Blood of Asaheim book review spoiler free...ish

 Blood of Asaheim by Chris Wraight.

When a Space Marine is seconded to the Deathwatch, it’s never for a fixed span of time. A warrior might serve for a single mission or for decades, and if he survives long enough to return home, he often finds that his Chapter has changed in ways he never expected. That’s the challenge facing Ingvar Eversson (Gyrfalkon) in Blood of Asaheim. Once heir apparent to his pack leader, Hjortur Bloodfang, he leaves Fenris with a fierce rivalry simmering between himself and the hot‑headed Gunnlaugur. But when the unthinkable happens, and Gyrfalkon finally returns, he discovers that Hjortur has fallen to the Orks, and Gunnlaugur now leads the pack in his stead. The tension between the two throws the entire squad off balance, and before they can adjust to their new reality, they are dispatched to the shrine world of Ras Shakeh, a realm designed to serve as the spiritual heart of a forthcoming crusade. Instead, they arrive to find it under assault by the forces of Nurgle, led by a powerful Death Guard sorcerer.

I went into this novel not knowing what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. The wolves are described exactly how you would imagine them, brutally savage with an honorable side that stands out to the reader. The pacing of the plot is well worked out, and the storyline switches very well between action and dialogue without any long dips in the overall momentum. There is a big reveal at the end that is worked into the story well, so it fits in instead of feeling forced. the characters are built in an extremely good manner that does them justice instead of just developing the two anchor points to the pack. The rivalry is worked in so it balances instead of overshadowing the plot of the other key characters in the storyline. Based on the strength of this novel i will be getting the Sequel and I am hoping it is as strong as this one. Any Space Wolf fans should be looking to add this to their collection. For me, it was a very welcome surprise.

 If you are interested in the rest of the series, they are -

•  Onyx - Short Deathwatch story
• Stormcaller
• Hrani's Saga - Companion short story 
• Helwinter Gate