The Gates of Athens

Conn Iggulden is one of the greatest authors I've ever read, so when I seen this i had to get it. Once again Conn has delivered a brilliant story, he has a way with words that not many others have which keeps you hooked from the first page to the last. Loved the character development, and of course i loved the action, but also, i loved imaging been right there in the book with them, bloody brilliant!

Amazing. I already really liked Conn Iggulden's writing so getting this one was an easy decision. I like that his research is deep and that he is a consummate storyteller. I am fascinated by this period of history and spent a lot of time online at the same time looking up items of interest, like Miltiades' helmet. Fascinating and fun - I look forward to the next two in the trilogy.

Authors who can bring history to life are few and far between. Conn Iggulden is one of those few.

Starting with the battle of Marathon the Athenians and the Persians build their forces and responses to the Persian invasion which is surely on it's way.

A fantastic read from start to finish that brings ancient history to life.

Well, what a brilliantly addictive read this book was. I have read a few books by this author now and he is an author who I can rely on to give a riveting read that is also very well researched. This is an author who definitely knows his history and is also how to weave that historical fact into a story that is an incredible read.

I do like historical fiction and non-fiction books, although my knowledge is only small. What I did find with The Gates of Athens is that it felt right. This is a story that sees the historical battle between the Persians and the Greeks, it is the one that leads up to and includes the stand of the Spartan King at the pass in an attempt to stop the progress of Xerses into Athens.

The story focuses on key figures of the time in Athens, a city of democracy and that no one man can be above all others. It is a city of culture, wealth and politics. Now, wherever politics are involved there is also a certain amount of political wrangling. Of being seen to support certain figures or making a stand against them. I have to say that I really enjoyed this part of the story as I saw how subtle nudges and comments can lead to something much bigger.

There is also a good amount of other details of how people lived, the wealthy households are run from different cultures of the ancient world. Many of the details are brief but they help to show the differences between the various cultures.

If you like historical fiction that is set in Ancient Greece, that is full of battles, intrigue, politics and is simply a fabul9ous read then this is a book I would definitely recommend.

My knowledge of Ancient/ Classical Greek history, can be written on the front of a Post- it note, but, I found this highly fascinating book, to be an enthralling introduction to this genre. It gave a marvellous account of the political machinations that existed in Greece, the supposedly founders of democracy, and as such, some elements were genuinely informative! I love the idea of a eponymous year, the year of Daphne is long overdue! My name is Greek, and we do have a few Laurel bushes in the garden, but an eponymous year, heck yes!!
I had great fun with the pronunciation guide at the front of this book, and I found that some names, I did recognise from doing homework with my youngest son, two decades ago.
We started with the battle of Marathon. I knew that there was a runner who took news of a great victory to Athens, and then promptly died from exhaustion, but when I had the background to this epic battle and heroic run, then I was in awe of the sacrifices made by those in service to great men. There were some very likeable characters in this book. Xanthippus and Thermistocles, brave fighters and loyal Athenians, both ambitious, but given to great pride, which caused a great fallout between them. The Senate, who made legal decisions, exiled people for a period of ten years!! A mere 7,000 votes, and you were away for a decade! These days, people can’t manage a few weeks of social isolation , due to the Coronavirus! Amazing, but a very effective way of controlling dissenters, by using a public vote.
There was a lot of domestic information, ranging from keeping servants busy and household duties, care of children, and apparently, taking care of unwanted pregnancies, herbalists have always been feared and respected, but this book seemed to imply that most women, apart from those at the Oracle at Delphi, were very subservient.
It was an exciting read, plenty of details of battles, training soldiers, and the phrase, ‘Remember the Spartans’ was finally explained to me. Loyalty and treachery were strange bedfellows. The projects that were undertaken were immense, a Bailey style bridge over the Hellespont was brave in the extreme, but when you had so many slaves and captive workers, then no problem!!
I am already looking forward to the next book in this series, in order to further improve my knowledge of Ancient Greece. Now, where / when, does a wooden horse appear? I rate this as a five star read, and will post to Netgalley later. Thank you for my advance copy. My review may seem flippant, but it was a joyous and informative read.

Review:

As always with Conn Iggulden he has produced a great book set against an epic backdrop of history, he has populated it with big names from history and set the scene for action and adventure in spades and he pulls it off as usual with a casual ease, and the pages fly by while you read and get drawn back in time.

But…. and this is a big but for me as i don’t think i’ve every criticized anything he has written before (and this is purely personal my feeling , not the writing), the main protagonists for me didn’t come alive. This is usually the authors bread and butter and something that he achieves with ease. Now this may be me and my own fault as a reader because i have read some truly astounding books in this period, and while i was reading this i was also reading the latest daily doses of Arimnestos by Chrstian Cameron as part of Authors without borders where i have grown with that character from his youth over 7 books . I also think that with Conn i have come to expect the characters to also grow from a youth into the great warriors/ Statesmen that he is well known and loved for writing, in this book those people are already leaders, so there felt like no emotional tie to them, that bond that is created, wasnt….I have high hopes that this will resolve in book 2 as we have followed the growth of Cimon and touched on Pericles as a youth as well.

That said thats my (very) person gripe, the book is still an astounding story, from Marathon through to the sacking of Athens its a truly amazing period of history with so much going on and so many heroic names that you can fail to be stunned by the momentous events and people, i know it will sit proudly in my book collection and i look forward to the next in this new series.

(Parm)

The Lion Shield by Conn Iggulden is an enjoyable and entertaining read, focusing perhaps more on the politics of Athens than the bloody fighting that must take place, for those who are 'in the know.'

The opening few chapters are quite stunning, as the battle of Marathon takes place, and the reader is introduced to Xanthippus, and then slowly, more of the main players come into focus. The threads of betrayal quickly make an appearance and will continue throughout the book, accounting for the actions and thoughts of the main characters.

The author does quite a slow reveal, lingering over some details, and ensuring even the most ignorant (me) understand how the governance of Athens worked. Xanthippus is a rigorous and unyielding man, Themistocles a 'man of the people.' Aristides is a calmer character, more assured of who he is and what he stands for, whereas Miltiades' son is the young counter to the 'older men,' a character to perhaps represent all the hot-heads within Athens.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I had. a little chuckle at the name of Darius (the title of Iggulden's fantasy book) and might well have given this a 5/5 only for it to be lost in the last paragraph. I did not need that lingering image of Xan's loss to tide me over to the next book. Too cruel!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my review copy.

Another brilliant historical novel from the master of the craft. This time covering the wars between Athens and Persia from the triumph of Marathon to Thermopylae and the burning of Athens at the end. A strong cast of classical names pepper the story with heroism and treachery never far apart! Highly recommended and one can only look forward to the next episode.

This author never fails to deliver! The research is outstanding, the characters well developed and the stories superb. This book is no exception. It brings to life the glory that was ancient Greek civilisation, assimilated and absorbed in its best parts by a relentless, all powerful enemy. A book I’ll read again.

This makes an excellent foundation for what I sincerely hope will be a long running series.

Thermistocles, Miltiades, and Xanthippus are hero Strategos of the Athenian army who defeated the King of Persia's army at the great battle of Marathon 490bc - the first Persian invasion of Greece.
Xanthippus believes Miltiades is a traitor, but Miltiades is loved by the people of Athens so he keeps his accusations to himself.
The Gates of Athens is the new Historical fiction from Conn Iggulden. The book starts with the great battle with lots of descriptive strategies, which went over my head a few times. There is a list of military terms and a pronutatiotion guide at the front of the book which I found helpful.
Once I got my head around the ancient Greek names, I really enjoyed the story. Looking forward to the next. Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for the ARC.

I had heard from an early time of my life of the tales of Ancient Greece and the battles that occurred between them and Persians. Names like Xerces and Leonidas stuck in my mind as did the film 300. This book brought all this back but with one important improvement – the personalization behind the names bringing the whole story to life. The details of the activities of the governance of the Athenian rulers I found fascinating as it brings a better understanding of the decision-making processes of 2500 years ago, some of which are not too dissimilar to what happens in democracies today.
Bringing the family of Xanthippus into sharp relief emphasizes the kind of domestic pressures that can affect powerful individuals throughout history and shows it is not a modern phenonium. In particular, I found that his rather sporadic contact with his family both during his time fighting the Persians and his time in exile was well presented and allowed the reader to become more absorbed in the story.
The detailed descriptions of the land and sea battles despite being gruesome at times, just emphasizes the brutality of the warfare of the day where most of the time the protagonists are battling one on one.
I feel that this book is written in such a way as to bring this short, but important, period of history into stark relief and brings all aspects of life in ancient Greece to our modern world.

Another great read from Conn Iggulden. Once again he seamlessly merges history, fact and exciting fiction to bring alive the lives and times of ancient Persia and Greece.
You can almost taste the blood and horror of battle as the Greeks defend their city from their age old enemy.
I look forward with bated breath to the next book in the series.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

On the whole, I really enjoyed this. I read The Falcon of Sparta last year and this was just as good. There's an excellent portrait of Athenian life and the development of law. If you love classical history, I'm sure you'll enjoy this. Minor complaint? I know women were prescribed a more submissive existence in Ancient Greece but really that was externally. Anyone who genuinely thinks most women were happy with their lot and didn't find ways to act with autonomy is very deluded. TBH there were men who were happy to take advice from their wives and sisters. So yes, sexist society but also, having to work within a constrictive framework doesn't mean you don't find ways to buck the system. Perfect example is Artemesia the warrior/ pirate queen (only a tiny sketch though!) who was actually probably only one of many intelligent, active women - she just made so much noise that she had to be included. It's really worth remembering when you write hist fic that women and slaves and whichever ethnicity was currently on the outs were written out deliberately; that doesn't mean they weren't there and actively participating. If we all keep continuing to write marginalised voices out, we'll keep perpetuating the false understanding that they weren't present and didn't do anything when we know it wasn't true. (Seriously, there is evidence.) Anyway, minor rant over. I would still recommend this to fans of ancient histfic.

I really enjoyed this. I could imagine the life in long ago Athens, the descriptions were excellent. The characters were believable and likeable although I always find it difficult to imagine that violence and a battle was the first thought of the men!
There was a clear description of the submissive life of women in this society with a tiny thumbnail sketch of a warrior queen who had to fight for more than the victory! I also enjoyed the details about the laws and law making in ancient Athens.
The excellent research was obvious in the writing.
The story starts and ends with great battles and the descriptions of the fighting are amazing - and scary.
Thoroughly recommended.