The Horus Heresy (Gav Thorpe) Books in Order
Part ofGav Thorpe Books in OrderSee the Horus Heresy books by Gav Thorpe in order, with summaries, Legion background, linked story notes, and clear starting points.
Last updated: July 14, 2026
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The Horus Heresy (Gav Thorpe) books in publication order
19 books
Tales of Heresy
by Gav Thorpe
2009
This Horus Heresy anthology collects stories from the widening civil war, showing how betrayal spreads beyond the main battle lines. Swallow's contribution adds another angle on fear, faith, and Imperial fracture.
Age of Darkness
by Gav Thorpe
2011
An anthology from the middle years of the Horus Heresy, when the war has spread and certainty is gone. Swallow's included work adds to the sense of a galaxy breaking in stages.
Deliverance Lost
by Gav Thorpe
2011
After Isstvan V, Corax returns to Terra seeking a way to rebuild the devastated Raven Guard. Ancient secrets offer hope, but Alpha Legion infiltrators are already working to destroy the Legion before it can rise again.
The Face of Treachery
by Gav Thorpe
2011
Raven Guard ships fight to rescue Corax from Isstvan V after the Dropsite Massacre. But with the enemy closing in, the mission depends on one Space Marine aboard a rebel vessel who is not what he seems.
Shadows of Treachery
by Gav Thorpe
2012
A Horus Heresy anthology that ranges from Phall to Terra, mixing shorter stories with longer novellas. For Aaron Dembski Bowden readers, the standout is *Prince of Crows* and its Night Lords darkness.
The Lion
by Gav Thorpe
2012
While battling a daemonic incursion within their fleet, the Dark Angels find themselves caught between the Iron Hands and Death Guard. Lion El'Jonson's warriors must decide which side to support in a dangerous void conflict.
The Primarchs
by Gav Thorpe
2012
This Horus Heresy anthology turns the spotlight on the Emperor's sons and the Legions shaped by them. Gav Thorpe's contribution, *The Lion*, follows the Dark Angels during a tense conflict in the void.
Cypher: Guardian of Order
by Gav Thorpe
2013
Young Librarian Zahariel accompanies the mysterious Lord Cypher into the Northwilds of Caliban. An ancient evil stirs beneath the forest just as rumours of civil war begin reaching the isolated Dark Angels.
Honour to the Dead
by Gav Thorpe
2013
As Calth burns, traitor and loyalist Titans battle through the city of Ithraca. Beneath their devastating weapons, civilians fight to survive while the remaining engines of the True Messengers stand against overwhelming odds.
The Divine Word
by Gav Thorpe
2013
Fighting beside the Raven Guard, Commander Marcus Valerius begins questioning the Imperial Truth. A sudden vision may save his soldiers, but it also raises a dangerous question: is faith a weakness, or something real?
The Imperial Truth
by Gav Thorpe
2013
This Horus Heresy anthology gathers stories from a galaxy where the old Imperial certainty is collapsing. Swallow's connected work helps show how faith, rumour, and betrayal reshape the war.
By the Lion's Command
by Gav Thorpe
2015
During the Horus Heresy, Dark Angels forces carry out the Lion's will across a fractured Imperium. The story explores the First Legion's discipline, hidden agendas, and the difficult orders issued in a war between brothers.
Raptor
by Gav Thorpe
2015
Corax's rebuilt Raven Guard continue their secret war against Horus, using stealth and speed to strike where the traitors are weakest. But the Legion's altered warriors and hidden enemies make every operation increasingly uncertain.
The Board is Set
by Gav Thorpe
2017
As Horus closes on Terra, Malcador communes with the Emperor and plays a desperate wargame to test possible paths to victory. Each move reveals the sacrifices, risks, and human pieces behind the coming Siege.
Corax
by Gav Thorpe
2018
This Horus Heresy collection follows Corax and the Raven Guard after Isstvan V, as they rebuild, strike from the shadows, and confront enemies within their ranks. It gathers connected stories of a Legion fighting to survive.
Heralds of the Siege
by Gav Thorpe
2018
This Horus Heresy anthology gathers stories that point toward the Siege of Terra. Swallow's material fits the gathering sense that every surviving loyalist is being pulled toward the final battle.
The Burden of Loyalty
by Gav Thorpe
2018
A Horus Heresy anthology about loyalists trying to survive as Horus closes on Terra. It gathers stories from across the war, including Aaron Dembski Bowden's *Into Exile*.
Ravenlord
by Gav Thorpe
2021
Corax and the Raven Guard wage a guerrilla war against traitor-held worlds after Isstvan V. A reunion with another survivor leads them toward a prison colony and forces Corax to face ghosts from Deliverance.
The First Wall
by Gav Thorpe
2021
The outer defences of Terra have fallen, and Rogal Dorn's Palace walls face Perturabo's Iron Warriors. The battle for Lion's Gate Spaceport becomes vital, because its loss would let the traitors bring their worst weapons to Terra.
The Horus Heresy (Gav Thorpe) books in chronological order

Tales of Heresy
by Gav Thorpe
2009The Horus Heresy, Book 1
Age of Darkness
by Gav Thorpe
2011The Horus Heresy, Book 2
The Face of Treachery
by Gav Thorpe
2011The Horus Heresy, Book 3
The Lion
by Gav Thorpe
2012The Horus Heresy, Book 5
The Primarchs
by Gav Thorpe
2012The Horus Heresy, Book 6
Shadows of Treachery
by Gav Thorpe
2012The Horus Heresy, Book 7
The Imperial Truth
by Gav Thorpe
2013The Horus Heresy, Book 8
The Divine Word
by Gav Thorpe
2013The Horus Heresy, Book 9
Cypher: Guardian of Order
by Gav Thorpe
2013The Horus Heresy, Book 11
Raptor
by Gav Thorpe
2015The Horus Heresy, Book 13
By the Lion's Command
by Gav Thorpe
2015The Horus Heresy, Book 14
The Board is Set
by Gav Thorpe
2017The Horus Heresy, Book 15
Corax
by Gav Thorpe
2018The Horus Heresy, Book 17
Heralds of the Siege
by Gav Thorpe
2018The Horus Heresy, Book 18
The First Wall
by Gav Thorpe
2021The Siege of Terra, Book 1
Series background & context
Gav Thorpe's Horus Heresy work follows two of the civil war's most secretive loyalist Legions: the Raven Guard and the Dark Angels. It also makes room for soldiers, civilians, Titan crews, and political figures living under the pressure of a war that has made every old certainty unreliable.
For the Raven Guard, the main route starts with Deliverance Lost. Corax has escaped the Dropsite Massacre with only a fragment of his Legion intact, and his first task is not glorious revenge but survival. He needs warriors, weapons, and a way to rebuild, while Alpha Legion infiltrators work to make sure that recovery fails. Later stories collected in Corax, along with Ravenlord, Raptor, and The Face of Treachery, keep following the Legion's shadow war.
Nothing comes easily after Isstvan.
The Dark Angels thread has a different shape. The Lion, Angels of Caliban, Cypher: Guardian of Order, and related shorter works look at Lion El'Jonson, Caliban, and the fault lines inside the First Legion. The stories move between the larger war, the unstable realm of Imperium Secundus, and the old secrets still growing on the Dark Angels' home world. The Legion is powerful, but its own divisions are often as dangerous as any enemy fleet.
Thorpe's Heresy stories also widen the lens. Honour to the Dead places ordinary people in a city on Calth as rival Titan Legions tear it apart. The Divine Word follows Marcus Valerius as faith begins to challenge the supposedly secular Imperial Truth. The Board is Set turns the coming Siege of Terra into a tense conversation between the Emperor and Malcador, played out through a wargame.
These are stories about plans failing, loyalties shifting, and people carrying burdens they never asked for. They work best if you want the Heresy from the point of view of those trying to preserve an identity while the Imperium changes around them.
Start with Deliverance Lost for Corax and the Raven Guard. Start with The Lion and Angels of Caliban if the Dark Angels are your priority. Read Honour to the Dead when you want a self-contained story that shows the war at ground level, even with Titans towering over the streets.
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