- Hardcover: 400 pages
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (Sep 6 2011)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1444714856
- ISBN-13: 978-1444714852
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 16 x 3.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 662 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,153,355 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"A masterful debut from a new author completely at home in this era; the writing is deft, the action swift and bloody and the characters believable and engaging. I look forward greatly to the next one." —Manda Scott, author, Dreaming the Eagle
"Once the action kicks off you won't be able to put it down." —Anthony Riches, author, Empire series
Product Description
270 AD Rome has ruled Syria for over three centuries. But now the weakened empire faces a desperate threat: Queen Zenobia of Palmyra has turned her Roman-trained army against her former masters and the once invincible legions have been crushed. Arabia, Palestine and Egypt have fallen and now Antioch, Syria's capital, stands exposed. Cassius Corbulo is a young intelligence agent fresh from officer training. He has been assigned the menial task of rounding up wounded legionaries but then urgent new orders arrive. He is the only ranking Roman officer left in the line of the Palmyran advance. He must take command of the fort of Alauran, the last stronghold still in Roman hands, and hold it against the enemy until reinforcements arrive.
What Cassius finds at Alauran would daunt the most seasoned veteran, let alone a nineteen year old with no experience of war. A mere scattering of divided and demoralised legionaries remain, backed up by some fractious Syrian auxiliaries and a drunken Praetorian Guardsman. With the Palmyrans just days away, Cassius must somehow find the discipline, resourcefulness and courage to organise the garrison, save Alauran and secure Rome's eastern frontier...
What Cassius finds at Alauran would daunt the most seasoned veteran, let alone a nineteen year old with no experience of war. A mere scattering of divided and demoralised legionaries remain, backed up by some fractious Syrian auxiliaries and a drunken Praetorian Guardsman. With the Palmyrans just days away, Cassius must somehow find the discipline, resourcefulness and courage to organise the garrison, save Alauran and secure Rome's eastern frontier...
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Siege by Nick Brown, Aug 6 2011
By Scott T. Hunter - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Agent of Rome: Book One: The Siege (Hardcover)
I just finished Nick Brown's debut novel "Siege". I was very pleased with the story and its complex and in depth characters. The hero Cassius Corbulo is young and not so heroic. But he will be changed forever with what he is up against..He becomes a leader of a band of Legionaries and auxilaries and must defend a lonely outpost fort against Zenobia's army. The action intensifies and climaxes with an great battle scene that will not disapoint. I can't wait to read the next installment of this series !
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing, Aug 23 2011
By Dr. Paul Barnett - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Agent of Rome: Book One: The Siege (Hardcover)
"Siege" is the first of what is obviously intended to be the first in a series of books that will follow the adventures of Corbulo, a young Roman officer caught up in the drama of the "Crisis of the Empire" during the middle of the 3rd century AD.Let me get to the good points first: Nick Brown's knowledge of Roman warfare in the East and of the historical period in which the book is set is deep and well-founded. His discriptions of Roman army routine, tactics and sociology are pretty spot on. The scenario is believable enbough, and the battle scenes are well done.
That said, there is much to critize. Foremost, "Siege" really isn't really a novel at all. It's merely a story that follows a strict "this happened, then that happend" sequence of events. We always know what Corbulo is feeling and thinking, because Brown tells us so. No need for discovery. The various characters are cardboard cut-outs. No story arc, no subplots little character development, and (typically for the genre) no inconvenient concerns (civilians, love interests, conflicts or personal weaknesses) to get in the way of the mayhem. Basically, Brown covers the same terrain as Harry Sidebottom in his "Warrior of Rome" series, but Sidebottom does it a little better.
Bottom line: "popcorn boy-book" for those so inclined, but neither Brown or Sidebottom match up to the work of Alfred Duggan 50 years ago! Three stars. I frankly haven't decided yet whether I'll pass on the upcoming episodes.
2.0 out of 5 stars
a flawed and slow going read, Mar 15 2012
By JPS - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Agent of Rome: Book One: The Siege (Paperback)
First posted on Amazon.co.uk on 4 September 2011I finished this one a while ago. However, I first refrained from writing a review on it because I did not have anything favorable to say about it. This book just diodn't work for me, to put it nicely. However, after having read some of the outrageously praising comments of others and feeling like we have obviously not been reading the same book, I have less scruples in writing a critical review.
The story of the young Cassius, just out of training and bearing the rank of a centurion although only a frumentari is flawed. The hero is not very credible. Even the background - Queen Zenobia's power grab of the Roman East, is hardly original. At times, the hero (or, rather the "anti-hero") seems to be a negative portrait of Siddebotom's Ballista: Roman, very junior and without any combat experience or expertise, and utterly unsure of himself. It's rather overdone. Although the stort tells you that Daddy bought the position for him, he really sounds a bit like a whimp. I generally love historical novels and particularly those taking place during Antiquity or during the Middle Ages.
I generally race through these novels as quickly as I can but this one was a drag. This is perhaps because there is very little action and no actual fighting in the first half of the book. This was meant ti build up suspense, but it didn't for me: I keept waiting for something to happen, and it didn't, although the plot is hardly unpredictable!
Somehow, the characters do not really come to life, not even the hero's, although the first half of the book is largely about that. At times, the book seems overdone, including the descriptions of decay and slackness at the outpost.
Finally, even the attacks were a bit of a problem: after giving the impression that the Romans' situation was hopeless, they seem to be able to prevail a bit too easily against supposedly veteran Palmyrans and their elite commanders, all of which seem to comptete into being as dum as possible! Frankly, would any half-decent officer send armoured cavalry on horse-back to assaut a fort? Why, when he outnumbers the besieged Romans, would he not take advantage of this and assault the besieged from several sides? and the list could go on, and on...
As you will have gathered by now, I was both disappointed AND annoyed by this book...
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