Book Review 123 // The Purging of Kadillus by Gav Thorpe

I am continuing the break from the Horus Heresy series for a little while longer. I am going to attempt to read a few Dark Angel novels, in hopes of finally inspiring myself to finally start a Space Marine army. So with the plan set let us dive into the first novel; The Purging of Kadillus by Gav Thorpe.

The Dark Angels battle the might of an ork Waaaagh!, led by the feared warboss Ghazghkull Thraka.Faced with an ork invasion of Piscina IV, the 3rd Company of the Dark Angels believes the threat to be minimal. As enemy numbers continue to increase, their commander, Captain Belial, insists that his Company is strong enough to resist. But Scout-Sergeant Naaman knows just how dangerous this foe can be, and when a renewed greenskin offensive takes the Dark Angels by surprise, the orks swarm towards Kadillus Harbour. Little do the Dark Angels know of the technological power available to the Xenos, and the true scale of the threat they face. Belial, Naaman and their fellow Astartes fight a desperate siege at Kadillus, knowing that they must hold out until Imperial reinforcements arrive or the planet will be lost.

411 pages of fun reading. We get to read the recreation of a second edition Warhammer 40k campaign that happened in White Dwarf another lifetime ago. For this novel, we see the Dark Angels assisted by the Piscina Defence Force, face off against two of the biggest Ork Warbosses of the Age - Ghazghkull and Nazdreg. The story's chapters are built around key characters and the aspect of the war they are engaged in. The Orks having landed in force on the planet, have managed to take key locations like the harbour and powerplants. The only issue is no one knows how they got here or where their ship is located.

Most of the book focuses on Naaman the senior Scout Sergeant of the 10th Company. We join him and his squad as they attempt to discover the origin of the Ork invasion force. It is during this time that Naaman discovers that the orks are using a teleporta system to get troops down onto the planet. It's during their attempt to escape that they are outmaneuvered and killed to a scout, with only Naaman surviving to return the news to command.

From here on in it becomes more of a straight-up battle, full-on action every chapter from here on in. We get last stand shoot-outs, main characters killed and Deathwing terminator assault actions. This is a solid read, with some interesting side tales, especially the way they interact with standard soldiers. This has definitely sparked my interest in Marines and has actually lead to the purchase of the Codex, so watch this space.

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Kindle Edition: The Purging of Kadillus

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