what he is and the failures he has made were never realistic deeds to begin with. He was set up to fail, in his mind. His hearts turn to a darker path and the seeds sprout and grow, as the Horus Heresy later reveals...
This was a really fun read, and a unique insight into the Iron Lord. He really is a perfect, flawed creature and the words written here make it very evident. Mr. Haley is a really fine storyteller and the personality and depth he gives even to genetically modified superhumans is amazing. "Iron Within, Iron Without" this is the words of this legion and yet there is admirable quality amongst this legion. It made me sad, knowing how far they will far and how strong they were before becoming traitors. All together this one was a fantastic book and I cannot wait for the next one in October.
Danny
And the war is not going well, at all...
The Emperor charged Perturabo and his legion with scouring a system of the Hrud and they are failing. They realize the folly of their actions when their devastating attacks and destruction of the Hrud forces an early migration of the creatures from one planet. This draws the Hrud fleet to the system and triggers yet another unbelievable event. The main Hrud city actually burrows out of the planet surface and is discovered to be a massive orbital lander, carrying the Hrud breeders and younglings to safety. Perturabo's fleet is then struck with the full force of the main temporal cannons of their warships, and more Iron Warriors and ships are lost. In fact, the Primarch himself barely escapes, by burning through one of his one legion ships to get away and clear the explosion of the planet torn apart with temporal radiation.
Soon after the decision is made to continue the crusade against the Hrud, a new event happens. Iron Warriors find the Primarch to deliver a stern bit of new. Olympia has left the Imperium. This is the homeworld of Perturabo and he immediately changes his plans and burns his whole fleet back to Olympia. When he gets there, the Regent of Olympia hears the complaints and arguments of both sides of the conflicts. Perturabo loses his temper and declares war on the humans of his homeworld. His legion takes to this with relish, killing one in ten to begin with, and any and all who resist. Women, children, no one is safe. It takes many days of this, including Perturabo destroying his own home city, whom he designed the defense for, before he is overwhelmed by his mistakes and kills his sister, who is trying to explain his temper and folly. She gets to him and wracks his soul and conscience with her final words before he crushes the life from her. This act causes the Iron Lord to falter and make him see the depths of his weakness and he stops the assault. This act also plants the seed within Perturabo, wherein he begins heretical thoughts and realizes that the Emperor has caused him to become what he is and the failures he has made were never realistic deeds to begin with. He was set up to fail, in his mind. His hearts turn to a darker path and the seeds sprout and grow, as the Horus Heresy later reveals...
This was a really fun read, and a unique insight into the Iron Lord. He really is a perfect, flawed creature and the words written here make it very evident. Mr. Haley is a really fine storyteller and the personality and depth he gives even to genetically modified superhumans is amazing. "Iron Within, Iron Without" this is the words of this legion and yet there is admirable quality amongst this legion. It made me sad, knowing how far they will far and how strong they were before becoming traitors. All together this one was a fantastic book and I cannot wait for the next one in October.
Danny
October 24, 2017
Fascinating tale about one of my favourite Primarchs. Well worth checking out if you're a 40k fan.
June 9, 2022
Perturabo has always been one of the lesser underderstood characters in the 30k pantheon and this book goes a long way towards explaining why the Lord of Iron is the way he is.
Very enjoyable from start to finish. I really enjoyed the penultimate chapter and genuinely felt a bit sad for Perturabo.
Well done Mr Haley, I really hope your BL masters let you loose on another primarch soon.
Very enjoyable from start to finish. I really enjoyed the penultimate chapter and genuinely felt a bit sad for Perturabo.
Well done Mr Haley, I really hope your BL masters let you loose on another primarch soon.
May 8, 2017
Abbati, medico, patrono que intima pande
(Conceal not the truth from thy physician and lawyer)
Guy Haley is a proficient and talented author, who wrote quite a lot in his writing career. Richard and Klein, Railroad, shorts and standalone novels and a lot of AoS and W40K stories. Even a full Horus Heresy novel.
Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia is his second big foray into the time of Great Crusade/HH in M30-31K.
Let's point out something from the start - Primarch serie, which goes at the time and before the mainstream of Horus Heresy is a definite success for BL as a publisher. Partly due to the time it's start to sell. Partly due to the 'main' characters of each narrative.
I already reviewed all of the previous installments, which are quite different in ratings. From a truly boring and uninteresting Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar to a good Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero and amazing Leman Russ: The Great Wolf.
Guy Haley has a lot to prove with that novella sized novel. And he did - especially if he got one of the hardest jobs so far.
IV Legion Primarch suffered a lot through years under the writing pen. His character was written by a big range of BL authors. Each of them used this character as a staging stone in their own stories and showed him absolutely in different light. But what they all used as a constant - is that Perturabo is a petulant child with the complex issues of self-validation and grandeur. And that Lord of Iron in general is a sadist and impersonation of fury itself (sometimes even Angron could envy Perturabo's agression).
So Haley's job was not an easy one. And as a truly proficient writer he tried to do the best he can with what he got. But even through he tried to do best - result is a mixed bag of stones.
First of all I will mention that I'm not a big fan of Iron Warriors - mostly cause you can't be so unchangeable in your behavior and logic in a Galaxy of M30-31K. So I was patiently waiting will someone will give them justice in all their long road of HH and show true meaning to all their actions. So far - the best depiction of Perturabo was done by John French and partly by Graham McNeill. Partly - cause 'Angel Exterminatus' has more flaws than goods. And seems I will still be waiting further... Cause Haley failed with them (Not so profoundly as McNeil) but still - it is a failure.
Second - I was expecting to see the reason why let's say a rank legionary of IW Grand battalion live and breath. And... another failure.
Third - that's the first BL book in a long while which I was trying to read and finish for 9 days. And not because I was too busy (through I was) - but because it's missed something, a soul if you would say.
But let's dissect it the right way.
Plot/Narrative/Style
As BL synopsis said: "Born to a life of political conflict, Perturabo was always considered a child prodigy among the people of Olympia – indeed, his philosophical and scientific works were beyond compare. But then, after his rediscovery by the Emperor and decades of thankless military campaigning on the Great Crusade, the primarch begins to resent his Legion’s place in the Imperium. When word reaches him of turmoil on his adoptive home world, he orders the Iron Warriors to abandon their campaign against the alien hrud and crush this emerging rebellion by any means necessary..."
But it is much more. It is a war story and a story of regret. It is a story of one vengeful, spiteful curmudgeon, and how he sees himself very differently, as a misunderstood genius.
In general novella consists of 2 parts and addendum. 1 part is focusing on Perturabo during his youth on Olympia and should have shown us why he became that way. Second part focuses on his role and part in the Great Crusade and upon his return to the world that defined him. Addendum is a story from the eyes of one warsmith Barabas Dantioch and how he became the 'insolent' cripple in UE and Pharos.
Story progression is quite good and actions seen are definitely not bad. But where this novella shine - is actions about time-warping hrud (and not in a definitive look at what makes the master of iron tick).
That's the first time we truly saw how SM found one of the 'enemies' that are more efficient than the Emperors Legions themselves. And how sad that is - especially then we are shown that they are not even fighting - but simply running/migrating away.
There's a huge amount about the hrud in the novella (and probably the best parts of it) - not least a ground-breaking revelation about what their "migrations" actually are...
But through awesome they are they are replaced with events of Perturabo youth on Olympia and his logic behind prosecution of Olympia later on in Great Crusade. And it's here where all the interesting build up failed utterly flat.
Characters
Novella contain a lot of interesting secondary/main characters - the good old Triarchs of Iron Warriors, battalions commanders etc. But where Guy Haley truly shine - it then depicting a usual human beings. And his cohorts of Olympian characters is what makes the book alive. Dammekos, Adophus, Lord of Iron 'sister' from a tyrant side - they are real and they are what makes the novella truly ticks for the Perturabo character.
And here we have the main character of the novella - great Perturabo or let's say his egocentric logic. That's who is the main character of Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia. And thus I will go to the cons, cause they are truly and totally based on Perturabo's depiction.
Cons
Let be honest - Perturabo always was a petulant ego-maniac. Guy Haley tried to make Lord of Iron feel sympathetic (not empathetic! important distinction). But sadly - he failed in that. Partly it's not his fault - IV Legion Primarch was ruined by different authors before him. Each of them tried to do justice to his character. Instead they are totally ruined his personality.
There are a lot of points in his life where you can see he easily could have been different. Or where him being a 'giant jerk' wouldn't have mattered as much, because being a 'giant jerk' is part of the whole "intergalactic warlord" job description.
What are the real reasons for him to snapped and be so full of loathing and hate? Olympia showed him kindness, Dammekos always said 'how great he was' - instead even upon first meeting for his 'step-father' roaring maelstorm in Perturabo's head declared him a liar.
Even being a boy he made assumptions which he validate as a constant of a universe. In regards to how he felt about Olympians, he just knew he wasn't one of them from the beginning and was made for bigger things. AS a result - he never made any deep connections, he used them as tools to and then dispose of them, then they had served their purpose.
A lot of IW fans will tell you that among all the Primarchs, nobody embodies the weariness, the meat grinder aspect of the Great Crusade, quite like Perturabo. Many may lament it, but most still accept their lot in it. Perturabo chafed at it, always. His talents didn't just serve to tear down fortresses, but also his own character and Legion. Instead of uniting it and making something greater.
Just look at Perturabo behavior with failures, even he was the reason for them:
«Dantioch did not like the bitterness of this statement. 'Then perhaps, my lord, it is your mistake in persisting with this campaign in the face of all available information.»
He simply can't fathom that he could be wrong:
«Stone and iron decayed, everything decayed, but the rapidity with which the human body ceased good function and began to collapse offended his sense of order. Humanity was, in many ways, despicable 'Others have suffered the same fate and yet they fulfill the orders given them,' said the Primarch. 'You were told to hold the straits. You did not.»
If I had the father like him - I would have rebelled after the first year. You can't follow a cruel king who kills for any fault or on his mood whim. How many legionaries have rebelled - we simply don't know. His own Legion 'loves' and hates him:
«Dogma is no substitute for wisdom...' Try telling that to our primarch,' said Zolan».
But Perturabo himself view them as expendable meat (through author tried to show it from a better view - but failed in that):
«Perturabo gave no thanks or valedictory words to his captain. He expected his warriors to die for him without question».
And through his IW SM are ready to die for him (again - totally unexplained why. Reasoning he is our Primarch totally doesn't work here - cause he is a sadistic tyrant) rank and file humans in his fleet is another matter. Why nobody ran to Terra to tell the Emperor how his son butcher everyone who displeases him? Why they simply does not rebelled against him - his own serfs?
Through it's much better than how he views everyone else - with a sense of totally insane 'honor':
«Death is the greatest peace of all,' said Perturabo. 'Unending and total. I prefer other lands, but I can give you death's peace, if that is the peace you would prefer.»
And biggest Perturabo issue of all is his desire to 'drown the shame this news brought in blood'. Sometimes like half of all the Perturabo appearances in different shorts, novellas, novels he is more mad with rage and bloodthirsty than Angron himself. To be honest - Angron seems more sane than Lord of Iron with all his 'cold logic' most of the times.
The problem of Perturabo as a character, a being, a warlord and a Primarch probably best shown through his dialog with his step-sister during a decimation of Olympia.
As his 'sister' said:
«Bo, a tomb lord. You cannot achieve the impossible so you rage like a child, and now you have unleashed this horror upon us because you can accept no compromise... You waste your men to prove a point that needs no proof, and then grow angry when no one notices and praises your self-sacrifice. Your petulance has cost this planet whole generation of youth...»
And that's the first and biggest truth ever said to the Primarch. Because that's exactly who Perturabo is. In all his errors, in all his flaws, in all his issues - he is a perpetrator. And all of it is overshadowed by his dogmatic view of the Master of Mankind and the Galaxy.
«The Emperor of Mankind makes no mistakes!' shouted Perturabo. He powered to his feet, towering over the ruined warsmith. 'His plans are flawless - how could it be any other way?»
Which eventually leads to absolutely errored and horribly wrong deduction:
«This pointless, ruinous campaign was the fault of the Emperor's vanity.»
As his sister said - maybe he was given he hardest tasks cause he was able to overcome everything?
Or maybe if Horus weren't the Warmaster, forcing Primarchs into his own camp by exploiting their flaws. In Perty's case, knowingly sending him against threats like the Hrud that are obviously not going to work out well with Perturabo's approach to war. I think Horus was doing that before he even knew he wanted to rebel against the Emperor, too. Just manipulating things his way out of pride and vanity.
And thus that leads us to the greatest tragedy of the Iron Warriors. It wasn't the perfidious influence of Chaos or anything that broke them. Just years and century of thankless grinding and a perfect storm of cultural circumstances. It's at least a little heart-breaking to see the Perturabo from Magnus, where he seems confident and wise and the Great Crusade is a fresh thing to believe in for him, and to compare that to the Perturabo by the end of this novel.
Score
Guy Haley did tried to make a whole and believable Lord of Iron personality from all the previous shards which were left by his predecessors.
And for that only he deserves respect and fans appreciation.
But in general, as I said before - he was able to create a vengeful, spiteful curmudgeon, who he sees himself very differently, as a misunderstood genius.
I will rate it as 4 out of 5 stars (through I was going to give it 3 due to really hard road while reading it) - cause hrud, last chapters dialogs and Perturabo egocentric horribly direct bluntness saved the story for me.
I think if Guy Haley was able to least partly save Lord of Iron 'depiction', he would be one of the best candidates to write a Mortarion Primarch novella.
(Conceal not the truth from thy physician and lawyer)
Guy Haley is a proficient and talented author, who wrote quite a lot in his writing career. Richard and Klein, Railroad, shorts and standalone novels and a lot of AoS and W40K stories. Even a full Horus Heresy novel.
Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia is his second big foray into the time of Great Crusade/HH in M30-31K.
Let's point out something from the start - Primarch serie, which goes at the time and before the mainstream of Horus Heresy is a definite success for BL as a publisher. Partly due to the time it's start to sell. Partly due to the 'main' characters of each narrative.
I already reviewed all of the previous installments, which are quite different in ratings. From a truly boring and uninteresting Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar to a good Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero and amazing Leman Russ: The Great Wolf.
Guy Haley has a lot to prove with that novella sized novel. And he did - especially if he got one of the hardest jobs so far.
IV Legion Primarch suffered a lot through years under the writing pen. His character was written by a big range of BL authors. Each of them used this character as a staging stone in their own stories and showed him absolutely in different light. But what they all used as a constant - is that Perturabo is a petulant child with the complex issues of self-validation and grandeur. And that Lord of Iron in general is a sadist and impersonation of fury itself (sometimes even Angron could envy Perturabo's agression).
So Haley's job was not an easy one. And as a truly proficient writer he tried to do the best he can with what he got. But even through he tried to do best - result is a mixed bag of stones.
First of all I will mention that I'm not a big fan of Iron Warriors - mostly cause you can't be so unchangeable in your behavior and logic in a Galaxy of M30-31K. So I was patiently waiting will someone will give them justice in all their long road of HH and show true meaning to all their actions. So far - the best depiction of Perturabo was done by John French and partly by Graham McNeill. Partly - cause 'Angel Exterminatus' has more flaws than goods. And seems I will still be waiting further... Cause Haley failed with them (Not so profoundly as McNeil) but still - it is a failure.
Second - I was expecting to see the reason why let's say a rank legionary of IW Grand battalion live and breath. And... another failure.
Third - that's the first BL book in a long while which I was trying to read and finish for 9 days. And not because I was too busy (through I was) - but because it's missed something, a soul if you would say.
But let's dissect it the right way.
Plot/Narrative/Style
As BL synopsis said: "Born to a life of political conflict, Perturabo was always considered a child prodigy among the people of Olympia – indeed, his philosophical and scientific works were beyond compare. But then, after his rediscovery by the Emperor and decades of thankless military campaigning on the Great Crusade, the primarch begins to resent his Legion’s place in the Imperium. When word reaches him of turmoil on his adoptive home world, he orders the Iron Warriors to abandon their campaign against the alien hrud and crush this emerging rebellion by any means necessary..."
But it is much more. It is a war story and a story of regret. It is a story of one vengeful, spiteful curmudgeon, and how he sees himself very differently, as a misunderstood genius.
In general novella consists of 2 parts and addendum. 1 part is focusing on Perturabo during his youth on Olympia and should have shown us why he became that way. Second part focuses on his role and part in the Great Crusade and upon his return to the world that defined him. Addendum is a story from the eyes of one warsmith Barabas Dantioch and how he became the 'insolent' cripple in UE and Pharos.
Story progression is quite good and actions seen are definitely not bad. But where this novella shine - is actions about time-warping hrud (and not in a definitive look at what makes the master of iron tick).
That's the first time we truly saw how SM found one of the 'enemies' that are more efficient than the Emperors Legions themselves. And how sad that is - especially then we are shown that they are not even fighting - but simply running/migrating away.
There's a huge amount about the hrud in the novella (and probably the best parts of it) - not least a ground-breaking revelation about what their "migrations" actually are...
But through awesome they are they are replaced with events of Perturabo youth on Olympia and his logic behind prosecution of Olympia later on in Great Crusade. And it's here where all the interesting build up failed utterly flat.
Characters
Novella contain a lot of interesting secondary/main characters - the good old Triarchs of Iron Warriors, battalions commanders etc. But where Guy Haley truly shine - it then depicting a usual human beings. And his cohorts of Olympian characters is what makes the book alive. Dammekos, Adophus, Lord of Iron 'sister' from a tyrant side - they are real and they are what makes the novella truly ticks for the Perturabo character.
And here we have the main character of the novella - great Perturabo or let's say his egocentric logic. That's who is the main character of Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia. And thus I will go to the cons, cause they are truly and totally based on Perturabo's depiction.
Cons
Let be honest - Perturabo always was a petulant ego-maniac. Guy Haley tried to make Lord of Iron feel sympathetic (not empathetic! important distinction). But sadly - he failed in that. Partly it's not his fault - IV Legion Primarch was ruined by different authors before him. Each of them tried to do justice to his character. Instead they are totally ruined his personality.
There are a lot of points in his life where you can see he easily could have been different. Or where him being a 'giant jerk' wouldn't have mattered as much, because being a 'giant jerk' is part of the whole "intergalactic warlord" job description.
What are the real reasons for him to snapped and be so full of loathing and hate? Olympia showed him kindness, Dammekos always said 'how great he was' - instead even upon first meeting for his 'step-father' roaring maelstorm in Perturabo's head declared him a liar.
Even being a boy he made assumptions which he validate as a constant of a universe. In regards to how he felt about Olympians, he just knew he wasn't one of them from the beginning and was made for bigger things. AS a result - he never made any deep connections, he used them as tools to and then dispose of them, then they had served their purpose.
A lot of IW fans will tell you that among all the Primarchs, nobody embodies the weariness, the meat grinder aspect of the Great Crusade, quite like Perturabo. Many may lament it, but most still accept their lot in it. Perturabo chafed at it, always. His talents didn't just serve to tear down fortresses, but also his own character and Legion. Instead of uniting it and making something greater.
Just look at Perturabo behavior with failures, even he was the reason for them:
«Dantioch did not like the bitterness of this statement. 'Then perhaps, my lord, it is your mistake in persisting with this campaign in the face of all available information.»
He simply can't fathom that he could be wrong:
«Stone and iron decayed, everything decayed, but the rapidity with which the human body ceased good function and began to collapse offended his sense of order. Humanity was, in many ways, despicable 'Others have suffered the same fate and yet they fulfill the orders given them,' said the Primarch. 'You were told to hold the straits. You did not.»
If I had the father like him - I would have rebelled after the first year. You can't follow a cruel king who kills for any fault or on his mood whim. How many legionaries have rebelled - we simply don't know. His own Legion 'loves' and hates him:
«Dogma is no substitute for wisdom...' Try telling that to our primarch,' said Zolan».
But Perturabo himself view them as expendable meat (through author tried to show it from a better view - but failed in that):
«Perturabo gave no thanks or valedictory words to his captain. He expected his warriors to die for him without question».
And through his IW SM are ready to die for him (again - totally unexplained why. Reasoning he is our Primarch totally doesn't work here - cause he is a sadistic tyrant) rank and file humans in his fleet is another matter. Why nobody ran to Terra to tell the Emperor how his son butcher everyone who displeases him? Why they simply does not rebelled against him - his own serfs?
Through it's much better than how he views everyone else - with a sense of totally insane 'honor':
«Death is the greatest peace of all,' said Perturabo. 'Unending and total. I prefer other lands, but I can give you death's peace, if that is the peace you would prefer.»
And biggest Perturabo issue of all is his desire to 'drown the shame this news brought in blood'. Sometimes like half of all the Perturabo appearances in different shorts, novellas, novels he is more mad with rage and bloodthirsty than Angron himself. To be honest - Angron seems more sane than Lord of Iron with all his 'cold logic' most of the times.
The problem of Perturabo as a character, a being, a warlord and a Primarch probably best shown through his dialog with his step-sister during a decimation of Olympia.
As his 'sister' said:
«Bo, a tomb lord. You cannot achieve the impossible so you rage like a child, and now you have unleashed this horror upon us because you can accept no compromise... You waste your men to prove a point that needs no proof, and then grow angry when no one notices and praises your self-sacrifice. Your petulance has cost this planet whole generation of youth...»
And that's the first and biggest truth ever said to the Primarch. Because that's exactly who Perturabo is. In all his errors, in all his flaws, in all his issues - he is a perpetrator. And all of it is overshadowed by his dogmatic view of the Master of Mankind and the Galaxy.
«The Emperor of Mankind makes no mistakes!' shouted Perturabo. He powered to his feet, towering over the ruined warsmith. 'His plans are flawless - how could it be any other way?»
Which eventually leads to absolutely errored and horribly wrong deduction:
«This pointless, ruinous campaign was the fault of the Emperor's vanity.»
As his sister said - maybe he was given he hardest tasks cause he was able to overcome everything?
Or maybe if Horus weren't the Warmaster, forcing Primarchs into his own camp by exploiting their flaws. In Perty's case, knowingly sending him against threats like the Hrud that are obviously not going to work out well with Perturabo's approach to war. I think Horus was doing that before he even knew he wanted to rebel against the Emperor, too. Just manipulating things his way out of pride and vanity.
And thus that leads us to the greatest tragedy of the Iron Warriors. It wasn't the perfidious influence of Chaos or anything that broke them. Just years and century of thankless grinding and a perfect storm of cultural circumstances. It's at least a little heart-breaking to see the Perturabo from Magnus, where he seems confident and wise and the Great Crusade is a fresh thing to believe in for him, and to compare that to the Perturabo by the end of this novel.
Score
Guy Haley did tried to make a whole and believable Lord of Iron personality from all the previous shards which were left by his predecessors.
And for that only he deserves respect and fans appreciation.
But in general, as I said before - he was able to create a vengeful, spiteful curmudgeon, who he sees himself very differently, as a misunderstood genius.
I will rate it as 4 out of 5 stars (through I was going to give it 3 due to really hard road while reading it) - cause hrud, last chapters dialogs and Perturabo egocentric horribly direct bluntness saved the story for me.
I think if Guy Haley was able to least partly save Lord of Iron 'depiction', he would be one of the best candidates to write a Mortarion Primarch novella.
February 22, 2024
February 2024 Read as additional for the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order - Omnibus IV Shattersong (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy saga and extras.
This is my sixth Primarchs novel and all the many (actual details at the bottom) Horus Heresy works I've read and listened to so far and this is by far the one I have *enjoyed* the most, standing above the brilliant Master of Prospero (the most alike in covering elements that are of major significance within the main series), the absolutely solid Palatine Phoenix, and bloody, slowburn, and eventual sobworthy Great Wolf, and towering over Lord of Ultramar and Bearer of the Word. In fact (and this isn't an original thought by any means), Hammer of Olympia is unlike its siblings in the fact that it contains essential plot and character evolution for Perturabo in the main series. Yes, the events and experiences each Primarch faces in their entry into this this series shows something that shapes and/ or illuminates aspects of their personality that deepens our understanding of them...that's the premise of the side series and kinda essential for the stories, but the events portrayed here are as essential as the two major plot points of The Dark King for Nighthaunter.
I would actually go one further and say that this is actually a Horus Heresy main series novel, being the Lord of Iron's Fulgrim (2007), and if this was written before Angel Exterminatus (2012) it absolutely would have been.
This is the heartbreaking story of how Perturabo the idealistic architect was reforged into a warrior, before his brutal quenching exposed the cracks in his edge, even as it was hardened into a tragic tyrant.
The novel follows a number of timelines and perspectives it handles well. I was only confused listening to the audiobook when one Perturabo storyline ended and it jumped to another one. In the past we see the young, amnesiac Primarch displaying his innate sense of self, skill, and views, despite knowing nothing but his name, as he is adopted by a Tyrant and exploited as a curiosity, while in the present of the novel Dantioc his company defending what appear to be unpopulated and unimportant worlds from the lesser-spotted Xenos faction, the Hrud (https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Hrud), who share a great number of similarities with the Mimics from Live Die Repeat (the infinitely better alternative title of Edge of Tomorrow) and All You Need Is Kill on which it is based, to the point where I do wonder if the Hrud were an inspiration. This storyline then becomes that of the previously only referenced as an off screen event, the genocide of Olympia.
The writing is phenemonal throughout, wonderfully brought to life by Jonathan Keeble in the audiobook, with a great mix of action, which against the Hrud is very different and strange, Legion interactions, Perturabo's backstory, and the ultimate tragedy of what they become. The events at the end are appropriately harrowing, while not becoming gratuitous, showing the horrors being committed, but focusing on the discomfort a d discord between Iron Warriors.
There are many things have brought tears to my eyes during ym reading of the Horus Heresy, but this book contained the first time I got choked up because someone was being so mean and unfair. Some people haven't seen that episode of Stargate SG-1 with the beach and Roman stuff (I think?) and it shows.
All in all this is a cracking Horus Heresy novel, which makes it and stupendous Primarchs one!
Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 10 Horus Heresy novels, 5 novellas, 18 short stories/ audio dramas, as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 6 Primarchs novels, 3 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.
This is my sixth Primarchs novel and all the many (actual details at the bottom) Horus Heresy works I've read and listened to so far and this is by far the one I have *enjoyed* the most, standing above the brilliant Master of Prospero (the most alike in covering elements that are of major significance within the main series), the absolutely solid Palatine Phoenix, and bloody, slowburn, and eventual sobworthy Great Wolf, and towering over Lord of Ultramar and Bearer of the Word. In fact (and this isn't an original thought by any means), Hammer of Olympia is unlike its siblings in the fact that it contains essential plot and character evolution for Perturabo in the main series. Yes, the events and experiences each Primarch faces in their entry into this this series shows something that shapes and/ or illuminates aspects of their personality that deepens our understanding of them...that's the premise of the side series and kinda essential for the stories, but the events portrayed here are as essential as the two major plot points of The Dark King for Nighthaunter.
I would actually go one further and say that this is actually a Horus Heresy main series novel, being the Lord of Iron's Fulgrim (2007), and if this was written before Angel Exterminatus (2012) it absolutely would have been.
This is the heartbreaking story of how Perturabo the idealistic architect was reforged into a warrior, before his brutal quenching exposed the cracks in his edge, even as it was hardened into a tragic tyrant.
The novel follows a number of timelines and perspectives it handles well. I was only confused listening to the audiobook when one Perturabo storyline ended and it jumped to another one. In the past we see the young, amnesiac Primarch displaying his innate sense of self, skill, and views, despite knowing nothing but his name, as he is adopted by a Tyrant and exploited as a curiosity, while in the present of the novel Dantioc his company defending what appear to be unpopulated and unimportant worlds from the lesser-spotted Xenos faction, the Hrud (https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Hrud), who share a great number of similarities with the Mimics from Live Die Repeat (the infinitely better alternative title of Edge of Tomorrow) and All You Need Is Kill on which it is based, to the point where I do wonder if the Hrud were an inspiration. This storyline then becomes that of the previously only referenced as an off screen event, the genocide of Olympia.
The writing is phenemonal throughout, wonderfully brought to life by Jonathan Keeble in the audiobook, with a great mix of action, which against the Hrud is very different and strange, Legion interactions, Perturabo's backstory, and the ultimate tragedy of what they become. The events at the end are appropriately harrowing, while not becoming gratuitous, showing the horrors being committed, but focusing on the discomfort a d discord between Iron Warriors.
There are many things have brought tears to my eyes during ym reading of the Horus Heresy, but this book contained the first time I got choked up because someone was being so mean and unfair. Some people haven't seen that episode of Stargate SG-1 with the beach and Roman stuff (I think?) and it shows.
All in all this is a cracking Horus Heresy novel, which makes it and stupendous Primarchs one!
Through using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project (www.heresyomnibus.com) and my own choices, I have currently read 10 Horus Heresy novels, 5 novellas, 18 short stories/ audio dramas, as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, 6 Primarchs novels, 3 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.
July 29, 2017
After reading the Iron Warriors Omnibus, which admittedly was fantastic, Perturabo: Hammer of Olympia became a must-read for me. Luckily, it did not disappoint! Guy Haley delivers an exciting story centered around one of the more interesting Primarchs.
Let's start with the pro's. Well, it is downright a well-written novel. I never found myself yawning out of boredom, and there weren't any significant dips in the story. It's also very concise and focused, which should be unsurprising considering it is a mere two-hundred or so pages. As far as the indomitable Lord of Iron (Perturabo) goes, I won't go into detail, but rest assured that Haley gives us a fully developed character. Actually, despite the brevity of the book, there are a handful of intriguing characters.
Now, as far as con's go, there is one central issue. It's a fairly short read. As a result, there isn't much development for most minor characters and battles do feel rushed. Don't come into this novel expecting rich battles, such as what can be read in "Corax: Nevermore" by Gav Thorpe, because you'll find none. Ontop of that, none of the Iron Warriors themselves get much time to shine either.
All-in-all though, I highly recommend this read, and is a good place to start before going into the Iron Warriors: Omnibus. I'd give it a 4.5/5
Let's start with the pro's. Well, it is downright a well-written novel. I never found myself yawning out of boredom, and there weren't any significant dips in the story. It's also very concise and focused, which should be unsurprising considering it is a mere two-hundred or so pages. As far as the indomitable Lord of Iron (Perturabo) goes, I won't go into detail, but rest assured that Haley gives us a fully developed character. Actually, despite the brevity of the book, there are a handful of intriguing characters.
Now, as far as con's go, there is one central issue. It's a fairly short read. As a result, there isn't much development for most minor characters and battles do feel rushed. Don't come into this novel expecting rich battles, such as what can be read in "Corax: Nevermore" by Gav Thorpe, because you'll find none. Ontop of that, none of the Iron Warriors themselves get much time to shine either.
All-in-all though, I highly recommend this read, and is a good place to start before going into the Iron Warriors: Omnibus. I'd give it a 4.5/5
June 9, 2017
I love the Primarch series and this is another excellent entry. I didn't know much about the Iron Warriors or their primarch, Perturabo, before reading this book. Now, though, I feel like I understand more clearly their actions during the rebellion.
The story jumps back and forth in terms of reference points, and I like that. It allows the main character to be fleshed out and made me much more interested in the story overall.
The only thing that prevents this work from being a 5-star is that there is a huge main plot point that kind of just ends for no reason and with no conclusion. Otherwise, another exceptional work from the talent at Black Library.
The story jumps back and forth in terms of reference points, and I like that. It allows the main character to be fleshed out and made me much more interested in the story overall.
The only thing that prevents this work from being a 5-star is that there is a huge main plot point that kind of just ends for no reason and with no conclusion. Otherwise, another exceptional work from the talent at Black Library.
October 16, 2020
If good reads gave half stars this would be a three and a half for me, but as I have to decide between 3 & 4 I am going three as it took a very long build before reaching the payoff, which was a good payoff.
This character is incredible, and I see why people think of him as one of the best of the Primarchs, sadly he is underdeveloped emotionally, which the Emperor neglected in his release of him upon the Imperium sadly. This drives home that the Emperor sees Primarchs as flawed warlords to use for a purpose rather than sons to elevate.
Overall a good work well worth reading,
This character is incredible, and I see why people think of him as one of the best of the Primarchs, sadly he is underdeveloped emotionally, which the Emperor neglected in his release of him upon the Imperium sadly. This drives home that the Emperor sees Primarchs as flawed warlords to use for a purpose rather than sons to elevate.
Overall a good work well worth reading,
March 19, 2025
I can’t say this is anything other than your prototypical warhammer book, I know this is not the series to want this but I’d love to have this book to only flesh out the character I don’t care about the Hrud or “bolterporn” the author seemed to want to flesh out a bit more of perturbao but either couldn’t or wouldn’t. So again a good warhammer book but as usual leaves me wanting more.
January 15, 2024
Great Book. Loved the ending especially. Bit too long middle part imo.
January 9, 2022
I have written before that the Warhammer 40k universe tends to paint its emotions in primary colours. Creatures performing superhuman feats that reflect them super-feeling about something. Subtle as a sledge... ...warhammer, to crowbar in a reference.
So when I read about Perturabo being the best of the Primarch series, I get it. We have a demi-god whose response to a setback is to literally crush the shoulders of the bearer of bad news and break his spine over a gigantic armoured knee. When Perturabo requests the presence of a subordinate with this line immediately after:
"Tell him he has nothing to fear."
...you are not going to miss the implicit menace. Perturabo can brood on this pointless war and bear grudges that could outlive mountains. His subordinates are left bereft over some mean words. Philosophical conversations are backhanders towards Aristotelian classification or a faithful reproduction of Plato’s allegory of the cave, with Perturabo proclaiming he is the sun as a punchline.
Quite Brown
I am mostly fine with this approach as I generally struggle to discern different shades of grey. However, it can tend towards hamfistedness. Perturabo’s adopted sister barely rises above the Shakespearean fool with resort to theatrical lines:
"You cultivate a martyr's complex, lurching from man to man, holding out your bleeding wrists so they might see how you hurt yourself."
The point is that Perturabo is an asshole. His sister actually gets a good (if heavy) line about that:
"Comparing yourself to the worst of your brothers to excuse the enormity of your own crimes."
…which reads as more insightful than Perturabo’s reflection that windows were a vanity.
There are a number of interesting reasons why Perturabo is an asshole but they all lead to him being an asshole. There is a limit to how far you can flesh out why someone is an asshole, which has tended to result in Perturabo’s portrayal leaning towards whingey. I guess brown is not a primary colour, but it is pretty strongly painted.
Fluidly Brown
Contra to several reviews, I favour the parts of Perturabo where his Iron Warriors face off against the alien hrud. His homeworld of Olympia is just a canvas on which Perturabo paints with his (emotional) asshole. It does little else but suffer his tantrums. The hrud are a force Perturabo must work to find an advantage over, only to have the hrud counter his actions. It is a more dynamic setting where suffering is not just self-generated by Perturabo being an… …asshole.
At the conclusion, Haley does hit it out of the park. Perturabo meets his true father the God-Emperor of Mankind. While the book is not a masterpiece of subtlety, or really anything other than people raising their voices alot, the consistency of the emotions lends weight to that meeting. The meeting sits between the main two plots in the novella so we know what Perturabo wants, and what he eventually gets. His father’s words therefore carry a poignant pang to them. The effect is that the book feeds naturally to the conclusion, even if it is out of chronological sequence.
I think saying Perturabo is the best of the Primarch series is too far. The subversion of painting in primary colours is better done in Angron: Slave of Nuceria . A sense of shade is introduced in the epilogue of Leman Russ . Hubris with the foreshadowing of tragedy is more impactful in Magnus the Red (albeit that book’s portrayal of Perturabo is inferior).
I wonder if Perturabo gets credit for conforming to the expectations that the Primarch series would be closer to origin stories for each. And it is good, I like it, but I don’t think that format is absolutely necessary to get the points across. Nonetheless:
'I am as proud if you as I am of any of my children.'
Don’t tell my daughter that.
So when I read about Perturabo being the best of the Primarch series, I get it. We have a demi-god whose response to a setback is to literally crush the shoulders of the bearer of bad news and break his spine over a gigantic armoured knee. When Perturabo requests the presence of a subordinate with this line immediately after:
"Tell him he has nothing to fear."
...you are not going to miss the implicit menace. Perturabo can brood on this pointless war and bear grudges that could outlive mountains. His subordinates are left bereft over some mean words. Philosophical conversations are backhanders towards Aristotelian classification or a faithful reproduction of Plato’s allegory of the cave, with Perturabo proclaiming he is the sun as a punchline.
Quite Brown
I am mostly fine with this approach as I generally struggle to discern different shades of grey. However, it can tend towards hamfistedness. Perturabo’s adopted sister barely rises above the Shakespearean fool with resort to theatrical lines:
"You cultivate a martyr's complex, lurching from man to man, holding out your bleeding wrists so they might see how you hurt yourself."
The point is that Perturabo is an asshole. His sister actually gets a good (if heavy) line about that:
"Comparing yourself to the worst of your brothers to excuse the enormity of your own crimes."
…which reads as more insightful than Perturabo’s reflection that windows were a vanity.
There are a number of interesting reasons why Perturabo is an asshole but they all lead to him being an asshole. There is a limit to how far you can flesh out why someone is an asshole, which has tended to result in Perturabo’s portrayal leaning towards whingey. I guess brown is not a primary colour, but it is pretty strongly painted.
Fluidly Brown
Contra to several reviews, I favour the parts of Perturabo where his Iron Warriors face off against the alien hrud. His homeworld of Olympia is just a canvas on which Perturabo paints with his (emotional) asshole. It does little else but suffer his tantrums. The hrud are a force Perturabo must work to find an advantage over, only to have the hrud counter his actions. It is a more dynamic setting where suffering is not just self-generated by Perturabo being an… …asshole.
At the conclusion, Haley does hit it out of the park. Perturabo meets his true father the God-Emperor of Mankind. While the book is not a masterpiece of subtlety, or really anything other than people raising their voices alot, the consistency of the emotions lends weight to that meeting. The meeting sits between the main two plots in the novella so we know what Perturabo wants, and what he eventually gets. His father’s words therefore carry a poignant pang to them. The effect is that the book feeds naturally to the conclusion, even if it is out of chronological sequence.
I think saying Perturabo is the best of the Primarch series is too far. The subversion of painting in primary colours is better done in Angron: Slave of Nuceria . A sense of shade is introduced in the epilogue of Leman Russ . Hubris with the foreshadowing of tragedy is more impactful in Magnus the Red (albeit that book’s portrayal of Perturabo is inferior).
I wonder if Perturabo gets credit for conforming to the expectations that the Primarch series would be closer to origin stories for each. And it is good, I like it, but I don’t think that format is absolutely necessary to get the points across. Nonetheless:
'I am as proud if you as I am of any of my children.'
Don’t tell my daughter that.
May 16, 2019
If you’re at all interested in Perturabo, this is the book to read! A brilliant but flawed character, logical and rational in all things but not wise enough to see his own failings and realise that the praise and love he views as weak are the things he seeks most of all.
December 5, 2023
-
I’m not of fan of 40k and only read this because of memes on Perturabo. This is my first book of the series.
In short, I’m unimpressed by it, but I guess it’s passable for the fans - again, I’ve nothing to compare with this. By itself this book is boring and unworthy of your time.
“Deep analysis” and several bullet points of my disappointment. Toxicity in plenty below, fans are strongly discouraged from reading any further. SPOILERS ahead.
Poor character design
Perturabo is all-in rationalist, he believes in no gods or other “unsubstantiated guesses”, but when in comes to his notion of “Black Judges” and his long-absent stellar father, he himself makes unsubstantiated assumptions with straight face and with no facts supporting him whatsoever. Perturabo even uses Pascal’s argument in dialogue with his step-sister, i.e “we can not know for sure, but we better act as if all of this is true and there’re indeed aggressive alien entities out there.” Inconsistent, eh?
//For me it’s not obvious at all what is main character’s drives, what is his grand scheme? To better life of his subject through technology and conquest? Please! He makes machines, yes, and he exploits them, he’s an engineer, and he also treats people as machines… But this is his gimmick, not his dragon to slay. That’s just a way he is, not his goal.
Also, what is his deal with AdMech? It’s said that he despises them for mutilating their bodies with implants…. And yet the same character later on despises the weakness and ineffectiveness of ageing human flesh! What’s his problem?
One time he’s cold calculating demigod, and in the next moment he breaks tantrum and murders his subordinates like your typical Disney villain.
Except maybe for his notion of “greater good” and omnipresent desire to be toxic unbearable piece of a person, I have no clue on what motivates him. Tool has no motivation if it’s own, and Perturabo is clearly that - a tool.
Bolter-corn. Now, it’s not a problem of the book, rather just my subjective preferences. All battle scenes in their meticulous details - were extremely boring to read. Boring generic characters, as from cheap first-person shooting game, facing yet another unnamable alien threat with absent modus operandi - they’re just out there, being alien, nasty and time-warping, all cowered in (for Pete’s sake!) in filthy rags. I mean, for sure, it shows vanity of conflict and all-grinding stubbornness of Iron Warriors and their primarch, but I, the reader, am not from Iron Warriors legion, so why should I overcome such graphomania? I hope that paycheck was sufficient to cover author’s suffering - if even there was an author at all, because sometimes it feels like AI generated text.
Poor world building. No info given about Perturabo’s homeworld. Sure, they’re all cosplaying ancient Greeks with their city-states, but almost no hints given on their societal structure, religion, even governing system! It’s all bleak. Why should I be interested in this society and genocide that it suffers in epilogue? I know to little about it to care. Yet again, it’s not a feature, just laziness and graphomania.
Summarising, up to finale I’m unable to empathise with Perturabo (‘cause he’s an a****le of epic proportion), with his people and with his (absent) cause.
I’m not of fan of 40k and only read this because of memes on Perturabo. This is my first book of the series.
In short, I’m unimpressed by it, but I guess it’s passable for the fans - again, I’ve nothing to compare with this. By itself this book is boring and unworthy of your time.
“Deep analysis” and several bullet points of my disappointment. Toxicity in plenty below, fans are strongly discouraged from reading any further. SPOILERS ahead.
Poor character design
Perturabo is all-in rationalist, he believes in no gods or other “unsubstantiated guesses”, but when in comes to his notion of “Black Judges” and his long-absent stellar father, he himself makes unsubstantiated assumptions with straight face and with no facts supporting him whatsoever. Perturabo even uses Pascal’s argument in dialogue with his step-sister, i.e “we can not know for sure, but we better act as if all of this is true and there’re indeed aggressive alien entities out there.” Inconsistent, eh?
//For me it’s not obvious at all what is main character’s drives, what is his grand scheme? To better life of his subject through technology and conquest? Please! He makes machines, yes, and he exploits them, he’s an engineer, and he also treats people as machines… But this is his gimmick, not his dragon to slay. That’s just a way he is, not his goal.
Also, what is his deal with AdMech? It’s said that he despises them for mutilating their bodies with implants…. And yet the same character later on despises the weakness and ineffectiveness of ageing human flesh! What’s his problem?
One time he’s cold calculating demigod, and in the next moment he breaks tantrum and murders his subordinates like your typical Disney villain.
Except maybe for his notion of “greater good” and omnipresent desire to be toxic unbearable piece of a person, I have no clue on what motivates him. Tool has no motivation if it’s own, and Perturabo is clearly that - a tool.
Bolter-corn. Now, it’s not a problem of the book, rather just my subjective preferences. All battle scenes in their meticulous details - were extremely boring to read. Boring generic characters, as from cheap first-person shooting game, facing yet another unnamable alien threat with absent modus operandi - they’re just out there, being alien, nasty and time-warping, all cowered in (for Pete’s sake!) in filthy rags. I mean, for sure, it shows vanity of conflict and all-grinding stubbornness of Iron Warriors and their primarch, but I, the reader, am not from Iron Warriors legion, so why should I overcome such graphomania? I hope that paycheck was sufficient to cover author’s suffering - if even there was an author at all, because sometimes it feels like AI generated text.
Poor world building. No info given about Perturabo’s homeworld. Sure, they’re all cosplaying ancient Greeks with their city-states, but almost no hints given on their societal structure, religion, even governing system! It’s all bleak. Why should I be interested in this society and genocide that it suffers in epilogue? I know to little about it to care. Yet again, it’s not a feature, just laziness and graphomania.
Summarising, up to finale I’m unable to empathise with Perturabo (‘cause he’s an a****le of epic proportion), with his people and with his (absent) cause.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2018
I finished Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia by Guy Haley. Here’s my review and thoughts on the work. Please remember, these are my opinions. If you don’t like them either comment in a way that would facilitate good discussion or just move along.
“Your road will be hard, but few are worthy of it,' said the Emperor. 'I have many tasks for you, the indefatigable, the indomitable, the unrelenting. You shall be my Lord of Iron.'
Perturabo cried out in unabashed joy. Finally, he felt acceptance without caveat. Love radiated from the Emperor for his found son. Perturabo basked in it. For the first time, he felt a sense of true belonging.
'And may it forever be so,' said Perturabo.”
•Alright, after much griping and complaining about how much I hated Perturabo and how much I didn’t want to like him or have anything to do with him I can finally admit, I was dead wrong. This book was a masterpiece worthy of Mechanicum or Fulgrim. Haley made me care about the character in a way that kicked him from sixteenth on my list is favorite Primarchs to somewhere in the top ten.
•The look inside Pert’s head, especially as a child, really helped to get the idea of why he is the way he is. The son who wanted nothing more than to be loved and to build but instead was forced to face horrors such as the Hrud without thank or respect. Just, well done.
•The Hrud, might have been one of the most horrifying things I’ve seen done. Astartes aging to dust or aging backwards to where they die from their implants rejecting. Every time they popped up I went, “holy shit.”
•Calliphone might be another favorite character. Her and Pert’s relationship was adorable. She called him Bo’ and got away with it! I feel like if she had come with him on the Crusade she might have been able to help stabilize him a lot more.
•The Book really hit it’s peak when Perturabo went back to Olympia. Him decimating the populace or burning it. Leading up to talking to his sister once again and her deconstruction god his character. Pure poetry on the page. Him sitting there in his home town and realizing what he did. It shook me to the core.
•Dantioch was really cool. We only got so much of him but seeing his origin story was a nice add on. I’m curious to see what becomes of him later. Especially since he’s one of the few characters who’s chewed out a Primarch and lived to tell the tale.
•Perturabo is a character I’ve had a hard time even giving the benefit of the doubt to, until this book. This book does him so much justice and explains his character so well that the end brought tears to my eyes. I now look forward to hearing more about the Lord of Iron (still first and foremost a Son of Dorn) in future books. He is a worthy adversary to my gene father.
•Overall, I loved this book and I regret giving it so long to read. There is a deep shame within me now. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
•Final Score: 9.9/10
Next I’ll be taking a break from the Horus Heresy and trying out Ahriman’s series and following it up with Tales of Heresy and after that I’m taking a break from 40K to read Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. So there won’t be a ton of reviews after these next few books. I will see you guys next time.
“Your road will be hard, but few are worthy of it,' said the Emperor. 'I have many tasks for you, the indefatigable, the indomitable, the unrelenting. You shall be my Lord of Iron.'
Perturabo cried out in unabashed joy. Finally, he felt acceptance without caveat. Love radiated from the Emperor for his found son. Perturabo basked in it. For the first time, he felt a sense of true belonging.
'And may it forever be so,' said Perturabo.”
•Alright, after much griping and complaining about how much I hated Perturabo and how much I didn’t want to like him or have anything to do with him I can finally admit, I was dead wrong. This book was a masterpiece worthy of Mechanicum or Fulgrim. Haley made me care about the character in a way that kicked him from sixteenth on my list is favorite Primarchs to somewhere in the top ten.
•The look inside Pert’s head, especially as a child, really helped to get the idea of why he is the way he is. The son who wanted nothing more than to be loved and to build but instead was forced to face horrors such as the Hrud without thank or respect. Just, well done.
•The Hrud, might have been one of the most horrifying things I’ve seen done. Astartes aging to dust or aging backwards to where they die from their implants rejecting. Every time they popped up I went, “holy shit.”
•Calliphone might be another favorite character. Her and Pert’s relationship was adorable. She called him Bo’ and got away with it! I feel like if she had come with him on the Crusade she might have been able to help stabilize him a lot more.
•The Book really hit it’s peak when Perturabo went back to Olympia. Him decimating the populace or burning it. Leading up to talking to his sister once again and her deconstruction god his character. Pure poetry on the page. Him sitting there in his home town and realizing what he did. It shook me to the core.
•Dantioch was really cool. We only got so much of him but seeing his origin story was a nice add on. I’m curious to see what becomes of him later. Especially since he’s one of the few characters who’s chewed out a Primarch and lived to tell the tale.
•Perturabo is a character I’ve had a hard time even giving the benefit of the doubt to, until this book. This book does him so much justice and explains his character so well that the end brought tears to my eyes. I now look forward to hearing more about the Lord of Iron (still first and foremost a Son of Dorn) in future books. He is a worthy adversary to my gene father.
•Overall, I loved this book and I regret giving it so long to read. There is a deep shame within me now. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
•Final Score: 9.9/10
Next I’ll be taking a break from the Horus Heresy and trying out Ahriman’s series and following it up with Tales of Heresy and after that I’m taking a break from 40K to read Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. So there won’t be a ton of reviews after these next few books. I will see you guys next time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 7, 2026
This is one of those books where I have to remind myself that it's a good book that can make you hate a character. And holy shit do I hate Perturabo even more after this. I understand the nature of Warhammer stories (nothing bad ever changes, because if it did, it wouldn't be a tragedy/satire anymore), but having read Angel Exterminatus, Perturabo's petulance and absolute inability to consider he is wrong is that much more infuriating, knowing it's here to stay, despite everything he goes through in this novel.
Some primarchs have tragic upbringings. Some primarch are tragically cursed. Perturabo is neither (although he would have you believe he is the former). His upbringing on Olympia, although marred by some of the worst dregs of human royalty, was also marked by people who loved and accepted him, despite his continual disregard for the customs and traditions of the place he'd been adopted into. And after making the entire planet his own, with more brutal efficiency than the war-like culture of Olympia had ever seen, he sets out to conquer the stars, with absolute disregard for the world he supposedly ruled, and which bore all costs of his reinforcements. For a man whose entire shtick is efficient war, he sure has no idea how to factor in any human variables.
Perturabo is a smart, petulant, mildly-autistic child; he has the temper of one, but the strength and intelligence of a demigod. The concept is really solid, and the execution is really good, although it leaves me pretty damn angry at having read of his planet-destroying tantrum. Somehow, he managed to pick up an inferiority complex along the way, due to him feeling constantly underestimated and misunderstood on Olympia. Apparently, the only way he could have felt understood would have been if someone had agreed with him completely, and then maybe caressed his cheek a little, comforting him for all the difficulties he's been through as the favoured son of a king. Truly, Perturabo is the prototypical incel; sheer wasted potential, held back by arrogance and pride.
All this being said, this novel is really good. I've always maintained that the Iron Warriors are a critique of never-ending war, and the callousness that comes with losing your purpose in the sheer act of violence and destruction. This novel furthers that theme, although I once again find myself thinking that "stoic, obedient and brutally efficient" doesn't make for great characters. Without anyone really setting themselves apart (besides Dantioch, but I don't think his writing here is half as good as in Iron Within), most Iron Warriors sequences don't have much to write home about.
The destruction of Olympia is different, though; reading of how conflicted some Iron Warriors were, and how they managed to resolve the cognitive dissonace by using their pride in the legion as an achor, truly made me feel like I was reading about fascist officers executing civilians. The last 3-4 chapters were truly a masterclass in writing despicable, tragically corrupted characters. I hated every moment of it, in the best way. 10/10.
Some primarchs have tragic upbringings. Some primarch are tragically cursed. Perturabo is neither (although he would have you believe he is the former). His upbringing on Olympia, although marred by some of the worst dregs of human royalty, was also marked by people who loved and accepted him, despite his continual disregard for the customs and traditions of the place he'd been adopted into. And after making the entire planet his own, with more brutal efficiency than the war-like culture of Olympia had ever seen, he sets out to conquer the stars, with absolute disregard for the world he supposedly ruled, and which bore all costs of his reinforcements. For a man whose entire shtick is efficient war, he sure has no idea how to factor in any human variables.
Perturabo is a smart, petulant, mildly-autistic child; he has the temper of one, but the strength and intelligence of a demigod. The concept is really solid, and the execution is really good, although it leaves me pretty damn angry at having read of his planet-destroying tantrum. Somehow, he managed to pick up an inferiority complex along the way, due to him feeling constantly underestimated and misunderstood on Olympia. Apparently, the only way he could have felt understood would have been if someone had agreed with him completely, and then maybe caressed his cheek a little, comforting him for all the difficulties he's been through as the favoured son of a king. Truly, Perturabo is the prototypical incel; sheer wasted potential, held back by arrogance and pride.
All this being said, this novel is really good. I've always maintained that the Iron Warriors are a critique of never-ending war, and the callousness that comes with losing your purpose in the sheer act of violence and destruction. This novel furthers that theme, although I once again find myself thinking that "stoic, obedient and brutally efficient" doesn't make for great characters. Without anyone really setting themselves apart (besides Dantioch, but I don't think his writing here is half as good as in Iron Within), most Iron Warriors sequences don't have much to write home about.
The destruction of Olympia is different, though; reading of how conflicted some Iron Warriors were, and how they managed to resolve the cognitive dissonace by using their pride in the legion as an achor, truly made me feel like I was reading about fascist officers executing civilians. The last 3-4 chapters were truly a masterclass in writing despicable, tragically corrupted characters. I hated every moment of it, in the best way. 10/10.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 22, 2018
When I started playing 40k I always thought of the traitor Primarch's and legions as just kind of write off bad guys. I read some of the fluff in the old second edition Chaos codex and thought maybe some of them got a raw deal and had a little more sympathy, but not much. It was not until I started reading the HH series and really through those novels really started to gain a better understanding of why some of them broke bad. ADB has done an amazing job with the "bad" guys. If you can, read the Night Lords trilogy. I had become almost an Iron Warrior apologist because of how Perturabo was represented and how close it seems that he would have stayed loyal if the Emperor or his brothers just gave him the love and credit he wanted. Because of that I was really excited about this novel. Finally, the Iron IVth would get some real spotlight and show you their true metal. (PUN) And this story delivers. But, I have to say, I experienced such a swaying of my allegiance to Perturabo. His motivations here are really exposed. His flaws are great, and his heart is so broken. This guy is a broken, broken dude, and honestly I hated him about 2/3 of the way through. I hated his legion after the decision to purge Olympia. I hated it so much, that this primarch and his legion kind of always seemed bad on the edges, and he was destined to fall away from the Emperor. The climax of the novel, when Perturabo is confronted by his sister, and she lays out the absolute truth that his gifts are unrelenting endurance and his tasks match that, and that it is the fact that he chooses constantly to suffer in silence and brood that no one notices, and he just outright kills her for it before he even realizes what he is doing. Man. At the end of this novel, when I was reflecting on how I just dont like him any longer, I realized I did not like him because I had not run into a Primarch characterized like myself! Someone who can just endure seemingly thankless tasks without complaint, but blows on my own embers of bitterness because no one notices. Instead of just being honest and open and recognizing the acceptance you do have! Anyway. Because of this rare moment of personal introspection because of a work of fiction based in a universe based on a board game...I have to give this novel and this character study 5 stars. If you just want violence and 40k bolter porn and dont want to dig any deeper than this is a 3-4. Enjoy. All in all, the Primarch's series has not been a disappointment.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2026
"You're going to live your life thinking people hate you because you're a nerd...I want you to know, the reason they hate you isn't because you're a nerd, it's because you're an asshole." - The Social Network
Perturabo is the story of the Emperor's biggest failson, a petulant, whiny, insecure twit. A Rick and Morty watcher and r/atheism redditor. Gifted with incredible privilege and power yet entirely dependent on others' praise to bolster his low, fragile self esteem and inflated ego. A true example of a pathetic man.
Finally, Elon Musk's representation in 40k.
This one was very good, and I think it makes me a Guy Haley fan. Perturabo is raised in a hodge-podge of ancient Greek and/or Roman type land, with philosophers and city-states. Taken in by a "tyrant," or ruler of a city, he quickly decides all the gods are fake, he's better than everybody else, and he should conquer the world to bring people peace whether they want it or not.
The other half of the story is pre-heracy, where Perturabo is getting his legion's asses kicked by a really unique and cool time-manipulating xenos. Just being near them causes people to age forward or backwards at alarming speed, including conventional weaponry and even the ships themselves. It's an incredibly cool concept, and it kind of fits thematically too.
The final act brings both timelines together, both Perturabo's past on his homeworld of Olympia (WH40k continues to be subtle) and his modern failson self that got his butt kicked by time-warp aliens.
Perturabo isn't an anti-hero, because he isn't a hero. He's an example of what the primarchs would probably actually be if they were taken from the real world: overpowered, overconfident assholes. It makes him interesting to read compared to the rest of the primarch books (especially the nothingburger Guilliman one) and so far the best in the series.
Perturabo is the story of the Emperor's biggest failson, a petulant, whiny, insecure twit. A Rick and Morty watcher and r/atheism redditor. Gifted with incredible privilege and power yet entirely dependent on others' praise to bolster his low, fragile self esteem and inflated ego. A true example of a pathetic man.
Finally, Elon Musk's representation in 40k.
This one was very good, and I think it makes me a Guy Haley fan. Perturabo is raised in a hodge-podge of ancient Greek and/or Roman type land, with philosophers and city-states. Taken in by a "tyrant," or ruler of a city, he quickly decides all the gods are fake, he's better than everybody else, and he should conquer the world to bring people peace whether they want it or not.
The other half of the story is pre-heracy, where Perturabo is getting his legion's asses kicked by a really unique and cool time-manipulating xenos. Just being near them causes people to age forward or backwards at alarming speed, including conventional weaponry and even the ships themselves. It's an incredibly cool concept, and it kind of fits thematically too.
The final act brings both timelines together, both Perturabo's past on his homeworld of Olympia (WH40k continues to be subtle) and his modern failson self that got his butt kicked by time-warp aliens.
Perturabo isn't an anti-hero, because he isn't a hero. He's an example of what the primarchs would probably actually be if they were taken from the real world: overpowered, overconfident assholes. It makes him interesting to read compared to the rest of the primarch books (especially the nothingburger Guilliman one) and so far the best in the series.
January 13, 2021
“Fathers do not use their sons.”
Guy Haley's exploration of the Primarch known as Perturabo is a surprisingly nuanced, sometimes moving, near always melancholy exploration of the dualities of time and the formative events in one's life that have truly lasting consequences. As with all Warhammer 40K media, it of course does it's best to tie these core narrative beats back into the setting. Whether it's the struggles of the Iron Warriors against the unknowable, temporal Xenos known as the "Hrud" or Perturabo's own struggle to know himself against the inexorable march of time and doubt that coincides with age. Haley writes Perturabo with the same graces you'd expect of a god like being, as aware as they are of their own superiority, they are equally felled by their coinciding ambitions. Perturabo is more a child in a god's body than he is a truly self-actualized being, no matter his own protests that state otherwise.
The novel's core structure does a wonderful job of splitting between it's two halves, an alternating dialogue between the past and the present, using events from Perturabo's youth and adulthood to hit on the core themes mentioned above. Prose wise, Haley is quite efficient here, with only a few foibles that tend to arise within all Black Library publications. There's some redundancies and questionable word choices, but nothing that ever devalues or diminishes the entirety of Haley's writing efforts.
This is a surprising and sometimes profoundly melancholy entry in the Primarchs series, and by far one of the better works to come out of The Horus Heresy series in a long while.
Guy Haley's exploration of the Primarch known as Perturabo is a surprisingly nuanced, sometimes moving, near always melancholy exploration of the dualities of time and the formative events in one's life that have truly lasting consequences. As with all Warhammer 40K media, it of course does it's best to tie these core narrative beats back into the setting. Whether it's the struggles of the Iron Warriors against the unknowable, temporal Xenos known as the "Hrud" or Perturabo's own struggle to know himself against the inexorable march of time and doubt that coincides with age. Haley writes Perturabo with the same graces you'd expect of a god like being, as aware as they are of their own superiority, they are equally felled by their coinciding ambitions. Perturabo is more a child in a god's body than he is a truly self-actualized being, no matter his own protests that state otherwise.
The novel's core structure does a wonderful job of splitting between it's two halves, an alternating dialogue between the past and the present, using events from Perturabo's youth and adulthood to hit on the core themes mentioned above. Prose wise, Haley is quite efficient here, with only a few foibles that tend to arise within all Black Library publications. There's some redundancies and questionable word choices, but nothing that ever devalues or diminishes the entirety of Haley's writing efforts.
This is a surprising and sometimes profoundly melancholy entry in the Primarchs series, and by far one of the better works to come out of The Horus Heresy series in a long while.
September 14, 2018
It seems that Emperor created all of the Primarchs as reflections of his own personality (and by that humans at large).
Perturabo is walking computer, man who sees things only in absolutes, there is no grey area for him. He is also a person fully aware of his superiority over normal humans and thus very very alone. In his mind he is so off from the main human that he cannot trust them and thus isolates himself from everyone - be them bearing gifts, love or death. He tries to act like he has no emotions but he is in constant internal turmoil. In order to stifle his emotions he blunts his soul against ever so increasing levels of violence and rigidness.
He needs company, he needs someone to look at him and say "Well done" but unfortunately by perfecting his isolation he became for all means and purposes completely invisible. For superhuman who does not bask in lights of glory he is of no interest to anyone and soon his legion and himself are fighting extremely hard offensives in deep space out of everyone's sight.
If he was Alpharion/Omegon this would be his life dream. But unlike these two and even Curze, Perturabo is living among people, he seeks attention but [knowing what he truly is] he punishes himself in more and more brutal ways while hoping that someone will say "Stop it! You have greater purpose, lets achieve it!" and take him in to build and create instead to destroy.
This of course is his fatal flaw and as such paves the way for the ultimate fall.
Very good book, good addition to the series.
Highly recommended.
Perturabo is walking computer, man who sees things only in absolutes, there is no grey area for him. He is also a person fully aware of his superiority over normal humans and thus very very alone. In his mind he is so off from the main human that he cannot trust them and thus isolates himself from everyone - be them bearing gifts, love or death. He tries to act like he has no emotions but he is in constant internal turmoil. In order to stifle his emotions he blunts his soul against ever so increasing levels of violence and rigidness.
He needs company, he needs someone to look at him and say "Well done" but unfortunately by perfecting his isolation he became for all means and purposes completely invisible. For superhuman who does not bask in lights of glory he is of no interest to anyone and soon his legion and himself are fighting extremely hard offensives in deep space out of everyone's sight.
If he was Alpharion/Omegon this would be his life dream. But unlike these two and even Curze, Perturabo is living among people, he seeks attention but [knowing what he truly is] he punishes himself in more and more brutal ways while hoping that someone will say "Stop it! You have greater purpose, lets achieve it!" and take him in to build and create instead to destroy.
This of course is his fatal flaw and as such paves the way for the ultimate fall.
Very good book, good addition to the series.
Highly recommended.
December 3, 2018
Having only read the first two books in the 50+ HH books a couple of years ago, I decided to give it a go at reading the entire HH series in chronological order. Starting with the "Last Church" audiobook set in 30,800. I am using https://rateyourmusic.com/list/Tymell... as a guide on which books to read in chronological order.
I listened to the audiobook version of this story which takes place between 30,799 and 31,000 roughly. The story goes back and forward between three main points of time. It starts with Perturabo as a child with no memory being brought to Lochos in 30,799, Perturabo meeting the Emperor in 30,849 and in 30,999 where the main story takes place with the Iron Warriors trying to destroy the Hrud race and the pacification of the rebellion on Olympia.
I enjoyed this book almost as much as Lorgar: Bearer of the word. This is how I expected the primarch books to be written, covering the primarchs rise to power before being discovered by the emperor as well as afterwards. I felt that this book gave a great insight into why Perturabo is the way he is, as well as why he turns traitor.
I really enjoyed the audiobook and would recommend it to anyone looking for a new read, I found it easy to follow. I found the action in the book to be very different from your standard Ork or humanoid enemy encountered so far.
I listened to the audiobook version of this story which takes place between 30,799 and 31,000 roughly. The story goes back and forward between three main points of time. It starts with Perturabo as a child with no memory being brought to Lochos in 30,799, Perturabo meeting the Emperor in 30,849 and in 30,999 where the main story takes place with the Iron Warriors trying to destroy the Hrud race and the pacification of the rebellion on Olympia.
I enjoyed this book almost as much as Lorgar: Bearer of the word. This is how I expected the primarch books to be written, covering the primarchs rise to power before being discovered by the emperor as well as afterwards. I felt that this book gave a great insight into why Perturabo is the way he is, as well as why he turns traitor.
I really enjoyed the audiobook and would recommend it to anyone looking for a new read, I found it easy to follow. I found the action in the book to be very different from your standard Ork or humanoid enemy encountered so far.
September 4, 2019
Initially when I started reading Perturabo: The Hammer of Olympia I found myself struggling to get into the story. I’m not quite sure what it was about it that left me feeling unattached to the Lord of Iron, but I was struggling. This didn’t last long though as soon I was being gripped by the story and was having to actively make time in my schedule to sit down and read more of it.
Out of the Primarch novels that I’ve read so far, this one has the most enjoyable depth with its characters. I was fascinated to learn more about the upbringing of Perturabo and to see how he and his men faired against an enemy who goes against their fundamental strength; logic. It was also nice to see further development to secondary characters who featured in the Primarch novel Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero like Forrix.
Chapter Eight was arguably my favourite, but a conversation between Perturabo and a priest about his existence was extremely enjoyable to read.
Lastly, the Hrud were a fantastic Xenos to feature within the story. I would love to learn more about them in a future if they’re ever featured again.
If you enjoyed reading the other Primarch novels, then I would say you're going to enjoy this one too.
Out of the Primarch novels that I’ve read so far, this one has the most enjoyable depth with its characters. I was fascinated to learn more about the upbringing of Perturabo and to see how he and his men faired against an enemy who goes against their fundamental strength; logic. It was also nice to see further development to secondary characters who featured in the Primarch novel Magnus the Red: Master of Prospero like Forrix.
Chapter Eight was arguably my favourite, but a conversation between Perturabo and a priest about his existence was extremely enjoyable to read.
Lastly, the Hrud were a fantastic Xenos to feature within the story. I would love to learn more about them in a future if they’re ever featured again.
If you enjoyed reading the other Primarch novels, then I would say you're going to enjoy this one too.
January 5, 2020
I've got to admit to being disappointed with this novel ,Guy Haley's written some of my favourite Warhammer 40k novels of late (Belisarius Cawl,Konrad Curze,Dark Imperium) but this one was a chore.All the writers at Black Library have their own strengths , Chris Wraight excels at world building, Dan Abnett writes with a cinematic flair and Guy Haley forges some great characters.Unfortunately Petulanto (sorry Perturabo ) and his Iron Warriors aren't amongst them ,despite the inclusion of the Hrud Xenos species ,the first three quarters of this book drag and drag I was tempted to just give up several times. The problem is there's just not enough in the lore for Haley to get a grip on with Perturabo ,the Hrud ,Olympia or the Iron Warriors and he seems reluctant to advance it here . So everything is just bland ,its only in the last 50 or so pages that Perturabo shows even a hint of character,mostly negative. It scrapes a third star for the inclusion of the Hrud even though it's largely repetitive descriptions of people,places and things ageing or de-ageing to destruction and for a final scene with the Emperor which in my mind alone begs the question are Perturabo and the Emperor destined to clash because they're too similar .Solid read but there's a lot better out there.
August 25, 2020
Takes place before the Horus Heresy timeline. Switching between his life as Primarch commander of the Iron Hands and his life in Olympia as the adoptive son of one the regent kings. The book shows off more insight on the weight he has as a Primarch and the roots of his desire to be the best of the best but at the cost of his humanity and childhood.
The end chapter is the final breakpoint where he cuts off his bond to his adoptive family and what he had to sacrifice to be the son the Emperor desired. Very emotive. It really made me connect with the character and made me understand why he became a Trator Primarch during the Horus Heresy regardless of the Heresy events.
Reminds me a lot of antagonists like Darth Vader whose power comes at the cost of everything else.
Nice read but a little slow at times, trying to make you connect with the child and then moving on to the Warlord. Iron hands alternate characters feel like filler characters. They don't face any conclussion. They are just there to remind you that the Space marines aren't just Super Soldiers and how Crude and Feared is Perturabo among enemies and allies.
The end chapter is the final breakpoint where he cuts off his bond to his adoptive family and what he had to sacrifice to be the son the Emperor desired. Very emotive. It really made me connect with the character and made me understand why he became a Trator Primarch during the Horus Heresy regardless of the Heresy events.
Reminds me a lot of antagonists like Darth Vader whose power comes at the cost of everything else.
Nice read but a little slow at times, trying to make you connect with the child and then moving on to the Warlord. Iron hands alternate characters feel like filler characters. They don't face any conclussion. They are just there to remind you that the Space marines aren't just Super Soldiers and how Crude and Feared is Perturabo among enemies and allies.
August 21, 2022
I love Perturabo...he is such a jerk. I see why people compare him to an incel and an edgelord atheist. He wanted to make art, but he never got the chance to be a better person, 'cause he landed on space Ancient Greece where everybody was trying to backstab each other.
I kept going "oh my god" at how brazen Perturabo was throughout this book. From arguing with priests, to mentally tallying how much money his adoptive father was spending on a banquet, to insisting on rejecting Olympia's naming traditions, so on and so forth...
When the Emperor finds him, he was handed over from one tyrant who wanted to use him for war to another. But arguably, Danmekos showed him more love. Perturabo was just ungrateful.
With all the bad things that happen, and the scale of things, this book could be adapted in a stage play: The Tragedy of Perturabo. Or one of those black-and-red Greek vases.
I kept going "oh my god" at how brazen Perturabo was throughout this book. From arguing with priests, to mentally tallying how much money his adoptive father was spending on a banquet, to insisting on rejecting Olympia's naming traditions, so on and so forth...
When the Emperor finds him, he was handed over from one tyrant who wanted to use him for war to another. But arguably, Danmekos showed him more love. Perturabo was just ungrateful.
With all the bad things that happen, and the scale of things, this book could be adapted in a stage play: The Tragedy of Perturabo. Or one of those black-and-red Greek vases.
January 1, 2024
Have you ever wondered what would happen if a Black Library author bing watched every part of Spock repeatedly for 9 million hours and then wrote a short story about Perturabo? No? Well this is the book where Guy Haley does just that.
It’s a terrible book, which is odd, because Guy Haley usually writes good books. This one however is a mess. The multitude of different personalities that the author tries to stuff into Perturabo makes no sense. He’s logical and rejects religion, but has faith. He wants to improve the life of the people, but wastes their lives in war? He has so many emotions at some times and are cold and illogical at others. He dislikes the nobility of Olympia, makes a huge effort to show this, but then acts just like them? It makes no sense. It’s further made even worse by philosophical debates and historical inspirations that are so bad and often completely wrong you’d think ChatGPT wrote them.
If you want to read a Primarch novel about Peter Turbo, then go read the Mangus one. Even though he’s present less in that one, he makes a more believable person in it.
It’s a terrible book, which is odd, because Guy Haley usually writes good books. This one however is a mess. The multitude of different personalities that the author tries to stuff into Perturabo makes no sense. He’s logical and rejects religion, but has faith. He wants to improve the life of the people, but wastes their lives in war? He has so many emotions at some times and are cold and illogical at others. He dislikes the nobility of Olympia, makes a huge effort to show this, but then acts just like them? It makes no sense. It’s further made even worse by philosophical debates and historical inspirations that are so bad and often completely wrong you’d think ChatGPT wrote them.
If you want to read a Primarch novel about Peter Turbo, then go read the Mangus one. Even though he’s present less in that one, he makes a more believable person in it.
July 24, 2025
i like the chapter where they just played warhammer
Real review of the Perturabo book - 4/5 !!!
I've seen it said in multiple reviews of this book, but I'll say it again myself - This is what I wanted and expected from the first three Primarch books! I haven't read anything else by Guy Haley yet, but in reading this, he quickly became my favorite 40k author. Not only did he deliver what I expected, with this focusing on Perturabo's childhood before being found by The Emperor And on his siege of Olympia later in life, but it was also just really well written!
The way the story switched between two different parts of Perturabo's life was really well done, and I think it really added to the chapters about his siege when he's already Lord of Iron to have that knowledge of his upbringing in Lochos. This book really just delivered everything I had been expecting from this series and I loved it!
Iron within! Iron without!
Real review of the Perturabo book - 4/5 !!!
I've seen it said in multiple reviews of this book, but I'll say it again myself - This is what I wanted and expected from the first three Primarch books! I haven't read anything else by Guy Haley yet, but in reading this, he quickly became my favorite 40k author. Not only did he deliver what I expected, with this focusing on Perturabo's childhood before being found by The Emperor And on his siege of Olympia later in life, but it was also just really well written!
The way the story switched between two different parts of Perturabo's life was really well done, and I think it really added to the chapters about his siege when he's already Lord of Iron to have that knowledge of his upbringing in Lochos. This book really just delivered everything I had been expecting from this series and I loved it!
Iron within! Iron without!
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