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Indlæser... Legionary: Land of the Sacred Fire (Legionary 3) (Volume 3)af Gordon Doherty
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The empire is on its knees, but a last hope lies beyond the eastern frontier . . .377 AD: Emperor Valens has stripped the Persian frontier of its legions, sending every available man to Thracia in an effort to contain the rampaging Gothic hordes. Now, covetous eyes have fallen upon Rome's trade-rich but sparsely defended desert provinces. Shapur II, Shahanshah of the Sassanid Empire and his many client kings have long believed Rome's eastern holdings to be theirs by ancestral right, and those lands have never been more vulnerable. Thus, Valens must grasp at the slimmest of hopes that a Persian invasion can be staved off, not by the brute force of absent legions, but by the tenacity of a hardy few. For in the heart of enemy lands, something thought long lost might just offer salvation. When Optio Numerius Vitellius Pavo and a select group of the XI Claudia are summoned to the Persian front, they leave Thracia behind, knowing little of what awaits them. They know only that they are to march into a burning land of strange gods. They whisper tales of the mighty Persian Savaran cavalry and pray to Mithras they will see their homes and families again. All too soon it becomes clear to them that this is no ordinary mission - indeed, the very fate of the empire might rest upon their efforts. But for Pavo the burden is weightier still, for he knows that the east also holds something even more precious to him ... the truth about his father. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Indlæser... GenrerMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.92Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 2000-LC-klassificeringVurderingGennemsnit:
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The Sassanid Persian setting gave a different flavor to the story. I enjoyed learning a bit about this culture and Zoroastrianism. I like that Pavo does note in one place: although there are evil people bent on destruction of the Romans, there are good, kind Persians he meets, also, to balance out. The archvillain does get his well-deserved comeuppance, and how! I was very impressed with the episode of the whole trek through the desert, with the vivid description of the sandstorm and of the privations the men suffered. The Persian adventures were really exciting. Description of life in the salt mine was well done. The escape from the salt mine was almost miraculous, but the later ones were a bit incredible. I enjoyed the vivid description of the Persian 'Blood Games'.
I wasn't able to put this book down once I started reading. Historical research was impeccable. One thing niggled at me somewhat. I felt choice of expressions sometimes were strange and repeated too often, e.g., someone downing his helmet; someone was grappled by his throat; someone spoke in jagged Greek.... Maybe these were British usage or colloquial in the area in the U.K. the author comes from and I'm not used to them. Perhaps the author could have consulted a thesaurus more often. Other than that, the novel is a fine addition to Roman military fiction in the later Empire. ( )