Here are 14 books that Strategos fans have personally recommended once you finish the Strategos series.
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John Julius Norwich’s A Short History of Byzantium ignited my passion for the Byzantines in the early 2000s. I knew little about them before reading that book; now I rarely read any other topic. I have always loved historical fiction and was dismayed to find so few books about the Byzantines. Once I read about the remarkable life of Anna Dalassena I realized I had found a character to write about and remedy that shortage. I am presently working on my fifth book and third novel, which will be about Anna’s son, Emperor Alexios I Comnenus. I also have a book of short stories and a brief Byzantine history.
Anne Perry is a superb mystery writer who ventured once into the Byzantine world with this novel and I am so glad she did. The story takes place in 1273, twelve years after the overthrow of the Latin rulers who had occupied Constantinople since the horrific attack by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade in 1204. The city still struggles to recover and a young woman, Anna Lascaris, who has learned medicine from her father, decides to disguise herself as a eunuch to more easily find out who framed her brother for murder, which resulted in his exile to a distant monastery. Poisonous political intrigue swirls around Anna/Anastasius as she practices the healing arts while searching for clues about who was the true killer.
A brilliant standalone novel from Anne Perry, the undisputed master of the Victorian mystery.
1273 - the gorgeous, cosmopolitan and enlightened city of Byzantium is in acute danger. Only an alliance with the Church of Rome will stop the crusading fervour of the Italian and French troops on its borders, determined to strike through Byzantium to reach Jerusalem. Faced with the prospect of surrendering its gentile Orthodox theology to Roman Catholicism, the city is in turmoil as opposing factions seek to assert their authority. For Anna, the brutal conflict only echoes her own life. Recently arrived in Byzantium to find…
John Julius Norwich’s A Short History of Byzantium ignited my passion for the Byzantines in the early 2000s. I knew little about them before reading that book; now I rarely read any other topic. I have always loved historical fiction and was dismayed to find so few books about the Byzantines. Once I read about the remarkable life of Anna Dalassena I realized I had found a character to write about and remedy that shortage. I am presently working on my fifth book and third novel, which will be about Anna’s son, Emperor Alexios I Comnenus. I also have a book of short stories and a brief Byzantine history.
Simon Turney’s novel, The Bear of Byzantium, covers a period of time in late 1041 to late 1042 that I wrote about in my own book. This was a real-life Game of Thrones period with stupendous Viking members of the Imperial Varangian Guard such as Harald Hardrada, a dying emperor, a spurned empress, a conniving heir, and a crafty Viking wise-woman foretelling the future. Turney’s battle scenes will have you believing you are there manning the Great Palace’s walls with the Varangians, looking down on the streets of Constantinople seething with rioting mobs ready to execute a hated emperor.
The wolves of Odin sail to the centre of the world: Constantinople.
AD 1041. After successfully avenging the death of his father, Halfdan and the crew of the Sea Wolf seek adventure in strange new lands, far from their Scandinavian home.
They join the fleet of Harald Hardrada, the legendary Viking commander, sailing back to Constantinople from the battlefields of Georgia. There they join the Varangians, the personal bodyguard of the Byzantine Emperors populated almost exclusively by Viking warriors. But Constantinople has changed during Hardrada's long absence.
The Emperor, Michael IV, is ailing visibly, and powerful factions in his court…
John Julius Norwich’s A Short History of Byzantium ignited my passion for the Byzantines in the early 2000s. I knew little about them before reading that book; now I rarely read any other topic. I have always loved historical fiction and was dismayed to find so few books about the Byzantines. Once I read about the remarkable life of Anna Dalassena I realized I had found a character to write about and remedy that shortage. I am presently working on my fifth book and third novel, which will be about Anna’s son, Emperor Alexios I Comnenus. I also have a book of short stories and a brief Byzantine history.
I had never looked at or had an interest in graphic novels until I saw this graphic novel about the mother of one of the Byzantine Empire’s most important rulers, Basil II. But if there was ever going to be one I would read, it had to be a Byzantine one! I loved it! The vivid artwork in this book is superb and tells of Theophano’s life from innkeeper’s daughter to wife of not one, but two emperors. If you want to ease into Byzantine historical fiction, this graphic novel is a great places to start.
A fairytale marriage that goes terribly wrong, a ruling dynasty struggling to keep everything together by having overly ambitious palace officials do the dirty work, and prominent Roman generals who dream of taking the throne for themselves.
This explosive mixture of occurrences takes place in the 10th century Byzantine Empire. An era of territorial resurgence and Imperial extravagance, but also an era of dynastic intrigue and endless plotting for the ultimate prize. The Roman throne.
During that time, an ordinary girl, marries the heir to the throne, enters the palace and becomes Theophano, an ambitious woman ready to climb the…
John Julius Norwich’s A Short History of Byzantium ignited my passion for the Byzantines in the early 2000s. I knew little about them before reading that book; now I rarely read any other topic. I have always loved historical fiction and was dismayed to find so few books about the Byzantines. Once I read about the remarkable life of Anna Dalassena I realized I had found a character to write about and remedy that shortage. I am presently working on my fifth book and third novel, which will be about Anna’s son, Emperor Alexios I Comnenus. I also have a book of short stories and a brief Byzantine history.
Byzantine history has only sporadically inspired historical fiction, although Empress Theodora, wife of Emperor Justinian, has had more than a few novels written about her. I’ve read and enjoyed many of them but this book is one of the best. Her dramatic life encompassed the deadly Nike riots, the building of the magnificent Hagia Sophia, and the Justinianic Plague. And did I mention that she was a courtesan prior to marrying Justinian? Martin’s Theodora is a glorious and sympathetic woman, even if flawed. The author tells her story wonderfully through the eyes of a court eunuch!
KIRKUS REVIEWS: "A meticulously researched historical account presented in the form of a thrilling political drama." OVERALL GRAND PRIZE WINNER, 2019 Best Book, Chanticleer Int'l Book Awards
Theodora: actress, prostitute, mistress, feminist. And Byzantine Empress of the civilized world. Stephen: handsome Syrian boy, wizard's apprentice, palace eunuch. And Secretary to the Empress. How does this unlikely pair become such allies that one day Empress Theodora asks Stephen to write her biography?
From a very young age, Theodora, daughter of a circus bearkeeper in Constantinople, sets her sights well above her station in life. Her exquisite beauty sets her apart on…
Life has shown me that it’s the hard times that matter, that shape you as a person. My thirst for history and my urge to write stories compel me to write and read about the days of the crumbling Roman Empire – surely one of history’s hardest periods. To the Romans and those who depended on them, it must have seemed like the end of days. It was an age of big changes that would have forged strong characters.
Rome fell to the barbarians. Did it? I have always enjoyed examining this and other suggested reasons for the empire’s fall, and have never quite been able to pinpoint any one cause.
In this book, the aptly named Barbero dissects the reality of what we mean by ‘barbarian’, and paints a rich picture of time and geography to chart out the emergence, movement, and net effect on imperial Rome of tribes like the Visigoths, the Vandals, the Franks, the Alans, the Huns, and many, many more.
I found that the investigation raised more questions than answers, and that only made the puzzle of Rome’s fall even more intriguing.
On August 9, ad 378, outside Adrianople in the Roman province of Thrace, the Roman Empire began to fall. Two years earlier, an unexpected flood of refugees from the tribe known as the Goths had arrived at the Empire's eastern border, seeking admittance. In the David-and-Goliath struggle that ensued, the barbarians eventually inflicted upon the Roman Army the most disastrous defeat they had suffered since Hannibal's victory over them almost 600 years earlier. Although the Empire did not actually fall for another century, this battle signalled nothing less than the end of the ancient world and the opening of the…
Life has shown me that it’s the hard times that matter, that shape you as a person. My thirst for history and my urge to write stories compel me to write and read about the days of the crumbling Roman Empire – surely one of history’s hardest periods. To the Romans and those who depended on them, it must have seemed like the end of days. It was an age of big changes that would have forged strong characters.
What if Rome never fell? That was enough to sell me this book, and into a vastly changed, modern-day Roman state I ventured.
The story tugs and tests your expectations – for much of the Roman world has become, by necessity, similar to our own, governed by technology, bureaucracy, and dominated by worldwide trade. But at its kernel, the age-old facets of imperial Rome remain – Praetorian Guards, devious intrigue… and crucifixion!
In a parallel modern world, the Roman Empire stretches from India in the East to the Great Wall of Terranova in the West. A runaway slave girl with a strange gift sets out to rescue her brother and seize her freedom, while the young heir to the Imperial throne discovers a plot against his life. For all three, the only way to survive may shake the Empire to its roots.
A fast-moving, compelling story, brilliantly imagined - CONN IGGULDEN
[A] hugely imaginative debut - DAILY MIRROR
A thoroughly good read ... vividly imagined ... elegant, lively writing - SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
Life has shown me that it’s the hard times that matter, that shape you as a person. My thirst for history and my urge to write stories compel me to write and read about the days of the crumbling Roman Empire – surely one of history’s hardest periods. To the Romans and those who depended on them, it must have seemed like the end of days. It was an age of big changes that would have forged strong characters.
This account of history gives wings to the late Roman Empire and Byzantium.
Don’t expect: a dry list of dates and details of each event that happened in sequence. Do expect: to be unable to sleep as you read Norwich’s graphic descriptions of some of the most hair-raising twists of the Byzantine court.
I kept turning the pages all night, and during the day I couldn’t wait to get back to bed in the evening and delve back into that world. It’s enthralling and educational all at once!
'He is brilliant ... He writes like the most cultivated modern diplomat attached by a freak of time to the Byzantine court, with intimate knowledge, tactful judgement and a consciousness of the surviving monuments' Independent
In this exciting narrative history, John Julius Norwich, one of most accomplished popular historians, reveals the beginning of Byzantium. He tells of the five formative centuries of an empire that would enthral the western world for more than eleven hundred years.
Life has shown me that it’s the hard times that matter, that shape you as a person. My thirst for history and my urge to write stories compel me to write and read about the days of the crumbling Roman Empire – surely one of history’s hardest periods. To the Romans and those who depended on them, it must have seemed like the end of days. It was an age of big changes that would have forged strong characters.
Manfredi is a genius at whisking you back in time to the era of his stories, and this tale is probably the best example.
I found myself gripped by the opening: the dwindling Empire is riddled with invading tribes, and all seems lost. Just as the Roman boy emperor Romulus Augustulus and his generals hatch a plan to raise a new legion and turn the tide, the army of Odoacer swoops in across the capital and ends the Western Roman Empire forever.
What a start! I was left dazed, seeing the ashes of the Empire swirling around me in my mind’s eye. From there, I was with the small cadre of survivors who set out on the most incredible adventure that would prove foundational to the next phase of history – the Dark Ages!
Valerio Massimo Manfredi's The Last Legion opens on the day that the Western Roman Empire collapses finally in 470AD, as the Last Emperor of Rome is encamped and protected by the Nova Invicta Legion. All is lost in the space of a few minutes as a horde of Barbarians sweep through the camp in the fog, kill the Imperial family and take the young Emperor captive. The Roman Empire is in ruins . . .
But all is not lost. From the dust of battlefields emerges a small team of invincible warriors - The Last Legion. Their task is to…
Life has shown me that it’s the hard times that matter, that shape you as a person. My thirst for history and my urge to write stories compel me to write and read about the days of the crumbling Roman Empire – surely one of history’s hardest periods. To the Romans and those who depended on them, it must have seemed like the end of days. It was an age of big changes that would have forged strong characters.
The end of the Empire has had me gripped since I was a boy.
Eagle in the Snow catapults you right into the dying state and right to its edge. I found myself walking the imperial borders in snowbound Germania, wondering if and when the Roman world was about to collapse beneath my feet.
It is one of those novels that leaves you feeling like you’ve lived another life, and that feeling has stayed with me ever since. A magical piece of historical fiction.
A novel about General Maximus, one of the inspirations behind Ridley Scott's massively successful film GLADIATOR.
'Behind me I left my youth, my middle age, my wife and my happiness. I was a general now and I had only defeat or victory to look forward to. There was no middle way any longer, and I did not care.'
In the year AD 406 Rome was on the defensive everywhere, and a single Roman legion stood desperate guard on the Empire's Rhine frontier. Maximus, the legion's commander, is urged to proclaim himself emperor, but he stands by his concept of duty…
In my teens, I read a book by Charles Berlitz titled Atlantis: the lost continent. I was enthralled and fascinated about this lost race of people, who were technically and sophisticated advance society and on one fateful day, vanished. My appetite for Greek mythology and ancient history grew from there, and I wanted to learn more about various ancient cultures and their mythologies. I eventually studied ancient history and continue my education as new archaeological discoveries and advancements are made. It wasn’t until a trip to Europe and seeing the Roman Forum and Colosseum, that I was inspired to write and combine my love for mythology and ancient history into historical fiction fantasy.
I’m cheating a little here by recommending a trilogy but this was one of the best historical fiction I’ve read.
The series is about Prince Aeneas and the legendary story of the war between the Trojans and the Greeks. David Gemmell sets the scene prior to war from the POV of Aeneas, who was regarded as pirate but as the story progresses you learn more about his actions and why he keeps roaming the sea.
It is full of action and stays true to the unfolding drama of the Trojan War. For me, the historical backdrop and the research the author included was one of the main reasons this series wins.
Three lives will change the destiny of nations. Hellkaon, the young prince of Dardania, haunted by a scarred and traumatic childhood. The priestess Andromache, whose fiery spirit and fierce Independence threatens the might of kings. And the legendary warrior Argurios, cloaked in loneliness and driven only by thoughts of revenge. In Troy they find a city torn apart by destructive rivalries - a maelstrom of jealousy, deceit and murderous treachery. And beyond its fabled walls blood-hungry enemies eye its riches and plot its downfall. It is a time of bravery and betrayal; a time of bloodshed and fear. A time…
