| Title | : | Helsreach (Space Marine Battles #2) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1844168638 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781844168637 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 416 |
| Publication | : | First published April 1, 2010 |
Helsreach (Space Marine Battles #2) Reviews
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WORDS!
This book is filled with nothing but words!
But god dang what Aaron Dembski-Bowden can do with words. The actions scenes are vivid, clear, and detailed whether large scale or small. The emotions he conjures are palpable and lasting. Dialogue to break your heart or make you cheer and his characters are larger than life but relatable and human, sincerely this guy has some amazing characterization in his novels.
I've read other books by him and I thought this was the first full length novel he wrote for Black Library but thanks to Gianfranco for setting me straight, Cadain Blood was his first. Helsreach is an amazing story of teamwork and courage against impossible odds. This is one long siege with multiple shout oud loud moments of insane bravery and sacrifice. Helsreach is also a great place to start if you've never read anything in the Warhammer 40K universe. I still consider myself a newbie with about forty books read and can say this is a very accessible entry, it's all Warhammer all day but not too esoteric or full of unknowable lingo that might scare uninitiated readers away.
This was one of those books that I consumed my thoughts when I wasn't reading. At work, with friends, driving... my mind would be on Helsreach. I'm pretty high strung and part of my self-care is making sure I read for at least an hour a day, no matter what is going on. Even though this book was intense and heart pounding it was a great escape and good therapy, highly recommended.
I want to thank Black Library, Aaron Dembski-Bowden, and Netgalley for the copy to review, opinions are my own. -
4.5 stars, but I decided to be genereous in the end. Imagine if Darth Vader leads the defense of Minas Tirith in a world, which is far darker than either "Star Wars" or "The Lord of the Rings", and you'll get an idea about what this book is about. Grimaldus, the Reclusiarch of the Black Templars must lead the defence of Helsreach against an endless hordes of orks. As bonus, you have also clashes between giant robots, which are meaner than both transformers or gundams. All in all, a nerdheaven. Warhammer rules!
More detailed review in Bulgarian here:
http://citadelata.com/hellsreach-spac... -
This is the first Warhammer book I read that regular people (not just Asartes) actually fight. It also introduced me to the Salamanders (aka the loves of my life).
The author was able to make most of the characters likable (even the Limbless Lady in a Giant Jar...oddly enough). Even though there is a central character, the story is mostly ensamble (I'm glad because if the fate of the planet depended on a guy who really ambivalent about his life, it would have been lame).
I liked the interaction the Asartes, humans, mechano-whatevers all got to have. Seeing theme work as a team was interesting, and they're actually pretty supportive of each other as individuals.
One thing that was completely lame was the adversary. Orks basically exist as something for Emperor of Mankind and Co. to kill. Makes the whole fighting sequences infinately less interesting.
Cool parts:
-Asartes concerned about a human finding his love.
-Human concerned with helping an asartes preserve his geneseed for future generations
-Salamander's strategy vs MC strategy.
-Adeptus Mech. spends the whole story fixing a robot...and it was awesome.
-Limbless Lady in a Giant Jar FINALLY gets to fight. -
"We are judged in life for the evil we destroy."
Helsreach is possibly the most brutal 40k novel I've read yet. At what cost is victory worth it?
ADB is arguably the best of the Black Library authors. He excels at character depth and in humanizing the Astartes. The difference in the creeds of the Black Templars and the Salamanders was interesting to behold - how those of differing chapters may not understand one another's beliefs - it's very humanizing. Gemmell-esque, in a way. Courage in the face of insurmountable odds, both from the Astartes and the humans.
Leave it to ADB (and often the 40k universe) to create a fantastic band of brothers, each with very different personalities, and leave you feeling utter despair in the end.
Bravo. I didn't need these feels today, where they're already abound with the death of Robin Williams.
"Hero of Helsreach, the crowd cheers.
As if there is only one." -
One of the best Warhammer universe novels I've ever read, and I don't say that lightly. The characters are so different but easy to empathize with, the shifting perspectives are perfectly done and the action is suspenseful and intriguing - even for me, who isn't much of an action fan - because it all has a human side to it. Aaron Dempski-Bowden is phenomenal.
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A great first foray into the Warhammer 40k universe, and a must if you’re a fan of the Black Templars. It struck a nice balance between fast paced action and character development.
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loved this book. No one is as badass as Grimaldus. Loved the dialogue. The atmosphere, the way the story is told. Fantastic.
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Details:
Helsreach by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
Black Library Publishing
414 Pages
*This is an advance copy review.
Description:
When the world of Armageddon is attacked by orks, the Black Templars Space Marine Chapter are amongst those sent to liberate it. Chaplain Grimaldus and a band of Black Templars are charged with the defence of Hive Helsreach from the xenos invaders in one of the many battlezones. But as the orks numbers grow and the Space Marines dwindle, Grimaldus faces a desperate last stand in an Imperial temple. Determined to sell their lives dearly, will the Black Templars hold on long enough to be reinforced, or will their sacrifice ultimately be in vain. Black Library.com
While I am familiar on a basic level with the Black Templars I don’t know all the details of the major characters, so walking in to this novel I’m almost a BT newbie.
In a lot of ways, Black Templars are the epitome of what many folks consider Space Marines – borderline psychopathic, bio-engineered supermen who kill in the name of the crusade and the Emperor. Period, full stop. Have no doubts boys and girls, these guys are bastards. The comparison scenes with the Salamanders Chapter was telling: the Salamanders are one of the most humane of chapters – protecting the citizens is kept firmly in mind. For the Black Templars, its going off to kill stuff and why are these damn civilians in the way?!? Grimaldus is pretty much the worst and the best of these. His detachment is telling; you can see how a person has been altered in such a way that they are really no longer human anymore – driven by hatred and zeal few of us can imagine to destroy the xenos invaders.
I do exaggerate a bit, but Aaron Dembski-Bowden is quickly becoming one of the Black Library’s best authors of characterful fiction. Like Soul Hunter before this, the characters are all very colorful, and come from a variety of backgrounds. Each seems like a person dealing with a lifetime of war, indoctrination, mind-scrubbing…and war. Dembski-Bowden does a fine job of taking the reader and tossing him right in the middle of a firefight or burning vehicle. He even makes Chaplain Grimaldus interesting. Now THAT is a feat! You’d think that a character like that would be boring, two dimensional…flat. ADB pulls it off. He really knows how to make characters come alive on the written page.
The scale of the novel is enormous. You certainly have the feel of untold bajillions of orks bearing down on you, and that the odds of survival are grim at best. The protagonists struggle for every bit of ground they win (or lose). The odds are overwhelmingly against them yet they struggle on, battered and bruised, losing battle-brothers along the way. All hope seems lost, yet a spark of hope remains. Yeah, like that! Dembski-Bowden drags the reader all the way down in to the muck, mud and blood, takes away all hope, and slowly gives it back.
I enjoyed the Steel Legion parts as well as the Salamander bits. The Black Templars are a bit overwhelming for my tastes, but it’s a damn fine story. The ending left me almost a little flat; I’m not sure what happened there. Without spoiling too much I have no way of explaining it short of saying it was not what I expected. That’s a good thing!
Aaron Dembski-Bowden has written another gritty, dirty story full of actually interesting characters. His action scenes are largely clear, the dialogue witty, the description good. I cannot say whether there are 40k canon issues as I’m not as familiar as some other reviewers. The plot was interesting and kept me going. The ending was a bit of a twist but good. -
I was extremely skeptical about reading Helsreach since the vast majority of licensed IP tie-in novels that crop up around successful game/movie/tv franchises are terrible, but this is one of those rare cases when the author absolutely gets it right. "The Grimdark" comes to life from the perspectives of a diverse cross-section of characters that are thrown together in the defense of Hive Helsreach against an overwhelming ork invasion while struggling to understand each other and find ways to cooperate. All the inter-departmental Imperial politics and prejudices from the obscure "fluffy" sections of the various 40k rulebooks turn up as serious problems that must be overcome by the various forces, and the tensions that result feel very believable. The orks actually come off as being rather flat and boring by comparison to all the internal struggles that the characters face, but their jovial wackiness would have felt extremely out of place in this bleak and brutal story so that's probably for the best. This book should be required reading for anyone playing any of the Imperial forces in any of the 40k-related games, there's something here for everyone to draw from: Astartes, Imperial Guard, Titan Legions and even a brief appearance by the Sisters of Battle. Aaron Dembski-Bowden obviously plays the games and loves the setting, he gets all the little details right in ways that someone who hasn't spent years playing in this particular playground just never would. His reverence for 25+ years of in-game lore combined with great two-fisted action and compelling character development make this book a must-read for anyone who has ever pushed Space Marines across a felt-covered table and it's actually good enough to recommend to anyone else who enjoys a good Starship Troopers style sci-fi war story.
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Currently finishing off this rather charming read . I say that as while I'm a fan of the 40K game , i've often found the books to be rather dry , dull and lacking in anything other then 1 dimensional space marines .
The only other exception I found was the Brothers of the Snake , which shares the excellent character development that makes this book so enjoyable .
Space Marines have characters and personalities that are not human , that's it , such a simple thing . They're not 1D killing machines , they're not human any more (Helsreach does a great job of secondary characters as well , fleshing out identities in such a small space allotted to them is something Aaron Dembksi- Bowden does very very well)so their personalities , fears , ideals are very different, from the average human of the 40K emporium , and thankfully so are the humans in this novel , from the average in game fluff at least.
It also deals with vast warfare (as it is set in the 3rd war for Armageddon for 40 K nerd's for the rest of you it's a global conflict with alien invaders coming back for the 3rd time ), in a sensible but entertaining manner as well as the death of characters . I'd read the reviews that people disliked the switch from 1st to 3rd person perspective of the main character , of which I'd disagree as I felt it added more depth and a reality of thought on the character's part.
If you're a fan you will love this , certainly better IMHO than the Dan Abnet series of books . IF you're a newcomer or just want to dip in , its a fun read , you don;t need to know the history to enjoy the story (the copy I have even had a mini map explaining and showing locations ) .
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One of the better "Warhammer 40K" books that I've read - Dembski-Bowden is great at giving heroic genre archtypes like the Space Marines of the 40K universe layers and shading, so that they never become the simplistic, invunerable comic book bad-asses that they might otherwise be depicted as.
The scale of this book is impressive, as is the sense of impending doom which permeates - there's no other way that the novel could have ended but the reader frequently finds themself hoping against hope for events to transpire in a different way.
Sacrifice is a common theme in the multiple perspectives that the story is told via and the action approaches Dan Abnett-like levels of page-turning compulsion. "40K" fans will know this author as one of the best writers publishing Black Library fiction and casual readers might want to check him out, too - I really enjoyed this book. -
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for a fair and honest review. All thoughts are my own.
Helsreach is an epic fast paced 40K that kept me turning every page wanting to know where it was going next. I'm a fan of Warhammer and have played it on and off since high school but had never picked up any books till last year, and I can say that each one I've read has been a fun ride. Helsreach tells the story of The Black Templars battling against the Ork horde for the planet Armageddon, and let me say that once the action begins it barely slows down, its one epic set piece after another.
My only real issue I had with the story was the character work, I wanted more from it, but at the same time I enjoyed the stuff we got.
Definitely a fun romp thats gritty. gruesome at times and altogether I worthwhile read. -
Helsreach, an industrial planet at the edge of the empire, is invaded by a horde of blood thirsty space orcs.
What follows is a battle of immense proportions.
This is written in a very easy style making it an absolute pleasure to read.
The language is fairly plain meaning you are never confused about where you are or who just got their face smashed in.
The story is quite loose and isn't afraid to glaze over a big battle if things are getting stale.
I have a rough knowledge of the lore but I don't think it is really necessary, a quick google for Warhammer 40k will bring you back enough images of models to get the gist.
The violence is quite graphic and plentiful, the set piece battles are great!
What I really liked is that the bad guys are actually scary, too often the good guys are over powered.
A very enjoyable. -
This read goes beyond just the book. As I am a first and foremost a Black Templar player in this tabletop wargame, I love reading the lore behind this chapter and the world. That being said, I'm not sure how much others would like many of the Warhammer books if they weren't at least a little invested into the game itself.
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Aaron Dembski-Bowden is one of my favourite Black Library authors. In Helsreach, like in so many of his books, Dembski-Bowden was able to create characters that are flawed enough that they remain compelling, and relatable despite the over-the-top insanity of space marines. Perhaps not his best work, but certainly worth a read for any 40k fan.
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Dang this was a really really good read. Probably the best ADB book I have read so far. The characters and the action are both top notch. And Andrej is the best boy.
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"Fear is natural. It is human. Feel no shame for a heart that beats too fast in this moment, or fingers that tremble as you hold a weapon you have never wielded before. The only shame is in cowardice--in running and leaving others to die when everything comes down to your actions."
This is not only an amazing war novel, it's an amazing and (here's the key) accessible war novel in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, which is an accomplishment all its own. Someone with a minimal understanding of the setting could enjoy this novel and come away curious to learn more, and someone with a deep familiarity with 40K could enjoy how deftly the author portrays the many facets of war in the 41st millennium.
Warhammer 40K is an insane setting. Its lore is voluminous, labyrinthine, and even self-contradictory. It's sci-fi with demons; it's fantasy with plasma cannons. In the grim darkness of the 41st millennium, there is only war. And this novel is quite comfortable within the grimdark universe of 40K because Aaron Dembski-Bowden understands what it is that makes the setting so compelling as a vehicle for storytelling. The more extreme and dire the circumstances, the more opportunity there is to display the human capacity to rise above our frailties and weaknesses.
The protagonist is Grimaldus, a high-ranking Space Marine Chaplain of the Black Templars. While most of the story is told in 3rd person omniscient, we occasionally get to sit inside Grimaldus' head with first-person, present-tense narration. Dembski-Bowden manages these perspective shifts well, deploying them at the perfect moments to add tension and emotional stakes.
The Space Marines in general are portrayed very well, with more nuance than some entries in the setting have appreciated. We get to see both the unrelenting pride of the Imperium's superhuman knights, as well as their curious respect for the average mortals they fight alongside. All the knights in Squad Grimaldus have their own compelling (and conflicting) personalities, and it's great to see how Space Marines are often more human than they themselves appreciate.
But what really makes this story work for me is the role of the ordinary humans.
First, it would be helpful to sketch out the story. It is the Third War for Armaggeddon: the largest Ork invasion ever seen in the Imperium is about to attack the industrial planet of Armageddon. The planet is going to be cut off from Imperial support--all they can do is hold out long enough for the Empire to retake the planet's orbital space and send reinforcements. Grimaldus and his Black Templars have been assigned to assist in the defense of Hive Helsreach. They are almost certainly going to die--a duty Grimaldus in particular bears with resentment, as the Black Templars see the most glorious death as one on crusade, not a dragged-out demise in a siege.
Space Marines are superhuman. They live for centuries; they carry relics of immense power into battle. They are forged with gene-seed that can be traced back to the Emperor of Man himself. It's often tempting to forget then, how essential the Imperial Guard is for humanity's war efforts. This novel handles that excellently.
We see multiple times how the defense of Helsreach relies upon the blood and sweat of the men and women who serve in the Imperial Guard. An easygoing Storm Trooper by the name of Andrej is a favorite--humorous in the face of certain death, affable in conversation with the Black Templars, he adds some much-needed humor to an uncompromisingly grim situation.
It's the courage of the men and women of the Guard, and the ordinary citizens of Helsreach who join the defense as need arises, that really grounds the stories. It's an easy thing for a Space Marine to wade into impossible odds; it's something else for a trooper and a dock-worker to break from cover to recover the body of a fallen Marine.
I mentioned above how the author covers the many facets of 40K well, so I'll quickly touch on two examples of this that I really enjoyed.
One: interactions between different Space Marine chapters. Different chapters have different combat doctrines and rituals, and it's fascinating to see how the Black Templars both depend upon their brothers (Salamanders, in this case) and scorn what they consider to be a lesser form of waging war. Every Space Marine tends to believe his chapter is just a little better than others, and this is well portrayed.
Two: the tension between the Imperial Cult and the Machine Cult. The Imperium worships the Emperor of Man as God. Within the Imperium is the Adeptus Mechanicus, which passes on the rituals of tending to machinery and technology. The Mechanicus are not scientists, though--in fact, they view innovation as a heresy. They worship the Machine God, and their rites are the ways of appeasing the machine spirits that inhabit every piece of technology.
Now, on paper, the Machine God (also known as the Omnissiah) is considered to be an aspect of the God-Emperor of Man--you might compare it to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. However, that's really just a concession made between the Imperial Church and the Machine Cult, because they need one another in order to survive. The Mechanicus (at the highest levels, at least) think the Machine God is a separate being from the God-Emperor.
So what does that have to do with this novel? Well, the defense of Helsreach is desperately dependent on the walking Titans--picture a giant mech with a cathedral on its back, and you've got an idea of a Titan. The Titans are Mechanicus. One of the ongoing tensions in this novel is how Grimaldus negotiates with the Titan leaders in order to keep them at Helsreach despite the impossible odds. There is politicking and religious disputes--and it's all intensely relevant to the plot and the survival of our heroes, which is a great feat.
This review has gone on far longer than I intended it to, so here's the tl;dr:
Adrenaline and action; feats of courage and heroism; war at an absolutely insane scale. This is a gripping story of a hopeless last stand, where the heroes exact a heavy cost of blood for every inch they give their monstrous foe. Excellent read for fans of 40K, and accessible to those without much familiarity. -
Aaron Dembski-Bowden is really umatched by other Black Libeary authors - expect perhaps Abnett. Unlike Soul Hunter or The First Heretic, this isn't a planet spanning fluff quest revealing secrets about the Traitor Legions, it's just the one siege in a fairly well-known and conventional 40k conflict and a cast of Loyalists. Even then, he manages to make a hopeless siege interesting and even though you know how it will end, you don't know. The characters really come to life - and the Black Templars unique character and gloomy temperament come out clear as day, Ultramarines they are not.
Recommended! -
ADB never fails to impress. A nail biting tale of urban street by street warfare with a tale of self discovery thrown in. The pacing of the story is quick and none of the characters seem two dimensional. Grimaldus is an intersting character. Distant one moment and the next giving a rousing speech at Helsreach's walls. ADB weaves the tale so well that you can't help but feel for all the characters in the book since their personalities just jumps from the pages. Can't wait to read Blood and Fire next.
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This one is another Space Marine Battles book. In this novel the Black Templars Chapter are covered and the setting is the abomination planet called Armageddon. The characters here are rich and as the last novel in this series I reviewed the common thread of the connection with normal humans comes through very strong here. Well written and awesome combat scenes ensue in this thrilling tale. Great Book!
Danny -
When I started reading this book I really struggled for a little to get into the flow but I soon became enamoured with the characters and the seemingly doomed struggle for survival told within the pages of this novel.
The author had an annoying habit of slipping from third to first person, something I really do not like in any novel and find ruins the immersion for me, but I still loved the novel and highly recommend it.
