EMPEROR’S SWORD
The Imperial Assassin Book 1
By Alex Gough
Canelo US
358 pgs
Silus is a half-breed Roman scout comfortable in the wild northern terrain of Caledonia. One fateful mission ends with his murdering a regional chieftain. This reckless act in turn starts a chain of events that has dire consequences for the Empire. The retaliation for his rash act results in further barbarian raids and in one attack his wife and daughter are killed. Lost in a sea of grief and despair, Silus comes to the attention of Caracalla, one of the triumvirate rulers. Seeing potential in the scout, Caracalla has him assigned to the veteran spymaster Marcus Oclatinuis; the chief of an elite spy faction known as the Arcani. They are the assassins of the empire.
What follows is a truly memorable historical action-adventure filled with colorful characters and gut-wrenching battles as two different cultures vie for supremacy. The prize of their war was the island continent of what would one day be Great Britain. Gough’s history is impeccable and enriches his tale greatly. The characters come to life as does the savagery of the times. He brutally displays the insanity of war and the vagaries of the human experience both in its nobility and its depravity.
This is a remarkable book and only the first in a series. One we are eager to follow.
