Mechanicum is a science fiction book in The Horus Heresy series by author Graham McNeill.
As the flames of betrayal spread across the Empire, Horus plotted to overthrow or destroy all who stood against him.

On Mars, the home world of the Mechanicum priesthood, major industrial cities have long produced much of the weaponry needed for galactic expeditionary fleets. The world becomes invaluable to whoever controls it in the coming war.

Warmaster agents began to ignite the flames of rebellion, turning the loyal forges and the mighty Titan Legion against each other. Whispers spread of an ancient terror lurking beneath the surface of the Red Planet, the Dark Mechanicum rising.

Dalia, a lowly transcriber, is taken without explanation from her cell beneath the Librarium, where she has been imprisoned for enhancements she has made to her cogitator. Dalia soon finds herself on Martian soil where she gets to witness the Mechanicum in its pinnacle. However, all is not well: old tensions and divergent philosophies are finally fracturing the soul of Mars. Set during the same time as the massacre of Istvaan III, and the unleashing of the Furious Abyss the Heresy has finally struck at the last stop short of Terra itself.

“Mechanicum” starts off with a very tasty bang in the prologue, and continues with a very engaging first couple of chapters as one part of the main stage is set. There is a bit of a lull, depending on what you like, at that point that stretches for a good bit — this lull, while not very action filled, does fill out the background for the story so you can understand what has been happening on Mars, and why. You do get the sense that Mars, while seemingly unified to the rest of the universe, is far from that. Individual Adepts, with their forges, reign in an almost feudal manner over their quietly contested territories. The leaders on Mars are all going their own directions. Religious arguments over the existence of the Omnissiah, grumblings about the perceived leashing of Mars to Terra, and the pursuit of knowledge taking Mars to darker places all play a significant role in this dynamic book.

I feel that “Mechanicum” delivers by filling out the Heresy even further with the dark betrayal of Mars which ultimately brings war to Terra’s backyard. The reader gets to see glimpses into the technology that quite probably leads to the Golden Throne. We see the emergence of the Dark Mechanicum, and we get to see Titan combat on a larger scale. Lastly, “The Dragon of Mars” is an interesting thread which leaves to our imagination the implications of very ancient and epic designs.

This last bit really does revisit a reoccurring theme: Is the Emperor really a “good” guy? Yes, he stands against Chaos, but at what cost? What has he really done to humanity? For that matter, what is humanity to him, really? With this book you really do get a taste for how insignificant humanity itself is to the grand designs of the Emperor with his multi-millennial perspective.

• Mechanicum

• The Horus Heresy, Book 9
• By: Graham McNeill

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