The Horus Heresy: Vengeful Spirit

You may have wondered why, in a book about the Warmaster and the Sons of Horus (both ex- and current) I didn’t go into the head of the Warmaster as much as I did, say, with Perturabo in Angel Exterminatus. The answer is because I wanted Horus’s actions to show what he was thinking. Rather than have him tell the reader what he wanted to do, I figured it was better to actually have him do something that revealed his motivations. In other words, I wanted to make you guys sing for your supper, to read what was happening and fill in the blanks. After all, interacting with a book is a two-way street – you take what I write and you make it your own.

By now you’ll have realised that there’s more to the title of this book than simply the name of the Warmaster’s flagship. Yes, it’s that, as a good portion of the action takes place aboard the Vengeful Spirit, but it could also a reference a number of the characters. It could be Loken, back from the dead and hungry to expunge the stain to his Legion’s honour. It could also be Tormaggedon, a vengeful spirit if ever there was one. Or might it refer to the sad fate of Iacton Qruze?

There’s a lot going on in this book, with plenty of new characters I’d love to come back to. I want to see where Alivia Sureka goes and if things are indeed okay. I want to see the depths of madness into which Albard Devine plummets. What’s going to happen to the Mournival now that it has Tormaggedon as one of its members? Just what did the Warmaster see on the other side of that barrier and what power has he now returned with? Is he now the equal of the Emperor?

Only time will tell. And while I bet you think you know the answers, we’ve still got some killer surprises in store for you.