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Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar

Primarchs: The Horus Heresy, Book 1

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Roboute Guilliman: Lord of Ultramar

By: David Annandale
Narrated by: Toby Longworth
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About this listen

Long before the coming of the Imperium, the realm of Ultramar was ruled by Roboute Guilliman, the last Battle King of Macragge. Even after learning of his true heritage as a primarch son of the Emperor of Mankind, he strove to expand his domain as efficiently and benevolently as possible, with the XIII Legion Ultramarines as his alone to command.

Now, facing a rival empire on the ork-held world of Thoas, Guilliman must choose his weapons carefully - otherwise his dream of a brighter future could be lost forever.

©2016 Games Workshop Limited (P)2016 Games Workshop Limited Adventure Fiction Military Science Fiction Space Opera Space

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Gory moments are the best moments. It was recommended to me and I really enjoyed it.

If you like action and gory, you'll love this.

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A disappointing insight into Roboute Guilliman, not aided by the narrator pronouncing his name as Gilly-man for 75% of the book. Well performed otherwise, but not an interesting story compared to the other Primarch books. I listened to this one last for the sake of completion.

Below par

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I am not having the best time with the Primarchs series so far. Lorgar's book wasn't great and reading about all the horrific things Lorgar was put through was unpleasant, but at least I was fully invested in the character and learning more about their life. I was hoping to get some of that here, but this is essentially just a story about an Ultramarines operation during the Great Crusade that doesn't really relate to the wider Horus Heresy Series or add interesting depth to the Warriors of Ultramar or their Primarch.

Guilliman is having some feelings about one of his Chapters that is less like the others and makes an unpopular decision regarding their leadership, ahead of taking on an Ork empire and doing a big fight in a vaguely ominous pyramid.

Coming to this for the first, and almost certainly last, time on the back of Know No Fear and Honour to the Dead, I was ready to really give the XII Primarch a fair shake and was enjoying Annandale's prose and the strange politics and inscrutable logic of the Lord of Ultramar. I was even finding the constant Guilliman quotes, in every break in the text and in the dialogue, charming for a while.

It seemed like we were looking at a like father like son situation in terms of handling their progeny, as we know how the Emperor is the galaxy's worst dad, when Guilliman decided to shake things up. I was expecting some Roboute Night Shymalan twist where he knew what he was doing all along, but it didn't really end up being anything in particular.

Spending so much time with Guilliman brought home just how truly insufferable he his with his constant preaching giving New Atheism™ theoretical zealotory, which is exacerbated by the way his sycophantic officers are constantly quoting him back to him too. The problem you are faced with when writing about someone who is a great writer and thinker is delivering that. Thankfully, it's already been established that, while we're supposed to treat the last Battle King of Macragge as the combination of Marcus Aurelius and Sun Tzu combined, he just opines bits of logic and tactics in the most super smart person on reddit kinda way. This is amusing in small doses, but the sheer volume of quotes from Guilliman's various LiveJournals and tumblrs is maddening and really makes the 'joke' ware thin.

The highlight of the book for me was the serious and scary flavour Orks come in during the Heresy. Don't get me wrong, I love an absolutely ridiculous git with a ludicrous Cockney accent, but there's just something about how intense they are in this series. Reading about their ludicrous weapons and Inventions described in a serious and epic tone is a lot of fun, and there's a great description of some nightmare cut and shut vehicle that I thoroughly enjoyed. Unfortunately, the Orks stop being veery interesting or detailed, and the final confrontation sigh the Ork Emperor is powerfully underwhelming.

I think the problem I have is similar to the issues I raised with Battle for the Abyss, this doesn't really feel like a Horus Heresy or even a Primarch novel. There's a tiny bit of vaguely foreboding imagery in the pyramid and Guilliman deciding to do some repression and lying, which probably qualifies as dramatic irony, but this had it's limited run in 2016, ten years after the beginning of the series, and probably at least a few more years until it got a wider realise, so the dramatic irony well is pretty dry and needs something a bit more impactful to have that Heresy feeling.

Again, just like BFTA, this only needs the most minimum of changes to make is just a regular Warhammer 40K story, swap Calgar in for Guilliman and Ventris or another officer in for Calgar, if it's set before Roboute returns, or change practically nothing at all if you set in in the Dark Imperium. I actually think having Guilliman see the imagery and it causing him to remember Monarchia and reflect on the Heresy would actually be more powerful that this being set shortly after Monarchia.

Ultimately, I found this book to be seriously lacking the tragedy and pathos that, along with the mythic legendary tone, are the lifeblood of this series. Guilliman feels a wee bit perturbed by Monarchia and Lorgar's trauma, so he wants to focus more on preserving and creating than just war. He excuses his actions with the XVII as necessary, which is somehow worse than him being a mindless weapon. Sadly, that reflection isn't given any time or weight, just like the organisation drama that is the whole beginning of the book. It does play a part in the narrative, but there's no emotional connection.

Regardless, I do want to point out that Annandale's prose is good and Longworth's narration is spectacular as always. Unfortunately, it just felt like the longest 181 pages/ 5 hours book I have read in a while. You're mileage may vary.

I can't recommend unless you're a completionist or dedicated to the 500 worlds

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Good story and string narrative throughout, I would recommend and listen again, although a long and independent listening is required.

interesting listening

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Something about this novel just fails to capture the grandeur, the magnificence of a primary, the story is simply...lacking. Toby Longworth does a reasonable job with the material, but I felt he was much better in narrating the recent Eisenhorn novel.

Lacking Something....

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The book focuses on 1 large battle for the planet of Thoas. There is very little actually about RG and what made him into the man he is.

Not what I expected.

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the story is just one big battle. no background on how Guilleman became the man he was during the Heresy.

not great

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Not that much about Guilliman. As long as you go into it with that in mind, it s an ok ultramarines book

Enjoyable

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I didn't really get anything from listening to this. The lore is extremely light. It offers some perspective on Guilliman's personality but that's the most that can be said for this story. The emperor orc was fun but overall a bit disappointing.

Very average

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Toby Longworth should read allblack library's collection. awesome voicing for characters in the story. talking of which, I would have loved that to be alot longer. But what there was, entertained me immensely.

Cool, nicely read but short.

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