Novel Review - The Horus Heresy: The Siege of Terra - The Solar War
It’s been quite the eventful year since my challenge of reading the entirety of the Horus Heresy saga began. While I’m still yet to be fully up to date with the galaxy-spanning story of rebellion, I have finally reached The Siege of Terra part of the story.
Now Horus and his band of renegades have found their way to Terra, I thought it was time that I gave yet another review that started way back when with Horus Rising. So come with me as I dive into The Horus Heresy: The Siege of Terra - The Solar War.
I jumped straight into this one fresh from the pages of the previous book; The Buried Dagger which took a look into Mortarion’s fall from grace and into the arms of the Chaos God Nurgle. While the overall plot was not too bad, as a Death Guard player I felt somewhat betrayed by writer James Swallow. While Swallow dealt with Typhus’ betrayal of Mortarion, to Mortarion’s damnation of the Death Guard to Nurgle quite well, I felt it could have been fleshed out a lot more. Instead, the bulk of The Buried Dagger fell with the machinations of the Lord Regent Malcador and his Knight Errant dealing with a plot Horus quietly set in motion back on Calth.
Thankfully my uncertainty as to how the rest of the Heresy would be portrayed does end with The Solar War. Writer John French gives us both sides of the war in equal measure as the loyalist and heretic forces meet in their climatic clash for control of the Imperium of Man. Not only this but the French also show the desperation of both sides as they attempt to ensure that their side stands victorious come the battle end. As such The Solar War does a good job of blurring the lines between good and evil with both the Emperor’s loyalists and Horus’ rebels doing some questionable acts.
The novel begins with the vanguard of Horus’ fleet arriving within the solar system. Primarch Rogal Dorn has had ten years to make humanity's home an impregnable fortress and now his work and planning will truly be put to the test. As the defensive lines of the Imperial Fist, White Scars and their human companions shore up their lines, the first pinpricks of the rebel forces start to arrive. Elsewhere the disgraced Sigismund starts his journey of salvation as he attempts to redeem himself within his father’s eyes, while the future White Scars Chapter Master Jubal Khan sets his plans in action.
But wait! The narrative goes even deeper as we follow former remembrancer Mersaide Oliton on her quest to send a message to a long-standing ally. With both sides wanting Mersaide dead, her plight brings the overworked crew of a civilian freighter into the fray.
As is accustomed with the Horus Heresy series we get the bulk of its narrative from the side characters rather than the main players themselves. While we do get to explore the mindsets of Rogal Dorn and the other main characters it’s mainly seen through the eyes of someone else. Characters like Admiral Su-Kassen, and Ahzek Ahriman give a great account of how both sides are dealing with the conflict, while simultaneously developing their own stories within. What impressed me the most is the attention to detail that Abaddon is given as he wrestles with his understanding of Chaos while the old mantra of the Luna Wolves crumbles around him. Even with the blatant plot armour that comes with Abaddon, it’s nice to see a vulnerable side to the future Chaos Warmaster.
Considering that French is dealing with the outbreak of total war in the cosmos, he handles all the threads well. As mentioned before, each side of the conflict is given their time in the spotlight with plenty of gratuity that comes with it. Both sides are also portrayed evenly when it comes to victories and losses. We all know that this conflict does end with the heretics landing on Terra, but how they get there is fought with blood, guts, and a lot of treachery - and that’s coming from the loyalists. While The Solar War does lack the emotional energy that has been seen with some of the other novels in the series, it’s all about bringing the scope of this war to a much wider level. No one is safe from Horus and his band of renegades, and come this novel’s conclusion it's very much apparent. Even if we know how this story ends, getting to that fateful encounter with the Vengeful Spirit is going to have quite a few more chapters to it.
Overall The Solar War does a grand job of kicking off this concluding arc. It takes the war for Terra and massively expands the scope and scale of its storytelling. With the forces of Chaos coming in from both sides, it’s hard to see any light within this darkness.
Rating: 7.5/10
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