- The Horus Heresy: Tallarn, John French
I don't think it's a coincidence that some of my favorite Horus Heresy novels are the ones with barely a Space Marine in sight. Nemesis is the most prominent example, and I'd say I enjoyed Tallarn just as much, if not more. Or I mean technically this is an anthology, I think, but all the stories are by the same guy.
Later on in the book, some marines do show up, but at least they're interacting with non-marines a lot, and the Alpha Legion is also there, which is always fun. Tallarn is still mostly the story of people in tanks, on a planet turned to a toxic hell by virus bombardment, and that's what makes it so good.
The star of the show is definitely Tallarn itself. The sheer claustrophobia of driving tanks around a totally poisoned planet, where one tear in your protective suit means immediate, gruesome death, is powerfully conveyed and sticks with you. At first it's a mystery why anyone could possibly be bothered to fight over a place like this, but that gets turned into a plot point, which is satisfying.
If I'm honest, the plot itself isn't that great, but I was certainly entertained, and Tallarn goes on my Do Read list.
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