In the afterword to the hardback edition of The Path of Heaven Chris Wraight admits that it was a difficult book to write, one that seemed to fight him every step of the way, as opposed to Scars which was relatively easy to finish. However, I think the struggle to write The Path of Heaven was beneficial in the end, because through it Chris has produced a fantastic novel. Thirty-five books in I thought that the Heresy series had lost its capacity to surprise me, but The Path of Heaven is an original, gripping Heresy classic in the making that defied my expectations.
The premise of The Path of Heaven is simple: the White Scars want to reach Terra, and have to find a way through enemy lines to get there. However, there is nothing simple about this in practice. The Path of Heaven is set deep in the blackest heart of the Heresy and the traitor forces have had years to slowly beat down and encircle the Scars, so by the time of the novel's opening they are forced into a desperate strategy, launching a costly frontal assault on an enemy-held space fort all as part of a distraction so that they can locate a Navigator called Achelieux, who is rumoured to be connected to a secret project that can open a passage through the Warp. Opposing the White Scars' endeavours are the Emperor's Children, led by the ever-loathsome Eidolon, who clash with the sons of Chogoris in some of the best battle scenes penned for the series. Until now I thought that no-one could rival Graham McNeill at writing the Emperor's Children, but Chris Wraight brings a dynamic new take to them with the inclusion of such characters as Ravasch Cario, an elite bladesman who denies mutation and holds to Fulgrim's original ideals of perfection. Wraight transforms the White Scars as well, showing how years of endless attritional war has caused them to regress into bitter, nihilistic shells of their former selves, no longer caring for personal survival or greater goals, only the deaths of traitors. This viewpoint is embodied by Shiban Khan, who in this book is an angry shadow of the warrior from Scars.
Other fantastic elements of The Path of Heaven include the disgraced sagyar mazan led by Torghun Khan, who have sworn to seek death in battle to atone for their betrayal of the legion. Torghun was the villain in Scars, but his continued hope in face of the war lifts him above Shiban's nihilism and causes their positions to be reversed in The Path of Heaven. Thus it is fitting but sad that it is Torghun who sacrifices himself for the legion in the final battle of the book whilst Shiban survives to reach Terra. Still, Torghun's death is nothing compared to Targutai Yesugei's, as the wise old Stormseer sacrifices himself to power an ancient prototype of the Golden Throne that opens a link to the Webway and allows the White Scars to escape the closing traitor fleet and fly for Terra.
The Path of Heaven is a powerful book. It explores aspects of the Heresy never before considered and provides some of the best battle sequences in the series, as well as chronicling a vital step in the overall plot. It is unmissable.
Limited-edition novella review: Wolf King
Space Wolves are not my favourite Legion, and consequently I didn't have huge expectations for Wolf King. The novella covers the battle of the Alaxxes Nebula, something that was necessary to resolve so that the Space Wolves could be in place to arrive late to the Siege of Terra. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it did more. Wolf King is an examination of the nature of the Rout, and sees Leman Russ shedding his presumption of superiority in the face of defeat.
Wolf King is essentially the story of two kinds of Space Wolves, wrapped up in a battle narrative. The first kind, embodied by Wolf Lord Gunnar Gunnhilt, is the ever boring and two-dimensional 'always fight everything' culture that sees Gunnhilt killed in a valiant sternguard action to buy the rest of the fleeing Space Wolf fleet time. The new kind sheds the vainglorious arrogance of the 'Emperor's Executioners' and adopts a more pragmatic approach in order to survive, and this is embodied by Russ himself as he thinks of a way out of the Wolves' predicament. The action ends with a surprise intervention by a Lutherite Dark Angels Star Fort hidden deep within the nebula that drives the Alpha Legion back, adding yet another layer to the complex web of loyalties unfolding through the Heresy.
