Series · science fiction
The Horus Heresy
The Horus Heresy series by Aaron Dembski-Bowden has 54 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Horus Rising (2006).
- Books
- 54 books
- First published
- 2006
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: Horus Rising (2006) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Horus Rising
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Horus Rising - Book 2:
False Gods
Alternative text for cover: Cover of False Gods - Book 3:
Galaxy in Flames
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Galaxy in Flames - Book 4:
The Flight of the Eisenstein
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Flight of the Eisenstein - Book 5:
Fulgrim
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fulgrim - Book 6:
Descent of Angels
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Descent of Angels - Book 7:
Legion
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Legion - Book 8:
Battle for the Abyss
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Battle for the Abyss - Book 9:
Mechanicum
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Mechanicum - Book 10:
Tales of Heresy
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tales of Heresy - Book 11:
Fallen Angels
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fallen Angels - Book 12:
A Thousand Sons
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Thousand Sons - Book 13:
Nemesis
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Nemesis - Book 14:
The First Heretic
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The First Heretic - Book 15:
Prospero Burns
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Prospero Burns - Book 16:
Age of Darkness
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Age of Darkness - Book 17:
The Outcast Dead
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Outcast Dead - Book 18:
Deliverance Lost
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Deliverance Lost - Book 19:
Know No Fear
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Know No Fear - Book 20:
The Primarchs
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Primarchs - Book 21:
Fear to Tread
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fear to Tread - Book 22:
Shadows of Treachery
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Shadows of Treachery - Book 23:
Angel Exterminatus
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Angel Exterminatus - Book 24:
Betrayer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Betrayer - Book 25:
Mark of Calth
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Mark of Calth - Book 26:
Vulkan Lives
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Vulkan Lives - Book 27:
The Unremembered Empire
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Unremembered Empire - Book 28:
Scars
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Scars - Book 29:
Vengeful Spirit
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Vengeful Spirit - Book 30:
The Damnation of Pythos
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Damnation of Pythos - Book 31:
Legacies of Betrayal
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Legacies of Betrayal - Book 32:
Deathfire
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Deathfire - Book 33:
War Without End
Alternative text for cover: Cover of War Without End - Book 34:
Pharos
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Pharos - Book 35:
Eye of Terra
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Eye of Terra - Book 36:
The Path of Heaven
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Path of Heaven - Book 37:
The Silent War
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Silent War - Book 38:
Angels of Caliban
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Angels of Caliban - Book 39:
Praetorian of Dorn
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Praetorian of Dorn - Book 40:
Corax
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Corax - Book 41:
The Master of Mankind
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Master of Mankind - Book 42:
Garro
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Garro - Book 43:
Shattered Legions
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Shattered Legions - Book 44:
The Crimson King
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Crimson King - Book 45:
Tallarn
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tallarn - Book 46:
Ruinstorm
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ruinstorm - Book 47:
Old Earth
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Old Earth - Book 48:
The Burden of Loyalty
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Burden of Loyalty - Book 49:
Wolfsbane
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Wolfsbane - Book 50:
Born of Flame
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Born of Flame - Book 51:
Slaves to Darkness
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Slaves to Darkness - Book 52:
Heralds of the Siege
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Heralds of the Siege - Book 53:
Titandeath
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Titandeath - Book 54:
The Buried Dagger
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Buried Dagger
Our shelf-tested path for first-time readers.
- Book 1:
Horus Rising
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Horus Rising - Book 2:
False Gods
Alternative text for cover: Cover of False Gods - Book 3:
Galaxy in Flames
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Galaxy in Flames - Book 4:
The Flight of the Eisenstein
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Flight of the Eisenstein - Book 5:
Fulgrim
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fulgrim - Book 6:
Descent of Angels
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Descent of Angels - Book 7:
Legion
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Legion - Book 8:
Battle for the Abyss
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Battle for the Abyss - Book 9:
Mechanicum
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Mechanicum - Book 10:
Tales of Heresy
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tales of Heresy - Book 11:
Fallen Angels
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fallen Angels - Book 12:
A Thousand Sons
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Thousand Sons - Book 13:
Nemesis
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Nemesis - Book 14:
The First Heretic
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The First Heretic - Book 15:
Prospero Burns
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Prospero Burns - Book 16:
Age of Darkness
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Age of Darkness - Book 17:
The Outcast Dead
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Outcast Dead - Book 18:
Deliverance Lost
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Deliverance Lost - Book 19:
Know No Fear
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Know No Fear - Book 20:
The Primarchs
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Primarchs - Book 21:
Fear to Tread
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fear to Tread - Book 22:
Shadows of Treachery
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Shadows of Treachery - Book 23:
Angel Exterminatus
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Angel Exterminatus - Book 24:
Betrayer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Betrayer - Book 25:
Mark of Calth
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Mark of Calth - Book 26:
Vulkan Lives
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Vulkan Lives - Book 27:
The Unremembered Empire
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Unremembered Empire - Book 28:
Scars
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Scars - Book 29:
Vengeful Spirit
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Vengeful Spirit - Book 30:
The Damnation of Pythos
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Damnation of Pythos - Book 31:
Legacies of Betrayal
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Legacies of Betrayal - Book 32:
Deathfire
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Deathfire - Book 33:
War Without End
Alternative text for cover: Cover of War Without End - Book 34:
Pharos
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Pharos - Book 35:
Eye of Terra
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Eye of Terra - Book 36:
The Path of Heaven
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Path of Heaven - Book 37:
The Silent War
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Silent War - Book 38:
Angels of Caliban
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Angels of Caliban - Book 39:
Praetorian of Dorn
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Praetorian of Dorn - Book 40:
Corax
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Corax - Book 41:
The Master of Mankind
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Master of Mankind - Book 42:
Garro
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Garro - Book 43:
Shattered Legions
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Shattered Legions - Book 44:
The Crimson King
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Crimson King - Book 45:
Tallarn
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tallarn - Book 46:
Ruinstorm
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ruinstorm - Book 47:
Old Earth
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Old Earth - Book 48:
The Burden of Loyalty
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Burden of Loyalty - Book 49:
Wolfsbane
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Wolfsbane - Book 50:
Born of Flame
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Born of Flame - Book 51:
Slaves to Darkness
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Slaves to Darkness - Book 52:
Heralds of the Siege
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Heralds of the Siege - Book 53:
Titandeath
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Titandeath - Book 54:
The Buried Dagger
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Buried Dagger
About The Horus Heresy
The Horus Heresy is Black Library's monumental prequel saga to Warhammer 40,000 — the ten-thousand-year-old origin story every 40K fan knows in outline, finally told in full across 54 official volumes by a rotating team of authors. In the 31st millennium the Emperor of Mankind has nearly completed the Great Crusade, reuniting the human galaxy through his twenty superhuman primarch sons and their Space Marine legions. He names his most brilliant son, Horus, Warmaster — then returns to Terra on a secret project, leaving the galaxy in Horus's hands.
The opening trilogy (Horus Rising, False Gods, Galaxy in Flames) charts Horus's corruption by the Chaos gods and the shattering moment the Legions turn on each other at Isstvan. From there the series widens into a galactic civil war told from every side: the tragedy of the loyal Thousand Sons, the fanaticism of the Word Bearers who engineered it all, secret wars of assassins and remembrancers, and the desperate race to fortify Terra.
It is military science fiction with genuinely operatic stakes — brothers destroying brothers, gods whispering behind history — and its best entries (Legion, A Thousand Sons, The First Heretic, Know No Fear) stand with the strongest tie-in fiction ever written. The mainline concluded in 2019, handing off to the Siege of Terra finale series.
How to read this series
The official numbering is the intended reading order, and the first five books — Horus Rising through Fulgrim — are essential, sequential, and the right place to start. After that the series becomes a mosaic: books jump between Legions and theatres, and strict numerical order remains the safest guide, though many volumes (especially the anthologies) can be reordered or skipped without losing the thread.
Time-pressed readers often follow a curated spine: 1–5, then Legion, Mechanicum, A Thousand Sons, The First Heretic, Prospero Burns, Know No Fear, Betrayer, The Unremembered Empire, The Master of Mankind, Praetorian of Dorn, Slaves to Darkness and The Buried Dagger. Note that ordinals 10, 16, 20, 22, 25, 31, 33, 35, 37, 40, 42–43, 45, 48, 50 and 52 are anthologies or novella compilations.
The war's ending is not in this series: continue with the eight-novel Siege of Terra sequence (beginning The Solar War, ending The End and the Death), published 2019–2024.
Frequently asked questions
How many Horus Heresy books are there?
The official mainline runs to 54 numbered volumes (2006–2019), a mix of novels, anthologies and novella compilations. The story then concludes in the separate Siege of Terra series — eight novels plus the three-part finale The End and the Death (2019–2024).
What order should I read the Horus Heresy in?
Start with the numbered order — books 1–5 (Horus Rising to Fulgrim) are mandatory and sequential. Afterwards the official numbering remains the default guide, though the series becomes an anthology of parallel stories and many readers follow shortened 'essential' lists.
Do I need to read all 54 books?
No. The anthologies and several side novels are skippable. A common condensed path covers roughly 15–20 core volumes from Horus Rising to The Buried Dagger, then moves to the Siege of Terra.
Do I need to know Warhammer 40,000 first?
No — Horus Rising was written as an entry point and explains its universe as it goes. Knowing 40K deepens the dramatic irony (you know how it ends), but it isn't required.
What comes after The Buried Dagger?
The Siege of Terra series, which depicts the final assault on the Emperor's palace: The Solar War, The Lost and the Damned, The First Wall, Saturnine, Mortis, Warhawk, Echoes of Eternity, The End and the Death (published in three volumes, 2023–2024).
Reading order last verified .