Teaser

Cato Sicarius. Legendary hero of the Ultramarines, and a warrior without peer. Here are a mere handful of his stories exploits, pitting him against necrons, orks, and the mysteries of the unknown . . .

Review

That’s right, I’m back with another Warhammer 40,000 omnibus review. But whereas last time it was all about Chaos, today I’m more focused on those stalwart defenders of the Imperium, the Knights of Macragge themselves, the Ultramarines. This is also on the shorter side for an omnibus, containing only two novels, but packing in some shorter fiction too.

Off the bat I’ll deliver the good news. This book contains all the Space Marine action you could ever ask for. It’s almost non-stop bolter blasts and chainsword swings. There’s a variety of enemies in play, all of whom leave the book suitably dismembered. Lots of testosterone-driven fighting, pledging of several oaths, and chest-thumping emotional cries. On the downside, that’s about all there is. This is a quick-paced and very violent pair of novels. There’s nota whole lot of time given over to introspection, though curiously there is a smidgeon of romance. Make of that what you will. if you like action, you’ll like Knight of Talassar. if you don’t like action, give this one a miss. It really is as simple as that.

One thing I did notice was that you can track the changes in Black Library between the two books. There’s a good decade between the two main novels, both written by Nick Kyme. Now, Kyme is also an editor at Black Library, so his work can be interpreted as something of a style guide to the publisher. The earlier book, Fall of Damnos, is incredibly simplistic. The Ultramarines arrive. They fight some necrons. The book ends. It’s light and punchy, with an emphasis on the action. But by the time Knights of Macragge rolls around, things have changed. The storytelling has shifted into much shorter chapters. The peripheral characters are more developed. there’s intrigue and conspiracy as well as violence. Yes, this can be chalked up to the mere difference between two books with different needs and intentions, but to me it feels like a shift in Kyme’s writing. A shift for the better.

One thing I’m not so sure about is the depiction of Ultramarines as some kind of superpowered Roman legion. The names – Cato, Scipio – are plucked right from history, and the cover art is pretty blatant too. I’d never before had the impression of the boys in blue as Roman in any way. perhaps that was simple ignorance on my part. Or maybe it’s this little corner of the grim, fark future asserting its own identity. Either way, I remain unconvinced that it is anything more than an aesthetic.

Ultramarines fans (and there are a lot of them out there) are going to really dig this one, but if you want something more than hyperviolence, you might want to try something else.

Book Stats

• An Omnibus of Fall of Damnos and Knights of Macragge, with additional short stories
• Focuses on the Ultramarines
• First published in 2023
• Published by Black Library
• Grimdark SF
• 683 Pages