Warhammer 40K: ‘The End and The Death Volume 1’ Is the Weirdest Horus Heresy Book You Will Read
Take a look at Dan Abnett’s The End and The Death Volume 1, a most strange book, in a mostly spoiler-free review.
After nearly two decades and scores of books, the saga of the Horus Heresy is coming to a close. The penultimate book in the Siege of Terra has been released. In, The End and The Death Volume 1, Dan Abnett takes us through the closing hours of the great war. It is a massive jam-packed book. We’ve taken a look at some of the biggest revelations from the book here. However, if you are on the fence about reading it yourself, enjoy this mostly spoiler-free review and learn why it is the weirdest 40K book you will read.
+++Warning, Minor Heretical Spoilers Below!+++
Not A Safe Book
Dan Abnett could have played it safe with this book. It’s the penultimate book in a massive series. Arguably no one was asking for, or at least expecting, anything new at this point. He could have written just another good, Warhammer Horus Heresy book. It would have been straightforward and full of battles and fighting and magic and stuff. The book would have been fine. It also might have just been a bit boring. We’ve had book after book about this one long battle in which readers have poured over endless pages of Marines shooting and stabbing each other. It would have been fine and safe and probably forgettable. It’s clear that Dan did not want to go that route. No, when Dan sat down to write The End and The Death Volume 1 it’s clear he decided to choose violence.
Playing With Tenses And Viewpoints
The most obvious choice that Abnett took when writing the book was playing a lot with the point of view and tense. It’s a crazy and chaotic choice. The book is written from almost any kind of point of view an author could choose. Parts of the book are written in the first-person present tense. Other parts are third-person. In other parts, Abnett even makes the bold choice to tell sections of the book from a second-person point of view where you are Horus. The book is mostly written in present tense. However, some sections change just to mess with you. A few are even written as old interview logs.
Large sections of the book are unconnected fragments. Random paragraphs or sentences about events. All of this makes it a bit of a mind-boggling read. It’s weird and crazy. If you are used to and expecting a straightforward third-person past tense narration… boy are you in for it.
The Break Down Of Time And Space
Adding to the confusion is the fact that time and space are breaking down. As Horus is slowly winning the war, Terra is being drawn into the Warp more and more. All of this means that time and space no longer function well. This can make it very hard to keep track of any kind of timeline in the book. It also makes keeping track of where people are super hard. Some characters teleport around events appearing wherever almost at random. Others cram days of events into a few hours. Some seem to take weeks walking down an endless road. It’s all bizarre and crazy, and bold.
Even though the events of the book are supposed to take place over maybe only a couple of hours, Abentt is able to cram days or weeks worth of events into them thanks to this. Characters even joke at one point Chaos has made a mistake with this. They know that the Palace will fall tomorrow, but the breakdown of time means there is no tomorrow and so the Palace holds out.
Kind Of Nothing Happens?
It’s somewhat the nature of any Volume One to be something of a letdown. After all, the major events and climatic points will come in Volume Two. So it might not be a huge surprise, but it is still a bit weird that not a lot happens in the book. Oh, there are many events and a ton of fighting. But the bulk of it is simply sound and fury, and doesn’t signify much. Which, to be fair, is kind of the point. Still, the book is a lot of setup. Indeed the first half of it can mostly be described as: “characters try to get a person to stand up”.
It’s also got a huge cast, there are nine pages of dramatis personae. Catching up with all of them means that few get a lot of major developments. There are still a few big events, some long-awaited, and turning points, but it feels a bit empty at times.
Twists and Turns
For all that, the book comes with major twists and revelations that make it a worthwhile read. Once again, Abnett did the weird thing. Or the brave thing. Rather than playing it safe, he wrote some major revelations in. However it’s a testament to him as an author that, around 60 books into a story, he’s able to come up with twists that make you rethink the whole Heresy. Overall these are good twists and force you to recontextualize everything you know.
In Service Of Chaos
At the end of the day The End and The Death Volume 1 is super weird but also super good. Everything, all the twists, the action, and especially the weirdness, is in service of the atmosphere and theme of the book. This is the end, and the death. With all things coming to an end. The universe and reality are breaking down and apart, and Chaos is taking over. The feels strange, chaotic, and full of just madness; it’s supposed to. Abnett has brilliantly gotten that across with his writing. The very writing and structure of the book mirrors the reality of the setting. For instance everything is present tense because the world is trapped in an unending present. It’s mad, and weird, and utterly brilliant.
5/5 Eternity Gates
Let us know what you thought of the book, down in the comments!
