FREE WARRIOR OF ROME I: FIRE IN THE EAST PDF Harry Sidebottom | 448 pages | 28 Apr 2009 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780141032290 | English | London, United Kingdom Warrior of Rome - Book Series In Order Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving…. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Other editions. Enlarge cover. Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Details if other :. Thanks for Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Preview — Fire in the East by Harry Sidebottom. The greatest threat lies in Persia to the east, where the massing forces of the Sassanid Empire loom with fiery menace. There the isolated Roman citadel of Arete awaits inevitable invasion. One man is sent to marshal the defences and shore up crumbling walls. A man whose name itself means war: a man called Ballista. Alone, Ballista is called to muster the forces, and the courage to stand first and to stand hard, against the greatest enemy ever to confront the Imperium. Get A Copy. Hardcoverpages. Published September 12th by Michael Joseph first published More Details Original Title. Warrior of Rome 1. Other Editions Friend Reviews. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about Fire in the Eastplease sign up. Lists with This Book. Community Reviews. Showing Average rating 3. Rating details. More filters. Sort order. Start your review of Fire in the East Warrior of Rome, 1. Apr 24, Mr. Matt rated it liked it Shelves:hf-roman. He is to hold things together in the East while the Emperors deal with troubles along the Rhine and the Danube. If he dies in the process, well, too bad. As a German, he is expendable. The book starts slow. Super duper slow. I struggled to get invested in the story. Far too much time is spent on the journey from Rome to the distant town of Arete. And the characters are dry and uninteresting. I felt as if I was reading about things that happened a long time ago rather than experiencing them. At times I found myself wondering why I was even reading the darn book! That's Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East a good sign. Fortunately, the book warms up. When the Persians show up with their massive army and the siege of Arete actually begins, I was hooked. For several long months - most of a year - Ballista and his small band of legionnaires hold off 50, determined Persians. There are ferocious battles at the wall. There are artillery duels. There is treachery. There are desperate last stands. And throughout it, I found myself at last really pulling for the beleaguered German. The Roman nobles treat him with contempt he's a Barbarian but he faithfully exercises his duties as a Roman which is more than can be said for some of the nobles. I also learned a lot. In part I read historical fiction partly to learn about points in history that were less familiar to me. And this book illuminated a period that was dark for me. Most Roman stories seem to involve the period from Ceasar to Augustus to Claudius. The Empire is young and vigorous. It is growing, expanding. This book takes place much later in the Empire's life. The Empire, while still strong, is troubled. Franks, Goths and other peoples threaten the borders. Worse threat yet, in the East, are the Sassanids. Civilized, organized and fueled by the righteous power of Zoroastrianism, the Persians seek to push into Asia Minor. It was neat to read about this period. It offered me a fresh perspective. All said and done, it started out as a II star book and ends as a IV star book, so I'll split the Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East. III stars out of V. View all 3 comments. Oct 06, Jane rated it it was amazing Shelves: ancient-romereviewed. I came to this from the author's excellent Throne of the Caesars series. As a first book in this series, a lot of it was introduction to the characters, time and place, although we've met Ballista before. Years have passed since the death of Maximinus Thrax and Aquileia; this story places us in the reign of Valerian, years later. Ballista strikes me as an "outsider" who struggles to fit in, much as the characters of Gillian Bradshaw. Sadly, his barbarian origin leads others to underestimate him. Perusing the list of characters and recognizing some names from Throne of the Caesars, I wondered: are these the same people, but a few years on? Not much originality in the cover: the same ubiquitous Roman soldier. Can't any publisher come up with something more creative and striking for Roman military novels???? I've seen other people's reviews and many complaints about how slowly the book begins, with many details of excruciating [to them] detail. Sometimes I enjoy a slow-burner--pun, based on the title : -- with all the asides and tidbits of details. I didn't read the novel for the siege only, but enjoyed the journey to get to Arete and of Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East the final siege and conflagration. Ballista has been given orders by the emperor to prepare defenses and finally to defend the city from the Sassanid Persians. He can ask for extra troops from other cities and levy citizens. The emperor promises to send reinforcements. There were many exciting incidents: a storm at sea, fight with Gothic pirates, then various skirmishes, extramural missions and the final siege and its aftermath. Someone is a traitor. Near the end Ballista muses: Is [the outcome] my fault? Did I concentrate so much Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East the Sassanid siege works that I did not pay enough attention to the possibility of treachery? Would I have seen them? The first time through I read it solely for the adventure but when I reread I concentrated more on some of the loose ends, motivations I feel the author didn't explain. Who killed Scribonius Mucianus and why? One culprit or two? What was the blackmail surrounding Turpio, which he didn't explain and Ballista never pushed? Who sabotaged the armory? What was Acilius Glabrio's motivation in giving Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East perfume for Ballista's bath since the two hated each other? ​Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East on Apple Books Harry Sidebottom is an English author of fiction. When he is not busy writing fantasy novels, he has a busy job working as a lecturer in the subject of ancient history at Merton College in Oxford. Harry Sidebottom has also written pieces for many publications that include the Journal of Roman Studies, the Classical Review, and the distinguished publication War and Society in the Roman world, to name a few. Sidebottom officially became a published author with the release of his nonfiction book, Ancient Warfare. The book is a detailed but short introductive look at the history of Greek and Roman warfare. Their style of warfare was unlike any other culture and their western way of war employed the strategy of open battle that was won again and again by courage and discipline instilled in the troops. Sidebottom examines all aspects of Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East ancient world of warfare, from strategies and philosophies to the technical skills that were required to fight. He also explains the wider context of war to Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East reader and showed how wars could shape classical society and even the identity of an individual. He explores ways in which society used to consider conflict, divine intervention, and even siege warfare. Employing anecdotes and visual images, this first nonfiction book from Sidebottom is as interesting as it is informative. He also wrote a nonfiction book, an encyclopedia regarding ancient battles. He is the author of the Warrior of Rome series. This fictional series kicked off with Fire in the East in and it was his first fictional novel published. The sequel was titled King of Kings and there are seven books in the series. The Last Hour is the seventh book in the series and it was released in Sidebottom Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East penned the Throne of the Caesars series. This fictional series has six books in it so far and there may be more to come! Fire in the East is the first Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East in the Warrior of Rome series. They say that war is hell, and no one knows this better than the warriors and the commanders of the armies of the ancient world. This fictional first book in the Warrior series from Harry Sidebottom is set in the year A. The Roman Imperium is being challenged at nearly every border, and they are quickly reaching their breaking point. They know that their authority is being challenged, but what can they do? The Imperium is struggling to maintain Warrior of Rome I: Fire in the East. Their biggest threat is in the east in Persia. There the massing forces are gathering for the Sassanid Empire and the danger of their power is looming mighty and large in the distance. It is there that the Roman citadel of Arete is isolated and by its vulnerability is awaiting the inevitable arrival of an invasion.