What do you think?
Rate this book
The Horus Heresy #Audio Drama
Perpetual
Escaping from ruined Calth, Oll Persson and his band of refugees are trapped on a dark, forgotten world. But the enemy draws near, and immortality may not be enough to survive...
Oll Persson stands apart from the rest of mankind. He is one of the old ones, one of the undying. One of the Perpetuals. Now, fleeing from the ruins of Calth with his band of fellow refugees, the vagaries of the warp have brought him through the backways of time and space to a city that rests on the edge of oblivion... and no further. The path has ended abruptly, and Oll's enemies are finally closing in. Will his immortality be enough to save him this time?
It's the return of Oll Persson in a tale following the events of 'Know No Fear' and 'Unmarked' which drives the mysterious Perpetual towards his ultimate destiny…
Written by Dan Abnett. Running time 27 minutes. Performed by Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Ian Brooker, Cliff Chapman, Steve Conlin, Penelope Rawlins, Saul Reichlin and Luis Soto.
Oll Persson stands apart from the rest of mankind. He is one of the old ones, one of the undying. One of the Perpetuals. Now, fleeing from the ruins of Calth with his band of fellow refugees, the vagaries of the warp have brought him through the backways of time and space to a city that rests on the edge of oblivion... and no further. The path has ended abruptly, and Oll's enemies are finally closing in. Will his immortality be enough to save him this time?
It's the return of Oll Persson in a tale following the events of 'Know No Fear' and 'Unmarked' which drives the mysterious Perpetual towards his ultimate destiny…
Written by Dan Abnett. Running time 27 minutes. Performed by Gareth Armstrong, John Banks, Ian Brooker, Cliff Chapman, Steve Conlin, Penelope Rawlins, Saul Reichlin and Luis Soto.
1 pages, Audiobook
First published December 1, 2016
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 13, 2024
May 2024 Re-Read using the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project Reading Order Omnibus XIX Through the Neath (https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the Horus Heresy series and extras.
I don't really have a huge amount to add from my initial review. This really is the perfect bitesize story to be part of a Black Library Advent Calendar as it's just a little added flavour and context to proceedings.
Following Know No Fear, Athame, and Unmarked, Perpetual picks back up with Trooper Oll 'the Pious' Personn and his motley crew as they have been holed up somewhere beyond the Ruinstorm on their precarious journey to Terra. Clearly they have been in one place for too long as somone or something has caught up with them.
Just a nice little story filled with fascinating tidbits about the extremely long life of Ollanius Personn and the different scales of galaxy shaking wars over the aeons.
Beyond the details of Oll's experience, the most interesting thing for me is the nature and mark of their persuer, which is very different from the Word Bearers and Daemon they first had to escape and overcome.
Really not much else to say beyond the fact I thoroughly enjoy these little flavour stories and I'm excited to be picking back up with Oll and Co.
Through the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project and my own additions, I have currently read 42 Horus Heresy novels (inc. 1 repeat and 4 anthologies), 23 novellas (inc. 2 repeats), 127 short stories/ audio dramas (inc. 10+ repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, all 17 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, 3 Characters novels, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and 1 short story...this run, as well as writing 1 short story myself.
I couldn't be more appreciative of the phenomenal work of the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, which has made this ridiculous endeavour all the better and has inspired me to create and collate a collection of Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 documents and checklists (http://tiny.cc/im00yz). There are now too many items to list here, but there is a contents and explainer document here (http://tiny.cc/nj00yz).
***
Initial Review:
A short, but sweet catch up with the mysterious immortal, Oll Persson, and his ragtag group of survivors of Calth as they do some Subtle Knife Sliders wibbly wobbly time and spacey on the way to Terra, revealing tantalising tidbits, and facing unforseen complications.
The is a wonderful little story that follows on from Know No Fear, continuing the tale of the eponymous Perpetual with hints of their purpose, affiliations, and feelings about a variety of pertinent subjects told with trademark Abnett aplomb.
Without context gained in at least Legion and a Know No Fear, I can see this story being utterly baffling, but I loved appreciate an epic series that doesn't feel the need to waste time rehashing everything (even though this does bite me on the bum occasionally).
I don't really have a huge amount to add from my initial review. This really is the perfect bitesize story to be part of a Black Library Advent Calendar as it's just a little added flavour and context to proceedings.
Following Know No Fear, Athame, and Unmarked, Perpetual picks back up with Trooper Oll 'the Pious' Personn and his motley crew as they have been holed up somewhere beyond the Ruinstorm on their precarious journey to Terra. Clearly they have been in one place for too long as somone or something has caught up with them.
Just a nice little story filled with fascinating tidbits about the extremely long life of Ollanius Personn and the different scales of galaxy shaking wars over the aeons.
Beyond the details of Oll's experience, the most interesting thing for me is the nature and mark of their persuer, which is very different from the Word Bearers and Daemon they first had to escape and overcome.
Really not much else to say beyond the fact I thoroughly enjoy these little flavour stories and I'm excited to be picking back up with Oll and Co.
Through the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project and my own additions, I have currently read 42 Horus Heresy novels (inc. 1 repeat and 4 anthologies), 23 novellas (inc. 2 repeats), 127 short stories/ audio dramas (inc. 10+ repeats), as well as the Macragge's Honour graphic novel, all 17 Primarchs novels, 4 Primarchs short stories/ audio dramas, 3 Characters novels, and 2 Warhammer 40K further reading novels and 1 short story...this run, as well as writing 1 short story myself.
I couldn't be more appreciative of the phenomenal work of the Horus Heresy Omnibus Project, which has made this ridiculous endeavour all the better and has inspired me to create and collate a collection of Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 documents and checklists (http://tiny.cc/im00yz). There are now too many items to list here, but there is a contents and explainer document here (http://tiny.cc/nj00yz).
***
Initial Review:
A short, but sweet catch up with the mysterious immortal, Oll Persson, and his ragtag group of survivors of Calth as they do some Subtle Knife Sliders wibbly wobbly time and spacey on the way to Terra, revealing tantalising tidbits, and facing unforseen complications.
The is a wonderful little story that follows on from Know No Fear, continuing the tale of the eponymous Perpetual with hints of their purpose, affiliations, and feelings about a variety of pertinent subjects told with trademark Abnett aplomb.
Without context gained in at least Legion and a Know No Fear, I can see this story being utterly baffling, but I loved appreciate an epic series that doesn't feel the need to waste time rehashing everything (even though this does bite me on the bum occasionally).
May 29, 2024
A fun interlude centering some of the oddness that exists in the Warhammer universe. Also it amuses me that there’s a Catholic running around.
December 5, 2016
I enjoyed Perpetual, especially for the actors' performances, but in the end it is a mere stepping stone for the Ollanius the Pious plotline.
It doesn't really feel significant on its own, and is more of an extension to the end of Know No Fear and Mark of Calth 's Unmarked. There is some decent deception going on, and it is an appreciated status update on Oll and co, and gives some neat little nuggets of lore on the millennia leading up to the Great Crusade and Heresy era, but a lot of it felt a bit rehashed. The audio drama has to reiterate information on Oll's nature, his views on the Emperor, his habits and what not, which seems necessary seeing how long ago Unmarked was published, let alone Know No Fear, but takes up valuable time in the audio format, which I'd rather seen used to progress the plot more dynamically.
That being said, I enjoyed the actors, and felt they added a lot of character to the group of survivors. Penelope Rawlins did a neat job as Katt, and her role in what's to come is probably the most exciting part to me. Hearing John Grammaticus in a drama for the first time also felt neat, and if that's how he talks, I can dig that.
In the end though I am left wondering if this wasn't written years ago as a short story, like most of Abnett's more recent works for Black Library, and simply adapted for the BL's Advent 2016 in audio, now that the Horus Heresy series is closing in on the finale. As a written short story snippet it would probably hold up better, but I didn't feel like it used the audio format's strengths well enough.
It doesn't really feel significant on its own, and is more of an extension to the end of Know No Fear and Mark of Calth 's Unmarked. There is some decent deception going on, and it is an appreciated status update on Oll and co, and gives some neat little nuggets of lore on the millennia leading up to the Great Crusade and Heresy era, but a lot of it felt a bit rehashed. The audio drama has to reiterate information on Oll's nature, his views on the Emperor, his habits and what not, which seems necessary seeing how long ago Unmarked was published, let alone Know No Fear, but takes up valuable time in the audio format, which I'd rather seen used to progress the plot more dynamically.
That being said, I enjoyed the actors, and felt they added a lot of character to the group of survivors. Penelope Rawlins did a neat job as Katt, and her role in what's to come is probably the most exciting part to me. Hearing John Grammaticus in a drama for the first time also felt neat, and if that's how he talks, I can dig that.
In the end though I am left wondering if this wasn't written years ago as a short story, like most of Abnett's more recent works for Black Library, and simply adapted for the BL's Advent 2016 in audio, now that the Horus Heresy series is closing in on the finale. As a written short story snippet it would probably hold up better, but I didn't feel like it used the audio format's strengths well enough.
December 3, 2016
It’s day one of Black Library’s 2016 Advent Calendar, and the first story is Perpetual by Dan Abnett, a Horus Heresy audio drama. Continuing the story of Oll Persson, first introduced in Know No Fear, it picks up where the short story Unmarked (in Mark of Calth) left off with Oll and his companions journeying through time and space in search of Terra, only now they’re becalmed, unable to go forward. Time is passing – not normally an issue for a Perpetual, but with his mission to complete and dangerous foes in pursuit, Oll knows he will have to find a way to keep moving eventually…
Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...
Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...
August 24, 2018
This one I did not hate. Which is weird. I decided to listen to the audio drama instead of reading it as a part of The Burden of Loyalty anthology, this was a smart choice to make. Dan Abnett's ability to write and voice actors' ability to perform had saved it for me since perpetuals, Cabal and specifically John Grammaticus represent the elements of the Horus Heresy that I would prefer to never exist. This was surprisingly interesting enough to listen to.
February 5, 2025
This was just a short story featuring Oll Persson, possibly the laziest-named character so far, who is a perpetual and I think doesn't show up again until the Siege of Terra, as this was a dead-end in the flowchart for the Calth books.
May 31, 2025
I like the characters and their arc through the Horus Heresy books so I listened to this story. It's nice to round out the sequence but kind of predictable.
(The story appears in HH48 Burden of Loyalty.)
(The story appears in HH48 Burden of Loyalty.)
October 3, 2025
40k in 40 words: *Perpetual* brims with intrigue, cosmic stakes, and tortured loyalties. John Grammaticus—one of my favorite characters in the entire universe—anchors the story with sharp wit and gravitas, making this a must-read for any fan of the Horus Heresy.
February 12, 2019
Really suspenseful, unique 40k story that ended abruptly on a cliffhanger. Did have some tantalizing references to the mysterious Dark Age of Technology and the Age of Strife.
December 31, 2024
o último católico de 40k
October 3, 2025
Esto es canon? porque lo cambia todo.
March 21, 2026
Great audio drama! The voices are top notch, and they really sell the personality of the characters in a quick 25 minutes. Reading more stuff about the Dark Age of Technology was also really fun. Solid read overall!
August 29, 2025
Oll Persson is a perpetual who was first introduced in "Know no Fear" appeared breifly in the short story "Athame" and appeared again in the short story "Unmarked" which acts as a direct sequel to "Know no Fear". This audio drama follows up on "Unmarked".
Oll and his band of Calth survivors have been cutting their way through reality, travelling across time and space to reach Terra, only to find themselves trapped in the doldrums, unable to move forward.
Abnett does a good job giving Oll some nice little character moments in this audio drama to further humanise him and make him a more sympathetic character to the reader.
Oll appears again throughout the Siege of Terra series.
Oll and his band of Calth survivors have been cutting their way through reality, travelling across time and space to reach Terra, only to find themselves trapped in the doldrums, unable to move forward.
Abnett does a good job giving Oll some nice little character moments in this audio drama to further humanise him and make him a more sympathetic character to the reader.
Oll appears again throughout the Siege of Terra series.
December 3, 2016
Overall, Perpetual was a decent audio drama. The music and sound effects were good and the voice acting was great (as it usually is in BL audio dramas), however, the whole perpetual story line in the Horus Heresy is probably one of my least favourite. I'm glad it was Mr. Abnett that wrote this one, as Oll' Persson's character was the same as last time we saw him, but it has been quite a while since we got an update to this story, and nothing much really happened in this 25 minute audio.
Definitely worth a listen if you're an Abnett fanatic or really like the perpetual story lines, but if you really don't like them, I'd wait until it sees release elsewhere/in a bundle with other things.
Definitely worth a listen if you're an Abnett fanatic or really like the perpetual story lines, but if you really don't like them, I'd wait until it sees release elsewhere/in a bundle with other things.
December 11, 2016
I really enjoyed this story, it made me want to know more about what happened during the age of strife and all that came before as the emperor hid among humanity
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews