New Additions

Barone, Sam. Empire Rising (New York: Morrow, 2007). Picking up where Dawn of Empire left off, Eskkar and Trella must defend their powerbase from the machinations of a cunning and extremely dangerous Egyptian warlord who tries to conquer their city from within. Once again Barone delivers the fast-paced, intrigue-laden and frequently erotic page turner. Parts of it will leave you breathless.

♥Cameron, Christian. Tyrant (London: Orion, 2008). Kineas, Athenian cavalry officer and veteran of Alexander’s conquering armies, is hired to train the cavalry, mostly rich men and their pampered sons, in a Greek city on the Euxine Sea. But Kineas is immediately drawn into the city’s volatile and highly complex political intrigues, as the city is threatened first by a dangerous Scythian army and then a Macedonian conquering force led by one of Alexander’s underlings who wants to make a name for himself. From start to finish, the action and drama never let up, punctuated by a highly unorthodox barbarian romance.

Dunmore, Helen. Counting the Stars (London: Fig Tree, 2008.) As Julius Caesar consolidates his power in Rome, the poet Catullus has his own hands full trying to consolidate his affair of love and agony with the bewitching Clodia. But Clodia, of the infamous Metelli clan, is no man’s possession, which Catullus eventually realizes, but he continues to be captivated by her, all the while dodging her powerful husband and her dangerous brother. Dunmore skillfully captures the feeling of love that remains undiminished even though it is clearly doomed.

Renault, Mary. The Bull from the Sea. (London: Longman’s, 1962.) The reliable Renault is quietly excellent in this the second and final book of her Theseus titles. As with The King Must Die, Renault fleshes out her Theseus, who is restless as king and finds it aggravatingly dull to rule over a peaceful kingdom. The aging hero also finds himself with two very different sons: one has the aptitude to succeed him as king but not the ambition, while the other has the ambition but not the aptitude.

Rice, Ann. Christ the Lord: Road to Cana (Toronto: A.A. Knopf Canada, 2008). While the first of Rice’s daring Christ novels was solid from start to finish, the second in the series fails to maintain its riveting beginning. The book still introduces issues that must have come up during Christ’s life, such as his refusal to take a wife, which was highly suspicious to his critics, and presents several scenes that deftly highlight Yeshua’s gift as a negotiator. Unfortunately, the story takes a nosedive with its depiction of the dialogue in the desert between Christ and the Devil, which comes across as dull, sophomoric filler. It’s worth a look if you’ve read the first one, but don’t expect a revelation.

Scarrow, Simon. Centurion (London: Headline, 2008). Scarrow is in fine form here, continuing his entertaining Eagle series (this is the first in the series to not have Eagle in the title). The series was starting to drag a little, but Scarrow has reinvigorated it beautifully here as Cato and Macro are sent on a suicide mission by a provincial governor who wants them dead. The pair are discernibly evolving: Macro has softened a little and is becoming a little more cultured, at least when he’s not in combat, and Cato admits to himself that he volunteers for dangerous missions not out of duty but because he likes them. As always with Scarrow, a fun read.

Tacitus. The Histories, translated by Kenneth Wellesley (New York: Penguin, 1995). Tacitus is the master of the loaded phrase, the few words that carry so much underlying meaning. In The Histories, he describes the calamitous year A.D. 69, which saw Rome wracked by civil war, ruthless ambition, and the unfettered predations of three different emperors before a fourth, the frugal Vespasian, was able to bring stability back to the empire. As in his other surviving writings, The Histories reveals Tacitus’ keen understanding of the basest nature of humanity.