Courage and Honour

This book was awesome! Its space marines battling tau which is cool because they are all futuristic and high tech. I am 9 and read at about an eighth grade level and this was easy for me to read and understand.

As much as I enjoyed reading about Uriel's zany adventures through the Eye on his death oath, I'm kind of glad it's over. Instead of reading another odyssey through space and time with our lovable duo of space marines, we get back to the nitty gritty of the 4th company battling xenos and heretics. An exciting 4/5, and I'm looking forward to next in the series. "Courage and Honour."

Graham just knocked it out of the park. Again. I'm a disciple of Dan Abnett, but Graham McNeill is a real contender for top dog in the 40K fluff universe. I will say as with all series, it is best to start at the beginning. The whole Uriel Ventris / Honsou saga is a very rich part of the 40K storyline. If you are looking for a book that you cannot put down, this is it!

I don't really get the naysayer reviews for this book. I have read all five of McNeill's Ultramarines novels, and this is my favorite. Whereas all of the books are great, the two prior to this one weren't my favorites because they were full of small skirmishes and dialog-borne intrigue. Don't get me wrong, I would still recommend them, but lost was the furious action of the first two novels. Courage and Honour returns Uriel Ventriss and company to a setting of full scale war, with the Ultramarines 4th chapter fully present, accounted for, and dealing destruction en masse. We have a real war here- not an escape drama or "meaning of life" expose. No, this is a full-fledged Tau invasion force meeting the Space Marines and Imperial Guard in pitched, artfully described battles. McNeill knows his stuff, and his ability to weave just about every type of Tau unit into the battles, without seeming artifical in doing so, is wonderful. We even get a glimpse into Tau history, society and philosophy. McNeill has a great ability to bring all five senses of the reader alive with his careful, but non-taxing, description of the sights, sounds and even tastes of the battlefield. Epic desperation, tactical finesse and raw emotion come together in what I believe is the best Space Marine novel out there! If you enjoyed the four previous books in the saga, you'll like this one even more.

Great book. A good read if your into the ultramarines series. especially if your done with the challenging of faith and character aspects from the previous 2 books. This one returns to the elements that make a space marine and the ultramarines what they are. I highly recommend it.