Audio Review // Ghosts Speak Not & Patience by James Swallow

Wow, I am all over the place with these Horus Heresy short stories! I'm not even sure where I am in the timeline anymore. One minute I'm following one group of characters, the next I'm off chasing another thread of the Heresy.

Today, we're heading back into the adventures of Nathaniel Garro. I thought I'd completed his adventures, but apparently not! So, let's try to get our feet firmly planted back in the timeline and see what's happening with the Knights Errant.

This time, we're getting two connected tales from James Swallow: Ghosts Speak Not and Patience. And thankfully, these are well worth the detour.

The Details

Titles: Ghosts Speak Not & Patience
Author: James Swallow
Series: The Horus Heresy
Format: Audio short stories

The Blurb

Two tales from the Horus Heresy. A former Sister of Silence and a Legionary once of the Death Guard embark on a vital mission for the Sigillite — one that will lead the former XIV Legion warrior back into battle alongside his old captain, Nathaniel Garro.

These stories explore the Death Guard who were imprisoned after their Legion's betrayal, and how service to Malcador changes those who fight for the Sigillite, for better or worse.

When Nathaniel Garro carried word of the Warmaster's treachery to Terra, he also brought with him seventy loyal sons of the XIV Legion. Distrusted by their kinsmen, they languished in seclusion on Luna… until now.

Amendera Kendel, once a Sister of Silence but more recently in service to the Sigillite, gives Helig Gallor of the Death Guard a new purpose and a new duty — one that will ultimately see him reunited with his former battle captain on the field of war.

The Review

Let's keep things simple and split this one in two.

Ghosts Speak Not.

This is a very impressive short story, and a welcome return to a part of the Horus Heresy that I've been keen to revisit. We get a reintroduction to Amendera Kendel, formerly of the Sisters of Silence, alongside a catch-up with the surviving Death Guard brought to Terra during Garro's Flight of the Eisenstein adventures. These are the loyal sons of the XIV Legion who found themselves on the wrong side of history when their Primarch and Legion turned traitor, and, for a long stretch of the series, they've largely been left sitting on the sidelines. After so many books, it was great to finally get some attention back on these characters. There's an interesting group of warriors here, each having to deal with the consequences of their Legion's betrayal in their own way. I really hope we get to see more of them as the Heresy continues.

But while the Death Guard are certainly worth our attention, it's Kendel who steals the show. Having broken with the Sisters of Silence and entered the service of Malcador, she's now operating in a world where even those fighting for the Imperium don't necessarily trust her. In some ways, she's in a similar position to the loyal Death Guard: an outsider, viewed with suspicion, and having to prove herself in a world that's changed beyond recognition.

Swallow does a masterful job with her character. There's a fascinating tension between who Kendel was, what she's become, and the duty she's now been given. She's not simply a former Sister of Silence who happens to be working for the Sigillite. She's someone who's made a choice that has consequences, and you can feel that weight throughout the story.

It's a cracking character piece, and one that leaves me wanting to spend more time with her. The plot itself is well executed, and I found myself thoroughly enjoying being back in the Knights Errant arc. There's something satisfying about seeing these threads come together again, especially when they've been sitting quietly in the background for so long. A very good short story, and a welcome return to some familiar faces.

Patience.

Now, the reason these two tales sit together is that Patience is a direct follow-up to Ghosts Speak Not, and it's a very short one indeed! This time, we get to follow one of the Death Guard characters introduced in the previous story, Helig Gallor, as he gets his own opportunity to step into the spotlight.

Set on a ruined world that sided with the Warmaster, the story gives us a glimpse of what happens to those who've fallen from the Imperium's grace., and it's not a particularly cheerful picture. What I found especially interesting here is that we're given a rare look at how the wider war is changing the Imperium, and the people who are simply trying to survive within it.

The Horus Heresy is often about the big names, the Primarchs, the Legions, and the battles that will decide the fate of the galaxy. And don't get me wrong, I bloody love all that stuff! But sometimes it's the smaller stories that really help sell the scale of what's happening. Here, we get a more melancholic look at the aftermath of betrayal. The old order is crumbling, worlds are being destroyed, and the people caught in the middle are left to deal with the consequences.

There's also a sadness to the way the Space Marines are coming to terms with the end of an era. These warriors were created to serve the Imperium, but the Imperium they knew is disappearing before their eyes. Whatever happens next, they can't simply return to the old ways and pretend none of this ever happened. The galaxy has changed. The Imperium has changed. And it's becoming a much darker, more unforgiving place.

For such a short story, Patience does a great job of capturing that feeling.

Two Tales, One Changing Galaxy

Taken together, these two stories make for a great listen. What I particularly enjoy is seeing the Knights Errant develop beyond the familiar figure of Nathaniel Garro. He's still an important part of the story, of course, but it's refreshing to have other characters take the lead and show us different corners of this expanding narrative. For a galaxy as enormous as the Imperium, the Horus Heresy can sometimes feel as though we're following the same small group of heroes from one disaster to the next. So it's great to step away from them for a while and see how other characters are coping with the madness.

Kendel is a fascinating character; the surviving loyal Death Guard have plenty of potential, and Gallor's story gives us a glimpse of the wider consequences of the Heresy. These aren't just tales about warriors fighting battles. They're stories about what happens to people when the world they knew disappears, and what they choose to do next.

And that's what makes them work so well.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed both Ghosts Speak Not and Patience. The first brings us back to the Knights Errant and gives Amendera Kendel some much-deserved attention, while the second offers a more melancholic look at the changing Imperium through the eyes of Helig Gallor. Together, they make a great little double bill.

It's particularly nice to see the loyal Death Guard get some attention after being left out of the picture for so long. There's a lot of potential in these characters, and I hope James Swallow (or another Heresy author) gives them more room to develop.

And Kendel? She's quickly becoming someone I'm very keen to follow.

If you're working your way through the Horus Heresy, these two stories are well worth adding to your listening list. They're a reminder that some of the most interesting parts of this massive saga happen away from the battlefield's biggest names.

The Heresy is changing everyone it touches. Even those fighting for the Emperor can't escape it.

Cheers for reading, and I'll see you on the next adventure!