This is a brilliant read for a Primarch book in the Horus Heresy of Warhammer 40K. Written in first person, unlike most Horus Heresy and Primarch books, this story gives a vivid account of Alpharius, from his discovery by the Emperor to his coronation as Legion Primarch. This is one of my favorite tales as it establishes some fairly large lore, starting from page one. I only wish that Black Library would commission more first-person narratives like Alpharius: Head of the Hydra. ( )

What a book, what a story. Told from the perspective of the most mysterious Primarchs, Alpharius and Omegon we follow the beginnings of these two .... I guess special ops commanders would be the term.

Same as Valdor this book brings us back to the very start - it is end of Unification Wars, and young Primarch will soon start his lessons - taught not only by the Emperor but by his right hand. Role of these primarchs, their legion, tactics and the values they cherish they all have their place in the Imperium of Man. They are shadow-spear, blade in darkness - threat to all insurgents and enemies of Imperium in general - human or otherwise.

To say more would be to ruin the experience for other readers. The amount of lore is ... breathtaking. I just cannot wait for new books in this series. What I will say is that XX Legion is now one of the legions I am truly interested in. Views and analysis of their brothers, that scene with Valdor ...... man :)

Highly recommended to all fans of Horus Heresy (and W40K lore in general). I stand corrected, if you like stories of heroes bigger than life and covert wars in the future you need to read this. ( )

Easily the most interesting portrayal of a Primarch. ( )

I keep trying to read about primarchs but I feel like they’re just.... boring as a subject matter. Give me an underdog. Otherwise very well written to the point I read to ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this novella. Alpharius is one of my favourite characters in the 40k universe and its great to see him get a voice. One of the fun things about Alpharius, of course, is that you can't trust that voice, so an author can have fun without butting up against the existing fluff. This has come across well in Brooks' novel, which is a gleeful space opera that flys around the founding days of the Imperium throwing doubt on all sorts of knowns, messes with the known unknowns, and gives us some new unknown unknowns too! ( )