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Available 4.15.24


The Risen

The Risen, May 2016
by David Anthony Durham

Doubleday
Featuring: Spartacus
496 pages
ISBN: 038553566X
EAN: 9780385535663
Kindle: B0104ELS9I
Hardcover / e-Book
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"Spartacus leads his army of slaves against the most powerful army man has ever known Rome"

Fresh Fiction Review

The Risen
David Anthony Durham

Reviewed by Shellie Surles
Posted May 20, 2016

Historical

THE RISEN is an historical fiction written about Spartacus. I really enjoy historical fictions, the story inserts you into the daily lives of historical characters and those around them. It's always interesting to read an author's perspective on how figures we have learned and read about over the years may have been on a personal level and what their lives we really like.

Spartacus is a fascinating figure. The motivation behind him and his army must have started as a bid for freedom and turned to revenge. Little is known about his life before he became a slave and gladiator and less is known about his death. There were so many bodies on the battlefield that his was never found. Though I do like to think that if he lived he would have done something to stop what became of his army. I can't imagine he would have stopped fighting unless he was dead.

What one man, leader was able to do by bringing together those who never before dreamed of cooperation has lead him to be a figure for the ages. I'm sure the Romans would hate to know he is the man we remember, not those who eventually defeated him.

THE RISEN is well written and draws you straight into the world of ancient Roman and the lives of gladiators. You can see the battles, feel the fear and the strength of those fighting for their lives and freedom. Amazingly well done intertwining true history and fiction filling in gaps we could only know if we had a time machine. THE RISEN should be read by anyone who loves history, fiction, or just a real good story. It doesn't matter if you have read all the books, seen the TV shows and movies you will enjoy THE RISEN by David Anthony Durham.

Learn more about The Risen

SUMMARY

From the author of the widely praised Pride of Carthage, the superb fictional rendering of Hannibal’s epic military campaigns against Carthage’s archenemy Rome, comes the perfect follow-up: an equally superb novel of the legendary gladiator Spartacus and the vast slave revolt he led that came ever so close to bringing Rome, with its supposedly invincible legions, to its knees.

In this thrilling and panoramic historical novel we see one of the most storied uprisings of classical times from multiple points of view: Spartacus, the visionary captive and gladiator whose toughness and charisma turn a prison break into a multi-cultural revolt that threatens an empire; his consort, the oracular Astera, whose connection to the spirit world and its omens guides the uprising’s progress; Nonus, a Roman soldier working both sides of the conflict in a half-adroit, half-desperate attempt to save his life; Laelia and Hustus, two shepherd children drawn into the ranks of the slave rebellion; Kaleb, the slave secretary to Crassus, the Roman senator and commander saddled with the unenviable task of quashing an insurrection of mere slaves; and other players in a vast spectacle of bloodshed, heroism, and treachery.

In the pages of The Risen—the term the slaves in revolt have adopted for themselves—an entire, teeming world comes into view with great clarity and titanic drama, with nothing less than the future of the ancient world at stake. No one brings more verve, intelligence, and freshness to the novel of the classical age than David Anthony Durham.


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