
Last Updated on December 30, 2019 by Aether
If you’re looking for the intended The Horus Heresy reading order, then look no further!
The Horus Heresy books are some of my absolute favourite Warhammer literature. The first book came out in 2006, and the Black Library have been pumping them out ever since. Due to the number of books now available, it’s completely understandable that some people may require a book reading list to ensure that they read them in the correct order. Luckily for you, we have made such a list!
For those out of the loop, or those who just want to know a bit more information about The Horus Heresy, let’s briefly cover what the books are about.
The Horus Heresy was originally created back in the late 80’s, by Games Workshop (who also owns Black Library), with the sole intention of being part of the lore for the 40k board game. The main plot is that Chaos is trying to bring down the Emperor, by creating rebellion and distrust, through acts of war. The books follow the story of the Primarchs, who are the Emperor’s genetically engineered officers, as well as their genetically engineered soldiers, the Legiones Astartes. The first three books are part of a trilogy, but the subsequent books follow a non-linear pattern. In fact, the writing often follows a non-linear pattern too, skipping through timelines frequently.

Book | Title | Author | Price |
1 | Horus Rising The seeds of heresy are sown | Dan Abnett | View on Amazon |
2 | False Gods The heresy takes root | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
3 | Galaxy in Flames The heresy revealed | Ben Counter | View on Amazon |
4 | The Flight of the Eisenstein The heresy unfolds | James Swallow | View on Amazon |
5 | Fulgrim Visions of Treachery | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
6 | Descent of Angels Loyalty and honour | Mitchel Scanlon | View on Amazon |
7 | Legion Secrets and lies | Dan Abnett | View on Amazon |
8 | Battle for the Abyss My brother, my enemy | Ben Counter | View on Amazon |
9 | Mechanicum Knowledge is power | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
10 | Tales of Heresy | Nick Kyme and Lindsey Priestley (editors) | View on Amazon |
11 | Fallen Angels Deceit and betrayal | Mike Lee | View on Amazon |
12 | A Thousand Sons All is dust… | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
13 | Nemesis War within the shadows | James Swallow | View on Amazon |
14 | The First Heretic Fall to Chaos | Aaron Dembski-Bowden | View on Amazon |
15 | Prospero Burns The Wolves unleashed | Dan Abnett | View on Amazon |
16 | Age of Darkness | Christian Dunn (editor) | View on Amazon |
17 | The Outcast Dead The truth lies within | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
18 | Deliverance Lost Ghosts of Terra | Gav Thorpe | View on Amazon |
19 | Know No Fear The battle of Calth | Dan Abnett | View on Amazon |
20 | The Primarchs [Novella compilation] | Christian Dunn (editor) | View on Amazon |
21 | Fear to Tread The angel falls | James Swallow | View on Amazon |
22 | Shadows of Treachery [Short story and novella compilation] | Christian Dunn and Nick Kyme (editors) | View on Amazon |
23 | Angel Exterminatus Flesh and iron | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
24 | Betrayer Blood for the Blood God | Aaron Dembski-Bowden | View on Amazon |
25 | Mark of Calth [Short story and novella compilation] | Laurie Goulding (editor) | View on Amazon |
26 | Vulkan Lives Unto the Anvil | Nick Kyme | View on Amazon |
27 | The Unremembered Empire A light in the darkness | Dan Abnett | View on Amazon |
28 | Scars A Legion divided | Chris Wraight | View on Amazon |
29 | Vengeful Spirit The Battle of Molech | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
30 | The Damnation of Pythos Thinning the veil | David Annandale | View on Amazon |
31 | Legacies of Betrayal Let the galaxy burn | Compilation | View on Amazon |
32 | Deathfire Into the Ruinstorm | Nick Kyme | View on Amazon |
33 | War Without End Heresy begets retribution | Compilation | View on Amazon |
34 | Pharos The dying of the light | Guy Haley | View on Amazon |
35 | Eye of Terra I am the Emperor’s vigilance | Compilation | View on Amazon |
36 | The Path of Heaven Riding out from the storm | Chris Wraight | View on Amazon |
37 | The Silent War Chosen of the Sigillite | Compilation | View on Amazon |
38 | Angels of Caliban Emperors and slaves | Gav Thorpe | View on Amazon |
39 | Praetorian of Dorn Alpha to omega | John French | View on Amazon |
40 | Corax Nevermore | Gav Thorpe | View on Amazon |
41 | The Master of Mankind War in the webway | Aaron Dembski-Bowden | View on Amazon |
42 | Garro Weapon of fate | James Swallow | View on Amazon |
43 | Shattered Legions | Laurie Goulding (editor) | View on Amazon |
44 | The Crimson King A soul divided | Graham McNeill | View on Amazon |
45 | Tallarn War for a dead world | John French | View on Amazon |
46 | Ruinstorm Destiny unwritten… | David Annandale | View on Amazon |
47 | Old Earth To the Gates of Terra | Nick Kyme | View on Amazon |
48 | The Burden of Loyalty | Laurie Goulding (editor) | View on Amazon |
49 | Wolfsbane The wyrd spear cast | Guy Haley | View on Amazon |
50 | Born of Flame | Nick Kyme | View on Amazon |
51 | Slaves to Darkness Chaos undivided | John French | View on Amazon |
52 | Heralds of the Siege | Nick Kyme and Laurie Goulding (editors) | View on Amazon |
53 | Titandeath The God Machines cometh | Guy Haley | View on Amazon |
54 | The Buried Dagger Doom of the Death Guard | James Swallow | View on Amazon |
55 | The Solo Wars | John French | View on Amazon |
Custom Horus Heresy Reading Orders
Although we have listed every book in order above, it’s worth noting that not every book is written to the same standard. This shouldn’t come as a surprise if you think about it though, there are so many books, and so many different authors and editors. Not only that, but if said author has been told to write about specific events, and they are unlucky enough to be told to write about some of the ‘duller’ moments in the lore, there isn’t much they can do.
On the internet, you will find lots of people’s own recommendations about what books to read, and what books to skip, while still being able to follow the general storyline. We were going to list some of these but, we found that due to everyone’s personal preferences, there were a lot of people disagreeing with what books are and aren’t worth the time. Therefore, we decided to ignore all of the lists, and just let you enjoy the books as they were meant to be read.
Have fun reading these fantastic books, and remember, For The Emperor!
Last update on 2020-10-14 at 19:18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API