Tales of Heresy, edited by Nick Kyme and Lindsey Priestley, is the tenth installment in the Horus Heresy series. The series' first anthology, it collects seven random short stories from the length and breadth of the Heresy setting and timeline.
Blood Games by Dan Abnett follows Custodian Guard Amon Tauromachian as he infiltrates the Imperial Palace on Terra as part of an exercise to root out weaknesses in the palace's defences. After completing this 'blood game' he and a fellow Custodian are given an even more dangerous assignment, gathering evidence against a continental ruler suspected of trafficking information to Horus. This mission turns out to reveal an even greater flaw in the Imperial defence when Rogal Dorn reveals that, unknown to the Custodes, the ruler is an Imperial triple agent - moments before an assassin strikes. Blood Games is a tale of espionage, but it fails to build real tension - the setting is more interesting than the story or characters.
Wolf at the Door by Mike Lee follows a strike force of Space Wolves as they discover an isolated human colony that is periodically preyed upon by Dark Eldar. Despite the misgivings of his retinue Wolf Lord Bulveye is determined to save the people of Antimon from the alien raiders and reclaim this lost strand of humanity for the Imperium - but the people of Antimon feel differently, and even defeating the Dark Eldar side by side cannot prevent this story's tragic outcome. Wolf at the Door is an entertaining-enough diversion, but it is of no real import to the series.
Scions of the Storm by Anthony Reynolds introduces us to Sor Talgron, Captain of the Word Bearers 34th Company, as he joins his legion in making war on a deviant human world that employs lightning-shooting robots in combat. The action here is compelling but the significance of the events that occur once Sor Talgron breaches the enemy palace is easily lost on those unfamiliar with the Word Bearers' timeline. Scions of the Storm occupies a delicate place in the chronology, after Erebus and Kor Phaeron have persuaded Lorgar to turn against the Emperor but before any of the regular Word Bearers have been corrupted. It really should not be read before The First Heretic, for all that it was published first.
The Voice by James Swallow is a rare insight into the activities of the Sisters of Silence, a key facet of the Heresy setting that have gone mostly overlooked. It follows Amendera Kendel, an Oblivion Knight of the Storm Dagger cadre first introduced in The Flight of the Eisenstein, plus her second-in-command and protege as they investigate a Black Ship commanded by Kendel's old rival that has been lost in the Warp. There they find a rogue amalgamation of psykers that brings a desperate message that might end the Heresy before it begins - but thanks to the actions of Kendel's rival everything goes to hell. The Voice is mildly interesting if you're into Sisters of Silence, but if you chose to skip it you wouldn't be missing much.
Call of the Lion by Gav Thorpe introduces Chapter Master Astelan of the Dark Angels, commander of a small expeditionary fleet that encounters an unknown human world. The story is less about what happens next than it is about the rivalry between Terran-born Astelan and his Calibanite opposite number, Belath, who seems to have skipped class the day they explained that the Great Crusade is about more than invading every place you find. This short story explains how Astelan wound up on Caliban in time to appear in Fallen Angels and links in to Gav's 40K work, but unless you're desperate for that small puzzle piece there's little to be gained here.
The Last Church by Graham McNeill is a truly unique short story. Set during the tail-end of the Unification Wars in the last church on Terra, it follows the theological debate between Terra's last priest and a stranger named Revelation who arrives at midnight. It really is unlike anything else the Heresy series has produced, and to reveal any plot details would be to spoil it completely. All I will say is that it is brilliant. Utterly brilliant.
After Desh'ea by Matthew Farrer is set amongst the War Hounds Legion shortly after they have been reunited with their raging primarch, who inhabits a darkened room, consumed by grief and rage and killing all who try to speak to him. Knowing that he is almost certain to die, Kharn goes to speak with Angron and over the course of a drawn-out beating discovers the facts about his gene-sire's background and gains a glimpse into his tormented psyche. After Desh'ea is a juicy vignette of a small but important moment during the Great Crusade and humanizes one of the series' most bestial and two-dimensional characters, making it a classic of Heresy canon.
As an anthology Tales of Heresy is mostly mediocre, its first five stories occasionally rising to just okay. If anything it is an example of why original anthologies need a unifying theme in order to work, as the stories within it have nothing to do with each other or, in some cases, the rest of the series. It is saved by its final two entries, both of which are excellent shorts for very different reasons. I don't normally advocate for the digital editions of anything, but because these stories are available separately just download The Last Church and After Desh'ea and forget the rest.
Limited-edition novella review: The Purge
Sor Talgron is not your typical Word Bearer. Practical, pragmatic and uncomfortable with zealotry, Rogal Dorn even says he would have made a good Imperial Fist. This, of course, is what made him such a good candidate to be the face of the Word Bearers in the Sol system, maintaining a pretence of loyalty whilst secretly paving the way for the invasion of Terra.
The Purge follows Sor Talgron in two different times, the main story taking place on Percepton Primus in Ultramar where he leads the 34th Company in battle against the Ultramarines, with flashbacks taking us back to his time in the Imperial Palace. The main story is quite compelling and could easily have been the crux of a novel, but by contrast the palace flashbacks seem flat and uninspired. It is definitely the action on Percepton that steals the show here, the points of view of the censored Ultramarines kill-team adding depth of character to the engaging fight scenes. Events play out fairly predictably, but are written well enough that this doesn't matter.
After waiting a long time to read it, The Purge was not what I expected. It was however an engaging and satisfying read that has turned a character I have always been interested in into one of my favourites. Whatever the Chaos Gods have in store for Sor Talgron, I will be there to read it.
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