A young Roman named Artorius joins the legions in order to avenge his brother, who was killed in the disastrous Battle of Teutoburger Wald.
Rome's Vengeance
In the year A.D. 9, three Roman Legions under Quintilius Varus were betrayed by the Germanic war chief, Arminius, and destroyed in the forest known as Teutoburger Wald. Six years later Rome is finally ready to unleash Her vengeance on the barbarians. The Emperor Tiberius has sent his adopted son, Germanicus Caesar, into Germania with an army of forty-thousand legionaries. The come not on a mission of conquest, but one of annihilation. With them is a young legionary named Artorius. For him the war is a personal vendetta; a chance to avenge his brother, who was killed in Teutoburger Wald. In Germania Arminius knows the Romans are coming. He realizes that the only way to fight the legions is through deceit, cunning, and plenty of well-placed brute force. In truth he is leery of Germanicus, knowing that he was trained to be a master of war by the Emperor himself. The entire Roman Empire held its collective breath as Germanicus and Arminius faced each other in what would become the most brutal and savage campaign the world had seen in a generation; a campaign that could only end in a holocaust of fire and blood.
Excerpt
Artorius watched as the front rank engaged the enemy in as fierce a struggle as he had ever witnessed. He had never seen men fight with such fury. He knew that in a battle of this magnitude, passages-of-lines would come rapidly. It was crucial to keep fresh troops out front, as the tempo of this battle would cause soldiers to expend energy at an alarming rate. Artorius breathed deeply and let out a long sigh. He knew this would be an exhausting day. The sun was out, and it was starting to get warm. The Germans were taking a severe punishing; there were just so many of them! Occasionally a Roman soldier would fall as well. Artorius watched as one poor fellow was stabbed in the stomach, his armor buckling as the barbarian attempted to penetrate his guts with his spear.
“Get him off the line!” Sergeant Ostorius shouted as two men grabbed the injured legionary and dragged him away from the fighting after finishing off the attacker.
They handed him back to soldiers in the third rank, who would get him to the litter bearers.
“Set for passage-of-lines!” Proculus shouted.
Artorius settled into his fighting stance, determination in his eyes. Everything would be settled here!
“Stay together, men! Watch out for each other!” he heard Centurion Macro say at the end of the line.
“Precision strikes, nothing fancy, make every blow count!” Optio Vitruvius called out at the other end. “They’re big, but they can’t stand being hurt!”
“Now, my brothers,” the centurion said, his voice rising, “for wrath, for vengeance, and for the souls lost in Teutoburger Wald…send them all to hell!”
“Execute passage-of-lines!”
Professional Reviews
Pick of the Literate
A snapshot of the life of the Roman Legionnaire is the most succinct description of this book. Artorius begins the book as a young boy lamenting over the death of his brother in a treacherous attack by German tribes. He ends the book as a seasoned campaigner in the Roman Legions. Artorius’s anger and need for revenge seemed realistic. It was easy to see his motivations. James Mace has obvious experience in the military and has done his research for this novel.
Musings of a Book Junkie
I have read a lot of books about Rome, but none about her military conquests. Rome's military might is (in)famous, and was a force to be reckoned with. Rome was the military gold standard. The characters in this book were good. Althought Artouris' main goal was revenge, he wasn't one dimensional. His mental and physical development matched his character development. The material in this book is VERY dark and gritty at some places. The brutality is almost overwhelming, but it is accurate.
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