Stephen Pressfield's A Man At Arms

If you enjoy Stephen Pressfield’s books then you will certainly be glad to hear about his newest addition. We at historyaddicted like Pressfield quite a bit. Tides of War was epic, and we wrote a full review on it.

Stephen Pressfield’s first book on the ancient world in 13 years is A Man at Arms: A Novel. The plot is the Romans hire an ex-legionary who likes to play by his own rules. Think Maximus from Gladiator except he is retired and has less belief in the gods.

Anyway, they hire him to intercept a secret letter a courier is carrying to rebel Christians in Corinth. Rebel Christians? The Romans were adept at crushing rebellions, just ask the Sacarii who committed mass suicide in defiance of the Roman barrage on Masada.

So he goes to get this letter and something unexpected happens.

From the acclaimed master of historical fiction comes an epic saga about a reluctant hero, the Roman Empire, and the rise of a new faith.

Jerusalem and the Sinai desert, first century AD. In the turbulent aftermath of the crucifixion of Jesus, officers of the Roman Empire acquire intelligence of a pilgrim bearing an incendiary letter from a religious fanatic to insurrectionists in Corinth. The content of this letter could bring down the empire.

The Romans hire a former legionary, the solitary man-at-arms, Telamon of Arcadia, to intercept the letter and capture its courier. Telamon operates by a dark code all his own, with no room for noble causes or lofty beliefs. But once he overtakes the courier, something happens that neither he nor the empire could have predicted.

In his first novel of the ancient world in thirteen years, the best-selling author of Gates of Fire and Tides of War returns with a gripping saga of conquest and rebellion, bloodshed and faith.

Check the price on Amazon.