This is fast-paced and gripping "read-through-the-night" fiction, with marvellous characters and occasional moments of dark humour. Some authors are better historians than they are storytellers. Anthony Riches is brilliant at both. -- Conn Iggulden A damn fine read ... fast-paced, action-packed. -- Ben Kane Stands head and shoulders above a crowded field ... real, live characters act out their battles on the northern borders with an accuracy of detail and depth of raw emotion that is a rare combination. -- Manda Scott His plots bristle with emotion, realism and electrifying tensions, his multi-layered characters open doors onto the fascinating everyday life of the Roman army and the sense of adventure that underpins the whole series makes each book a fresh source of excitement and enjoyment. Riches knows his stuff and boy does it show ... While Marcus, his cohorts and the Empire series grow in stature, readers await the next instalment of this challenging and entertaining tour-de-force with a sense of heightened anticipation ... and armed, of course, with the confidence that once again the 'master of Rome' will not disappoint. -- Lancashire Evening Post
