I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Black Library Masterworks book Helsreach by Aaron Dembski-Bowden published by Black Library, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.

So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first, I am also friends with Aaron on Facebook, but I suspect that’s more about him connecting with fans rather than being a big fan of mine!

I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.

What is Warhammer 40,000

Warhammer 40,000 is a miniatures Wargame set in the 41st Millennium and published by Games Workshop. It is the worlds most popular miniature Wargame.

In the 40k universe, the Imperium of Man, a stagnant human empire in which scientific and cultural progress have ceased, individuals matter very little and exist only to oil the machines of war.

The Imperium is under siege from the forces of Chaos, and various Xenos races.

The setting owes a lot to the influence of Lovecraft, Tolkien, Milton, Herbert and a lot of 2000 AD with a sprinkling of 1980s political satire.

It’s a setting in which there is little hope and is often described as being Grimdark after the marketing line, in the Grim Darkness of the Future, There Is Only War.

The Story

This story is set during the third war for Armageddon and focuses on as the title implies, the Siege of Helsreach.

The Third War for Armageddon saw this cursed world, invaded by Orks lead by the Beast, Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka (an example of some of Games Workshops 1980s satire).

Helsreach is an important port and promethium refinery on the Tempest Sea, and is defended by forces of the Armageddon Steel Legion, the titans of Legio Invigilata, sisters of the Order of the Argent Shroud and a small force of Black Templars lead by newly promoted Reclusiarch Merek Grimaldus.

This story explores the events that lead to Grimaldus attaining the tile of Hero of Helsreach, as originally told in Codex: Armageddon back in the days of 3rd Edition in 2000.

The story is told from multiple points of view, not only Grimaldus, but also includes Zarha Mancion the Crone of Invigilata, and possibly one of the funniest and most charming characters in all of 40k, Andrej Valatok.

The story is one of defiance in the face of hopeless odds, the characters all know they will lose, they questions is how long can they last before they succumb to the endless stampede of the Orks. As plots go, it’s pretty straightforward.

Conclusion

Helsreach is a masterpiece, and I am going to be honest, I am a huge fan of Aaron, he is able to conjure up an emotional response from a book whose main focus is on Dakka.

The book was originally published under the Space Marines Battles banner, books who generally were considered to be Bolter Porn, but in reality they were often a lot more than that. This book, the second in the series, very much set the standard of being action based books, that could be well written and emotionally evocative.

There is an interaction at the end of the book, which will make you weep for the character, it’s honestly one of the best written character arcs in all of Black Library fiction, despite it being relatively short.

If you have previously dismissed fiction as action books for teenage boys, I would strongly suggest you give this novel a read, ok you need a little bit of background to 40K to understand some stuff, but only a very surface level amount, but it’s well worth a read.

Seriously Aaron has yet to write a bad book, this was only his second Black Library novels and there is a very good reason he is considered one of the greatest writers ever signed up by Games Workshop.

5 out of 5 Stars

I have no time for books where it feels that most of the words could be replaced with "Dakka", it does not interest me to have never ending scenes of battle and sacrifice, there has to be a meaning behind the war for the war to mean something. A million deaths is a statistic, not a tragedy, but if you knew the story of each death, then each would still be a tragedy.

By concentrating on a few characters and bringing their traits to the fore, ADB crafts points that we can latch on to, so that we can travel to the war with them and understand on a personal level why they do what they do. I particularly enjoyed the switching of points of view, not just between the characters, but also between first and third person perspectives. It's not done often in stories because of the possibility to lose the perspective, but it is done here, and it's done well.

Is there a lot of fighting in this book? Of course there is, and given the setting, I would expect no less, but the characters are what elevate this beyond the scope of a story about war and into the story of those driving the conflict, with all their imperfections and frailties that make them so much more real.

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.

When it comes to Warhammer/Black Library books, I read them for a ripping good yarn focused on battle with a strong dose of Gothic-esque atmospher. The better books are the ones that draw me in even further with strong characters and storyline. That is, the more it reads like a novel than a written-up tabletop campaign, the better the book. Helsreach is definitely among the better books.

The publisher's description captures the storyline: The planet Armageddon is under attack by Orks and the Black Templars are making a desparate last stand. A storyline that doesn't sound too original, but one doesn't come to the Black Library for orignal storylines. Rather, Dembski-Bowden's writing carries this book much further than the mere storyline. If good characterization shows personal growth, Dembski-Bowden nails it with Grimaldus, the main protagonist, who has to overcome not only external threats, but also his own shortcomings. But this is not done through navel-gazing and inner strife, but through his interactions with others around him. He acts, and learns through his actions.

Most Black Library books are single reads: Read them once and then put them in the box for the used bookstore. The good ones stay on the shelf to be enjoyed again. This one goes on the shelf.

Posted at https://bluehavens.wordpress.com/2021/03/04/review-helsreach-by-aaron-dembski-bowden/

I received a copy of #Helsreach from #NetGalley for review, thank you very much.

I really enjoyed this book. There's a reason ADB (Aaron Dembski-Bowden) is considered one of the best Black Library authors, and Helsreach must be up there as one of his best.

I have been a fan of the Warhammer 40,000 setting for some time, and when reading usually prefer to switch between the straight action novels like Helsreach and the strategic-level narratives that are present in the Horus Heresy 'black book' rulebooks put out for the 30K setting. Occasionally I'll read something like Eisenhorn by Dan Abnett but usually it's the 'bolter porn' that scratches my itch. Helsreach definitely scratched that itch for me!

Featuring a grizzled, recently promoted, unsure of himself but cantankerous Black Templars chaplain smashing the faces of endless waves of orcs to defend just one of many sprawling hive megacities on the planet of Armageddon, Helsreach has it all: titans, military politics, tanks, imperial guard, ruinous assaults, overwhelming odds, secret weapons and much more. It certainly deserves its mantle as one of the classics of 40K lit.

There are some hitches where it seems the editors trimmed sections to save room, but the action is nonstop, never-ending and pretty thrilling to the end. Like any good 40K novel, you don't know if the protagonists or any of the named characters will survive until the very end - just like it should be in the grim and dark world of the far, far future!

Is a warhammer 40k novel. This is an excellent book which has great detail. The attention to detail makes the scene vivid, clear, detailed whether large scale or small. Aaron Dembski-Bowden is a master with words. This has a beautiful balance between character development and fast paced action. The ending was a bit of a plot twist and was unexpected. Grimuladies is a newly found Chaplin in charge of the garisson left to found the on the ground.

One of the best Warhammer 40k books I've read. This book is excellent and conveys the difficulty in fighting orks and other surviving a siege. I particularly enjoyed that it didn't just focus on space marines but included the experience of guardsmen and civilians as well. The story is well paced and you feel invested in the characters and horrified as they fall one by one until you find yourself at the heroic last stand. My only minor complaint is that I'm not sure I follow the ending. The orks had virtually won and they gave up because the weather got bad? It seems like they should've been able to easily and push and then find find shelter after finishing off the final human resistance points. But I do like that the book ends on a more positive note so I'll accept this ending. Overall a really good book and I highly recommend it!

A re-release of one of the Black Library classics, Aaron Dembski-Bowden's Helsreach continues to be a great story - his dive into the Black Templars and the greenskin menace help set the tone for those factions for years of lore and rules, and his writing has only continued to improve. This is definitely one any WH40k fan should read.

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.

I have listened to this book, I have watched the fan made film and now I have read the book, it is without doubt the best Warhammer book ever!