First Wall: A heart-warming and feel-good page-turner set in Ireland

Normally books from Amazon come damaged in some way, but this one :D!

Imnot abig book critic but this is one isthe first of all three that im slogging through... its goes all over the place in time and characters. Badly written and when theres a sudden new twist... well since im half bored while reading the impact isnt as important...Too bad i have too read this for the next one...

Good read but third of book took up with a new character that you never really want to engage with

The First Wall by Gav Thorpe is the third installment in the Siege of Terra, the final arc of the Horus Heresy. Coming back to these books is like coming home, albeit a home ravaged by war and demons. Still though, it feels like home, and I find myself grinning with glee whenever a new book is released (not quick enough!). Here are my thoughts. Minor spoilers ahead.The main focus of the novel is the battle for the Lion's Gate Space Port between the fortress-building Imperial Fists and the siege-breaking Iron Warriors. The siege is as epic as you'd expect. Bloody exhilarating are the words to describe it. I was also pleasantly surprised by the great amount of humour on both sides of the battle. Of course, both Dorn and Perturabo are the main primarchs to appear and neither disappoint. There is a showdown, one that has been in the making across the series, but I won't spoil when and where. Other great characters also play a role, including the templar Sigismund, the warsmith Forrix, the berzeker Kharn and Horus' right hand man, Abbadon. I really enjoyed Forrix's POV. Abbadon's thread continues to lay the groundwork for his future rise to the Warmaster of Chaos.A recurring theme throughout the novel is the question of faith. Faith in commanders, strategy and tactics. Faith in brothers and sisters in arms. And faith in religion. The last has been a central plot thread throughout the Horus Heresy and here we witness the foundations of the Imperial Cult on Terra. We experience this through one of my favourite characters across the warhammer lore, the Adeptus Custodes, Amon, and see the return of one of the most influential characters from the earliest books in the series. The 'resolution' to this thread in the book has major implications for both character arcs and the lore. I can see ties being made between the heresy and the future setting of warhammer, the Dark Imperium. Also, Malcador continues to 'capture the scene' every time he appears. We even get to see him in action at one point. Again, no spoilers.One of the most appealing features of the Siege of Terra books is the scaling POVs. We experience the siege not only through the eyes of godlike Primarchs and demi-godlike Astartes but also the common folk, the hive-rats likes Katsuhiro and Zenobi. They don't just serve as eyewitnesses to key events but as characters in their own right. As the main 'human' protagonist in the previous novel, I was delighted to see Katsuhiro appear, albeit for a short period of time. My gut tells me that he will have a big moment in subsequent books, perhaps even one of the biggest moments in the entire Horus Heresy and Warhammer 40k Lore (Vengeful Spirit maybe?) Unfortunately, Zenobi's POV felt like the weakest part of the book. She is a fascinating character in her own right and I enjoyed her journey across Terra towards the palace. However, I felt it was dragged out a little too long, and I sensed her main moment coming about a third of the way through. Having read the author's afterword, I appreciate his apporach to the concept of mental attrition in war through her arc. Unfortunately it just didn't land as well for me.Overall, I really enjoyed this book and eagerly anticipate the next one. There is a quote by Abbadon halfway through that has resonated with me. At one point he tells a nagging Layak 'If it is my destiny, then it will happen whether I accept it or not…You seem keen to persuade me I must make a choice whilst telling me that I have none.' I feel this best describes the experience of every warhammer fan reading the Horus Heresy. We ultimately know the destination. Nonetheless, it continues to be a thrill ride to get there.

Originally the Horus Heresy was a three-line reference in an early Warhammer 40k rule book. Since that first reference in 1988 it has been expanded into several games, a miniatures line, and now a 60+ volume book series.So it's no surprise that the Siege of Terra, the final 'chapter', is padded and bloated with no detail considered too insignificant for a prolonged tangent. As long as you know this, and accept it (and why are you reading this is you haven't already?) this is a pretty good book.Like Book 2, The Lost and the Damned, not much happens as far as the overall plot. Chaos advances slightly and the siege continues. But you knew that already, the very name, The First Wall, tells us we're in for a bit of a slog. But the success is in how it was told.Gav Thorpe's author's note is an interesting insight, he had 3 plot points to hit and 300 pages to fill. He uses a mix of new and established characters to cover his ground. We follow an army of Ethiopian soldiers as they fight to reach the battle, the growth of Emperor-worshiping cults in the palace and a group of Iron Warriors trying to break the palace defenses. Many characters are well-defined and as a reader I cared about their struggles. I also liked the conflict among the Imperial forces about whether or not they should shed their anti-religious bias and fight the army of literal demons with faith.As usual the weaknesses were in the established characters. The author's hands are tied as far as what they do or what happens with them. So when a major hero and villain meet they scowl, trade insults and then skulk away since they still have several books to fill before they can fight. It feels like a comic book cliche where the hero says "let him go, he's beaten" and knocks me out of the story as the author's limits show.If you're reading this you're probably already invested in this seemingly endless series and will buy this, at least know that it's a pretty decent read.