Customer Reviews
Not that great - By: George Orwell2, 05 Sep 2008 
I'm enjoying the Horus Heresy series but this is the weakest so far & does lend itself to the suspicion that books are being published to cashin on the fact that the Heresy is so vastin scope the series could easily stretch to 100 novels or more.
Most of this novel is set on Caliban before the Emperor arrives & thus lays the psychological groundwork for what we know the future will bring. The idea of the planet's warrior code & the descriptions of the world are well written but the big failing is the dialogue which is pretty terrible. On page 65 we have the line "I'm not fat protested Eliath I'm just big boned" which as a fan of South Park made me laugh out loud & didn't exactly encourage my expectations for the rest of the novel.
In short, only buy if you are a "completist" (as I am) because it's not a very good novel on the whole & doesn't really belongin the same company as the rest of the Horus series.
horus heresy or not??? - By: Jared Rose, 05 Sep 2008 following on from the great book which was Fulgrim (5star book) i was looking forward to this one, (spoiler alert). Fans of warhammer 40,000 crave to know more about the background of the dark angels & all there secrets etc, & you wont be disappointed with the inclusion of primarch lion el'johnson , planet caliban (the rock) etc but we are talking about a book setin the horus heresy, & sadly this is why i rate this book 2 stars, its not aweful because you get snippets of backstory & how secretive the dark angels really are, BUT & its a big BUT!!! there isnt a single thingin this book to do with the heresy & just when the book starts picking up pace it ends (90% of book with no marines) 10% of rushed writing. This book should of been a standalone book. Buy for completions sake but be warned its not what the cover title says itis.
I tend to agree with much of the sentiment of the other reviews - By: D. M. Lee, 06 Jul 2008 Quite honestly I don't know what the point of this book is. It's set before all of the other novelsin the heresy series & has no relevance to the other books at all. It has only the vaguest reference to the Dark Angels chapter that it claims to reveal all the hidden truths about. Primarch Lion El' Jonson is treated more as a subsidary character who remains on the periphery of the story all the way until the end. It seems to be the story of some guy who nobody's ever heard of or cares about becoming an astartes. The books not the worst 40K novel I've read but it just isn't anywhere near as interesting as the othersin the series. The other Heresy books enlighten you about the main playersin the Horus Heresy that have always interested me since I first got into 40K all those years ago; Horus, Dorn, Sanguinius, Fulgrim. Not to mention giving a real sense of imperial history. This one just seems a needless spin off. I'll say no more.
Go straight to Legion! - By: J. Mikkelsen, 16 Jun 2008 I have read the entire Heresy series so far & have enjoyed the universe & continuing story immensely. Every book has provided a new aspect to the story & has fit perfectlyin the grand scheme of things...except for Descent of Angels, that is.
The book depicts life on Caliban, home of the Dark Angels, before the Emperor ever came to the planet & created the chapter. The emperor only arrives during the last fourth of the book, & as such the Dark Angels marines are hardly mentionedin the story. Not even Lion El'Johnson, later primarch of the Dark Angels, or his buddy Luther are mentioned muchin the book, whichin stead focuses on a young man & his struggle to rise within the knighly order.
The story is rather boring & not that well written, especially so compared to the rest of the series. Worst of all however, is the fact that the book has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE HERESY! The book ends before the Great Crusade has even begun, & really makes you wonder what the point of the book is.
Not even if you are a die hard Dark Angels fan would I recommend the book, since it really doesn't elaborate on anything concerning the chapter. It hints to a few interesting developments, but that's all.
You will not miss out on anything concerning the Heresy story if you don't read this book, & I strongly recommend you go straight on to Legion, whichin my opinion is the best bookin the series so far.
Not an HH book, bit a how to choke on vomit guide - By: C. WORD, 02 Apr 2008 
As a Space Marine book by itself, this book is at most, silly. But as a Horus Heresy book, this was a deceptive piece of trash & a waste of time. This book just rambles on & on...ooh, my life is so hard, ooh my planet is so bad, ooh training is so boring, ooh I'm such a tough warrior butin 416 pages I never once mention anything about women. Give me a break. This tripe is boring & formulaic. And to top it off, I believe this is actually the first HH book where the Emperor speaks.
They actually pulped a tree to print this mockery?
