The Eagle and the Wolves

I rated the previous three books in the series with five stars, but ‘The Eagle and the Wolves’ doesn’t quite equal those other titles. I put this down to the situation, namely that while the first three novels feature numerous settings with the characters moving from here to there, in this story it’s largely set in one place. While this in no way makes it boring, it does limit the scope and variation. It also lacks a love interest for the two main characters, which spiced up the narrative in their earlier adventures.

This is still a Roman adventure, full of action and drama, but the excitement levels are down a notch from Books 1–3.

The characters are vivid. Cato, the main ‘star’, is my favourite. He’s believable and show more relatable. He’s getting to grips with being a centurion at such a young age. This new rank changes the dynamic between him and fellow centurion Macro to a small extent.

The different ranks take some getting used to if, like me, your knowledge of Roman times is sparse.

The language is contemporary, which makes the narrative flow better than if the author had used archaic turns of phrase. He also uses modern English slang, which some readers won’t like, but at least it’s consistent. I’ve read historical novels where in one scene a character says something like, ‘Keep it in your trousers,’ while in another scene someone else says, ‘Whence came he thus?’

While I admit I would’ve preferred the language to not incorporate modern slang, the characters and third-person narration are engaging enough for this not to make me feel like I’m reading a story set during any period other than the first century AD.

Perhaps my being an Englishman makes the slang words and phrases more palatable. I admit, it did annoy me when, in another historical novel, the author of that book used the odd Americanism – ‘ass’ and ‘butt’, for example – so I can understand why any non-English reader – and certainly non-British – would be distracted by the slang terms.

So, while the slang words and phrases didn’t bother me, three other elements did distract me at times. One being a trait that keeps cropping up in books I’ve read this year by different authors, namely this sort of thing: ‘more loudly’, ‘more closely’, instead of the more concise ‘louder’ and ‘closer’. Don’t use two words if one will do.

Adverbs: the ‘tell’, not ‘show’. In ‘Macro glared angrily,’ the adverb not only ‘tells’, it’s superfluous, as ‘glared’ shows his anger.

The two points above are minor criticisms. The one big gripe I have is the overuse of ‘then’ to state what happens next. This novel is riddled with ‘thens’, at times making the third-person narrative sound like a child’s voice. ‘Then’ is easy to cut when editing, and it’s not hard to drop it altogether. It ends up being a filler word, most notably when using it to start a sentence. The reader knows whatever’s happening is taking place after what’s just happened, so no need to put, ‘Then he …’ and such like.

In most cases, I deduct a star if a book is riddled with ‘thens’ or swamped with adverbs. As someone who appreciates good writing style, these things drive me to distraction. Yet, ‘The Eagle and the Wolves’ is such an engaging story it overrode these niggling points. show less

After reading the previous books in this series I have complained a little about the lack of action in the beginning. That is no problem in this one. Before you know it you're thrown head first into adventures, intrige and battle. And if that's not enough for you, how about some murder then?
Simon Scarrow reaches new heights with this one. I absolutely loved it!

The characters (Macro and Cato) still stand strong (very well written) and they develop as the series progresses. Thanks to the details it feels like you're part of their battles and adventures. Not always a place where you'd want to be, but it definitely is an experience.
A word of warning: don't take things for granted. Sometimes you think you know who's done what, but quite show more often it's not that black and white.

I really think Simon Scarrow was evolving as a writer during the writing of these books. This one is a big step forward. show less

I really liked this book. Simon Scarrow is now telling the type of story that I was looking for all along. I like the camaraderie of Cato and Marco...it can be compared to that of Sharpe and Harper in the Cornwell's Sharpe series in my opinion. Where in the first book of this series I complained of muddy characters and foggy battle scenes Scarrow has now developed an eye for more detail in his writing. This story has twists in the telling that make it a real page turner....I hope the rest of this series continues improving.

Scarrow a leading torch in the march of Rome: Scarrow is someone that has only recently been recommended to me by a reader of the site (cheers Robin) and as such is an author that I feel having read is one that deserves to have his work mentioned. Many people know of authors such as Bernard Cornwell and Steven Pressfield and know the sort of historical fiction that they write. But what does Simon's work have to offer readers?Whilst many authors base thier characters in a more modern time, Simon's work is based during the Roman invasion of Britain during the first century and makes great use of not only the political strife of Rome at the time but also the beliefs of the peoples involved during this period of great conflict. An altogther show more rich environment full of intrigue which shows clearly in Scarrow's lovingly crafted work. The tales centre around two characters in the roman legion and we follow thier careers as the series progresses, however unlike other authors, he isn't afraid to put them not only in mortal peril but will allow a soldiers language to accompany the situations, which is something that many authors leave out feeling that it would ruin the content of thier novel. Far from ruining it, this sort of careful consideration actually throws the reader a chance to see the emotional side of the characters in addition to making them more believeable. Perhaps the greatest testimony to an author is recommendations by readers and as such Scarrow is starting to build a huge fanbase through not only those who have followed his work since the beginning but also by those who are new converts to the cause to which I am probably one of the newest members. As such I really don't think it will be too long before the fans will number more than enough for a number of legions marching under the banner of Scarrow's Eagle for the glory of Rome. show less

Great bus book, liked the characters, enjoyed the plot but seemed a bit flat in the finish.

A bit slow to get going, but the battles of the last third of the book were really quite exciting.

It just keeps up the pace!

Action packed, a good story, and exciting the whole way through. A series of which I will definitely read more.