RatGrrrl’s Reviews > The Honoured > Status Update

Thank the Powers that's over! The opening chapters were not indicative of the overall experience. I just had a look and I don't think I have read or listened to any of Sanders other works and I'm somewhat reluctant to now.

I had some good experiences with David Annandale, so I am praying The Unburdened is the better half of the Betrayal at Calth duology.

Dardanus: ...Kurtha Sedd
Aethon: Kurtha said what?
Dardanus: ...K-Kurtha Sedd
Urcus: DUDE, WHAT DOES MINE SAY?!

The seems to miss the essence that has charged the Heresy isn't simply that many of them fought together, it's the emotional weight of relationships established & the pain of that personal perfidy. It's a step up from referencing brinfufn a nest of gundarks to compliance, but it's barely warmer than Lorgar receiving Illuminarum from Ferrus Mannus as "thanks for the “reinforcement”" (he refuses to call it a "rescue")

What in the Ignace Karkasy would never is this?!

"Urcus slows. His plate is giving him away...he hears the Dreadnought searching chambers and forking tunnels...It can smell him – it can smell the honour of his plate, the nobility of his primarch’s blood, his loyalty and his genic fortitude"

"The Astartes save us from the brink, the brink, but oh my life how they stink, they stink" - Karkasy (Horus Rising)

Not gonna lie, I'm struggling a bit, but the autistic completionist I am in my heretical soul rejoices at me sicking it up & getting the audiobooks for this & the Unburdened because this would be a slog for my swampy brain
It feels like a good tie in to the box set release, a decent enough for Space Marine Battles, but not good enough for the Horus Heresy
I hate to say it, but is seems to be mostly 'bolter porn'

I feel so entitled that I'm a little ticked off there's no bundle for The Honoured & The Unburdened, beyond or that they didn't get bunged in an anthology or collection, but picking them up was absolutely necessary as Keeble is making this fine, but a little dry so far, story go down easier.

So excited & already sad for The Burning of Prospero after these www.heresyomnibus.com/omnibus/iii-the...

This both like the boxed set tie in it is and like a regular Horus Heresy novella so far. It's very action and logistics focused, which is fine, but I always enjoy that more when there's a little more character dynamic stuff.

It's odd, I stopped during an ambush that felt very dry and lacking the excitement and energy this opened with, but I've also been keeping myself awake, refusing to put this down, so...yeah.

Seems like it might be a different Astartes each chapter, which works for this situation, but I didn't realise it swapped between one and two, so for a moment I thought we had baseball slicing and dodge rolling Cataphractii in the Horus Heresy lmfao.

The video game death run for the arcology door was sick and the monetun of that whole chapter was intense!

Early days, but the tone seems good & it's nice to see an Ultramarine giving some Nino Brown tears as he is forced to kill so many Gee Moneys in New Calth City. What I wouldn't do for an Astartes of the XIII to actually feel shame & guilt about Monarchia.

Aethon's combi-bolter machine spirit communicating directly with him is new & fascinating as is his Terminator C-B being like a 40K C-B, not a proto Storm Bolter?