40K: Heroes of the Space Marines

[Kuja]

This is the newest compilation from the Black Library, containing a glut of stories featuring both the good and the bad of the Adeptus Astartes.

"In the grim darkness of the Warhammer 40,000 universe mankind is beset by foes in a galaxy wracked by eternal war. Step forth the Space Marines, superhuman warriors and the ultimate protectors of humanity. Heroes of the Space Marines is an anthology of stores about these brave champions and their dark counterparts, the Chaos Space Marines.
This anthology features a prequel story to the forthcoming Salamander series by Nick Kyme, a tie-in th the new Imperial Fists series by Chris Robinson and all-new Deathwatch and Night Lords stories, setting the stars ablaze with the fury of the Space Marines."

Testosterone levels risen yet? Time to take the plunge.


THE SKULL HARVEST, by Graham McNeill

Plot: Warsmith Honsou of the Iron Warriors Legion arrives upon a war-torn world of Chaos accompanied by his retinue in the search of fresh talent and new blood.

I know I'm in the minority on this, but I actually like Honsou, which means I enjoyed the story. It's a fun romp about a bunch of guys beating the hell out of each other in a wild and wacky Chaos tournament

------

GAUNTLET RUN, by Chris Robinson

Plot: An Imperial Fists scout biker squad encounters a nasty tangle of ork speed freaks while out on patrol. The result is an adrenaline-fueled death race that proves once again, speed kills.

This is a close contender for my favorite story. It's fun and fast-paced and it doesn't mess around as the Imperial Fists kick ass old-school. Nice to see them doing the whipping for a change. Looking forward to the future books.

------

RENEGADES, by Gav Thorpe

Plot: Surrounded, outnumbered, and outgunned by the forces of the Archenemy, a disgraced captain of the Avenging Sons chapter must make the hardest decision of his life: cut and run, or fight to the last man?

When I saw Gav Thorpe's name I expected a Dark Angels story and was quite pleasantly surprised when it was not. Like much of Thorpe's work it contains copius amounts of GRIMDARK, but it's well-done and emotional and does not impede the story.

------

HONOUR AMONG FIENDS, by Dylen Owen

Plot: A Black Legion kill-team led by a champion of Chaos arrives upon an Imperial world with the intent of carrying out an ancient vow, allowing nothing to stand in their way.

Wait wait wait...likable, well-crafted Chaos characters? What sort of heresy is this?! Everyone knows Chaos guys are supposed to be stupid, one-note growling GRIMDARKs. Watch out BL or you might make Chaos fun again!

------

FIRES OF WAR, by Nick Kyme

Plot: The Salamanders chapter takes the field to cleanse an Imperial world of the taint of Chaos. Simultaneously, a powerful sorceror pledged to the Ruinous Powers prepares to execute his own plan.

This is one of those stories that's absolutely made by the bad guy...wait, another fun, well-presented Chaos character?! What is this world coming to? Average story with great potential for the forthcoming series.

------

THE LABYRINTH, by Richard Ford

Plot: A headstrong member of a fallen Astartes chapter volunteers for a deadly test of skill and strength in the pursuit of glory. Except there's something they're not telling him...

A quick and to-the-point story loaded with copious amounts of schadenfreude, complete with a "twist" ending you'll see coming a mile away and yet will still enjoy for the sake of getting every last drop of that wet, juicy...erm, sorry.

------

HEADHUNTED, by Steve Parker

Plot: The situation aboard an ork kroozer goes to hell in a handbasket when a Deathwatch team decides to FUCK THEIR SHIT UP.

No bones about it, this is my favorite story of the book. There's no room for whiny bitches here, this a pure, no-holds-barred thrill ride starring a bunch of ass-kicking SPACE MARINES with no time for bullshit. You can almost hear Ahnuld bellowing one-liners in the background.

------

AND THEY SHALL KNOW NO FEAR..., by Darren Cox

Plot: A detatchment of Sword Brethren of the Black Templars arrive upon a world to reclaim an ancient keep of their chapter, only to find that the machinations of the Archenemy will deny it to them.

It's always fun to see my boys in black, thought this story is rather dry and by-the-numbers. Even so, I enjoyed watching the drama play out. Oh, and just when you think the crushing grip of GRIMDARK has returned, the story slaps it in the face.

------

NIGHTFALL, by Peter Fehervari

Plot: As true night descends upon an ancient and forgotten world of the Imperium, a ship of the Night Lords arrives in orbit to do some talent scouting. As Talonmaster Zhara'shan undertakes the task of recruiting possible candidates, he must also deal with a bothersome distraction in the form of a murderously ambitious battle-brother.

Shades of Si Spurrier! The Night Lords take the scene with panache and Zhara'shan is a dead ringer for the epic Zso Sahaal himself. Featuring an array of fun and varied characters, this story keeps you in its clutches from beginning to end.

------

ONE HATE, by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Plot: Da oonivuzre myte be green, but the Crimson Fists aren't gonna let the orks just waltz through the Imperium without a fight! A five-man team of space marines led by Chaplain Ardo link up with an Imperial army under the pretense of battling a might greenskin army. In truth, their mission is somewhat different, a rather unusual assignment for the Astartes...

Only five marines in this story, but they each leave a lasting impression as earnest, well-crafted characters. Once again, the claws of GRIMDARK are blunted by an awesome, down-to-the-last line ending.

------


In general, I found HEROES OF THE SPACE MARINES to be a superior and enjoyable gathering of stories.

Why?

Unlike some recent 40K work, most notably the dull and depressing Tales of Heresy, these stories decided to kick back and do something 40K has been missing lately: they have some fucking fun. We're back to the high adventure and badassery of the Adeptus motherfucking Astartes. These stories are straight-up action and A-personality plot so pure you can almost hear the 80s rock blasting out a soundtrack that leaves you with more chest hair than when you started.

I'm about to say something that's probably going to sound nuts after my last review, but even the GRIMDARK feels well-done and natural to each particular story as opposed to ToH's "MOAR GRIMDARK!" line. 40K will obviously be never free of GRIMDARK because its endemic to the setting, but here it feels leashed and present in tolerable amounts, just enough to add that 40K flavour we all know and love without taking over as a plot point in its own right.

One fun aspect of HotSM is actually what it's missing in addition to what is present. There are no Space Wolves to howl here. No Dark Angels to stalk the muted corners. No Blood Angels grace these pages. The Black Templars get their contractual appearance, but they don't take over the book. Instead, we're treated to a revolving cast of hitherto lesser-featured marines and chapters that haven't gotten much place in the sun. The Imperial Fists and the Salamanders are the trumpted champions here, but also sneaking in are the Crimson Fists, an Excorcist, Sons of Malice and the Black Legion, even the legendary Black Dragons. So many of the established tropes of the more prolific Astartes are absent that this all feels almost like a new beginning, a marking point for a future Era of Awesome for 40K.

Now, if I want to make one complaint (and I do) it's this. Several times during the book we get treated to the old idea that apo'stro'phe's ma'ke for good ex'o'tic n'ames. This is a peeve of mine but fortunately it doesn't get overdone.

Heroes of the Space Marines is 40K at it's best - raw and hard-hitting with elements of mixed fun and GRIMDARK. I highly recommend picking it up.

[Lord Relvenous]

Thanks for the review. Very interesting to read. This:

The situation aboard an ork kroozer goes to hell in a handbasket when a Deathwatch team decides to FUCK THEIR SHIT UP.

had me laughing out loud.

I'll definitely be picking this up.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Awesome. I am sick to death of Blood Angels, Dark Angels, and Space Wolves - the three most loltastic Chapters. Instead we get the two most awesome Chapters - Imperial Fists and Salamanders.

Definitely got to get this one.

[Connor MacLeod]

I'll echo Kuja here. I picked this up earlier and the week and have been skimming through it slowly, mainly to see what might be coming up for some of the upcoming novels and I have to say this novel does deliver, its fun and its not too overdone in the grimness department and it foreshadows that some of the upcoming onvels might be pretty damn good.

Am just going to comment on a few of the stories in particular as well:

THE SKULL HARVEST, by Graham McNeill

Plot: Warsmith Honsou of the Iron Warriors Legion arrives upon a war-torn world of Chaos accompanied by his retinue in the search of fresh talent and new blood.

I know I'm in the minority on this, but I actually like Honsou, which means I enjoyed the story. It's a fun romp about a bunch of guys beating the hell out of each other in a wild and wacky Chaos tournament

Graham McNeill can write a good "fun" story when you just look for mindless entertainment. The problem is is that you don't want him developing pet characters, becuase he'll just fuck them up horribly, and the characters you DO like he tends to write out. Storm of Iron tends to still be a novel I greatly enjoy but he just in my mind writer fiat's the hell out of Honsou.

RENEGADES, by Gav Thorpe

Plot: Surrounded, outnumbered, and outgunned by the forces of the Archenemy, a disgraced captain of the Avenging Sons chapter must make the hardest decision of his life: cut and run, or fight to the last man?

When I saw Gav Thorpe's name I expected a Dark Angels story and was quite pleasantly surprised when it was not. Like much of Thorpe's work it contains copius amounts of GRIMDARK, but it's well-done and emotional and does not impede the story.

Same here, but I didnt really find it all that grim (not like, say Annihilation squad). It was more sad in a way by how everyhing turned out and why it turned out that way.

Wait wait wait...likable, well-crafted Chaos characters? What sort of heresy is this?! Everyone knows Chaos guys are supposed to be stupid, one-note growling GRIMDARKs. Watch out BL or you might make Chaos fun again!

Kharn the Betrayer isn't fun?

FIRES OF WAR, by Nick Kyme

Plot: The Salamanders chapter takes the field to cleanse an Imperial world of the taint of Chaos. Simultaneously, a powerful sorceror pledged to the Ruinous Powers prepares to execute his own plan.

This is one of those stories that's absolutely made by the bad guy...wait, another fun, well-presented Chaos character?! What is this world coming to? Average story with great potential for the forthcoming series.

Nick Kyme is actually one of the authors I liked. HE impressed me first with his Necromunda novel "Bakc From the Dead", which I found enjoyable for a book revolving around plague zombies. I can't wait to read the upcoming Salamanders book too based on this, because these Space Marines aren't acting like dicks.

HEADHUNTED, by Steve Parker

Plot: The situation aboard an ork kroozer goes to hell in a handbasket when a Deathwatch team decides to FUCK THEIR SHIT UP.

No bones about it, this is my favorite story of the book. There's no room for whiny bitches here, this a pure, no-holds-barred thrill ride starring a bunch of ass-kicking SPACE MARINES with no time for bullshit. You can almost hear Ahnuld bellowing one-liners in the background.

some of the technical bits irked me but otherwise yeah it was fun as hell.

ONE HATE, by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Plot: Da oonivuzre myte be green, but the Crimson Fists aren't gonna let the orks just waltz through the Imperium without a fight! A five-man team of space marines led by Chaplain Ardo link up with an Imperial army under the pretense of battling a might greenskin army. In truth, their mission is somewhat different, a rather unusual assignment for the Astartes...

Only five marines in this story, but they each leave a lasting impression as earnest, well-crafted characters. Once again, the claws of GRIMDARK are blunted by an awesome, down-to-the-last line ending.

It had one of the best endings in the entire book, IMHO. It also surprised me a bit, given that this novel carried over the impression of the Crimson Fists I had from Ben Counter's novel "Crimson Tears" and the dickery on their part in there. A good way to end the book, too.

In general, I found HEROES OF THE SPACE MARINES to be a superior and enjoyable gathering of stories.

Why?

Unlike some recent 40K work, most notably the dull and depressing Tales of Heresy, these stories decided to kick back and do something 40K has been missing lately: they have some fucking fun. We're back to the high adventure and badassery of the Adeptus motherfucking Astartes. These stories are straight-up action and A-personality plot so pure you can almost hear the 80s rock blasting out a soundtrack that leaves you with more chest hair than when you started.

I'm about to say something that's probably going to sound nuts after my last review, but even the GRIMDARK feels well-done and natural to each particular story as opposed to ToH's "MOAR GRIMDARK!" line. 40K will obviously be never free of GRIMDARK because its endemic to the setting, but here it feels leashed and present in tolerable amounts, just enough to add that 40K flavour we all know and love without taking over as a plot point in its own right.

One fun aspect of HotSM is actually what it's missing in addition to what is present. There are no Space Wolves to howl here. No Dark Angels to stalk the muted corners. No Blood Angels grace these pages. The Black Templars get their contractual appearance, but they don't take over the book. Instead, we're treated to a revolving cast of hitherto lesser-featured marines and chapters that haven't gotten much place in the sun. The Imperial Fists and the Salamanders are the trumpted champions here, but also sneaking in are the Crimson Fists, an Excorcist, Sons of Malice and the Black Legion, even the legendary Black Dragons. So many of the established tropes of the more prolific Astartes are absent that this all feels almost like a new beginning, a marking point for a future Era of Awesome for 40K.

Heroes of the Space Marines is 40K at it's best - raw and hard-hitting with elements of mixed fun and GRIMDARK. I highly recommend picking it up.

Pretty much agree with all of the above. Not too "deep", not too boring, and not to overdramatic or overdone on the grimdark. As you say, there's nothing wrong with some grimness, its pretty intrinsic to the universe at war thing, but to really pull it off you have to handle it in a certain way without getting all nihilistic or anything, and the book did that job pretty damn well.

[Ford Prefect]

I can't wait to read the upcoming Salamanders book too based on this, because these Space Marines aren't acting like dicks.

That's because the Salamanders are probably the biggest bunch of genuinely nice guys in the entire universe. Even their version taking children from a young age and indoctrinating them into killing machines makes them out to be pretty swell dudes all round. The Salamanders have always fit my ideal of what a Space Marine should be. They've really deserved a book.

some of the technical bits irked me but otherwise yeah it was fun as hell.

Could you elaborate?

[fgalkin]

I'm going to pick this up, despite usually not caring a bit about Space Marines- it looks like fun, and I want to see what the stories that beat mine are like.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[white_rabbit]

Honestly, I'm wondering if the whole title wasn't supposed to be slightly ironic, because in most of the stories, the marines are revealed to be huge arseholes.

I'm really interested in the tie-in to the upcoming Salamanders and Nightlords books, I think they've got potential.

General background wise, I'm glad to see the Sons of Malice explored a little, it gets "Malar" back in the game, and that could be a fun concept. (I'm also impressed the chap managed to eat that space marine down to a single joint of meat.)

Can't recall if it was ever mentioned that the Exorcists are made with GK geneseed either, but it was interesting to read, given that it essentially means traitor geneseed.

[Kuja]

Honestly, I'm wondering if the whole title wasn't supposed to be slightly ironic, because in most of the stories, the marines are revealed to be huge arseholes.

I would actually debate that point. The main character of each story (the 'hero' of the space marines) comes across as a fairly decent guy. Even some of the Chaos dudes. I think the one main character that really acts like a douche is Invictus, and he gets his.

[Falkenhayn]

This is a sure purchase. The Black Dragons are one of my favorite chapters, and this review makes me think they're handled in something besides a "Woe is us we're but faithful mutants" way. Even if they are mentioned at tangent to plot, there hasn't been a mention of them in years, to my knowledge.

[NecronLord]

What's the necron content of this book?

[Kuja]

What's the necron content of this book?

Zip. Sorry man.

[Connor MacLeod]

As far as the dickery goes... I think I get an impression of what White Rabbit is getting at and it is there. I think one of the underlying themes of this novel is that Space Marine character can carry alot of arrogance in it, which is a double edged sword. it helps reinforce their "elite" nature, but it also can lead to pride, which we know can be a major downfall of Space Marines (and getting it constnatly reinforced is not going to help their egos. Superhuman they mya be, but they are human and still feel emotions.) That they can be complete dicks because they KNOW they are right and what they do is justified (either because its for the Emperor, for their Chapter, or whatever) is part of the essential "grimness" of 40K and isnt bad as long as they dont beat you over the head with it. We know there's alot of self interest and greed and selfishness in the Imperium, it wouldn't be the Imperium without it.

At the same time, we're also presented with the opposite viewpoing that not every Astartes is a dick, and that the dickery isn't neccesarily a key defining trait (or perhaps even a negative thing from the view of the Chapter as a whole.) Spoiler

That's a rather fundamental theme in the Crimson Fists, story, in fact, and what was, for me, the twist. i was perfectly willing ot think and believe these guys would be complete dicks to everyone else because they were in Crimson Tears, and because to them their scouts/Marines/gene seed were far more important than other humans despite being defenders of humanity.

[Connor MacLeod]

Could you elaborate?

Deathwatch get infrared and low light gear built into their helmets as standard, due to their Inquisitorial connections. That suggests that they don't as a rule (which is a bit odd becaues I know of cases they get at least low light stuff, and we know the Guard does as a rule have access to that as well, so why not the Marines. hell their auto senses and opticla enhancements give them better vision to start with as I recall.)

On the plus side you get some neat stuff. Like thunderhawks going hypersonic in the atmosphere.

[fgalkin]

Well, picked it up from Barnes and Noble yesterday, haven't read it yet. Will post opinions later.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[Falkenhayn]

Picked it up yesterday, and read the Skull Harvest and Renegades. I liked the Skull Harvest far more. However, one portion was...unbelievable, and not in a good way. It's in the spoiler tags. But apart from those bits it was quite enjoyable, especially the instances of black humor. Grendel is growing on me.
Spoiler

How the hell is Honsou threatening systems and sub sectors with a Warband of 17,000? The attendant fleets I can understand, and I'm writing a paper right now, but Graham McNeill was talking specifically about the ground element, IIRC.

[white_rabbit]

Are you surprised ? This is the guy whose idea of a "major tendril" of Leviathan can be beaten by a few dozen ships, and that the largest hive ship Kryptman has ever seen was only 3km long....the size of a normal Imperial cruiser.

Now he intends to invade Ultramar, which has "hundreds of regiments" of highly trained PDF. So low end, 1.6 million high end Imperial Guardsmen

I predict that Ultramar will go from being defended heavily in space, air and ground, to a bunch of cultists beating up the Guard while Honsou and his homies clash in epic close combat with the Ultramarines.

Hell, he will probably pull into orbit of Calth and there won't be any orbital industry, it'll just be another world of ultramar to get raped because by some plot device, the Ultramarines are mostly away.

[Lost Soal]

Could you elaborate?

Deathwatch get infrared and low light gear built into their helmets as standard, due to their Inquisitorial connections. That suggests that they don't as a rule (which is a bit odd becaues I know of cases they get at least low light stuff, and we know the Guard does as a rule have access to that as well, so why not the Marines. hell their auto senses and opticla enhancements give them better vision to start with as I recall.)

On the plus side you get some neat stuff. Like thunderhawks going hypersonic in the atmosphere.

To me it wasn't implied that they don't get it as standard. It was simply stated that the kit they had was the best he'd ever used and he was seeing in perfect clarity. We just don't know what level their standard equipment is at.

Are you surprised ? This is the guy whose idea of a "major tendril" of Leviathan can be beaten by a few dozen ships, and that the largest hive ship Kryptman has ever seen was only 3km long....the size of a normal Imperial cruiser.

Now he intends to invade Ultramar, which has "hundreds of regiments" of highly trained PDF. So low end, 1.6 million high end Imperial Guardsmen

I predict that Ultramar will go from being defended heavily in space, air and ground, to a bunch of cultists beating up the Guard while Honsou and his homies clash in epic close combat with the Ultramarines.

Hell, he will probably pull into orbit of Calth and there won't be any orbital industry, it'll just be another world of ultramar to get raped because by some plot device, the Ultramarines are mostly away.

Whilst a good portion of those troops are likely to be Marines... Yeah, he must (better) have something more in mind.