Wolfsbane opens on a moment in pre-Heresy history when the Emperor, accompanied by a young Horus, go to the ice planet of Fenris to an up and coming leader, one Leman Russ. Primitive, atavistic, brutish—Russ possesses little grace or etiquette, just an animal's mind reveling in battle and feast. Horus is put off by Russ' demeanor, but the Emperor informs him that Russ is his primarch brother, and that the two will need to work together in the future as part of the Great Crusade. Horus accepts Russ and puts his grudge aside. But its a grudge that must eventually be resolved. In Wolfsbane, it may decide the fate of the Heresy.
Wolfsbane, despite my plot introduction, is told primarily through the eyes of Leman Russ. The fulcrum of the story is the primarch's vow to the Emperor to stop Horus before he arrives on Terra. Helping him is a spear. Numinous in origin and appearance, it hangs on Russ' wall, inspiring and haunting him. Eventually forced to confront his fears, Russ heads out into the snows of Fenris, spear in hand, and enters myth and legend.
There is a Warhammer Youtuber named Arbiter Ian. His knowledge of the IP far, far exceeds mine, but one thing I have a strong disagreement with is the idea that the primarchs of HH do not represent humanity, and that HH which books which do not predominantly feature humans are weaker. He praises the manner in which humanity is represented in books like Horus Rising or Legion, and is less satisfied with books that foreground the demi-gods, the Imperium Secundus arc, for example. I fully agree human elements are needed for books to have a chance at relevancy, but I would disagree that the primarchs somehow lack humanity. While physiologically non-standard human, certainly, psychologically the primarchs are human. Moreover, the primarchs seem intended as symbols of various aspects of existence. Kurze death, Vulkan life, Guillaume logic—to give a few simple examples. Getting to the point, Wolfsbane digs at Russ' humanity. Sure, it may not be extraordinarily deep, but neither is the humanity of every human. Some of us are truly animal-esque, and Haley gives us a glimpse of that in Russ.
Wolfsbane is thus a relatively—relatively!—deep dive into the psyche of Leman Russ. Combining Norse myth with an (uber) man uncomfortable with destiny, Haley gets into Russ' mindset—showing more often than telling—his means of confronting a situation where odds are definitively not in his favor, yet a choice must be made due to his responsibilities. If that and Russ' areaction aren't human, then I don't know what is.
I have a few complaints about Wolfsbane. One is the macro inconsistency of Russ' character. In novels like Prospero Burns and Scars, the reader finds a blunt, gruff, taciturn primarch who says little and does little. He comes across extremely one-dimensional. Put him under the main character spotlight in Wolfsbane, however, and another character reveals itself. Haley cannot be held accountable for prior authors' characterizations, but it does lead to a relatively disruptive experience that will be accounted for differently by every reader.
The other complaint is the secondary storyline of Wolfsbane, i.e. the origin story of the Adeptus Mechanicus Cawl. It feels as bolted on as a sub-plot can feel bolted on. The puppet strings of Warhammer architects become visible: we need to include this storyline somewhere in the series, why not Wolfsbane? The sub-plot itself is good, no complaints about the tale itself. Only its inclusion does not feel organic.
In the end, Wolfsbane gives the Horus Heresy series a small jolt of energy. Where some of the series' books can bog down in meaningless space marine battles, Wolfsbane is quick. It doesn't waffle. Even the bolted on Adepticus Mechanicus storyline does not overstay its unwelcome welcome. The book quickly sets the stage for a Russ vs Horus, roots the conflict in Russ' torn sense of purpose, uses Nordic mythology to expand effect, and resolves the conflict in exciting fashion. One additional complaint might be that this resolution is also predictable. Even people who know nothing of Warhammer 40k, like me, will know how the book ends. It's the journey that is engaging, which is all a reader can ask for.
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