“Mark of Calth”, ed. Laurie Goulding (Black Library)

The latest Horus Heresy Anthology

In this all-new collection of Horus Heresy stories, witness the untold tales of the Underworld War.The Heresy reached Calth without warning. In just a few hours of betrayal and bloodshed, the proud warriors of the XIIIth Legion – Guilliman’s own Ultramarines – were laid low by the treachery of their erstwhile brothers of the XVIIth. Now, as the planet is scoured by solar flares from the wounded Veridian star, the survivors must take the fight to the remaining Word Bearers and their foul allies, or face damnation in the gloomy shelters beneath the planet’s surface.The battle for Calth is far from over

I’ve enjoyed all of the Horus Heresy anthologies that Black Library has produced. So I was very happy when I received this as a gift from a friend. I’ve liked some anthologies more than others, it’s true. But in each one, I think the authors have done a great job of advancing the overall story of the larger Galactic Civil War, as well as fleshing out the mythology of the event that has dictated much of the development of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Mark of Calth takes a slightly different approach, focussing on the after-effects of the Word Bearers’ assault on Calth (as portrayed in Dan Abnett’s Know No Fear). It’s a good selection of stories, certainly, but I definitely think it’s time to move the HH story beyond Calth… (I have high hopes for Vulkan Lives, the next novel in the series, by Nick Kyme; and the soon-to-be-more-widely-released Promethean Sun novella, also by Kyme). So, one after the other, here are some short thoughts on the stories herein…

Short Story: “Dark Heart” by Anthony Reynolds (Black Library)

The beginning of Marduk’s legend

When the Word Bearers launched their surprise assault on Calth, it marked the beginning of their righteous campaign of vengeance against the hated Ultramarines Legion. But for one young acolyte of Kor Phaeron, it is not the sons of Guilliman that he seeks to bring low – through infernal pacts and daemonic power he strives to carve out a destiny for himself in the midst of the greatest war that the galaxy has ever seen. The name of Marduk shall be spoken with awe for millennia still to come...

Dark Heart is one of the stories that will be included in Mark of Calth, the next Horus Heresy anthology from Black Library. Normally, I don’t buy these stories early and separately. I always prefer to get the finished anthology, in one book, but at the time this was released, I was just really in the mood for some more Heresy after reading Betrayer (which I finished the day after this was made available on Black Library’s website). Overall, this is a very enjoyable short story, one that will certainly whet your appetite for the rest of the anthology.

Upcoming: More Horus Heresy! (Black Library)

I’ve been able to find the covers for the next three Horus Heresy releases, and I thought I’d share them in a single post. Each one has superb artwork, and I am of course ridiculously eager to get my mitts on the books… The Heresy series is shaping up to be one of the best epic sci-fi series available now. With the new range of Hardcovers (complete with wrap-around covers and internal art), it’s also a great time for collectors to start reading the series.

As things move into the Heresy proper, as some of the Traitor Legions embrace Chaos, things are going to get very interesting indeed…