Alexander is astute, well-educated and brimming with caustic wit, but he can’t seem to remember the golden rule of slavery: keep your head down an...
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reviews
Feb 12, 2012
Jerry
rated it: 
Bow of Heaven is an exciting, informative historical novel of ancient Rome. Told by a Greek slave, Alexander, in his old age, it recounts the events that occurred since he was a student in Athens, captured by the conquering Romans. He eventually ends up as a highly-placed slave (right hand man, actually) in the house of Marcus Crassus, a noble politician and the richest man in Rome. Alexander ends up rich and has a great deal of power in the household. It's a good life in a lot of ways but tha
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Dec 17, 2011
Carole
rated it:
When Andrew Levkoff asked me to read this and review this, I was so excited! As many may know, I love historical novels and when I read the description I was even more excited! However, it took a while for me to get absorbed into the story. The beginning was a little slow (even though a whole bunch was going on) and I felt detached from Alexander, the main character. Once the story progressed and I got further into it the harder it was to get away from it. I wanted so badly to see what would hap
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Oct 27, 2011
C.S.
rated it: 
On the whole, this is a well-written and enjoyable piece of historical fiction. There were several instances of homophones used incorrectly such as "site", when "sight" was meant. Otherwiset, the book was fairly free of typos. More jarring was the sudden switch, close to the end, from the first-person view of the slave, Alexandros, to the omniscient view. The slave explains that it's a reconstruction of what undoubtedly happened, patched together from what he knew directly, b
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Feb 16, 2012
Cheryl
rated it:
I received this book as part of a first reads giveaway. I loved it. The main character was smart, articulate, witty and I felt like I was sitting and listening to him tell me his story. I was sucked in, the story almost a series of small stories, which is what life is after all.
The thing I liked most about the writing, was it seemed like an easy read in terms of how engaging it was, but I still got to use my brain. There were still serious, horrifying events unfolding, characters More...
The thing I liked most about the writing, was it seemed like an easy read in terms of how engaging it was, but I still got to use my brain. There were still serious, horrifying events unfolding, characters More...
Jan 18, 2012
Andrew
rated it:
Alexander is astute, well-educated and brimming with caustic wit, but he can’t seem to remember the golden rule of slavery: keep your head down and your mouth shut. No wonder more than one person in the house of Marcus Crassus wants to see this former Greek philosophy student dead.
Through accident and intervention, Alexander manages to survive, but is he willing to take the proffered hand of the one ally he wants desperately to despise – his owner? Every boon and advancement accept More...
Through accident and intervention, Alexander manages to survive, but is he willing to take the proffered hand of the one ally he wants desperately to despise – his owner? Every boon and advancement accept More...
Feb 16, 2012
Melinda
rated it: 
Hmmm...how do I describe this book? It was really interesting and gave me some insight into what may have happened in ancient Rome. The politics were fascinating. It is gritty and very real, though. I'm not a huge fan of the F-word, and it was used frequently throughout the book. I can handle blood and gore, but it did have some gratuitous sex in it that didn't really fit. That's the only reason why I gave it three instead of four stars. I did connect with the characters and really enjoyed th
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Feb 18, 2012
Pat
rated it:
Sometimes things just come together perfectly. I had just finished listening to podcasts on the fall of the Roman Republic by Dan Carlin and Mike Duncan when I won this book from Goodreads. And The Other Alexander made the history come to life, adding depth to Crassus' story. I liked the twist of the narrator being a slave as it also gave some social commentary to the history. The details of life in a Roman villa are fascinating, but the story is what makes the book memorable. I very much look f
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