# What is your Favourite Horus Heresy Book?



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

Title sums it up nicely. Vote for your favourite Horus Heresy book out of the 22 that have been released so far, and do tell us which one and why.

For me its _Fear to Tread_. The Signus Massacre is a brilliant battle and James Swallow does a dynamite job of making the conflict much more tragic for the Blood Angels and brings the Red Angel to life in the most unexpected way.

Honourable mentions to _Know No Fear_, _The First Heretic_, _A Thousand Sons_ and _Fulgrim_.


LotN


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## Gret79 (May 11, 2012)

I struggle to pick a favourite. 
I liked fear to tread, it was the best since the first heretic.

I think my out and out favourite is Galaxy in Flames. I love the loyalists defending the choral city. Specifically the part where Tarvitz looks at Eidolons sloppy attack...and absolutely hammers it.
Lucius dueling the chaplain and then betraying the loyalists.
Angron attacking the world eaters.
Anything to do with Istvaan III just seems to be awesome.


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## reavsie (Oct 31, 2010)

A Thousand Sons gets my vote. Absolutely stunning.

Honourable mentions to:

Fulgrim
Legion
The First Heretic
Know No Fear

Haven't read the last two yet.


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## Vaz (Mar 19, 2008)

Know No Fear.

Abnett captures perfectly the "Oh Shit, now what?", the lead up, the demarkation of timing, and the ability of Space Marines against the Humans.

My favourite bit? HI SAMUS EAT MY FUCKING SHADOWSWORD, YEAH BITCH, DEEP THROAT THAT VOLCANO CANNON.

Fuck the fellblades, I've always wanted to include a Shadowsword since then. Plus the Armour pattern from Collected Visions with the Alternate helmet.

Edit - who the hell voted for Battle for the Abyss?


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## Doelago (Nov 29, 2009)

Close thing between "Know No Fear" and "Prospero Burns", but KNF got my vote in the end. Pure brilliance from start to end.


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## Emperor0 (May 23, 2011)

Voted for Horus Rising, Loved the feel of the Great Crusade and the entrance of Horus in the book. Abnett really makes you feel sympathetic to Horus and the Luna Wolves even though you know what happens next with them. Loved all the nods to the present 40k universe.

Honourable mentions:
A Thousand Sons
First Heretic
Know No Fear


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## Bane_of_Kings (Oct 28, 2009)

_Know No Fear_ by Dan Abnett.

Honourable Mentions: _A Thousand Sons, Prospero Burns, The First Heretic, Fulgrim_ and _Horus Rising._


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## Angel of Blood (Aug 18, 2010)

Only just got _Fear to Tread_ so will wait out on that one. But for now I've gone with _Prospero Burns_, probably the biggest marmite book of the series with plenty of people not liking it, but I thought it was utterly brilliant, if not for just the way it reinvented the _Vlka Fenryka_ and explored them, and for what it added to the Heresy, showing just how far back the Chaos gods were planning the war and sowing the seeds. 

Though I went with the above, many of the others share the top spot in my books. _Know No Fear_ - a non stop thrill ride that just kept coming and building pace, utterly gripping as it kept building to the inevitable, _Legion_ - first book to explore the mysterious XX Primarch(s) and the Legion and done so in a truly fantastic way that in the end couldn't have been done any differently IMO, kept me guessing right till the very end, _Horus Rising_ - First book of the Heresy and therefore always at the top in my books, totally brought a new light to Horus, humanising the great antagonist and making him truly likeable and sympathetic, despite knowing how it would end, _A Thousand Sons_ - Once again an amazing insight into another unexplored Legion(at least pre-Heresy) and also once again making you sympathise with a character(Magnus) who you knew was destined to fall, the Burning of Prospero alone however makes it sore up to the top.


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## March of Time (Dec 4, 2009)

_The Flight of the Eisenstein_

Honourable Mentions-_Horus Rising,False Gods,Galaxy in Flames,mechanicum,A Thousand Sons,Know no Fear_


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## VulkansNodosaurus (Dec 3, 2010)

Still _A Thousand Sons _for me.

HM- _Know No Fear_ and _The Primarchs_.


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## Lupe (Jan 3, 2011)

_The First Heretic_

Photo phinish runner-up
_A Thousand Sons_

Bronze medal
_Fear To Tread_

Nearly made the podium
_Know No Fear_, _Legion_, _Horus Rising_


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## Shadow Walker (Jun 10, 2010)

A Thousand Sons


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## Sangus Bane (Jun 17, 2009)

First Heretic is the best by my opinion, though Fulgrim, Legion and Primarchs are amongst the best books i've ever read as well.


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## Schmockie (Dec 21, 2010)

It has got to be the first Heretic for me. Whenever I finished a chapter I closed the book, took a deep breath and thought "If they had made this a Hammer and bolter publication, releasing one chapter per month, this would have been a perfect cliffhanger.!So glad they didn't." I then reopened the book and continued reading.
No other book did this to me.

Honorable mentions:
-A Thousand Sons
-Fulgrim


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## Apfeljunge (May 1, 2011)

pretty hard choice but I have to pick "know no fear". 
TFH, Fulgrim, ATS, Horus Rising all come really close, though.


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## Paceyjg (May 12, 2011)

First Heretic, for me, with Fulgrim my second choice.

I like what I am hearing about Fear to Tread and cant wait to read it!


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## Zaden (Oct 21, 2008)

First Heretic by a ways. ADB is an absolutely incredible writer. Looking forward to all future books he releases, HH or not. His Night Lords series is amazing.

Honourable mentions would be Thousand Sons, Fulgrim, and Know no Fear. Currently in the middle of Fear to Tread and so far it is right up there.

Dishonourable mentions: Nemesis, Legion and Prospero Burns. Made it through the last two, but didn't even finish Nemesis. The online synopsis was barely worth my time.

Yep, I like bolter porn.


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## Matcap (Aug 23, 2012)

First Heretic for me, followed by Horus Rising and Fulgrim. Hounorable mentions to False Gods and Galaxy in Flames. (the only books besides FH who, I think, really nailed the interaction between Astartes and humans/remembrancers which I really loved.)

No real dislike for any of the HH novels, though I felt a little let down by The Primarchs, and the ending of Legion.


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## Diatribe1974 (Jul 15, 2010)

First four books were insanely great.

Fulgrim wasn't my cup of tea one bit.


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## theurge33 (Apr 4, 2012)

Lord of the Night said:


> Title sums it up nicely. Vote for your favourite Horus Heresy book out of the 22 that have been released so far, and do tell us which one and why.
> 
> For me its _Fear to Tread_. The Signus Massacre is a brilliant battle and James Swallow does a dynamite job of making the conflict much more tragic for the Blood Angels and brings the Red Angel to life in the most unexpected way.
> 
> ...


Those four are my favorite as well in the order of:

A Thousand Sons, The first Heretic, Fulgrim and Know No Fear.

Fear to Tread will probably jump right in there as well with the Blood Angels and Sanguinius being my favorite loyralist legion and primarch.

Side Note: Why does every time I quote, type my respone and post does what I added not show up until I go in to edit and re-type it ???


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## Commander Nemesis (Jan 28, 2012)

Gonna have to be KNF loved it couldn't put it down

shout out to Horus Rising, The First Heretic & A Thousand Sons 
just finished Fear to Tread really liked it top 5 for me


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## malitov (Mar 18, 2010)

Know No Fear for me. 


A Thousand Sons for me was the great tragedy of the Heresy. It was very sad to see them turned in such a way.


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## Khorne's Fist (Jul 18, 2008)

_Know No Fear_ for me too._ A Thousand Sons _and _Prospero Burns _could possibly knock it off it's perch after I reread them shortly. _Flight of the Eisenstein_ deserves a mention as well.


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## cheeto (Apr 1, 2011)

Horus Rising.

The book started with a bang, the way one would expect a space marine legion to start any attack. I may be in the minority but I could appreciate the use of the remembrancers and how seeing the space marines for yourselves and through their eyes actually kept the mystique of the space marine of the old crusades alive for me. I also enjoyed reading about the space marines first discovering chaos for themselves and the old histories which even the space marines regarded as myth. Made the story feel epic!

Horus himself I thought was a douche.


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## ckcrawford (Feb 4, 2009)

... A Thousand Sons... Really? 

And _Know no Fear_... How? That book was hardly a smooth read and no insightful characters compared to people's previous top five novels. People actually liked the guardsmen more than the Astartes. Its hardly Dan's greatest work in the Heresy. 

Wow! I am surprised.


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## reavsie (Oct 31, 2010)

ckcrawford said:


> ... A Thousand Sons... Really?
> 
> And _Know no Fear_... How? That book was hardly a smooth read and no insightful characters compared to people's previous top five novels. People actually liked the guardsmen more than the Astartes. Its hardly Dan's greatest work in the Heresy.
> 
> Wow! I am surprised.


Books are very subjective, so each to their own.

What were your faves?


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## Agarwaen (Oct 8, 2011)

A Thousand Sons for me. The First Heretic is a close second.


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## Mossy Toes (Jun 8, 2009)

_Prospero Burns_. Sure, the beginning is dragged out and the ending squished short, but seeing as it's one of the most cerebral, literary books I've seen BL publish, I'm gonna have to go for it. Plus Abnett made me enjoy the Space Wolves, a group I found myself otherwise quite unimpressed by. And it made the stumbling naievete of the Thousand Sons all the more apparent (for all that I like the Thousand Sons more than the Space Wolves).


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## philyd (Oct 31, 2012)

1# Nemsis for me. Loved the last ditch assault on the vengeful spirit.
2# Galaxy in Flames. Great battles.
3# Deliverance Lost. Because Alpha Legion are great init.


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## Brother Subtle (May 24, 2009)

Fulgrim for me. But only by an inch over some of the others. Bit of quality writing (and not so *cough BftA *cough) in the heresy now.

Honorable mentions: The First Heretic, Legion, Horus Rising and my absolute dark horse of the series Mechanicum.

Best short? The Last Church.


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## Lupe (Jan 3, 2011)

By the way things are looking, I might shift my vote towards Angel Exterminatus soon...


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## raider1987 (Dec 3, 2010)

I went for TFH. It was just a thrilling page turning read with some brilliant characters. 

Honourable mentions too: know no fear, fulgrim, horus rising & a thousand sons.


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## Baron Spikey (Mar 26, 2008)

Nod has to go to _Know No Fear_, though honourable mention also has to be made to _Legion_


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## Boc (Mar 19, 2010)

1. Know No Fear
2. Legion
3. A Thousand Sons


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## Stephen_Newman (Jul 14, 2009)

Vote to _A Thousand Sons_ due to my love of the Thousand Sons themselves and the Egyptian link they share.

Very close runners up in the form of _Legion, Fulgrim, Horus Rising and Mechanicum_.

Speaking of _Mechanicum_ I am very surprised it has recieved no votes at all. Absolutely amazing book in my opinion although I see it reached a lot of people's shortlists which pleases me a bit.

Then again I would rate _Brotherhood of the Storm_ as number 1 if I could mainly cause it's a White Scars novel (my favourite legion) and the fact they have moved away from them simply being Mongols in space.


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## forkmaster (Jan 2, 2010)

My favorite has been Fulgrim for a really long time, but Ive also fallen deeply in love with ATS and TFH. PS has some good pointers, but it was dreadful for me to read. If Prince of Crows had been a fullfledged novel (like I hope Nightfall will be) then that would have been an unbeatable novel by far.

Fulgrim however lost some of its sadness with Reflection crack'd and Ive heard many negative bits about Angel Exterminatus. So I will go with The First Heretic and HM the rest already mentioned.

Best short is The Last Church by far.


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## Lord of Ruin (Jul 22, 2012)

Number 1 for me has to be Prospero Burns for the level of writing that was on display was phenominal. Though Angel Exterminatus, A Thousand Sons, Know no Fear and Legion deserve honourable mentions.


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## deathbringer (Feb 19, 2009)

thousand sons fanboy so my vote is no surprise, mcneil aced it.

Know no fear was epic as well, probably the better read, but the heart wants what it wants


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## bobss (May 18, 2008)

Now up to date, it would be _Know No Fear_.


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## Captain_Daerys_Arrun (Jan 9, 2012)

Fulgrim without a moment's hesitation. For me it is the best "why I turned" primarch story in the heresy. Legion is probably the only other book I considered putting a vote for. Not that I don't like a lot of the other book, I just see those two way ahead.


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## Phoebus (Apr 17, 2010)

This is a very tough question. Mind you, for some people this poll might need updating - what with 'Betrayer' and 'Mark of Calth' having since been released.

When the series first started, it seemed like every other novel was a gem, and even the ones that didn't grip me were still very good. This feelings has peetered off some, but I now wonder if I'm not being unfair. Meaning, the first nine novels - for the most part - gave us looks into the Great Crusade and the beginnings of the Heresy that we'd never had before. Maybe it was easier to be ignore the less-than-perfect parts of those novels than it has been for recent entries. Or maybe not. Of the first seven novels, for instance, I consider four to be seminal entries not just in the Heresy series, but in Black Library's overall collection.

My gut answer is that I can't pick.

The first three novels had such a cinematic feel and pace to them, with characters that included a nigh-universally sympathetic hero, a meaningful supporting cast, and utterly detested villains. 'Flight of the Eisenstein' engaged me in much the same way, and I'm saddened by the fact that the audiobooks continuing its protagonist's storyline haven't done it justice. 'Legion', to me at least, set the bar so high for the series. Just when it seemed as if looking backwards might slow the train down, it showed just how narrow our view of the Great Crusade, the Heresy, and their protagonists were. It was a masterstroke of capturing the essence of one (two, actually) of the Primarchs, going beyond cliches and a collection of adjectives. Even if Alpharius had never had Omegon, his overall concept and the way he operated within the Alpha Legion would still have been brilliant.

Even 'Mechanicum' which I didn't enjoy quite as much - but only because I'm biased to Astartes novels, and I'm willing to admit this - offered revelations, nuances, and thought-provoking concepts... and in a rather unexplored part of the milieu, at that.

The First Heretic' blew me away. I'd love to go in depth as to how it did this, but I don't have the time. Suffice to say that, prior to reading this, I'd sworn off the Word Bearers as a Legion that was thematically and conceptually interesting, but that in execution was just terrible. Dembski-Bowden changed my mind, and that says a lot (I'm quite stubborn)*.

'Prospero Burns' was also a great read, a more cerebral look into the roots of the Heresy, much as 'Legion' was earlier. Others have covered its virtues already in this thread. I will only add that the novel was done a disservice by its title - a trend that harmed other novels as well, such as the Legion of the Damned entry, and (from what I've heard) 'The Death of Antagonis'. It's sad, because it seems that many of the people (judging by the forums at least) who were disappointed by the book felt the way they did because they expected something different - _not because they didn't enjoy what they actually read._

I honestly can't pick. If forced to settle on the moments where a novel from this series had the most impact on me, I'm still stuck on two: 'Legion' and 'Galaxy in Flames'. Ben Counter did such a tremendous job with the chapters wherein the heroes realize they've been betrayed. The heartbreak, the resolve, the colossal effort to fight back...

Eh. Too much to choose. And the series is only growing!

* To be fair, that love affair couldn't last. Dembski-Bowden's triumph was in making the Bearers' motivations relatable by switching from the bland "we need something to worship!" trope to a search for the truth... and a moral debate that led them to decide that serving the truth - however horrible - was preferable to ignoring it or serving a lie.

The problem with that - in my eyes at least - is that it ignores Option C: that just because something is true, it doesn't make it *right.* Lorgar's defining attribute in TFH is his integrity, and I believe the greatest demonstration of such a virtue is when you *deny* what you know to be horrible and inimical to the well-being of the people you're trying to enlighten.


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## ntaw (Jul 20, 2012)

Legion
Mechanicum
Fear to Tread

The first two I simply couldn't put down, and the third mostly because I'm a BA fan. That being said, I'm about to finish Nemesis. I've listened to a bunch of books out of order, Know No Fear and Prospero Burns among them.


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## Anakwanar (Sep 26, 2011)

Horus Rising, Legion, The First Heretic and The thousands sons are the best - and always will be. The only hope we have to topple them - are the Unremembered empire and WS book about space battle for Chondax from Wright.


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## gothik (May 29, 2010)

Horus Rising,
Galaxy in Flames,
Legion
First Heretic
Fulgrim
Betrayer


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## Znoz (Feb 9, 2013)

Descent of Angels
Prospero Burns
Betrayer


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## Roninman (Jul 23, 2010)

Legion
First Heretic
Prospero Burns
Fulgrim

Legion is number 1


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## aerogems (May 16, 2013)

I have to agree with a lot of people, that The First Heretic was a book that defied all expectations. I had just gotten started reading 40K stuff and put off reading The First Heretic until I'd read every other HH book published (which I think was around the time of the second Dark Angels book) because I really was not interested in a book about a bunch of god-bothering types. So I put it off until I had nothing left to read in the HH series, and was quite simply blown away. This was also my first introduction to ADB and began my love affair with his writing same as most people here seem to have.

However, Legion was another kind of diamond in the ruff sort of book. By all accounts, I have yet to read anything about the Alpha Legion by anyone else, it's really the first time someone's done real justice to the cloak and dagger methodology of the Alpha Legion. Much as I love ADB's writing, I'm not sure anyone but Abnett could pull off the highly technical writing required to do the Alpha Legion well. ADB is a phenomenal story teller, but just not sure he could pull off the Alpha Legion like Abnett. The novella in The Primarchs for the Alpha Legion was also excellent.

Horus Rising was also not too bad, if a little difficult to follow early on, but then maybe that's because it was the first 40K book I ever read, and I also thought at the time that it was the entire HH saga. So by the time I got to about 3/4 of the way through, I was beginning to wonder how they could ever hope to wrap this whole thing up.

Mechanicum was surprisingly good too, except for the fact that the Titan legion parts didn't seem to serve any kind of function beyond padding out the story a little, and to say that the ending was abrupt is probably a significant understatement. If there's some kind of sequel planned for it, a la the Dark Angels or the whole sort of sub-series centered around Calth, that might make it better.

Fulgrim managed to be far better than I expected for a Legion that's a bunch of prancing nancy boys, and made that diversion at Murder in either Horus Rising or False Gods make a whole lot more sense.

Battle for the Abyss and even Nemesis weren't awful books IMO. Not even close as far as contenders for the top spot, or likely even the top 10, but I didn't have any great difficulty getting through them like I have some other 40K books.

Not really sure I could pick a single favorite though.


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## bobss (May 18, 2008)

As good as _Legion_ is, in terms of style, portrayal and approach, it doesn't feel rounded enough to be the top dog for me. 

I believe _Prospero Burns_ which worked in a similar way is the more rounded and generally better product.


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