Book Review – Helsreach by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

In time with Apocalypse 40K, Black Library released the Armageddon collected volume, which includes Aaron Dembski-Bowden’s two Black Templars stories set during the Third War for Armageddon: Helsreach and Blood and Fire.

Helsreach is arguably Black Library’s most iconic Black Templars story. Black Templars fans venerate the book with an almost religious fervour.

I thus approached this book with some trepidation. Would it live up to the hype I heard about it? Is it a good story, even if I am not a massive Black Templars fan?

I needn’t have worried. Helsreach rocks!

When the world of Armageddon is attacked by orks, the Black Templars Space Marine Chapter are amongst those sent to liberate it. Chaplain Grimaldus and a band of Black Templars are charged with the defence of Hive Helsreach from the xenos invaders in one of the many battlezones. But as the orks numbers grow and the Space Marines dwindle, Grimaldus faces a desperate last stand in an Imperial temple. Determined to sell their lives dearly, will the Black Templars hold on long enough to be reinforced, or will their sacrifice ultimately be in vain?

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#1 – The Story

The story of Helsreach is fairly basic and, despite the 5-star rating that this book clearly deserves, actually not all that original.

It’s the Third War for Armageddon, Orks without number invade the planet, and the Imperium does its best to defend it.

Helsreach focuses on one hive city of the same name, Helsreach, which is defended by Armageddon’s native Steel Legion, Titans from the Legio Invigilata and, of course, a detachment of Black Templars Space Marines, led by Reclusiarch Grimaldus.

Grimaldus takes up the task of defending the Helsreach hive city with great reluctance at first. At the start of the book, he’s almost pouting, complaining (in inner monologues) about being sent to the inglorious and rather un-Templars-like task of defending a city.

Inevitably, as the story progresses, Grimaldus grows into the role, bashes heads together to make the various Imperial Factions work together and rallies everyone to a glorious last stand. He even starts to appreciated (some of) the humans fighting at his side to defend the city of Helsreach.

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#2 – The Characters

Helsreach may not have the most original story ever. Likewise, the Orks remain surprisingly distant. The Ork invasion in Helsreach almost feels like a natural disaster of sorts. They are almost literally a green tide that crashes against the Imperial defenders, again and again, testing their resolve. There is no “main Villain” (Ghaz does not show up), no “face” to the Orks in Helsreach.

What Helsreach – the story – does have in abundance are cool characters. Aaron Dembski-Bowden offers almost a cross-section through the various military factions of the Imperium on Armageddon: The Steel Legion of the Imperial Guard, from Storm Troopers to conscripted dock workers, the Mechanicus Titan Legio Invigilata, the Imperial Navy, Sisters of Battle and Space Marines, including the Salamanders and, or course, the Black Templars, led by Grimaldus.

And they’re all memorable and interesting characters… far too many to talk about in detail. The magic of this book, I believe, is that it delivers both non-stop action on a truly apocalyptic scale (it’s the War for Armageddon after all) and (!) a depiction of the Imperium at war, where all factions get their moment to shine (and their moment to screw things up).

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#3 – Black Templars

Finally, Helsreach really brings the Black Templars to life.

As noted, this was probably my main worry before starting the book. The Black Templars are a chapter that can very easily become a parody of itself: Hyper-fantatical Space Marines charging forward with foam around their mouth

Aaron Dembski-Bowden manages to give the Black Templars depth, without making them “nice” Space Marines. He even has the Salamanders SpaceMarines drop-pod in – a contrasting more “human” Space Marines chapter – to really drive the home (perhaps a bit too bluntly).

Helsreach takes the time to delve into the Templars Crusader traditions and mind-set, making their actions comprehensible to the reader even as they remain alien to other characters in the story. Reading Helsreach, I truly started to appreciate this particular chapter. The book really made me want to pick up some Templars miniatures, ideally Grimaldus, and start painting black.

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#4 – Verdict

Helsreach is – deservedly – the definitive Black Templars novel and I would highly recommend you read it, even if you’re not per se interested in the Black Templars per se.

Not unlike his treatment of the Night Lords, Aaron Dembski-Bowden takes on a (potentially) somewhat comical (Chaos) Space Marine faction and brings out the best in them, making them feel “real”, but without making them any nicer for the sake of the story.

I would argue Dembski-Bowden’s Night Lords books are better still, mostly because the story feels smoother, but Helsreach is still a solid five. Grimaldus is one of those Warhammer 40K characters you’ll remember for a long time, no matter how many other Black Library novels you’ll read.

Z.