The Buried Dagger: The Horus Heresy, Book 54

Different than most of the heresy material we’re used to, but the inclusion of Mortarion’s backstory and his legion makes it a must read.

Overall i liked the book. There are some issues that confused me.I read this book because i thought it is about Death Guard’s fall to Nurgle but it is only one of three plots and it is bot the main one..The other two plots are Mortarion’s war on Barbarus and Founding of Grey Knights.Death Guard’s fall was underwhelming at best, there is no original take on that one. Everything happens as you expect them to be.Mortarion’s war on Barbarus and his meetig with Emperor is suprisingly well written. You get the idea why Mortarion dislike The Emperor.The jewel of the book is Grey Knight’s founding. I did not expect it to happen in this book and it is very well written.Malcador, his chosen, all the Knights Errand are all present.I would have given 5 stars but Death Guard’s fall was mediocre at best and it was the main reason i read this book.

An epic close to the arc for the death guard as well as giving life to another faction!Fantastic book and looking forward to the seige series!

If you’re upset that they haven’t released a Primarch book on Mortarian yet this is the next best thing. Covers his backstory and fall to daemonhood in one convenient book, and while it wasn’t my favorite book in the Heresy I can pretty confidently put it in my top 5. Aside from that the B plot of the “knights errant” comes to a fairly satisfying conclusion which I’m sure will be expanded upon in the Siege of Terra series.

Having read this, I now understand the online dissatisfaction with this.The actual Doom of the Death Guard is the THIRD best story in here. The fall of the Death Guard is not satisfying at all, and as a Mortarion fan, very disappointing. Come on man, do something!The early days of Mortarion are MUCH more interesting and I would have appreciated this being it's own story.Along those lines, the founding of the legion of Malcador is the 3rd story in this book; and just like the early days, should have been it's own story.It really felt like they didn't have a good story to end the Heresy on, so here are three short stories lumped together.Sad end to the series.

Such great writing! I can still remember my first foray into the Black Library.This is by far the best series ever written!

One of the best 40k novels I've read in awhile. It really humanizes Mortarion, and gives him and the Death Guard real nobility. Truly a tragedy, and well worth your time. 10/10 story telling.

This was an in depth look at Moritorian and the Death Guard. Talk about nasty and creepy. Loved it.

I'm going to try and keep this spoiler free, but I will make reference to the Dramatis Personae and blurb.This book represents the mono-style books that everyone was after in the early days of the series. It has Mortarion's origin story and the climax of the Death Guard/Nurgle story. It also has an original series of events happening on Terra which is overlaid with a climax event for one set of characters and an origin story for another set of characters (if you have seen the Dramatis Personae you will know what I mean).I can't know how you will feel about the main blurb story if you have no idea of where this leads, but if you have any knowledge and/or love of Mortarion and the Death Guard in 40k, as I do, I would strongly suggest that you skip this book. If you can imagine the most pedestrian take on the origin story and the Nurgle/Death guard climax, then this is it. You will imagine a better narrative by not reading this book or that is, at least, how I feel.The story on Terra is generally a bore. It is a tying up of loose ends from earlier stories and, whilst some of the easter eggs, and specific scenes, are fun, the overall novel just does not hit the mark. It felt like it was tidying things up ready for the next series.The characters are also deficient. They don't come over as individuals - save the 4 biggest players. Malcador in particular feels too flippant, opaque and reckless and Mortarion feels too much like a naive child.

Fascinating insight into how the Death Guard became the very thing they despised.I have always wondered how this happened given Mortarions hatred of all things warp connected or warp spawned. This book shows where that hatred came from but reveals the psychological weakness within the supposedly 'indominable' Death Guard. Also makes you consider the psychological weakness within all the fallen Primarch's and their legions.

Short, non-spoilery version:This book was a slog, but it sets the stage for later, better books.40k Lore Spoilers aheadI'm not a big fan of James Swallows writing to begin with and of the three strands this novel covers: Mortarion's origins on Barbarus, the "doom" of the Death Guard in the Warp and a Knight Errant thread tying up their departure pre-Siege are varying levels of compelling. The best, the doom, is also the most frustrating. Rather than making a choice, Mortarion is presented as a victim of other's manipulations in his ultimate turn from outspoken witch-hater to daemon primarch.It's definitely worth reading this book before you read the new, better Siege of Terra book: Warhawk however. It recontextualizes the events of this one and restores Mortarion's agency.

Beware the cover! About 4/5ths of this book is a story about Malcador and his Knights Errant. The rest flip flops at speed between Mortarion's conversion in the warp and his conversion, years before, on Barbarus - it is all covered so quickly that it feels very much bolted on to the other story. Pivotal moments are rushed and feel 'phoned in'. Should have been given to an author who wanted to write about the Death Guard.

Great finish to the tale of the Death Guard in the lead up to the siege of terra. My son plays death guard in warhammer 40k and we both live (the rather disgusting) figures and rules, so this book resonated with us. You have to be hard hearted not to sympathise with the Death Guards plight. The author is one of the best writers in the Horus Heresy and other works. Well done again