The Flight of the Eisenstein [Mass Market Paperback]

The Flight of the Eisenstein marks the continuation of the Horus Heresy Saga which began with Dan Abnett's Horus Rising and followed up by both Graham McNeill's False Gods and Ben Counter's Galaxy In Flames. James Swallow takes on the 4th book in the saga and he continues to show definite improvement with his grasp of the rich, detailed history and backstory that is Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 Universe. The Flight of the Eisenstein is a very well-written and Swallow does a great job in bringing the epic story of the Heresy to a smaller, but still interesting stage.

The Flight of the Eisenstein is shown through the eyes of Battle-Captain Nathaniel Garro of the Death Guard Legion's 7th Company. Garro's seen as well-liked and respected by his men and some of his peers outside his Company. His character shares the same nobility and introspective nature as the previous three books main characters in the Luna Wolves' Garviel Loken and the Emperor's Children's Saul Tarvitz. This helps tie Garro to the path he'll soon take as one of the few loyalist survivors of Horus' betrayal of the Emperor and the Legiones Astartes at Istvaan III. But before Garro will lead his company to flight in order to take Horus' betrayal to the Emperor in far-off Terra, he and the rest of the Death Guard are shown just how effective a war machine they are with their assault and determined annihilation of an alien race called the jorgalli. It is also in the novel's opening battle with this alien race where Garro first hears the psychic warnings that will soon tear the Astartes brotherhood asunder.

Soon Garro must follow his Primarch Mortation and the rest of the Death Guard to the Istvaan system where they meet up with the rest of Horus' task force. Garro and his men are too late to stop the actions his Primarch makes in support of Horus' plan but they make a desperate escape of the traitor legions' fleet blockade. It is during the escape and their subsequent attempts to survive in the Warp with a damaged ship which takes up the bulk of the novel. It is during this middle-half of the book which shows the internal dilemmas each Death Guard must face on their own after seeing what they've believed in and fought for just thrown away by their Legion and battle-brothers. Some make it through the crisis of faith whole and stronger for it while others succumb to the easy way out which Horus and his followers took to retain power and influence.

Swallow really does a great job in introducing not just the Death Guard, but also some of the more unique forces protecting the Imperium. The exotic and mysterious Sisters of Silence make their appearance and becomes a major factor in determining the fate of Garro and his men in the final third of the book. Even the Emperor's own personal guard, the Legiones Custodes, make a brief appearance in the end. James Swallow really sets up well the next stage of the Horus Heresy saga and he follows the guidelines set before him by others writers instead of going off on a wild tangent which doesn't even resemble the 40k universe as he did with the two books about the Blood Angels.

The Flight of the Eisenstein marks the 4th and continuing excellent storytelling of the biggest event in Warhammer 40k's history: The Horus Heresy. James Swallow does a great job in keeping the story from becoming just another big war story and actually infuses the novel with characters that were well-rounded. The next book in the series will be the one titled Fulgrim and will deal with that Primarch's rise and fall as one of the Emperor's sons. It will have quite a standard to reach for after The Flight of the Eisentein and the three prececing books.

James Swallow takes up the fourth novel of the Horus Heresy series, which follows one of the pivotal historical events of Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 universe. This novel tells the tale of Battle-Captain Nathaniel Garro of the Death Guard, a minor character in the previous books, and at its core this is a tale of his personal growth and discovery, though action features heavily as well. He is cut of the same cloth as Captain Garviel of the Sons of Horus Legion and main protagonist from the first novels: able, principled, and introspective. Several Primarchs and historical characters make appearances, including: Horus, Rogal Dorn, Mortarion, Captain Typhon (Death Guard), Captain Tarvitz (Emperor's Children), Captain Sigismund (Imperial Fists), and others.

I have been a vocal critic of M. Swallow's past works for the Black Library, which have been long on purple prose and dues ex machina, and short on background knowledge and plot, so I picked up this book with no small amount of trepidation. However, I must say that this is easily his best work and is a worthy successor to the other Horus Heresy books.

The characters have depth, realistic motivations and reactions, and grow in ways that make sense. Particularly telling is Garro's development as he attempts to come to terms with the betrayal of his own Primarch and that of Horus. Without going into anything that would spoil the plot for others, let's just say that it's well done

The action scenes flow well, and convey an excellent sense of urgency. The opponents don't make stupid mistakes for the sake of the plot - a weakness in M. Swallow's prior works. His descriptions of the Primarchs, particularly Mortarion, feel slightly mundane once or twice, but typically have the proper sense of awe. The ending of the book gives a tantalizing hint of things to come without being a tease.

In short: a solid addition to the Horus Heresy series and a good read that you'll have trouble putting down.

WOW...did I love this book. Yes I did. Now I have been a historical wargamer for decades, but with my young son have begun building armies for Warhammer 40K. Up until recently I had been reading Abnett's wonderful stories about Ibrahm Gaunt and the Tanith. I was on the verge of reading another of Abnett's books when I spotted Swallow's Eisenstein. After juggling which to get, I settled on this one. I have always been intrigued by the Horus Heresy stuff and this looked like a great entry into learning something about it. And I would recommend to any newbie to the hobby that this book is a great way to see how the heresy unfolds and how one Death Guard Captain finds the measure of his life's purpose as he flees with a message of betrayal back to the Emperor.

The story builds nicely and the characters really grow before your eyes. A good book often reads itself and this one definitely did. I couldn't wait to pick it up each lunch hour and in the late hours of the night. I wanted to know how Nathaniel Garro would get the warning back to Terra and would he indeed discover his purpose.

Of course the answer is YES, but the how is so worth the time in discovering. So throw on the ceramite and clean your bolter, it's time my brother Astartes to follow the trials and redemption of Honour Brother Nathaniel Garro.

The Emperor Protects.

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