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Ultramarines #1-3 + short stories
The Uriel Ventris Chronicles: Volume One
A Warhammer 40,000 omnibus
Uriel Ventris takes command of the Ultramarines Fourth Company and leads them into danger against drukhari, tyranids and more – and faces his own trials that will test him to his very limits and beyond.
READ IT BECAUSE
From a loyal world in the grip of xenos raiders to the daemon world of the Iron Warriors, Uriel Ventris and his staunch companion Pasanius face horrors untold across three novels and three short stories of Ultramarines action.
DESCRIPTION
The Ultramarines are a byword for loyalty and courage. Their martial prowess is legendary and is second only to the God-Emperor. Graham McNeill's epic trilogy of Ultramarines novels is a masterpiece of non-stop action! Containing the novels Nightbringer, Warriors of Ultramar and Dead Sky, Black Sun, plus connecting short stories, this omnibus follows the adventures of Space Marine Captain Uriel Ventris and the Ultramarines as they battle against the enemies of mankind. From their home world of Macragge, into the dreaded Eye of Terror and beyond, Graham McNeill's prose rattles like gunfire and brings the Space Marines to life like never before.
This omnibus contains the first three novels in Graham McNeill's Ultramarines series – Nightbringer, Warriors of Ultramar and Dead Sky, Black Sun – along with three short stories that continue
THE STORY
of Uriel Ventris and the Fourth Company.
CONTENTS
Chains of Command
Nightbringer
Leviathan
Warriors of Ultramar
Consequences
Dead Sky, Black Sun
1184 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 5, 2019
324 people are currently reading
455 people want to read
About the author
Graham McNeill
340 books908 followersHailing 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.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
October 25, 2020
In the Empire of Man in the WH40K universe, there’s two tiers of soldiers: the elite Space Marines - and everyone else.
Space Marines are genetically-modified, trained-from-birth super soldiers encased in power-armor and loaded to the gills with cybernetics. Their weapon of choice is the bolter, essentially an automatic grenade launcher. And they sometimes wield a sword because why not?! Swords are cool.
Despite the similarities of their creation, Space Marines are not one monolithic force, oh no. They’re organized into Chapters (a good analogy would be a Roman Legion), whose battle tactics and overall philosophy can vary wildly. Seriously, there are hundreds if not thousands of different Chapters.
The most righteous, jingoistic Chapter of them all are the Ultramarines. Praise the Emperor this, praise the Emperor that, and, oh, beware the Corruption of Chaos! Catechisms for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Well, these books follow Uriel Ventris, a Captain of the Ultramarines.
This hefty tome, in fact, comprises three different books, each featuring a different setting and different foe.
The first book, Nightbringer, follows Uriel Ventris in his first major campaign as Captain and features Dark Eldar - basically sci-fi dark elves with a splash of Giger - as well as the Nightbringer (whoever that may be…) and your usual coterie of corrupt humans. It’s that last inclusion that elevates this first book above the others.
I’m sure I’m not revealing anything you don’t already know when I say that human beings practice extreme levels of species prejudice. Only humans have souls, not animals. Only humans have free will, not animals. The vast majority of human beings will only start caring about the mass extinction event we’re currently causing when human beings start to suffer. Obviously there are exceptions but point is, human beings find human affairs most interesting and worthy of attention. That’s why in The Walking Dead, the actual walking dead merely serve as a backdrop for human conflict.
Same here in Nightbringer. Yeah there’s aliens, there’s Old Gods… but the human politics and human conflicts serve as the core of the story. And the story is better for it.
By contrast, the second book Warriors of Ultramar features Uriel Ventris leading a solar system defense against an invasion of Tyranids who are, basically, the Zerg (or vice versa): a Hive Mind species who use rapid and extreme genetic modification to creature ORGANIC weapons and soldiers. Here, though, human politics and conflicts do NOT serve as the core of the story. Not to say there isn’t some. It’s just not the main conflict. And the story is less compelling as a result.
The last book, Dead Sky, Black Sun, involves the exodus of Uriel Ventris (and his best friend Pasanius) to a Chaos-infested HELLPLANET. Its endless descriptions of torture and body horror and such reminded me of that movie Event Horizon, as well as the original Quake games. Dead Sky, Black Sun was, by far, my least favorite book and, for the foreseeable future (indeed, perhaps forever) the last WH40K book that I’ll read.
All of these books are action-packed with dialogue won’t win any awards but feels natural to the characters and description that helps expand the impressive WH40K milieu. It’s just… for this type of story, writing is not the best medium. I loathe the phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words” but it’s the perfect critique of these books.
Dead Sky, Black Sun, for example, contains A LOT of description… and yet I could tell you vastly more about the environs of Quake 2, a game I haven’t played in decades. Video games, film, animation - these are all much better media for telling these types of stories, in which objective description takes precedence over subjective description.
In fact, that’s something a lot of authors don’t seem to grasp: good description should always be a form of characterization. An author is never going to out-describe a video game or a film. Ever. But what a novel can do that a film or video game can’t is customize the perception on the basis of the character. In a film or a video game, a tree is a tree. But in a novel, a druid or an industrialist or a peasant will look at a tree and describe it in vastly different terms. That’s huge. That’s what makes novels so great at exploring diverse mindsets and building empathy. The Chronicles of Uriel Ventris is not going to be strengthening your empathy muscles.
So, yeah, it’s not capital-L Literature, but then OBVIOUSLY it isn’t. So it might seem churlish of me to make this criticism of the book. And I might agree - except I’ve also read the Eisenhorn trilogy from WH40K. Which also isn’t capital-L Literature but is nevertheless vastly superior to these because they remain FIRMLY centered on human conflict and FIRMLY anchored within the perspective of Eisenhorn himself. Every description is flavored by his own unique personality. So those books have all the action, all that fun WH40K lore and flavor… but they never lose sight of the human element either.
Space Marines are genetically-modified, trained-from-birth super soldiers encased in power-armor and loaded to the gills with cybernetics. Their weapon of choice is the bolter, essentially an automatic grenade launcher. And they sometimes wield a sword because why not?! Swords are cool.
Despite the similarities of their creation, Space Marines are not one monolithic force, oh no. They’re organized into Chapters (a good analogy would be a Roman Legion), whose battle tactics and overall philosophy can vary wildly. Seriously, there are hundreds if not thousands of different Chapters.
The most righteous, jingoistic Chapter of them all are the Ultramarines. Praise the Emperor this, praise the Emperor that, and, oh, beware the Corruption of Chaos! Catechisms for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Well, these books follow Uriel Ventris, a Captain of the Ultramarines.
This hefty tome, in fact, comprises three different books, each featuring a different setting and different foe.
The first book, Nightbringer, follows Uriel Ventris in his first major campaign as Captain and features Dark Eldar - basically sci-fi dark elves with a splash of Giger - as well as the Nightbringer (whoever that may be…) and your usual coterie of corrupt humans. It’s that last inclusion that elevates this first book above the others.
I’m sure I’m not revealing anything you don’t already know when I say that human beings practice extreme levels of species prejudice. Only humans have souls, not animals. Only humans have free will, not animals. The vast majority of human beings will only start caring about the mass extinction event we’re currently causing when human beings start to suffer. Obviously there are exceptions but point is, human beings find human affairs most interesting and worthy of attention. That’s why in The Walking Dead, the actual walking dead merely serve as a backdrop for human conflict.
Same here in Nightbringer. Yeah there’s aliens, there’s Old Gods… but the human politics and human conflicts serve as the core of the story. And the story is better for it.
By contrast, the second book Warriors of Ultramar features Uriel Ventris leading a solar system defense against an invasion of Tyranids who are, basically, the Zerg (or vice versa): a Hive Mind species who use rapid and extreme genetic modification to creature ORGANIC weapons and soldiers. Here, though, human politics and conflicts do NOT serve as the core of the story. Not to say there isn’t some. It’s just not the main conflict. And the story is less compelling as a result.
The last book, Dead Sky, Black Sun, involves the exodus of Uriel Ventris (and his best friend Pasanius) to a Chaos-infested HELLPLANET. Its endless descriptions of torture and body horror and such reminded me of that movie Event Horizon, as well as the original Quake games. Dead Sky, Black Sun was, by far, my least favorite book and, for the foreseeable future (indeed, perhaps forever) the last WH40K book that I’ll read.
All of these books are action-packed with dialogue won’t win any awards but feels natural to the characters and description that helps expand the impressive WH40K milieu. It’s just… for this type of story, writing is not the best medium. I loathe the phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words” but it’s the perfect critique of these books.
Dead Sky, Black Sun, for example, contains A LOT of description… and yet I could tell you vastly more about the environs of Quake 2, a game I haven’t played in decades. Video games, film, animation - these are all much better media for telling these types of stories, in which objective description takes precedence over subjective description.
In fact, that’s something a lot of authors don’t seem to grasp: good description should always be a form of characterization. An author is never going to out-describe a video game or a film. Ever. But what a novel can do that a film or video game can’t is customize the perception on the basis of the character. In a film or a video game, a tree is a tree. But in a novel, a druid or an industrialist or a peasant will look at a tree and describe it in vastly different terms. That’s huge. That’s what makes novels so great at exploring diverse mindsets and building empathy. The Chronicles of Uriel Ventris is not going to be strengthening your empathy muscles.
So, yeah, it’s not capital-L Literature, but then OBVIOUSLY it isn’t. So it might seem churlish of me to make this criticism of the book. And I might agree - except I’ve also read the Eisenhorn trilogy from WH40K. Which also isn’t capital-L Literature but is nevertheless vastly superior to these because they remain FIRMLY centered on human conflict and FIRMLY anchored within the perspective of Eisenhorn himself. Every description is flavored by his own unique personality. So those books have all the action, all that fun WH40K lore and flavor… but they never lose sight of the human element either.
April 12, 2023
“The Ultramarines are the epitome of a Space Marine chapter. Warriors without peer, their name is a byword for discipline and honour, and their heroic deeds are legendary…”
Whatta a goddamn ride these were. And entirely worth the insane amount of time it took me to read this entirely.
Basically, three novels in one, supplemented by some connecting short stories set before and between these three novels. All centered around The Captain America of The Imperium, Uriel Ventris and his merrily insane band of Ultramarine compatriots. Each with their own themed weapon to boot.
But even better, it’s a rollicking, constantly entertaining crash course in just how straight up bonkers 40k can be while also proficient in just solidly entertaining “military thriller” storytelling. Each novel has a pretty clear set up, and themed antagonists (all too a who’s who of the Warp’s Worst like the Tyranids and Chaos Marines and even more, which is also very cool and fun to see), but the real power is just making you actually care about those slabs of walking, talking meat and hoping like all hell that they will actually make it through the considerably horrifying bullshit they get thrown through for almost 1000 pages.
I think the second installment, Warriors of Ultramar, is the one that lags the most, but truly all three of these (and the shorts) just flat rule most of the time. While also providing you clear and present examples of how and why people are completely obsessed with this whole thing. (Also that final final beat of Book 3 is just TOO GOOD. It made me want the second omni of these right fucking now, which should be a pretty ringing endorsement in itself, but I’ve also been reading this for three years so take it or leave it).
Whatta a goddamn ride these were. And entirely worth the insane amount of time it took me to read this entirely.
Basically, three novels in one, supplemented by some connecting short stories set before and between these three novels. All centered around The Captain America of The Imperium, Uriel Ventris and his merrily insane band of Ultramarine compatriots. Each with their own themed weapon to boot.
But even better, it’s a rollicking, constantly entertaining crash course in just how straight up bonkers 40k can be while also proficient in just solidly entertaining “military thriller” storytelling. Each novel has a pretty clear set up, and themed antagonists (all too a who’s who of the Warp’s Worst like the Tyranids and Chaos Marines and even more, which is also very cool and fun to see), but the real power is just making you actually care about those slabs of walking, talking meat and hoping like all hell that they will actually make it through the considerably horrifying bullshit they get thrown through for almost 1000 pages.
I think the second installment, Warriors of Ultramar, is the one that lags the most, but truly all three of these (and the shorts) just flat rule most of the time. While also providing you clear and present examples of how and why people are completely obsessed with this whole thing. (Also that final final beat of Book 3 is just TOO GOOD. It made me want the second omni of these right fucking now, which should be a pretty ringing endorsement in itself, but I’ve also been reading this for three years so take it or leave it).
July 21, 2021
Trois romans et une nouvelle composent ce volume qui raconte les aventures d’Uriel Ventris.
Hiérarchie : Uriel Ventris devient le Capitaine de la 4ème Compagnie de Combat du Chapitre des Ultramarines à la mort du Capitaine Idaeus.
Nightbringer : il est envoyé sur Pavonis pour protéger le gouvernement en place et stopper la rébellion des Maisons Marchandes et la prise de pouvoir par l’une d’elle qui désire ranimer Le Nightbringer qui est un dieu sadique capable de pulvériser les étoiles !
Les Guerriers d'Ultramar : Uriel Ventris rejoint le Chapitre des space marines Mortifactors afin de les convaincre à se joindre à lui et la Garde Impériale pour contrer l’invasion de Tarsis Ultra par les créatures Tyranides issues des Flottes-Ruches qui ont déjà dévoré et atomisé plusieurs mondes.
Ciel mort, soleil Noir : pour n’avoir pas respecté le Codex Astartes qui régit vies et combats des Space Marines loyalistes il est déshonoré et envoyé en exil sur la planète Medrengard, tuer le Maitre de la Forge Honsou et libérer le Démon Coeur de Sang.
Vous n’avez rien compris ? C’est normal !! Warhammer 40.000 est un monde à part avec son vocabulaire, règles, son culte à l’empereur et les événements se déroulent sur des milliers d’années ! C’est un univers tellement complexe que je suis dans l’incapacité totale de résumer clairement quoique ce soit ! Mais l’aventure est au rendez-vous à chaque moment, les Space Marines sont les redresseurs de torts de ces galaxies et croisent des créatures plus immondes les unes que les autres !
Je reconnais à Graham McNeill qu’il a une imagination débridée pour créer des horreurs à tour de bras et les décrire par le menu ! J’ai partagé une citation de chaque roman, histoire de ne pas être seule à avoir parfois la nausée !
J’ai clairement préféré la nouvelle et les deux premiers romans auxquels je mets 5* mais le dernier m’a plutôt ennuyé, bien que les horreurs soient présentes, j’ai trouvé qu’Uriel Ventris était limite niais par instant et c’était assez déroutant pour être déplaisant et casser le rythme de lecture. Ceci ne m’empêchera pas de lire le volume suivant, j’adore cet univers quel qu'en soit la période.
#LesChroniquesdUrielVentris1èrePartie #NetGalleyFrance
Hiérarchie : Uriel Ventris devient le Capitaine de la 4ème Compagnie de Combat du Chapitre des Ultramarines à la mort du Capitaine Idaeus.
Nightbringer : il est envoyé sur Pavonis pour protéger le gouvernement en place et stopper la rébellion des Maisons Marchandes et la prise de pouvoir par l’une d’elle qui désire ranimer Le Nightbringer qui est un dieu sadique capable de pulvériser les étoiles !
Les Guerriers d'Ultramar : Uriel Ventris rejoint le Chapitre des space marines Mortifactors afin de les convaincre à se joindre à lui et la Garde Impériale pour contrer l’invasion de Tarsis Ultra par les créatures Tyranides issues des Flottes-Ruches qui ont déjà dévoré et atomisé plusieurs mondes.
Ciel mort, soleil Noir : pour n’avoir pas respecté le Codex Astartes qui régit vies et combats des Space Marines loyalistes il est déshonoré et envoyé en exil sur la planète Medrengard, tuer le Maitre de la Forge Honsou et libérer le Démon Coeur de Sang.
Vous n’avez rien compris ? C’est normal !! Warhammer 40.000 est un monde à part avec son vocabulaire, règles, son culte à l’empereur et les événements se déroulent sur des milliers d’années ! C’est un univers tellement complexe que je suis dans l’incapacité totale de résumer clairement quoique ce soit ! Mais l’aventure est au rendez-vous à chaque moment, les Space Marines sont les redresseurs de torts de ces galaxies et croisent des créatures plus immondes les unes que les autres !
Je reconnais à Graham McNeill qu’il a une imagination débridée pour créer des horreurs à tour de bras et les décrire par le menu ! J’ai partagé une citation de chaque roman, histoire de ne pas être seule à avoir parfois la nausée !
J’ai clairement préféré la nouvelle et les deux premiers romans auxquels je mets 5* mais le dernier m’a plutôt ennuyé, bien que les horreurs soient présentes, j’ai trouvé qu’Uriel Ventris était limite niais par instant et c’était assez déroutant pour être déplaisant et casser le rythme de lecture. Ceci ne m’empêchera pas de lire le volume suivant, j’adore cet univers quel qu'en soit la période.
#LesChroniquesdUrielVentris1èrePartie #NetGalleyFrance
March 11, 2025
This omnibus was a lot and reviewing it is not easy. It started good but the more I read the more of a slog it became. Night Bringer was a fine book. It felt a little dated sometimes but it was a fun fast read nevertheless. Leviathan was great tension and had me very excited for Warriors of Ultramar (I love me some tyranids). WoU had great moments, the contrast between space battles and the fighting on the planet, the ultramarine acting as drill sergeant for the humans, the planetary governor. But by the end of WoU McNeill’s writing began to run a bit out of steam for me. Black Sky Black Sun was…it was not easy to keep reading it. It was crazy gruesome scene after crazy gruesome scene, but it all felt same-ish and didn’t do anything for me?
If you are a fan of McNeill and his books you will probably love this omnibus otherwise I would not necessarily recommend this book. For me personally there are 40k/space marine and even ultramarine books that are better written and more engaging than this and I now know that I very much prefer writers like ADB, Mike Brooks, Guy Haley and the likes when it comes to my space marine books. But to each their own and in all fairness Leviathan was an absolute banger of a short story!
If you are a fan of McNeill and his books you will probably love this omnibus otherwise I would not necessarily recommend this book. For me personally there are 40k/space marine and even ultramarine books that are better written and more engaging than this and I now know that I very much prefer writers like ADB, Mike Brooks, Guy Haley and the likes when it comes to my space marine books. But to each their own and in all fairness Leviathan was an absolute banger of a short story!
February 10, 2025
Pros: This book is a great introduction to the WH40K universe, and the battle scenes are fantastic. I love Pasanius - he was awesome. You also get to see a lot of different factions in the book, which is nice if you’re trying to decide which you want to play haha.
Cons: I feel like there was too much jumping to the perspective of side characters who would die quickly or who I’d have forgotten about by the time they showed up again. The stories could have been much tighter if they’d focused just on Uriel’s perspective. Alternatively, it would have been nice if the villains weren’t portrayed as completely evil when we were given their POVs. Some of the twists were very predictable too.
Still definitely worth a read if you’re getting into the WH40K universe! A fun read - go in expecting vibes similar to an action horror and you won’t be disappointed.
Cons: I feel like there was too much jumping to the perspective of side characters who would die quickly or who I’d have forgotten about by the time they showed up again. The stories could have been much tighter if they’d focused just on Uriel’s perspective. Alternatively, it would have been nice if the villains weren’t portrayed as completely evil when we were given their POVs. Some of the twists were very predictable too.
Still definitely worth a read if you’re getting into the WH40K universe! A fun read - go in expecting vibes similar to an action horror and you won’t be disappointed.
August 27, 2020
At the time of this review, I have finished the first story, "Nightbringer" .
I enter novels that belong to a well established franchise with some skepticism. More times than not, I am left disappointed, with the author running amok, essentially using the existing characters to piggy back their plot. Karen Traviss, I am looking at you.
McNeill is nowhere near those authors. So far, this omnibus delivers on every note that I wanted in 40K novel. McNeill maintains a concrete writing style, a solid plot (with decent twists) all while maintaining the ultra violent nature of the bleak 40K universe.
I enter novels that belong to a well established franchise with some skepticism. More times than not, I am left disappointed, with the author running amok, essentially using the existing characters to piggy back their plot. Karen Traviss, I am looking at you.
McNeill is nowhere near those authors. So far, this omnibus delivers on every note that I wanted in 40K novel. McNeill maintains a concrete writing style, a solid plot (with decent twists) all while maintaining the ultra violent nature of the bleak 40K universe.
July 31, 2023
Such a weird book to review.
Completely new to the Warhammer Universe and only read this as the computer game Rogue Trader is slated for release and wanted some context.
I would have so loved this as a 14 year old and even in my dotage I absolutely loved the world building and craziness of the gothic descriptions and overall ridiculousness of well, everything. Liked the main characters although by book three the pattern was obvious..in who you like, hate, will be sacrificed and so on.
The problem is for every 100 pages, 67 are combat descriptions and it wears you out..the politics and religious connotations especially the Lovecraftian corruptions are extremely fun and interesting.
Completely new to the Warhammer Universe and only read this as the computer game Rogue Trader is slated for release and wanted some context.
I would have so loved this as a 14 year old and even in my dotage I absolutely loved the world building and craziness of the gothic descriptions and overall ridiculousness of well, everything. Liked the main characters although by book three the pattern was obvious..in who you like, hate, will be sacrificed and so on.
The problem is for every 100 pages, 67 are combat descriptions and it wears you out..the politics and religious connotations especially the Lovecraftian corruptions are extremely fun and interesting.
May 23, 2022
A great start if you are looking at getting into Space Marines in general. It really lays out how a Space Marine is created and traditionally chosen and what they can do. The action scenes are solid and well described for the most part. The characters have personality and the villains are well written. It doesn't reference many events outside of those relevant to the story and when it does they are given context. It is both a good read with a self contained story and an easy way to get into the lore.
August 18, 2025
My introduction to the world of WH40K.
This was my first book and first experience in anything WarHammer (WH) and, because of this book, I started playing video games and reading all of the different books in this massive universe. I decided to re-read this book and even the second time it did not disappoint in any way.
This Omnibus as it used to be called has many enemy varieties and different kinds of battles and stories. Still my favourite book and I do not believe many could not enjoy this book. Have a great adventure!
This was my first book and first experience in anything WarHammer (WH) and, because of this book, I started playing video games and reading all of the different books in this massive universe. I decided to re-read this book and even the second time it did not disappoint in any way.
This Omnibus as it used to be called has many enemy varieties and different kinds of battles and stories. Still my favourite book and I do not believe many could not enjoy this book. Have a great adventure!
May 22, 2025
Light entry into the Warhammer 40K book franchise. Each book in the omnibus jumps seemlessly between each of Uriel's adventure. Highly recommended for Warhammer 40K beginners but also veterans who would appreciate the way Graham McNeill sets a scene and utilises the universe in a create, exciting way. This book has me putting down my phone and endlessly doomscrolling. Now when I feel the need I just pick up my book and dive back into such an invigorating universe.
November 3, 2023
The sheer ammount of content and information you get from this omnibus leaves you breathless and wanting for me.From the C'tan,to fighting along side the deth korps of krieg shoulder to shoulder against the Tyranids to ending up on traitor warlord -world with a unlikely band of renegade space marines who consider themselves loyalist.This book has it all.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 8, 2025
Ultra marine grandeur
My first set of squad/army centric 40k novels and wow. The scope of the grim dark is strong. Really enjoyed the writer’s ability to have so many battles and each feel fresh and innovative. Maybe not a surprise for those in the know, but some really gross and twisted descriptions of flensing and grotesque horror. I will definitely read Uriel Ventris’ further adventures with at least two solid call backs set up in the future.
My first set of squad/army centric 40k novels and wow. The scope of the grim dark is strong. Really enjoyed the writer’s ability to have so many battles and each feel fresh and innovative. Maybe not a surprise for those in the know, but some really gross and twisted descriptions of flensing and grotesque horror. I will definitely read Uriel Ventris’ further adventures with at least two solid call backs set up in the future.
August 19, 2021
Now I see why Uriel Ventris is so revered within the realm of Ultramarines - McNeill's omnibus presents three great stories to highlight this champion of the Ultramarines in both his glory and his (non)humanity. Definitely a must-read for any WH40k fan.
May 23, 2023
It is what it is, nothing more or less: a collection of epic space marine battles, loosely held together by an overall, yet somewhat interesting, story.
Did I like it? Yes! Would I recommend it? It is niche. If you are interested in Warhammer lore, go for it. For others, steer away.
Did I like it? Yes! Would I recommend it? It is niche. If you are interested in Warhammer lore, go for it. For others, steer away.
June 21, 2024
I’ll be interested to get my hands on the next volumes to see how the narrative grows over time. This all seemed like disparate sandbox adventures with different aspects of the 40K setting. A lot of fun, but not much overall substance.
February 17, 2019
An Epic Tale
An Epic tale creating a legendary warrior! The omnibus version is a fairly weighty book, but worth the read! Bravo!
An Epic tale creating a legendary warrior! The omnibus version is a fairly weighty book, but worth the read! Bravo!
September 28, 2020
Solid warhammer book. Nothing fancy but a well told story and fun read.
October 25, 2020
My review for this volume/books can be found here, under a different a version of the trilogy.
January 24, 2023
Pretty standard Space Marine stories but has *that* Iron Warriors creation in it.
January 7, 2024
fantastic
This was my first experience with reading a warhammer 40K book and it was amazing. It’s action heavy, gory and maybe a bit over the top, but I loved it.
This was my first experience with reading a warhammer 40K book and it was amazing. It’s action heavy, gory and maybe a bit over the top, but I loved it.
August 22, 2024
The third part is not as good as the middle part I admit, but all in all the book is worthy of every moment spent reading
November 27, 2024
If you like space marines you probably will like it. If you don’t care, don’t read it. On the other hand it probably had the most over the top sci fi scenario I’ve ever read or seen.
January 11, 2025
Five books in one
Well crafted and vividly executed, this book deserves recognition as a military sci-fi masterpiece. Exciting , brilliant. Enjoyed every page
Well crafted and vividly executed, this book deserves recognition as a military sci-fi masterpiece. Exciting , brilliant. Enjoyed every page
March 23, 2025
Marginally better book than the Space Wolf omnibus that I recently read.
Nightbringer was fine, but with such a vast cast, it was hard to follow who were who, especially I got the humans and the cartel guys mixed up guite a lot. The action was nice tho, 3/5 stars.
Warriors of Ultramar has tyranids. By and far my least favorite factor lore-wise. There are shit ton of characters that get killed after a brief chapter about how nids fuck them up. I just skimmed through the book, so far the worst 40k book that I've read, 0,5/5 stars.
Dead sky, black sun. Uriel and his friend are chastised for not following the book (literally) so they are banished to a demonworld. They ultimately destroy the thing but, of course the major antagonist survives. Gave up on the last 1/3rd.
These books have very little of actual substance. They are fun when read every once in a while, but I dont see myself reading one of these in a while.
Nightbringer was fine, but with such a vast cast, it was hard to follow who were who, especially I got the humans and the cartel guys mixed up guite a lot. The action was nice tho, 3/5 stars.
Warriors of Ultramar has tyranids. By and far my least favorite factor lore-wise. There are shit ton of characters that get killed after a brief chapter about how nids fuck them up. I just skimmed through the book, so far the worst 40k book that I've read, 0,5/5 stars.
Dead sky, black sun. Uriel and his friend are chastised for not following the book (literally) so they are banished to a demonworld. They ultimately destroy the thing but, of course the major antagonist survives. Gave up on the last 1/3rd.
These books have very little of actual substance. They are fun when read every once in a while, but I dont see myself reading one of these in a while.
January 16, 2021
Graham McNeil could write about an aviary that's run out of birdseed and I'd buy it. Another gripping trilogy, McNeil doesn't shirk on the human side of the Warhammer universe as well as meditating on the Space Marines lack of humanity. Great stuff.
January 12, 2022
Every book was good and really enjoyed the look into a space marines life.
November 17, 2020
2.5* military scifi. Heavy action, average dialgoue and confusing world buidling. I felt like i needed a massive reference book to understand certain concepts. P.s im quite new to this world
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