Tysiąc Synów

The Horus Heresy #12

by Graham McNeill

Wielka Krucjata znajduje się w kulminacyjnym momencie, a Tysiąc Synów należy do jej najbardziej oddanych uczestników. Mimo całkowitej lojalności, Legion Magnusa Czerwonego traktowany jest z podejrzliwością, gdyż sięga po wiedze tajemną. Budzący lęk w Imperium, któremu poprzysiągł służyć, Magnus zostaje wezwany na planetę Nikaea, aby odpowiedzieć na zarzuty o czarnoksięstwo. Nieszczęsny Prymarcha przewidując zdradę Mistrza Wojny Horusa i chcąc ostrzec Imperatora, sięga po zakazaną moc. Pan Ludzkości posyła Lemana Russa, Prymarchę Kosmicznych Wilków, aby zaatakował Prospero. Jednak Magnus dostrzega znacznie więcej niż tylko zdradę Horusa, a owe objawienia na zawsze przypieczętują los jego Legionu.

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

608 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2010

About the author

Hailing from Scotland, Graham McNeill narrowly escaped a career in surveying to work for Games Workshop as a games designer. He has a strong following with his novels Nightbringer, Warriors of Ultramar, Dead Sky, Black Sun and Storm of Iron.

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review:
Picked up the book last evening, finished reading and turned out the light at exactly 3:33am. Coincidence?
My review? Go out and buy the book, absorb it in one sitting.

That's it?

I have to admit that is this is a difficult book to read and review as I am forced to set aside any fanboy glee for what is my personal favorite Legion (1ksons) and the Horus Heresy novel I've been waiting for since the beginning. Deep breath. I'm a pro. Objectivity. GO!

WOW!

A Thousand Sons is a story about one loyal son and his Legion versus another. If you're expecting this to be about The Thousand Sons being vile traitors...you will be surprised to say the very least.

Graham McNeill crafts a moving story about one of The Emperor of Mankind's most loyal sons. If anything this can be considered one of the greatest tragedies of the entire Horus Heresy. I think that Magnus, like all his brother Primarchs are flawed in some way. Arrogance, hubris, pride...just like their father.

You ever have a friend or know someone who is really a genius, and every time you tell them something...they "know it". Maybe they do, maybe not. Even if that person has the very best intentions...it's hubris.

That is Magnus.

If anything The Thousand Sons are the most personable Legion of Astartes I've seen yet. They have character. They are Astartes, so they are trained and hones like any other...but free thinking. Critical thinkers who question, evaluate, and delve in to all matter of knowledge. They are extremely disciplined in their learning. Magnus? Nicest and coolest Primarch you ever met. Ahriman? Great guy, love to share a glass of wine with him and talk history.

Graham McNeill makes the Thousand Sons very inviting. Very easy to like. You really do get to like them. Camaraderie and banter better than anything I've seen so far from "Astartes". Every single one completely and steadfastedly loyal to their Emperor.

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions"

I swear that could be the byline of the novel and the XV Legion itself.

The novel tends to be fairly conversational. The Thousand Sons don't have the battle history that other Legions had. Where Russ and Lorgar tended to be largely weapons to be pointed at a target, Magnus and the Thousand Sons were considerate of the How and Why of battle. Winning hearts and minds. What is the point of conquering a place if everyone is dead? I am glad Graham McNeill was slotted for this novel because he does "conversational" well.

I don't mean to say that the author doesn't do action well or anything. He's just a very thoughtful, philosophical author. Take in to consideration the short story "The Last Church" in Tales of Heresy (a short story I consider to be absolutely fantastic). The author does a fantastic job at delving in to secrets (and being a frigging TEASE). I can't say much without spoiling things. Graham McNeill does a good job in expanding what is known about The Thousand Sons, The Emperor, the Emperyan, and the Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40,000 universe at a whole...without giving away the farm.

Quibbles? The naming conventions are flavorful, but alien to a modern day American...so I had to reference the up-front cast of characters often to avoid confusion on who's who. What can you do though? The Legion has a pseudo-Egyptian flavor.

There are some slow spots. Sometimes frustrating spots...but then when you consider that these guys deal in prophesy, visions and interpretations of possible futures...it can be a little weird. It fits though...it's not jarring or anything. I guess in a way you have to expect it. Maybe it was just anticipation wanting things to GO FASTER...but then we'd miss important plot points and bits of secrets. Mwahahahahah [rubbing hands together:]

Like most BL novels the reader needs to understand that the books are written from a certain perspective: In this case from the perspective (largely) of Ahriman's. The Space Wolves are wild barbaric beasts, cunning and ruthless in extremis. Almost mindless savages. Again...this is a matter of perspective. I'm interested to see what Dan Abnett does with the other half of the story.

Rating:
Overall, the story is a vast landscape of knowledge to be absorbed. There's a lot of material here just in understanding of The Warp and how it works as a tool and just how pervasive it can be. The secret bits of Thousand Sons and Horus Heresy lore are tasty. Other secret bits of Warhammer 40,000 lore, like the Blood Ravens? Well...I'll leave that for you to read for yourself!

[Markus · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the moment I turned my other eye inwards, I knew they were there: The Eternal Powers of the Great Ocean, beings older than time with power beyond imagining. Only they had the means to save you all from hideous mutation and death, so yes, I supped from their poisoned chalice.

Another brilliant Graham McNeill outing. My first real encounter with Magnus and the Thousand Sons, and I am not disappointed. In fact, I think Magnus may be my favourite primarch. The additional exploration of sorcery, the Warp, and new and interesting planets and cultures was an added bonus.

Definitely one of the best books in the series so far.

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a blast of a re-read! Totally forgot the Cthulhu Mythos references to the Pnakotic Manuscripts and "Mad Alhazred", but the best one was the vision about the Dawn of War videogame series Blood Ravens!



The tragic tale about Magnus the Red and his Thousand Sons fall is still my most favourite one Horus Heresy tale.
The last hundred pages with the Space Wolves assault and the razing of Prospero were a real page turner.
Just a shame Mcneill messed continuity later with "The Outcast Dead" but that is another story...

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently re-read this book, and damn I'd forgotten how good it was. Tragic, enthralling, and filled with cool moments of action. Wonderful read.

4 out of 5 stars.

[Patremagne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most misunderstood of the legions, A Thousand Sons provides an excellent tale of brotherhood and betrayal who showcase truly awesome feats of power. Definitely more human-like Astartes in the Sons, much to McNeill's credit. Their pursuit of knowledge and its preservation has me conflicted in my feelings for the Space Wolves, who are among my favorites, who seek to destroy it utterly. Favorite of the Heresy series so far.

[Chris Berko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a F'ing story.

This is some Bill Shakespeare up in this shit! A fantastically entertaining blend of about forty different genres, this book is one of the better Horus Heresy novels I've read, and I'm twelve deep now. I know I've dug pretty much every Warhammer 40K book I've read but this one is just that much better than those other ones, it's bigger and more complex than most of them and does a very decent job at emotion instigation as evidenced by heartbreak and disappointment as well as excitement and thrill. I like each one for a different reason but this one shines just a little brighter, it is very much an amazing book.

[Nikola Pavlovic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vidim da ovu knjigu hvali najveci deo, ako ne i svi fanovi Warhammer univerzuma. Razlog za to je nseumnjivo veliki broj jako bitnih dogadjaja koje ona ozivljava. Nekada iskrenost, postenje i najbolja namera nisu dovoljni da vas spasu stravicnih posledica, dok je arogancija gotovo uvek recept za katastrofu. Tragicna knjiga o tragicnoj sudbine jedne (vise od jedne) verne legije.

[Jean-Luc · Rating 5 out of 5]

What is wisdom without debate? Why condemn everyone around you in order to punish yourself? This book, which should've been named A Thousand Bad Decisions, all made with the absolute best of intentions, is Ahzek Ahriman's attempt to set the record straight about what his father did and why. In the 41st millennium, Ahriman is one of the most murderous sorcerors to ever plague the Imperium, but 10,000 years before that he was a loyal son and devoted scholar.

Long before the dropsite massacre, Amlodhi Skarssen Skarssensson, high jackass of the Wolf Wolves, journeys to the planet Aghoru to demand Magnus, primarch of the XV Legion (Thousand Sons), join Magnus' brothers Leman Russ and Lorgar, primarchs of the VI and XVII Legion respectively. Magnus refuses; there is archaeology to be done. Once the Thousand Sons and the Wolf Wolves finish shooting everything, it's time to head to the Ark Reach Cluster.

The citizens of Ark Reach made the mistake of not bending to the Emperor's will immediately and it is time for them to die. Leman Russ murders everyone, including those trying to surrender. Magnus is impressed by their technology and tries to stop the Wolf Wolves from destroying a library. Leman Russ and his Wolf Wolves howl like wolves to express their rage, but Magnus will not be denied access to books. Only the timely intervention of Lorgar, the Urizen, prevents space marine from fighting space marine.

With Skarssensson is Ohthere Wydrmake, a Wolf Wolves Rune Priest. Wyrdmake befriends Ahriman and Ahriman teaches the ignorant barbarian shaman the wonders of The Great Ocean. But Wyrdmake's friendship is a ruse! Leman Russ never forgot that one time Magnus stopped him from murdering everything, and the Rune Priest's real mission was to gather evidence against the Thousand Sons!

That evidence is presented at the Council of Nikea, a literal witch hunt. "No more sorcery!", the Emperor commands! The Thousand Sons, an entire legion of psykers (sorcerers), are forced to return to their homeworld of Prospero, to think about what they've done.

But but but! "We have done no wrong!" Magnus reasons. And The Emperor is in great danger from unexpected treachery! Surely The Emperor will forgive Magnus if he uses sorcery to warn him of that treachery??

And everything falls apart.

The Thousand Sons were loyal to The Emperor and the Imperium of Man. That The Emperor could err so disastrously as to unleash the Wolf Wolves, his executioners, upon the Thousand Sons has never been convincingly explained. Even now, this book is only one half of the story, and it creates as many questions as it answers. Tizca, the City of Light, was a glimpse of what the Imperium of Man should have been. Its citizens were a vision of what mankind could have become. If only The Emperor had completed the Golden Throne! If only Magnus had listened to his father and assumed his place on the Golden Throne to guide humanity to its shining future! If only! If if if...

If there exists a better written tragedy, then I haven't read it. The Thousand Sons should've stood shoulder to shoulder with their brothers, the Imperial Fists, on the walls of the Imperial palace. Hell, with the Thousand Sons firmly on the loyalists' side, Horus and his goons probably wouldn't have made it that far. I've said it over and over with every book in the Horus Heresy, and I'll say it again: it didn't have to be this way.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the last few duds in the series, A Thousand Sons provides a strong comeback for the series. The richness of the Horus Heresy history flows through this book as we're treated to both the Coronation of Horus at Ullinor and the Council of Nikaea. Unlike the Dark Angels books where we're only told of their Primarch from afar, in this book we not only have Magnus, the Primarch of the Thousand Sons, but also plenty of scenes with the Emperor, Lehman Russ and also minor appearances of other Primarchs.

The inclusion of Space Wolves in the novel provides a strong contrast to the Thousand Sons and shows just how vastly different the legions are. A legion of raw savageness versus a legion of cool, calm intellect. It was amazing to see how the relationship between the two legions devolve from mistrusted ally to all out hatred of each other.

The remembrancers are skillfully added to the story without feeling like a drag. The interaction between the Thousand Sons and the remembrancers show what a great leader Magnus could have made if only he understood better what malevolent forces are at work and what price he had to pay. I wonder how things would be if Magnus had helped Horus or if he used another way to inform the Emperor of Horus's betrayal.

The only thing that’s stopping this book from getting full marks is the slightly slower pace of the book.

[Noah Hallett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this immediately after reading Nick Kyme's Tome of Fire Trilogy. I was willing to read this entirely because I liked those books so much. This one was also recommended to me by the same friend who lent me the Tome of Fire Trilogy, because he knew I liked the Thousand Sons.

In short, I was a little underwhelmed. This story is VERY slow, which I don't usually mind, but this is a very long book where remarkably little actually happens. And while the battles are described in excruciating detail, it was somehow hard for me to picture it clearly.
The description of Magnus, the Primarch of the Thousand Sons, is quite good. The portrayal of Ahriman (the protagonist, and my main reason for wanting to read the book in the first place) was very disappointing.

I should say, there are a few very memorable moments. Those parts are very cool, especially interactions between the Primarchs and the different Space Marines chapters. And how the Imperium deals with the issues that spring up immediately before the Horus Heresy.

Overall I thought it was well worth the read, and despite the slow progress of the story, I enjoyed it.

[Simon Mee · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Nearly all men can stand adversity, but few can stand the ultimate test of character, that of wielding power without succumbing to its darker temptations.’

The epic, the saga, the tragedy. The longest book in the Horus Heresy series so far, A Thousand Sons is also the most focused attempt to show a “good” character brought down by a flaw. McNeill already had a go at it with Fulgrim, which was good but had some issues around motivation. With A Thousand Sons, it’s very very close to Horus Rising as the best so far. As a complete story with some unexpected ambiguity, it's arguably better.

Magnus the One-Eyed is the sorcerer primarch, devoted to knowledge, particularly in relation to that ethereal realm known as the Warp. Loud in his proclamations of loyalty to the EMPEROR OF MANKIND:

The Emperor knows I am his most loyal son.

…he does questionable deals with mysterious entities; ignores clear commands; falls out with fellow primarchs; and compels the sacrifice of the lives of others for his goals. Yet Magnus ranks as the most sympathetic of the traitor primarchs, perhaps even redeemable, even if he loved a show:

He had the distinct impression that Magnus had not arrived here by accident, that this encounter was as stage-managed as any of Coraline Aseneca’s supposedly improvised theatre performances.

Evil?

A reader will work out pretty quickly the broad strokes of what is going to happen. It’s hubris, Hubris, HUBRIS virtually every chapter, screaming for the nemesis. Magnus is a stage manager, most prominently when he reimagines the Parable of the Cave to suit his ideals:

'They heaped praise upon the man who had shown them the way to the light, and honoured him greatly, for the world and all its bounty was theirs to explore for evermore.'

…presuming no one will call him out on this manipulation. His subordinate Ahriman catches him lying multiple times about the Warp and Magnus’ dealings with it yet, again, Magnus sweeps on without regard. Finally, we have Magnus’ attempted warning to the EMPEROR OF MANKIND by way of warp trickery - the most extreme exercise of hubris meeting catastrophic results.

Oh, also Magnus takes his blunder badly and murders a number of his "Thousand Sons" in a tremendous sulk.

Now I read the narrative as clearly establishing “Magnus was wrong” and that he was not a nice guy. But this is where the characterisation is complicated (deliberately) by the setting. By our ethical standards, where Magnus essentially demands the immolation of the innocent prophetess Kallista, it’s an easy call to consider Magnus “evil”. However, in a universe where it’s rational to:

- lobotomise criminals and repurpose them as cybernetic slaves;
- exterminate virtually any other non-human form of intelligent life; and
- repeatedly recklessly cause the deaths of others similarly warp touched as Kallista,

...how bad or evil was Magnus? It’s not as obvious as with Horus, or Fulgrim, or even the “driven insane by his own visions of the Imperium” Conrad. Magnus is a guy who broke the rules of an incredibly bloodthirsty and fascistic society notable for rule-breaking by its other leading lights.

Magnus’ rule-breaking isn't justifiable, and there are awful consequences, such as breaking open protective barriers for daemons to run loose. However, just what are "evil" acts in the context of the universe one inhabits? Is evilness an objective thing that never shifts (the more comfortable option) or is it dependent what society accepts?

One unambiguous critical mark against Magnus is his interactions with his brother Primarchs. Mortarion and Leman expressly hate him, his “friends” Sanguinius and Fulgrim act deceptively towards him and, while not dealt with in this novel, Horus deliberately sets out to ruin Magnus. Magnus might not be evil, but he could be something worse: a loser.

On the side

‘I told you I was no artist,’ said Mahavastu, without opening his eyes.
‘Oh, I don’t know,’ said Lemuel. ‘It has some rustic charm to it.’
‘Would you hang it on your wall?’
‘A Kallimakus original?’ asked Lemuel, taking a seat. ‘Of course. I’d be mad not to.’

The Horus Heresy tends to rely on side characters of either Space Marines or humans to view the actions of the Primarchs. Despite, this A Thousand Sons nails them as being more than vessels for our perspective, using its greater length to reflect and build up interactions. There are actions scenes, such as the fight with the psychotic psyker psychneueins, but also time spent drinking wine and planning for the future, or remembering those lost.

When characters get angry with each other, or plead with each other, or betray each other, I can see why they do it, and why it might hurt those afflicted by those choices. The time spent on background, without being boring, lifts those characters from being conveniences of the plot, which is impressive considering this book is about the preening Magnus. Ahriman, Magnus’ loyal captain, justifies his separate trilogy here, a character worth knowing more about and who takes the time to think about what he sees and hears.

‘But why now?’ asked Ahriman. ‘When the Crusade is in its final stages.’
A shadow crossed Magnus’s face, as though Ahriman’s question had strayed into a region he disliked. ‘Because this in an epochal moment for humanity,’ he said, ‘a time when great change is upon us. Such times require to be marked in the race memory of the species. Who among us will ever experience a moment like this again?’
Ahriman was forced to agree with that sentiment, but as they drew near to the first checkpoint in the perimeter around the Emperor’s dais, he realised that Magnus had neatly diverted his question.

Duel of the Fates

A Thousand Sons is paired with Prospero Burns, so I’ll have to reserve judgement on the fall of Magnus until I read the latter. But the ambiguity in A Thousand Sons makes its epicness.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb piece of 40k fiction, in my opinion the best of the Horus Heresy series.

A vivid and fascinating depiction of the events that led Magnus the Red and his legion of the Thousand Sons away from the imperium. A tragic story that sympathises with the fallen legion.

[Stephen P(who no longer can participate due to illness) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This being my fstep into sci-fi I give it 4 stars for representing the genre. It was well written and kindly let me live in tthis other world for awhile.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first part of a duology, followed by Prospero Burns. The duology focusses on an event in the Horus Heresy where the Space Wolves are sent to sack the homeworld of the Thousand Sons, Prospero, to punish them for practicing the forbidden arts of sorcery.

Interestingly enough, the writers switched places while doing the preparations and brainstorming. Although the rough Space Wolves chapter was more McNeill's 'thing', he took on the challenge to write the subtle Thousand Sons. While Dan Abnett would do his best to add new twists to the 'wolves.

In the WH40K universe Magnus the Red is an evil Primarch-turned-DaemonPrince, and Ahzek Ahriman the cruel champion of Tzeentch, the chaos power that revels in secrecy, subtleties and change for the sake of change.

But it wasn't always like this, and McNeill fleshes out the characters before Tzeentch forced them to go their evil ways.
I use the word "forced" deliberatly, even though in the Heresy, each chapter and primarch in the end makes their choice to go 'evil' very consciously and (most times) willingly.

The Thousand Sons where damned from the beginning, and knowledge of what is to come makes you want to scream at the pages where the legionaries willingly practise various types of sorcery, let them be guided by 'helpful spirits from the Great Ocean, or Tutelaries', and dabble in all kinds of forbidden knowledge.
Magnus, the primarch, is the most arrogant herein: having saved his legion from wild mutations by consorting with 'benevolent, old forces of the Primordial Creator'... which only cost him an eye...

Magnus and Ahriman are characters you start to sympathise with, even though you see (with that perfect hindsight) the big trap Tzeentch has set for them. And when that trap slams shut, the reader is still sympathetic even when the legion behaves like a full-blown chaos marine legion.

Even at the end, after close to 500 pages, where the cursive text hints at that other important event in the Thousand Sons's history, after Ahriman and Magnus have committed their first atrocities against the Wolves, there's still that pang of sympathy, that feeling that they couldn't help it...

Great, awesome story! Reading back-to-back with Prospero Burns now.

It cannot be read by WH40K novices, although I guess you don't have to go through the full Horus Heresy... knowing enough of all legions' subtleties should be enough to start the Heresy at this tome.

[Frank Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first new book I've finished in months, this was a pleasurable read. While it manages to convey a decent level of warp infused gore, the pace and intensity of this story is a lot tamer than many of the previous Heresy novels.

The story is notable for a few reasons. It starts with a lot of character work and was a little slow to grab me but it serves as a fascinating introduction to the Thousand Sons and their part in the events of the Heresy.

As has been common in these novels, there are excellent justifications for the convictions of each player in the grand game. It is easy to see how study of the warp became such a conflicted issue for the intrinsically atheistic Empire.

The story also features the most significant appearance of the Emperor himself in the series to this point.

Even with the greater focus on character building I didn't find myself as invested in the individuals of this story, however I came to really appreciate the flavour of the Thousand Sons.

I guess the series as a whole doesn't do a great job with gender equity, this story seemed to make an effort in that direction but not a very good one in my opinion.

Recommendable.

[Rob · Rating 1 out of 5]

Drivel. Here's a sample sentence: "Its princeps was killed and its moderati crushed when the engine fell during the bloody campaigns of extermination waged in the middle years of the Great Crusade against the barbaric greenskin of the Kamenka Troika." A poorly edited book, contains numerous mistakes, obscure phrases and moves very slowly.

[L · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute masterpiece. Started off a bit slow but builds up pace rather quickly. Fuck the space wolves!

[RatGrrrl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this as part of Horus Heresy Omnibus Project reading guide Omnibus III: The Burning of Prospero
(https://www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus...) as part of my Oath of Moment to complete the series.

When I think of the Horus Heresy series, especially before starting this endeavor, the Burning of Prospero, encompassing the Council of Nikaea, Magnus' folly, and the razing of Tizca, is the second thing that comes to mind, after the Rise and Fall of Horus that leads to Isstvan, so I have been absolutely gagging to get back to the epic duology that starts here (trilogy if you include Battle of the Fang that continues the story from Prospero Burns a cool 10,000 years later [and the Hunt for Magnus and John French's Ahriman series]).

I believe this was my third time reading this book, with the first being upon release and the second being a handful of years later, so it's been a long time. I had a bizarre time that was definitely borne of expectations and familiarity of re-reading, having read a lot more, in general, Warhammer, and Horus Heresy, and just how heavily invested in and sympathetic to the Word Bearers and Lorgar (never ever Erebus or Kor Phaeron) with Argal Tal and Kurtha Sedd being two of my favourite characters in the whole series. I think I was hoping to feel a powerful connection with an event, aspect, or character early that would really get me invested, as sheer trauma and shame in the razing of Monarchia for the XVII and the utter devastation and betrayal with the Battle of Calth for the Ultramarines. I definitely got there, but this book is a slow starter that becomes a Juggernaut (of Khorne stolen and being joyridden by pink and blue horrors) of momentum by the end.

*Vague outline of the plot that could be considered spoilers*

The first part of the book sees the Thousand Sons and Space Wolves deployed together to bring down the hammer of the Emperor on a world that refused colonisation and adoption of complete Imperial hegemony aka Compliance. Magnus is far more interested in an ancient Aeldari temple that guards something both intriguing and portentous, ultimately leading to awakening the temples defences and pitched battle. Later in the same campaign Magnus witnesses must how destructive the VI are and makes a stand in front of a library to protect it from the murder-make. What should he a simple 'guys, chill. I just want to check some books out before you Wolf Smash', but it becomes a whole thing because in the Dark Millennia if two groups have a reason for hating each other, half the time they already hate each other anyway. Ahriman, the Thousand Sons Chief Librarian, and, the Rune Priest, Wyrdmake, strike up an unlikely friendship, bonding over being Space Wizards. We also get introduced to the Remembrancers with the XV, who all have some kind of psychic ability.

The second part covers the Council of Nikaea aka Everybody Hates Magnus, where the the level and amount of psykers in his Legion, the powers they have, and the entire concept of whether the Imperium even wants proto human armoured Space Battle Wizards at all takes place. Lots of opinions, accusations, and heartfelt statements are made...it's a whole thing.

The third part sees Magnus emulating Nick Fury and having a vision of Horus and the future leading him to do big magic to go have a word, which is where we see him appearing in False Gods when Horus is being 'treated' for getting shanked with the Athame, and even biggerer, darker magic to fax himself to the Emperor to let him know. To which the Emperor replies, "You got a problem, son. I'm on the motherfucker. Go back in there, chill them Tizcas out and wait for the Wolf, who should be coming directly.'

**Less vague discussion that may contain spoilers**

I really struggled with the opening of this because I found it rather boring, which is at least somewhat on me. I remember the first time reading it being absolutely wrapt by seeing he Wraithbone statues because I had not really seen any Eldar stuff on books before, which isn't actually very interesting because there's very little detail or discussion until it really kicks off. This time though I didn't have the impact of seeing the big ole thing for the first time, and I'd been around the Thousand Sons for a while, without really getting a feel for them or caring about them enough to really feel any engagement or peril from the battle. There is the intriguing thing in the temple, furtive work of magnus, and his Astartes being disconcerted, but the crumbs were too small for me to really be tantalised.

I think the thing I struggled with most about the opening section is the rather weak characterisation and introduction of a new trio of Remembrancers that give this whole part a feel of a weaker Horus Rising re-tread. A bit like how Marvel went through a whole period of just remaking Iron Man with different characters. It's not helped by how not dissimilar they are to Keeler, Oliton, and Karkasy, with Karkasy's analogue seemingly a more polite version of him with less talent and providing McNeill a male perspective on the two women he's friends with and one of a number of just fucking weird and gross old dudebro misogyny and embarrassing bits of narration that show just how alien the idea of gender politics, and women as a whole gender, are to him. For example the narration around this Remembrancer uses the word "deflower" when describing how a lot of guys fancy a grown arse woman and "things a gentleman shouldn't see" when, presumably, menstrual products fall out of one of the women's bags as she is literally having a fit. Alas, this is par for the course with Black Library, but especially McNeill, and I just have to roll my eyes and highlight how fucked up and not OK this is when I review his books. Shattersong and with it Fulgrim creeps ever closer for his most virulent expressions of misogyny and bioessentialism.

Anyways, I found the first part boring and off-putting, but written well and containing promise, so it felt like making sure you eat your sexist vegetables so you can have pudding.

The second part with the Council of Nikaea is infinitely more interesting and actually heartbreaking with some intimate moments between Magnus and his closest sons, foreboding visions, and some truly heinous and heartfelt statements, as well as a truly shocking and brutal end to proceedings that I'm not going to get into because spoilers. Sometimes it's hard to talk about good stuff without giving to much away, but I do want to make the point that, for me, this is where I feel like the book really starts and I actually start to really get invested.

I also like the classic tradition of the Warhammer galaxy being filled with riffs on historical events and aspects of, primarily, Abrahamic religions, coming into play here. The Council of Nikaea explicitly evokes the First Council of Nicaea where a lot of Christian law and the biblical canon was decided upon. I don't know a huge amount about this, but in a cursory search I saw some Christian people pushing back on the latter point with the argument that it's just a conspiracy to say that only the wealthy and powerful held sway over the biblical canon and the way the various churches operate. I absolutely respect anyone's faith that isn't causing them to harm others. It is not religiously intolerant to find the idea the hierarchal structures of organised religion aren't predominantly influenced by money and power absolutely hilarious and fundamentally not true--this isn't a criticism of any one faith or anyone's individual beliefs to be explicit.

Anyways...

The third part is really the beating hearts of this story where secrets are revealed or kept and more lies told, characters are so naive and egotistical they damn themselves and everyone around them, father's and sons are not just angry or disappointed, they're both, and heatbroken, oh, and an absolutely ridiculously epic and terribly sad battle takes place.

(taking a break to come back to this another time, as this has already taken ages - and we're back!)

The last act or this book contains so many significant moments with ramifications for the Thousand Sons, Magnus, the Space Wolves, Horus, the Emperor, and the entire course of the Horus Heresy, the Imperium, and the Dark Millennium, and this doesn't even include the Council and Edict of Nikaea and their ramifications. I am unsure if there is an agreed upon word for a group of Epochs, so I'm going to go with mu gut.

This book, particularly the last act, is an absolute clusterfuck of Epochs.

***Endeavouring to stay within a reasonable level and long established in Warhammer 40K lore to avoid too much, but potentially SPOILERS from now on - Honestly, it's kinda baffling the idea of someone getting this far in the series, let alone this review, without having some prior knowledge of the Darker Red vs Lighter Blue cousins to the more traditional pallete of the Word Bearers and Ultramarines***

It was at this point I realised the narrative of this story and the tragedy of Magnus and his Thousand Sons was something rather different to the Luna Wolves/ Sons of Horus, the Word Bearers, and the Ultramarines. This story is more of a slow burn, though I don't believe this excuses how bland I personally find much of the first act, and the tragedy is less of getting to know and love characters who are devastated by the actions of others, Nikaea notwithstanding, and fall to darkness through internal conflict, despair, and/ or specifically being done dirty by the Emperor; the sin of the XV and their Crimson King is hubris. Like the Emperor's Children, ego is the core of their damnation, but while Fulgrim and his sons believe themselves to martial and aesthetic perfection, the Sons of Prospero are self-assured in their command of knowledge and the abilites of the warp to not become the become the quantum curiosity of Schrodinger's cat, which is kinda apropos when you think about how Rubric Marines can be seen as both dead and alive, but the answer becomes definitive if you open their armour up. These are not traits thar create likeable characters (on an emotional level), but they are fascinating, and when their fall comes, as brutally and tragically as it does for Prospero (and how insidiously creeping for the Phoenician and his sons), liking them is irrelevant. In fact, my surprise at feeling so unsympathetic to Magnus for the majority of this book and not really connecting with Ahriman for a long time actually made the crescendo of their true intentions and intense emotions shock and hit me all the harder.

One or the things that I most cherish about the Horus Heresy is the allusions to mythology, historic figures and events, and the legendary archetypes it employs, retelling, conglomerating, and remixing tales from all manner of stories from various creeds, cultures, and traditions from throughout history and across the world in a way that is rich and engaging. It's a strange cousin to historical and mythological fiction, but in a grimdark space opera format. I am fascinated my myths, legends, and folklore, but can find translations of this wonderful ancient stories impenetrable because they are often told in an (understandably) archaic manner that bounces of my AuDHD addled brain. This is why I find books like the Children of Jocasta by Natalie Haynes and Circe by Madeline Miller so satisfying, but found Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology an impressive tome, but rather disappointing compared to something like American Gods, as I was hoping for expanded and immersive retelling, grounded in the detail of the originals, but injected with the intimate and personal that I am most drawn to opposed to a well-written and more accessible version of the stories that maintains the 'being told a story by the text ', rather than 'observing the story taking place as a witness.'

Unfortunately, this comes with the wildly vacillating sensitivity from a group of predominantly white, British, cishet men without sensitivity reading, cultural consultants, or, seemingly, any grasp of feminism. But when it works it is a beautiful thing.

Magnus most obviously embodying Odin, who gave his eye and one form of his life for knowledge, with the Cult of the Corvidae's name and prognostication evoking the All-Father's ravens, Huginn and Muninn, but there are so many other mythological shards his contains; Pandora and the dangers of forbidden knowledge (in many ways passed to Ahriman, along with the Book of Magnus), Sophia bringing instability through knowledge, Prometheus and sharing the knowledge fire with man, figuratively with manipulating the warp and literally wirh the XV's Cult of the Pyrae, and Kassandra, often depicted with red-auburn hair, and true prophecies ignored, to name a few.

This leads to rhe glorious irony and imagery of Magnus and Russ as mortal enemies, with the Wolf King as the apotheosis of the Space Sword Dane and the Emperor's 'justice', making there's a confrontation between Odin, whose name can be derived as 'leader of the possessed', and Týr, the Norse god of war and justice. The Vlka Fenryka call the Emperor the All-Father, one of Odin's titles, which is also perfect as in many ways Magnus is the Primarch most closely modelled on their father, reinforced by certain plans...

(Oh no! Looks like I'm about to start a document to chart refernces I come across...)

[We also really gotta talk about the sheer amount of corvid refernces, not just in the Thousand Sons and Raven Guard, but throughout the Legions and all of the Dark Millennia, including the shrouded and covetous Blood Ravens somewhen... I mean, the most likely short answer is that black birds are omenous and synonymous with death, so many gods, etc. and the birds themselves, feathers, and skulls all look cool and have a variety of cultural significances]

It is this mythological element, along with with the dramatic irony of the Horus Heresy and it's after effects being largely known, aside from the details and various twists of fate over the years that, depending on your perspective of him as figure, have not been kind to Sanguinius, that comes up in negative reviews of people acting in ridiculous ways or making wild decisions. At times it's a weak response, but it is also true - that's myths and drama, baybee! Without the ludicrous events, archetypal characters, and huge melodramatic swings, you don't get stories and events on this scale. A lot of myths and legends don't makes sense to assumed logic and sometimes the tragedy comes from the 'if you had just not done the thing, told the truth, actually had a conversation, etc.' You absolutely don't have to like it, and there are certainly times when it does more effectively than others, but it is what it is - a feature not a bug.

In the same vein, I have realised that the Emperor is, at least for me, best viewed as some kind of cthonic amalgamation of Zeus and a completely unknowable and alien being with godlike powers and perceptions that are anathema to truly understanding like Cthulhu.

I had a whole bunch of quotes and comments from my posted updates while reading this, but this has already gone on way too long and gotten too granular, so let's start wrapping this up.

Something I found very funny and probably are far more dotted throughout the book, like allusions to Blake, Crowley, magick, and gnosticism, are just a couple of absolutely ridiculous, but in my opinion glorious, references McNeill thrown into the Battle of Prospero, quothing The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe for the Corvidae Ahriman remembering having a good read one time in the middle of fighting, which would be cooler if McNeill didn't straight up copy paste the exact same line in reference to Magnus in his Primarchs novel (I will not be accepting George Lucas 'poetry' and 'rhyming' excuses at this time), and Magister Templi of the Pyrae, Khalophis, reciting the higher numeration of 'The Crazy World of Arthur Brown' on some Space Wolves that had me absolutely cracking up! (https://youtu.be/-4SnIJJCH8w?si=1FRAm...). I can totally see how some people might feel torn away from the grief and carnage of the battle like seeing an Ed Sheeran cameo as a Remembrancer, but it's so silly and spot on that I love it.

I don't have anything particular to say, but it should be noted that McNeill's writing of combat vacillates between frenetic and visceral, tragic, and truly ridiculous, and he's one of the best at it.

***ABSOLUTELY SPOILERS NOW***



Magnus is an arse and establishes himself repeatedly as someone who obscures the truth, outright lies, and is consumed by his naive, egotistical certainty that he is absolutely the wisest, most knowledgeable, and powerful being in the galaxy, second only to the Emperor (Malcador get wrecked! [This series truly needs flashbacks awkward and fractious interactions between the Sorcerer-King and the Sigillite]). He talks about his connection and communication with the Emperor, even as the Primarch was being created (raising an interesting philosophical point for anti choice advocates) and that they are always connected. This is all called into question and possibly proven to be entirely false by the means with which Magnus feels compelled to use to warn the Emperor of Horus, his ultimate folly and damnation of his Legion. BUT the tragedy of Magnus is that, as much of an smug, elitist prick he is and the ignorant, unspeakable, and indefendable things he does, at his core he does them for what he believes is the right reasons.

He gave everything to make the deal that seemed to cure the Fleshchange and then genuinely tried to offer himself again when it came back, he was sure he had the best chance to save Horus and then notify the Emperor and believed the ends justified the means to enact the rituals involved in these endeavours (though this, like Ahriman burning out the Remembrancer for knowledge and the Mournival decimating the civilians on the embarkation deck of the Vengeful Spirit, all speak to the transhuman disregard for human life), he felt true shame and regret at everything he had wrought with a misplaced belief that the recompense would be served to him alone, and that refusing to defend themselves was the only way to prove they weren't monsters, and ultimately that submitting to, by any other name, Tzeentch, and bringing the survivors to the Planet of the Sorcerers would save what was left from further destruction and damnation. Clearly, he was wrong on all counts and I refuse to give him the excuse of protecting his sons by being the first to kill a son of Prospero in Tizca, but that doesn't matter because he believed it and the sudden shock of guilt, shame, and introspection he has, the first time we are given a deeper look into the mind of Magnus, is an incredibly powerful unleashing of tension and emotion that has been building up, barely acknowledged, throughout the novel. Honestly, it came out of the blue and truly dealt me the emotional blow I had been asking for, similar, if not as powerfully upsetting, as the incredibly depressing, but perfect, Know No Fear epilogue.

McNeill needs to get better at writing women and not to use lazy and racist orientalist tropes, like having the Chief Librarian of the White Scars speaking in broken English as if any Astartes couldn’t speak fluent Gothic, least of all a Master of Librarius. At least Gareth Armstrong doesn't do the unfortunate stereotypical accent the V Legion get lumbered with by predominantly white British directors and voice actors.

It took me a while to get there, but by the end I remembered just how much and why I love this book so much. McNeill continues to be a problematic fave and I pray his bioessentialist misogynistic fuckery in Fulgrim doesn't break me.

Taking a Primarch's holiday to Morningstar with Magnus and catching up with Russ as an intermission before Prospero Burns

[mikey · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5


Cosmic sorcery, pride, betrayal, and family drama. The classic tenants of many Warhammer books, all here, all executed many steps above the status quo.

A Thousand Sons is a fantastic entry in the Horus Heresy, jumping back and forth around the timeline to highlight the immense tragedy that this Legion has both suffered in the past, and will inevitably suffer in the future. It benefits from having multiple POV characters all of whom I was pretty attached, and one of them being the Primarch himself, something that we don’t always get, and are better for it this time.


This entry wonderfully characterizes the Legion and their struggles, from genetic curses, to being slighted by their own brothers and father, culminating in the razing of their homeworld. Time and time again we see characters grappling with destiny, future choices they believe that can or cannot be changed, and we see very real consequences for the choices they make, Magnus choosing to use magic after it being forbidden, chief among those choices.

“‘You are my sons, and I have failed you.’ Ahriman wanted to weep at his primarch’s words, feeling the sorrow of a being who had beheld all of creation, but had fallen short in his reach to grasp it.”

I wasn’t a really big fan of The Thousand Sons before reading this, but I have to say, I’ve discovered a newfound empathy for them afterwards. They are not without flaws, or particularly good, (no whole faction in Warhammer is particularly good), but they have known suffering, and were dealt quite a rough hand in grand scheme of the narrative.


I’m very happy I took the time to read this book, as it has both provided a new perspective for a faction I cared little of, and has left me with a lot of hype to see them in the future, especially with Ahriman’s Rubric being name dropped in the final sentence.

“The Book of Magnus lies open before me, its pages filled with forbidden lore and knowledge from ancient, forgotten days. It holds the key to our salvation. In the labyrinthine collections of formulae, incantations and rites, I have found what I believe will be the beginnings of a mighty spell to undo all that has befallen us. I call it the Rubric.”

I’m very much looking forward to continuing.

All is Dust.

[Arnis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Horus Heresy vispārējā sērijā pēc kārtas numura #12 ierindotais romāns A Thousand Sons trijās daļās vēsta par būtiskākajiem pieturpunktiem, kas noved pie tā, ka vēstures annālēs Tūkstošdēlu (TD) leģions tiek pieskaitīts pie nodevējiem.

https://poseidons99.com/2024/10/12/gr...

[Autum]

Yall do i actually have to read them in order do i fr have to read all 11 before this to read this one 😭 im new send help

[Betawolf · Rating 3 out of 5]

This second Black Library book (both were purchased at an airport to see me through two days away) fares somewhat better than the previous in my estimation. McNeill's tale of the Thousand Sons during the Horus Heresy doesn't strike me as particularly imaginitive or insightful, but manages its job well enough.

Magnus has always seemed a rather sympathetic figure to me, and unsurprisingly this book provides support for that angle. Magnus was loyal, and probably not corrupted, and generally just (rightfully) confused by the opposition people had to his 'sorcery'. The Thousand Sons' commitment to discovering knowledge of course aligns with my academic sensibilities.

Although for the most part the story doesn't disappoint, there are a couple of negative points I want to address, and one of them is Nikea. For an event which was so central to the Thousand Sons' story, this felt neglected. We see only four contributions to the debate/trial, and no real back-and-forth. I'd much rather have seen more of the speakers and had more time being spent with the Thousand Sons slowly losing in the face of popular resentment, and I'd happily sacrifice some of the tedious battle scenes (there were several which seemed needless) for that.

The conclusion of Nikea that was presented to us is... odd. Magnus wins popular support through a 'we're leading you into the future' speech which should've fostered suspicion rather than eased it, and then the Emperor just goes 'naw, sorcery's bad, don't do it'. If anything, that makes the Emperor look stupid. These are marines who can barely clean their guns without using magic, of course they're not going to stop without you giving them a good reason. In fact, a lot of this book points towards the Emperor being the cause of the whole problem with the Thousand Sons. If he had just told Magnus about the webway setup, the cockup which led to Prospero would never have happened.

The Emperor might be a special case, but this could be considered a broader issue with the characters of the novel. Wyrdmake (I think that was his name. The runepriest) in particular seems to develop along a pseudo-sympathetic line, then suddenly become really hostile for no observable reason. Similarly, Russ seems to fly off the handle at Magnus for no reason during the assault on the avian world (Oddly, he says something about blood being spilled, but the Thousand Sons had specifically avoided killing any of the Space Wolves, though Russ had killed some of their number). Maybe this is a characteristic of the Space Wolves, but it leaves you reading what's going on and going 'Well, why?'. Sometimes it seems like the author couldn't think of a good motivation for his characters' actions, so just wrote them without one.

These flaws aside, the writing wasn't that bad. There is care devoted to developing the Thousand Sons characters and their remembrancers, and we get to see the cults in action both in and out of battle, giving the Legion extra dimensions. While I wouldn't want to enthuse about it at length, it's certainly entertaining enough.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this is a good book that is well written and immersive. It starts the tale of the fall of the thousand sons and their Primarch Magnus the Red, as well covering key canon events such as the Council of Nikaea and Magnus' ill-fated efforts to save Horus and warn the Emperor of the coming war. McNeil does a good job of building believable Astartes and mortal characters that we sympathise with and root for, although some do fall into 2d caricature territory, namely the Space Wolves. The fall of Prospero in the final quarter is a great sequence that you will rip through.

My main criticism of this book is that it is far too long, almost 600 pages. The whole sequence on Aghoru at the start, well over 100 pages, should have been a separate novella. All the necessary characters and themes could have been introduced in far less time, as 'Horus Rising' showed. I felt including the Aghoru story here throws the whole composition off balance, and the actual story only starts around 150 pages in.

McNeil's writing can also be a bit clumsy at times, with adjectives or words reused or silly metaphors being employed. This book also have a few editorial errors which is frustrating, but overall a good work that succeeds in painting a more 3d and tragic picture of a fallen legion and cursed son that still believe they can be vindicated and victorious which is far more powerful and believable than simply 'good legion vs. Bad'.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Previously, I said that Fulgrim (another Graham McNeill novel) was the best depiction so far of a Legion's fall to Chaos. Thousand Sons has now claimed that throne. Both the Emperor's Children (from Fulgrim) and the Thousand Sons are in large part undone by their own hubris, but the Thousand Sons are a bit easier to relate to (as, spoiler, the fall of Fulgrim stems from being psychically poisoned by a sentient artifact). Indeed, much of the Horus Heresy setting revolves around individuals or groups being crushed by their own pride - whether that's Astartes believing they are above mortal men, Primarchs believing they can control the powers of the Warp (or outsmart the Gods therein), or even the Emperor believing that he can create a utopia by conquering the galaxy. In the best tragedies, you can sympathize with the heroes, cringing as they make poor decisions, even while knowing that you'd likely make the same ones. Thousand Sons is the closest yet the Horus Heresy has come to such greatness.

It started a bit slow, but once it got rolling, it was an excellent ride.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how Chaos just leaves you guessing about how much they really influence these "gods" aka Primarchs. I also felt incredible sympathy for the Thousand Sons and like the return of the Rememberancers. I wished there was more about Ahriman's Rubric though it just mentions that he has this powerful spell that will help his brothers resist the flesh change. All-in-all one of my favorite Horus Heresy books!

[Alejandro Loza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Y otro más terminado, y de momento, el último libro de Warhammer hasta dentro de un tiempo.

En el vasto y complejo tapiz de la Herejía de Horus, "Los Mil Hijos" de Graham McNeill se erige como una obra fundamental, no solo por su relevancia en la cronología de los hechos, sino por la profundidad con la que explora los personajes de Ahriman y Magnus el Rojo. A diferencia de otras entregas de la saga, donde el conflicto bélico es el eje central, esta novela nos sumerge en una tragedia de proporciones mitológicas, donde el deseo de conocimiento y la arrogancia conducen a la ruina de toda una legión.

La historia de "Los Mil Hijos" gira en torno a su primarca, Magnus el Rojo, una figura fascinante cuya tragedia personal resuena a lo largo de la novela. A diferencia de otros primarcas que se ven arrastrados por la ambición o la traición, Magnus cae por su propio deseo de proteger a la humanidad a través del conocimiento prohibido. Su relación con el Emperador es especialmente conmovedora: Magnus es el hijo que, pese a su amor y lealtad, desobedece las leyes de su padre creyendo que actúa por el bien mayor. Esta decisión, sin embargo, desencadena la destrucción de Prospero, el hogar de los Mil Hijos, a manos de los Lobos Espaciales de Leman Russ en una de las batallas más emotivas y trágicas de toda la saga.

En paralelo, Ahriman emerge como un personaje de una complejidad extraordinaria. Como primer hechicero de la legión, representa la contradicción inherente entre el ansia de saber y las consecuencias de ese conocimiento. Su devoción por Magnus y por la supervivencia de su legión lo llevan a tomar decisiones que, aunque bien intencionadas, lo convierten en el arquitecto de su propia condena. Su desesperación y su determinación por salvar a los Mil Hijos de la degeneración que el Caos impone sobre ellos culminan en la hechicería de la "Rubrica de Ahriman" , un acto que, paradójicamente, termina condenando a sus hermanos a una eternidad vacía como meras armaduras sin alma.

Lo que distingue a "Los Mil Hijos" es su capacidad para retratar la caída de esta legión como una tragedia inevitable, un destino que, por mucho que sus protagonistas luchen, no puede evitarse. La narrativa de McNeill es envolvente y poderosa, logrando que el lector sienta la desesperación de Magnus, la impotencia de Ahriman y el dolor de una legión que solo buscaba comprender el universo.

En definitiva, "Los Mil Hijos" es una gran obra dentro de la Herejía de Horus, una historia de traición, tragedia y destino inexorable que muestra la complejidad de sus personajes y la ironía de su ruina.

"Todo lo que quise fue el conocimiento. Y por ese pecado, el mundo arde."
- Magnus El Rojo, Primarca de los Mil Hijos

[Blair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Knowledge, secrets, betrayals, loyalty.

A Thousand Sons is a fat book, one of the biggest of the Horus Heresy, but the price in size balances it with a solid quality in narrative, stories and characters, as intriguing as it is fascinating. Like Horus Rising, this book has a sweet collection of regular human characters that allows us to observe the epic proportions of the Thousand Sons from a more central and deadly POV. The characters are entertaining and each possesses a distinctive role that makes them, in their own way, victims of circumstance (or fate?). The character of Lemuel Gaumon in particular is quite an entertaining one to read, with an amusing personality and dry humor that is lashed by terrible suffering.

Magnus and Ahriman are the two central characters of the story, and each is a coin of the same side, offering us a balance between different narratives that are seen to intertwine, but then diverge when secrets come to light. Magnus is a fascinating character, and I may be a bit biased, but I greatly enjoy the trope of characters obsessed with knowledge. Magnus ends up suffering in the face of such obsession, and his decay, unlike other traitors, is more humanized and tragic, and sees him loyal to the last moment. Ahriman, on the other hand, is a victim of his primarch's ego and arrogance, being thrown into a tumultuous storm where he must risk and sacrifice everything for his legion and world.

Both are, ultimately, the characters of a tragic tale that, while similar to other HH stories, manages to still shine due to the simple yet delicious execution of it.

And what an execution! This novel is big, but with good justification. It takes a hella of a buildup, to give you a hella of a payoff, and it's glorious.

One of my favorite 40k novels, and made me fell in love with the Thousand Sons.

[Lane Callahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was excellent - i think it is the best warhammer/horus heresy book that i have read. it was good enough that i think it would stand alone as a general sci-fi book and still be an enjoyable read for someone with no background or interest in warhammer as a setting

i liked the theming in this the best - it really felt like a cool take on a shakespearean tragedy and kept coming back to the themes of destiny and fate (and the tragic inability to change these things) in clever and different ways.

i also really liked the characters, although at times struggled to tell some of the sideline characters apart. ahriman was a massive standout, it was also really cool to learn more about magnus although ir eally loved him before reading this and now think he is a bit of an idiot. a tragic character for sure, nonetheless

the climax in this was great, many standout moments throughout too (council of nikaea was awesome)

5/5 ! loved it

[Troy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. This book really was hard to put down once I started reading. This book was exactly what I wanted for the sacking of prospero. Since I first got into warhammer lore I always found the battle of Prospero to be one I was very interested in. This book covers the entire battle and its worth every bit. I felt like I was on the streets of Prospero watching the wolves of fenris, custodes and sisters of silence fight their way through the thousand sons who hold their own well. It is a sad story the fall of the thousand sons but an intriguing one. The book also describes the full 1 on 1 fight between magnus and leman which is referenced in other books which is by far the best primarch fight I've red. We actually get to see the wulfen in action also which almost made me jump out of my seat. About the last quarter of the book is the battle of Prospero. The rest follows the thousands sons and was still very riverting. Admittedly I did get occasionally bored with some of the remembrancer charecter sections the book follows but doesn't bring the book down at all. This would easily be one of if not the best in series.

[Timothy Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75 ⭐️ To quote Lord Acton, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Almost certainly the best entry of the series this far. Watching Magnus and his legion experience tragedy and betrayal due to their own hubris as well as the machinations of Chaos was sublime. The feeling of helplessness as they moved closer to fallout with the Emperor of Mankind, knowing they wouldn’t see the error in their ways until it was too late, was excellently captured.