It was a fine action book set in the Warhammer 40k universe. Orks vs the uncaring Iron Warriors. I was hoping for some more Obliterator action, but it was a fun read regardless.

Boring.

The Siege of Castellax is undoubtedly a bad boy of a book.Not because it is bad, but because it features the BEST depiction of Chaos Space Marines I have seen in years!(view spoiler)[Hold your butts, Night Lords fans... (hide spoiler)]The Iron Warriors are bad, rotten to the core of their very being. Not a single chapter will make you doubt that these Space Marines are anything but traitorous bad guys, even if they are pitched against an alien species that revels in crude, brutal savagery, with

I have generally enjoyed the SMB series, and a Chaos SM story is a refreshing spin on the idea. However, one of my favourite things about the series has been the way it humanises and personalises these super soldiers a bit, and in this way Castellax just didn't cut it for me. For the majority of the book, the Iron Warriors are ridiculously immortal, even for space marines. Further, it's really difficult to really barrack for any of the characters.Regardless, it's a well-written and interesting b...

So, a 40k book where it pits two OTHER armies against each other, you say? Orks versus Chaos, you say? The Imperium gets a break for a few hundred pages?Interesting. I have to say I am not a huge fan of Chaos. The concept doesn't sit well with me. You have an organized band of super-warriors, which embody the highest arts of both technology and bioengineering possible. And they worship entropy. In neat ranks with a strict hierarchy.You see why I struggle with them philosophically.The Orks are gr...

This is my second time reading this book, the first time seeing me unable to get more than half way after losing interest. Much to be said, the second time only took me a year, but I managed to do it.I am a fan of Werner. He's one of my more favorite writers in Black Library's stable of writers. I wish he would do more. But for whatever reason, this book just didn't really do it for me. I mean, there were plenty of twists that were pretty outstanding, and worth reading the book for, but overall,...

Hmm, I do like CL Werner’s writing, this book was no exception. His descriptions were detailed and captured the chaos of the situation, nothing quite as chaotic as Orks vs Chaos marines. I would like to learn of the fate of the last rebel slave. Perhaps CL Werner will give us a follow up short story. While the outcome of the story was not my favourite I did like the way it ultimately went.

Hyper-sadism coupled with a god complex (Iron Legion) vs. almost unthinking, elemental brutality (orks). What's not to like? I really enjoyed the way Werner developed the Iron Legion to the point that the reader can understand them and kind of root for them as a lesser evil. The betrayal in the book was absolutely heart wrenching; good job! Orks, in their multitude, are no joke! This is almost bolter porn (but I REALLY like bolter porn)with action on an epic scale (millions of combatants) and in...

Bookworm Speaks!The Siege of Castellaxby CL Werner*****The Story: The Chaos Space Marines of the Iron Warriors Legion have long been renowned as the masters of siege warfare able to inflict devastating firepower and unimaginable cruelty upon their foes. On the world of Castellax, twisted Warsmith Andraaz builds his own empire even as a system crushing ork Waaagh! approaches, and drives his own slaves ever harder to meet their production quotas and supply material for the Legion’s many Warbands.

A re-read, my first since publication.It still stands up really well, and is one of the all-too-rare novels from a non-Imperial PoV. Werner has a great grasp on the not-quite-Chaos Marines of the Iron Warriors, a bunch of glorious back-stabbing self-serving monsters who make good company. The ‘Flesh’ are also well presented, and life on Castellax under the IV Legion is suitably grim and suitably dark. Sadly, the subplot around their rebellion is perhaps the only thing that lets the book down- th...

You can find the full review over at The Founding Fields:http://thefoundingfields.com/2012/12/...Shadowhawk reviews the latest Space Marine Battles novel by Black Library.“Grim, brutal, and clinical, Siege of Castellax is an excellent representation of the Iron Warriors and of Warhammer 40,000.” ~The Founding FieldsSiege of Castellax marks C. L. Werner’s first foray into full-length Warhammer 40,000 fiction for Black Library, although he has been writing in the Warhammer Fantasy setting for a nu...

Another book in the long running Space Marine Battles series, Siege of Castellax shifts focus to the traitor legions. Having long since liberated the planet from the Imperium of Man, the Iron Warriors Third Grand Company holds dominion over countless billions of slaves. With the mineral rich planet being continually strip mined for its wealth to supply their forces on Medrengard, they soon find themselves under threat by a massive Ork WAAAGH! With their pride preventing them summoning reinforcem...

The Iron Warriors plot against each other while facing the invasion of Orks.

Not what I expected,Too many characters, which puts off the pace of the narrative and dilutes the plot. There are dark elements and big battles but 40k isn't just that. You feel nothing when the characters do horrible things to humans, no vaild reason for hatred or proper personal motives are given. No pragmatism or ideology provided to iron warriors. If you are iron warriors fan just read Horus Heresy novels, in 40k novels they are just generic badguys. Pushed myself to read half of the novel,

The Warsmith turned and slowly marched back to his throne. ‘Castellax belongs to the Third Grand Company of the Iron Warriors Legion. No one will forget that fact. Not the filthy xenos. Not the pawns of the False Emperor. And not the warlords of Medrengard.‘Castellax is ours. Any who think otherwise live on borrowed time.’By the Dark Gods, C. L. Werner's debut in writing Warhammer 40000 after lots of dark tales set in its fantasy counterpart was a real blast of a read.Colonel Nehring removed his...

I usually like Werner. But when, early in the book, he had a Chaos Space Marine say "Ow," I nearly tossed the book in the trash. But, being a sucker, I plowed through the rest of it. His characterization of the Iron Warrior marines was similarly lame for the most part. And the idea of 64 marines holding off a billion orks (who are nearly as hardy as marines in the damage they can take) is ludicrous. The IW commander barely took part in the planning of the defense, instead leaving it up to his in...

In the grim dark future, there is only war, everything sucks, and everyone is a jerk. The Siege of Castellax is a novel set in the universe of the popular Warhammer 40k miniautres game (also known as 40k). 40k started out as a space version of Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy game, where instead of knights battling orcs, space marines battled space orcs. Over the years 40k developed more of a backstory, adding alien races and choas gods into the mix. All of this fluff and backstory is just an

"Come on through to the other side..." - The Doors Imagine this. A planet (Castlellax) where the human populace are enslaved to harvest the precious minerals. Did I say human? No they are just flesh to their overseers, those dastardly Iron Warriors. Dastardly is such a bad word, try sadistic bastards and you're not far off. Things are going swimmingly well until a massive (tens of millions) incursion of Orks threaten the planet. Hence the title Siege of Castellax. I'm being a little flippant

A great introduction to the Chaos Space Marines. They aren't the good guys, they aren't the bad guys, but they are some kick butt fighters!

“Black Library have picked the right choice to start off with for Chaos Space Marine Battles Novels, The Siege of Castellax is Werner on top form – why hasn’t he written any 40k novels before? This was an awesome read.” ~The Founding FieldsAs I’ve already mentioned, The Siege of Castellax is the first Space Marine Battles novel to focus on Chaos Space Marines. Black Library pulled a big gamble with this and getting CL Werner to write his first full Warhammer 40k novel, as although he’s an experi...