# Which to start with?



## Shepherd492 (May 1, 2012)

Hey everyone I've been lurking on the forums the last few weeks and learning about new stuff and BL in general. I'm totally new to WH40k, having played only the Dawn of War games. The only stories I have read thus far is Fifteen Hours and the related short story in Imperial Guard vol. 1. I plan to put my review on this site in the next few days but suffice to say that it was a cool story with a bland writing style. I would like some advice on where to go next as I have a ton of books and am rather overwhelmed.

Omnibus that I have:

Eisenhorn/Ravenor
All Gaunt's Ghosts
Ultramarines
Soul Drinkers
Enforcer
Imperial Guard Vol. 1/2
Grey Knights
Ciaphius Cain 1/2
Word Bearers
Space Wolves 1/2

I also have:
Sabbat Worlds
Horus Heresy books 1/2
Eldar Prophecy

Any advice would be helpful I'm willing to try anything once :biggrin:


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## reavsie (Oct 31, 2010)

Hi, and welcome to heresy 

I would highly recommend starting with the Horus Heresy series, it will really help you get to grips with the whole 40k setting, and you will keep seeing references to heresy stories in the rule book and codexes.

I'm sure some will have other ideas, but I found it a great place to start.

Reavsie.


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## Freakytah (Nov 20, 2009)

I started with Gaunt's Ghosts, and enjoyed it very much.

I have often wondered what the Heresy series would be like coming into it being relatively ignorant to how the whole thing went down. Would it be more entertaining to be surprised when certain Primarchs fall to Chaos, or is it more interesting reading about said Primarchs knowing they go bad (like the whole Anakin/Darth fall to dark side).


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## Shepherd492 (May 1, 2012)

That's an interesting point Freaky, I know nothing about Horus Heresy other than that it is set 10k years before the main universe. I've always wondered the same thing about Star Wars, so I may have to start with Horus Heresy.


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## Freakytah (Nov 20, 2009)

A word of caution, stay far far away from any 40k wikis if you want to stay completely in the dark about what legions fall to Chaos! Since it happens in the "past" any info you look up about different Legions will inevitably lead to accidental spoilers.

Let us know how they go, the HH series is mostly awesome and the begining trilogy is epic.


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## Magpie_Oz (Jan 16, 2012)

I recently finished Grey Knights, great read


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## Hachiko (Jan 26, 2011)

Happy reading, shepherd! I'm still relatively new to the 40k reading world, and I see some similar stuff here to when I first started. What attracts you most about the 40K lore? Is it mainly for the Space Marines, or can you enjoy stories about the soldiers as well?
But you seem to have a solid starting collection for sure. I also started with Fifteen Hours, and wish I could say more good things about it.

Eisenhorn/Ravenor - Have these, haven't read. Both are considered classics, I've heard more gushing about Eisenhorn.

All Gaunt's Ghosts - Have some, have to go back and read from the beginning. Read a bit of I think it was Only in Death, and loved the shit out of it. Abnett is as good as people say, trust me.

Ultramarines - Graham McNeil is a good enough author (if you pick up the Iron Warriors omnibus, you won't be disappointed by Storm of Iron), but for some reason a lot of 40K fans hate the Ultramarines. Dunno why, ask one of them...

Soul Drinkers - I've heard the recent conclusion of this series was received rather well. But Ben Counter is one of those authors people seem to love or hate.

Enforcer - Very little intel on this. If you read it I'd love to hear more on it.

Imperial Guard Vol. 1/2 - Read Fifteen Hours, meh. Read Ice Guard, the only 40k book so far I truly disliked. Loved Gunheads (in Vol.2, Imperial Guard tank division vs. tons of orks)

Grey Knights - Haven't touched em

Ciaphius Cain 1/2 - Pretty funny, clever. How much humorous 40K are you up for?

Word Bearers - Nada

Space Wolves 1/2 - Tried to read one, couldn't get into it.

I also have:
Sabbat Worlds - Think you have to read some of the Gaunt's Ghosts books to get the background on this.

Horus Heresy books 1/2 - Horus rising was friggin' epic. Quality drops significantly for False Gods. I agree tear into Horus Rising next!

Eldar Prophecy- Eldar aren't my cup of tea, I passed.


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## Designation P-90 (Feb 24, 2012)

I would start with Eisenhorn. It eases you into the universe without heaping Space Marines and Chaos on you.


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## Shepherd492 (May 1, 2012)

I truly will try anything (so any faction, style, character archetype, genre, whatever) but I enjoy stuff about the xenos most (which is why I picked up Eldar Prophecy.) I'm curious to see how Space Marines are written though, like how their characters are or whatever, so I may start with them. I also really like the idea of Chaos so Word Bearers is under consideration too. 

I plan on reading/reviewing all of these at some point or another and will have plenty of time for reading as it is summer break (woo!) but I just wanted some opinions on which to start with.

The thing that makes me anxious about Horus Heresy is all the audio books that are associated with it. I've never listened to an audio book and the price tags generally run a little high for me. Also apparently a lot of the limited edition content is related to it. Can anyone fill me in on whether the audio dramas/limited edition stuff is actually essential or even helpful to understanding the HH story? I'm also curious about how the anthologies (Tales of Heresy, Age of Darkness etc) tie in, but I would probably buy those either way.

What are the space marine battles? I looked at some of them on amazon but most had mediocre review scores and were the price of an omnibus so I didn't buy any of em. 

Thanks for all the help so far!


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## Magpie_Oz (Jan 16, 2012)

Anthologies are great. I started with Tales of a Dark Millenium and then based on the stories I liked out of it chose my next books to be by the same author. 

I always go like that, follow an author rather than a particular story or character.


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## Myen'Tal (Sep 4, 2009)

If you love stuff about Xenos, don't do Eldar Prophecy, but go with the Path To series by Gav Thorpe, awesome books for the Eldar. Path of the Warrior is about a striking Scorpion and Path of the Seer is about his friend who becomes a Seer. I think you'd enjoy those much more than Eldar Prophecy, I hadn't read, but Path of the Warrior was excellent .


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## Vitarus (Apr 9, 2012)

I've read:

OMNIBUSES
Eisenhorn
Ravenor
Grey Knights
Soul Drinkers
Blood Angels 1
Blood Angels 2

Atlas Infernal

Several Horus Heresy books

I would recommend starting with the HH. Great to get the background.


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## Cruxyh (Apr 22, 2012)

As others have suggested, the Horus Heresy series is a pretty good one to start with, as is the Gaunts Ghosts series.

Eisenhorn/Ravenor; not read them yet.

All Gaunt's Ghosts; good stuff, loads of character, Imperial Guard, really liked it myself (especially The Lost, but hey. ) would not be a bad place to start.

Ultramarines; for some reason I could not get into it, thus I disliked it.

Soul Drinkers; not read it.

Enforcer; not found it.

Imperial Guard Vol. 1/2; ooh! you have Imperial Guard vol.1? I'm jealous. The Imperial Guard books are generally worth reading, in my opinion at least, even though it tends to be a bit hit and miss. Ice Guard for example, was brilliant, whilst I found Desert Raiders to be a bit... tedious? yeah.

Grey Knights; the first 40k book I read, so i'dd say go for it! some parts are a bit less good, but overall I really liked it.

Ciaphius Cain 1/2; Personally I loved these books purely because I got a decent number of chuckles out of them, so also not a bad place for starting.

Word Bearers; Actually liked this one very much, dunno why though. :dunno:

Space Wolves 1/2; not read those, sorry.

I also have:
Sabbat Worlds; Ties in nicely to the Gaunt's Ghosts series, considering it takes place during the same Crusade, filled with short stories of course.

Horus Heresy books 1/2; I'dd say start with these, considering that the start of the Horus Heresy series is quite a good read.

Eldar Prophecy; not read it.

EDIT: As for the Space Marine Battles books, the ones I found to be the best would be Helsreach, Battle of the Fang and The Gildar Rift, in that order, The rest of the series is very much like the Imperial Guard novels a bit hit or miss. If you can find them cheap-ish somewhere, grab them.


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## Gret79 (May 11, 2012)

Enjoyed Soul Drinkers - was impressive.
And it was nice to read about renegade space marines, rather than the standard loyal and chaos.

The space wolves omnibus I also enjoyed - But it's more space vikings than space marines.


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## Apfeljunge (May 1, 2011)

Eisenhorn/Ravenor : 
Haven't read those but they are considered 40k Classics and you can't do much wrong with Abnett

All Gaunt's Ghosts : the same as above

Enforcer: liked it for the world building but might not be for everybody.

Ciaphius Cain: 
very enjoyable and fun to read. Just don't read too many of those stories in a row.

Word Bearers: enjoyable bolter porn.

Horus Heresy books 1/2: READ. The HH series starts awesome and while some books are a bit weak, most are among the best 40k stuff from Black Library


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## Freakytah (Nov 20, 2009)

If you like Chaos, I recommend the Night Lords trilogy. ADB is excellent


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

Eisenhorn/Ravenor - The former is a great trilogy and definitely a fine starting point for any. Ravenor is less so but still enjoyable.

All Gaunt's Ghosts - I find this series overrated but its all down to opinion really.

Ultramarines - Good series that is one of the most perfect starting points in Black Library.

Soul Drinkers - Great Space Marines series that really makes you think about freedom and the Imperium's defenders.

Enforcer - Good series but not a good starting point, its very advanced and really for those who have read some less complicated and detailed series.

Imperial Guard Vol. 1/2 - Never read them.

Grey Knights - Really good series though does not hold a candle to ADB's Grey Knights book. Perhaps read a trilogy before you get into it though.

Ciaphius Cain 1/2 - One of the funniest series in BL and definitely a good starting point.

Word Bearers - A great series but perhaps read a different trilogy first as this one is more detailed and requires knowledge of Chaos and the Traitor Legions.

Space Wolves 1/2 - Great three books, a bit outdated and silly compared to current incarnations of the Space Wolves but still enjoyable. And Madox is just awesome no matter what.

Sabbat Worlds - Good anthology i've heard though i've not read it.

Horus Heresy books 1/2 - Great series, perhaps not what you should start with but definitely get into it later.

Eldar Prophecy - Burn it.


LotN


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## Hachiko (Jan 26, 2011)

Lord of the Night said:


> Eldar Prophecy - Burn it.


LOL
Sage advice for anything authored by C.S.Goto or Henry Zou: keep in the house only for when you run out of toilet paper.


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## Xisor (Oct 1, 2011)

Hachiko said:


> LOL
> Sage advice for anything authored by C.S.Goto or Henry Zou: keep in the house only for when you run out of toilet paper.


What utter drivel you spout there; _Salvation_ is a cracking read.


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

Hachiko said:


> LOL
> Sage advice for anything authored by C.S.Goto or Henry Zou: keep in the house only for when you run out of toilet paper.


Hey! _Blood Gorgons_ is fantastic, as is _Emperor's Mercy_. _Flesh and Iron_ was a mistake that was bad but deserves a second chance.

And _Warrior Brood_ and _Warrior Coven_ are ok if you look past the glaring lore changes.


LotN


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## Hachiko (Jan 26, 2011)

Sorry Xisor and LotN, I was just jesting a bit. :biggrin:

Like any author, there'll be fans on both sides of the fence. Case in point, some people gush endlessly over Nick Kyme, but for me he's unreadable.

With Zou, I've heard decent reviews on his stuff, but there's also the plagiarism accusation. He was also lucky to get Swanland covers, so his books look good too.


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## Apfeljunge (May 1, 2011)

About the HH series:

neither the audio dramas nor the limited novellas are really relevant to the story as a whole, so It's safe to skip them. The limited ed. novellas will be reprinted for everyone at some point anyway. I highly suspect that we get the audio stuff in written form too, sooner or later.

Other recommendations:

Lord of the Night
Night Lords trilogy (yes it's as good as everyone says)
From the Space Marine Battles series I can only recommend Helsreach, Battle of the Fang and Legion of the Damned. Rynn's World, The Gildar Rift and Architect of Fate are not bad either.


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