Sons of the Hydra Book review spoiler free...ish

 

Sons of the Hydra by Rob Sanders.

The Alpha Legion has always been infamous for its labyrinthine schemes, plots so convoluted they could make even Tzeentch pause in admiration. This novel leans hard into that reputation, showing that not even the Legion’s own operatives are ever given the full picture. Everyone is a pawn, everyone is a piece of a larger pattern, and no one, not even the Alpha Legionnaires themselves, can be sure whose plan they’re actually following. That’s where The Redacted comes in. On paper, they’re a classic Alpha Legion strike asset: sabotage, assassinations, destabilisation, all the usual quiet horrors. But the twist is that most of them aren’t Alpha Legion at all. The team is a patchwork of unlikely recruits: a Relictor with a reputation for walking too close to the warp, a Night Lord who brings that Legion’s trademark terror tactics, a Mentor Legion operative with their clinical precision, and even a Fallen Dark Angel whose presence alone would be enough to start a small war if anyone found out. The only true Alpha Legionnaire is their leader, Occam the Untrue, whose gene‑seed and training mark him as the closest thing the team has to a known quantity. What makes them fascinating is that every one of them considers themselves a loyalist. Not loyal to the High Lords, not faithful to the letter of Imperial dogma, but loyal to the idea of the Imperium, the version that could survive if someone were willing to cut away its rot. In their eyes, pruning weakness sometimes means striking at loyalist forces, destroying Imperial assets, or eliminating commanders whose incompetence poses a greater long‑term threat than any xenos incursion. It’s a very Alpha Legion flavour of “loyalty,” and the novel plays with that ambiguity beautifully.

Occam’s resources deepen the intrigue. He can call upon the Seventh Sons, a Death Cult whose origins are deliberately murky,  the kind of zealots who believe that serving the Alpha Legion’s hidden purpose is a sacred duty. He also commands a broken former Callidus Assassin, a living weapon whose mind has been reshaped until her loyalty to Occam is absolute. The idea of a Callidus being subverted like that is chilling, and it adds a razor‑edge unpredictability to every mission. Despite being specialists in infiltration and misdirection, the novel doesn’t shy away from showing how lethal they are in open combat. When subtlety fails, or when Occam decides it’s time to stop pretending, the action shifts into vivid, brutal engagements that highlight just how dangerous a multi‑Legion kill team can be when unleashed. This novel grabbed me far quicker than I expected, one of those books where you tell yourself “just one more chapter” and suddenly an hour’s gone. The characters feel genuinely lived‑in, and the way the author handles the infiltrations and those tense, shadow‑soaked combat scenes makes the whole story incredibly engaging. What really pulled me in, though, was the constant question of loyalty hanging over the strike team. You’re never entirely sure why they’re doing what they’re doing, and that uncertainty gives every decision a bit of extra weight. By the time I finished, I realised this isn’t just a book for Alpha Legion fans. It’s the kind of story any 40K reader can enjoy, no matter which faction they usually gravitate toward. If you like morally grey characters, tight pacing, and that classic “nothing is what it seems” Warhammer vibe, this one is absolutely worth picking up.