Gladiatrix (Gladiatrix, #1)

Aug 26, 2011 Lance Greenfield Mitchell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction

Action-packed and hot!

This is the story of a Spartan priestess called Lysandra, who, as the only survivor of a shipwreck is captured by the Romans, enslaved, and trained as a gladiatrix. However, her previous training in combat techniques, physical fitness and power, mind and spirit, put her way ahead of many of her rivals.

Lysandra is a strong and insular woman, but anyone who is lucky enough to become her friend can be sure to count on her loyalty. The opposite, of course, can be expected by he...more Action-packed and hot!

This is the story of a Spartan priestess called Lysandra, who, as the only survivor of a shipwreck is captured by the Romans, enslaved, and trained as a gladiatrix. However, her previous training in combat techniques, physical fitness and power, mind and spirit, put her way ahead of many of her rivals.

Lysandra is a strong and insular woman, but anyone who is lucky enough to become her friend can be sure to count on her loyalty. The opposite, of course, can be expected by her enemies.

As you would expect, there is a lot of violence and passion littered throughout the book. It is very well researched, and ties in with what is known of the history of the region. I was impressed by the description of the combat, whether in training or in the arena, because it is so aptly short and punchy which really grips my attention as a reader. There is no flannel to distract me from the action.

The characters are all brilliantly developed, and they interact so well too. It is easy to feel the heat and the emotions that the author has so enthusiastically penned for our delight. It is not just the interactions between individual characters which stirred me, there are also fierce interactions between the races too.

I would warn prospective readers against getting too attached to any particular characters. Just when you feel as if one of them has been you life-long friend, you are likely to find them lying, hacked to death, in a pool of blood on the floor!

The only slight negative comment that I have about Gladiatrix is that there were a lot of small errors which should have been picked up by the proof reader(s). However, although this usually irritates the hell out of me, the story-telling swept me along at such a pace that I became much more forgiving than usual.

Finally, it is impossible for me to conclude this review without mentioning that, about a third of the way through, you will read one of the most sexually arousing lesbian scenes that you could ever come across. Whatever your gender or sexuality, I would challenge you to read this passage without becoming so turned on that you will have to stop and pause for breath. I won’t tell you which page to turn to, as you will easily recognise the piece when you get to it.

Gldiatrix is the way that historical fiction should be; for me, anyway.(less)

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 03, 2010 Tara Chevrestt rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, blew-me-away-list, rome, arc

Gladiatrix is a fantastic story!! It offers an incredible look at what life may have been like for gladiatrices in early Rome, but amidst the details is a story. An intriguing one at that, full of drama, love, revenge, and war. The reader gets to know Lysandra, a shipwrecked priestess now a gladiatrix slave and her friends as well as enemies thoughout the novel and there is a suspensful build up to a battle to beat all battles, keeping the reader literally on the edge of their seat....

Check out...more

5 likes · like · see review

Jan 25, 2009 Paul rated it 1 of 5 stars

Gladiatrix, by Russell Whitfield.

Lysandra is, or was, a mission Priestess of Athena from the fallen city-state of Sparta, in the reign of Domitian in the Roman Empire. Now, after a shipwreck, she is not only a slave, but is being trained as a female gladiator. Thus, she embodies eponymous title of the novel, along with a group of other women also condemned to the same fate.

Gladiatrix shows us her story, starting in medias res, revealing how she was captured, and follows her story as she rises in...more Gladiatrix, by Russell Whitfield.

Lysandra is, or was, a mission Priestess of Athena from the fallen city-state of Sparta, in the reign of Domitian in the Roman Empire. Now, after a shipwreck, she is not only a slave, but is being trained as a female gladiator. Thus, she embodies eponymous title of the novel, along with a group of other women also condemned to the same fate.

Gladiatrix shows us her story, starting in medias res, revealing how she was captured, and follows her story as she rises in the stable, develops relationships with her fellow gladiatrices, and finally has a knock down, drag out final combat with her greatest rival, after the love of her life dies.

On the surface, the novel is well paced, exciting, the clash of blades, the savagery and power of life in the Roman world on display and seen through the eyes of an outsider who is now the lowest of the low. Casual readers will likely enjoy it for exactly those reasons.

For me, however, I found it wanting. I know too much.

I may not be a Classical scholar (and the author doesn't profess to be one either, just an interested amateur), but I found the novel and the heroine's actions and life highly improbable and worse, "written to cinema". Some of the pattern of the story follows, to an extent, part of the arc of the movie Gladiator, and not to its credit. I just couldn't buy, even with the fig leaf of an Athene priest hired and brought in to convince Lysandra, that a female spartan would ever, in the end, accept her fate enough to actually embrace her role as a gladiatrix. It broke the character that had been building--even if, I recognize, it was the only way to get the story forward. I think that the author simply wanted a female Spartan gladiator, even if large implausibilities were the only way to get there.

An additional cinematic and not-very-realistic addition in the plot is the love affair between Lysandra and Eirinawen. I never really bought it as more than the author wishing for Lysandra to have a homoerotic relationship with one of her fellow gladiatrices. It never felt natural to me to her character, or Eirinawen's, for that matter. Now, the consequences of the pursuit of that relationship, as it ties into Lysandra's rival Sorina, that I admit was handled much better. But I never really bought the creation of the relationship in the first place.

I almost wish that Whitfield had decided to write this novel in an invented world of his own. Perhaps with the freedom to make a Roman-like, rather than a strictly Roman Empire world, I would have been far more forgiving of the implausibilities of the characters and simply went along for the ride. As it was, I was in the end, underwhelmed.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 04, 2009 Jayden rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009

First of all, the book was well written.

I still didn't like it overly much. It had a good story, it had a catching plot and most of the characters were well defined and had a believable motivation.

Unfortunately, to the last page, I hated the main character.
I loathed her. She had a strong character story, but I did not like her. It spoiled my enjoyment of the story. I couldn't fall into the book like I like to do, and it was distracting.

Still, I would rate the book better if it had been only...more

4 likes · like · see review

Jul 28, 2009 Elfega rated it 5 of 5 stars

Lysandra is captured, made a slave and then forced to fight in the Gladiatrix arena. Although her life is not what she ever dreamed of, Lysandra learns to fight for what she believes and falls in love for the first time. However, her love life is cut short after her lover is killed by another gladiatrix and she spends her time finding a way to seek revenge.

Love, lust, fighting, hate, revenge, peace and religion...all in one book.

like · see review

Jan 08, 2010 Lynn Calvin added it · review of another edition

I never could finish this book. I got about two thirds of the way through and and stalled. I wanted to like it - women gladiators, some actual historical basis given, but it was a very "guy" sort of book. I really didn't like the protaganist - never warmed up to her. The nominally sympathetic presentation of lesbian relationships should have been a plus but the way in which the sexuality was presented felt male centered - sort of a "hot bi babes" approach.[return][return]The obligatory "looking...more

like · see review

Dec 09, 2012 Andrea Haffly rated it 1 of 5 stars

I hated this book. Actually, I'm really surprised that so many other people gave such positive reviews! (No judgement, just very different from my own experience).

I found the book to be poorly written, the author told the reader what was happening rather than showed through dialogue and action. I found the characters to be stilted, unlikable, and unbelievable.

What most disturbed me was the detailed and graphic nature of several scenes of sexual violence and assault, none of which I found necess...more

1 like · like · see review

Jul 04, 2012 Billy rated it 3 of 5 stars

A really good story, but...,

...lacking in character development, it falls a little flat. Lysandra is the heroine of this book, but after reading it (400+ pages of getting-to-know-you), I still didn't feel as if I cared about her. Same goes for the majority of the characters. The best developed and, therefore, most likable character in this book is Lucius Balbus, the lanista, the owner of the slaves and the training compound.

Lysandra is certainly a tragic figure, a fallen priestess of Athene, a S...more

like · see review

Dec 05, 2011 Debra added it

Blood. Gore. Sex. And tragedy. As a highly anticipated release of 2008, it didn't disappoint (personally, I didn't like the ending but we'll get into that later). There's enough nudity for it to be rated NC17, leaves you wondering if a movie or tv series is in the works for this one, it'll be worthwhile.

Any self-respecting Gemmell reader would counter there's not enough description in action, thumbing through chapter I. Phrases like "spun about", page 4, could've been better. But if you think i...more

like · see review

Dec 30, 2010 Karissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a very interesting book that takes a look into the life of a gladiatrix. It is a fictional story, the author explains at the end of the book where he got the story from and how much is based in fact and fiction. Most of the book is fiction with the historical figures being accurate.

Lysandra is a Spartan priestess who is sold into slavery after her ship sinks and she washes up on shore. Her Spartan upbringing serves her well as a gladiatrice and she is quickly found to be ferocious fight...more

like · see review

Sep 18, 2010 Soycazadoradesombrasylibros rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: finish

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A mis lindos cazadores y cazadoras que os gusten las novelas
llenas de acciòn,amor,odio,celos,peleas pero con un ritmo trepidante
cuando las gladiadoras luchas entre sì.
Si os gustan las novelas que describen èpocas pasadas
en este caso la "Antigua Roma" pero a su vez a cada una de las gladiadoras
que pertenecen a diferentes pueblos conquistados
por los romanos de manera veraz y os gustan los libros
con un final que dice quiero màs, este es vuestro libro.
La portada esta màs que acertada¡¡Y es la protag...more

like · see review

Sep 22, 2009 Whit rated it 3 of 5 stars

There's one word for this book: TRASHY! But, I have to admit, it was exceptionally diverting trash. I imagine the author saw Gladiator the movie, and then shortly after saw some female mud-wrestling on pay-per-view and said, "Hey! There's a great idea for a book!"

Lysandra is a member of an unusual Spartan cult that trains its girls in hand-to-hand combat. Shipwrecked and enslaved by Romans, she is sent to one of the few gladiator-training "schools" for women. There, she has to: decide what it me...more

like · see review

Mar 09, 2009 Heron rated it 3 of 5 stars

Gladiatrix was an enjoyable, distracting read. Russell Whitfield is well versed in Roman combat, but seems to stumble in the execution of the story of Lysandra, the Spartan gladiatrix. The purple prose was distracting at first: there was no noun or verb left un-adjectivized. The love story between the two gladiatrices was at best contrived and at worst purely written for the author's own entertainment. The characters, while entertaining in their idiosyncrasies, are slightly two-dimensional and a...more

3 likes · like · see review

Jun 02, 2011 Jackie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, historical

This book was very easy reading ( I read it in one day) and while it seemed like a good idea the final story was a bit of a disappointment.
Some of the characters were shallowly drawn and there were numerous historical inaccuracies.
I realise that it is a novel and not a textbook of the Roman world , but really ! Welsh and Romanian gladiators speaking the same language and Celts banding together to defeat Romans!. One of the main reasons that the Romans were able to build such an enormous empire...more

like · see review

May 05, 2011 Stacey rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: no-house-copy, unemployment_read

Warning - this is a gruesome and brutal story. There is vivid descriptions of physical and sexual violence.

Gladiatrix follows a newly "acquired" slave, Lysandra, through her transition from a Greek priestess to a skilled fighter in the gladiator battles. The story Whitfiled has crafted is quick paced, exciting, and builds momentum very well. It also contains a cast of characters that are intriguing. Lysandra begins as an arrogant and opinionated girl with a very limited world view. Over time, sh...more Warning - this is a gruesome and brutal story. There is vivid descriptions of physical and sexual violence.

Gladiatrix follows a newly "acquired" slave, Lysandra, through her transition from a Greek priestess to a skilled fighter in the gladiator battles. The story Whitfiled has crafted is quick paced, exciting, and builds momentum very well. It also contains a cast of characters that are intriguing. Lysandra begins as an arrogant and opinionated girl with a very limited world view. Over time, she grows through the trials and horrors of her new life, though she always keeps a foothold in her arrogant constricted view of her world.

Whitfield did a good job creating the world of Ancient Rome and surrounding areas in this work. I sensed the sands of the arena, the heat of the training area, and the smell of the communal baths with small details. Readers are spared long drawn out descriptions that would pull them out of the story. Similar restraint was used when dealing with the bits of history included in this story. It was sparse and well selected to keep to the story being told.

Some negatives:

Italics were utilized in the book for certain Latin words which distracted me as a reader. For instance, I don't need to see the word "ludus" in italics every time it is used. Whitfield worked in appropriate definitions for most of the Latin words that needed them so I didn't understand the italics. It was also confusing since italics were used for emphasis of certain words as well.

There were a lot of editorial errors in the book, especially towards the second half. It felt like the editor got lazy and forgot to go through the last draft. I noticed them and were irritated, but moved enough by the pace of the story to keep going. Also, there were a few elements that seemed too "new" to be in a story set during the ancient Roman empire. Small things like vocabulary choices or character movements (like a character making the "cookoo" twirling finger at the head gesture) that just stood out as odd.(less)

like · see review

Jan 10, 2009 Sharon rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: rome, historical-fiction

Fans of Steven Pressfield's "Gates of Fire" and/or Frank Miller's "300" will find much to admire in Russell Whitfield's debut novel, "Gladiatrix."

Whitfield's protagonist, Lysandra, is a Spartan priestess captured in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) after she is the sole survivor of a shipwreck in the Hellespont. She is sold into slavery and becomes the property of Lucius Balbus, owner of the first all-female ludus (gladiatorial school) in the region. Along with Lysandra, readers are introduced to...more

1 like · like · see review

Jan 27, 2010 Jason Golomb rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ancient-rome

I just finished "Gladiatrix"...took me less than a week to eat it up. The plot moves very quickly throughout and the final 150 pages or so simply flew by. I'm very much looking forward to a sequel.

The first 30-50 pages were terrific. The initial character sketching of Lysandra was enticing and beautifully written. Whitfield hit on all cylinders to maximize the opportunity to draw in the reader. The opening sequences contain a strongly written battle and teasing back story.

Pieces of the story are...more

like · see review

Oct 03, 2009 Eileen Granfors rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, local-color, women

Russell Whitfield's "Gladiatrix" brings ancient history to life, with less authentic detail than Pressfield ("Gates of Fire" and "Last of the Amazons"), less humor than Atwood's "Penelopiad," less emotion than Sarah Franklin's "Daughter of Troy," and yet "Gladiatrix" remains a satisfying, tantalizing read.

For more about this book, see my review on amazon.com under the title and my reviewer's name, EGranfors.

2 likes · like · see review

Feb 18, 2011 Persephone rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved it. Historical fiction with strong women, bloody battles, sapphic love, sex, the works. Whitfield does a great job taking broad historical facts and little gems of untold stories and fleshing them out in fiction. Almost a 5, but I have a hard time with sexual violence, and there are a couple of scenes that were pretty hard for me to handle. Otherwise a fantastic read!

1 like · like · see review

Mar 24, 2009 Haylee rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who enjoyed Kushiel's Legacy or Mists of Avalon. Also afficionados of all things Rome.

Shelves: firstreads

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

Jun 07, 2009 Erin rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

This book centers around a Spartan named Lysandra, and how she is forced into slavery to fight for her life in the gladiatrix games. Personally, I could not STAND the extra verbage the author uses. He had the ability to stretch one sentence into an entire paragraph to explain one simple thing. He must have an enormous thesaurus.

I had THOUGHT that I got this book in the YA section of Barnes & Noble, but apparently not. The book has A LOT of graphic violence and sex scenes. The main character...more

1 like · like · see review

Dec 15, 2011 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book. Well-written scenes of fights, divided characters, interesting details about ancient culture (even if part of it was a pure fiction :D ) and amazingly absorbing story - which is odd, at least for me. When you start to read such book you really don't expect that the best thing in it will be plot! You take it because you want blood, sweat and hot sand under nude feet! 'Gladiatrix' provided both!
On the other hand - in middle of the book I really started to hate main cha...more

like · see review

Apr 01, 2009 Ann Schaffer rated it 3 of 5 stars

I received this book free from a Goodreads giveaway. This is a fictional story about a female gladiator back in Roman times. I do believe the author based the setting and many details on research, but took some liberties in order to tell a good story. It was quite interesting to read and learn about a new subject. I debated on how to rate this one. I felt the main character was too "spartan" and conceited. I would have liked to see her soften a bit more. A lot of her commentary reminded me of th...more

like · see review

Mar 19, 2009 Megan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Brooke

Shelves: first-reads

Overall, Gladiatrix is a quick and entertaining read. Though there is lots of action, as promised, there are also several meaningful and touching relationships.

The author has spun a good yarn, but the novel does not have the nuance of greater works. When a character feels an emotion or has a realization, it is spelled out in so many words when a more subtle treatment would add more depth. Lysandra, in particular, can entertain nothing beyond obvious black or white outcomes, and her repeated (ad...more

like · see review

May 27, 2012 Darcey rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, unfinished

I started this, and made it 45% of the way through, before I just couldn't take any more of it. The protagonist Lysandra does not engage or connect with me, and the repetition of other characters' observations about how beautiful she is, "but not yet out of her teens", how skilled a warrior she is, etc. means there's a lot of telling going on, and not enough showing. Additionally, the character is difficult to empathise with: she is a one-trick pony with her character depth. "I am a priestess of...more

1 like · like · see review

Jun 08, 2010 Kelbe Thompson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Gotta say, this book is not what I expected when I borrowed it from a friend. Main character is thankfully not a 'flawlessly tragic/kind/beautiful phenom' and is pulled off with an attitude worthy of a spartan, though at times her attitude almost makes you not want to root for her. Biggest issue with this book is the end. Going into the last couple chapters the author has 3 big conflicts coming up that you are super-excited for, then seemingly looses the will the write and kills off all three wi...more

like · see review

May 06, 2012 Ashley (Nose Graze) rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I found this book and read the plot summary, my first thought was “Holy crap! It’s like Spartacus/Gladiator for girls!” Awesome! Since Spartacus is one of my favourite TV shows and Gladiator is an epic film, I had high hopes for this book. But despite my high hopes, I was not prepared for how much I would absolutely love this book!

When going into this book, I expected the violence, the fame, and the bloodlust — all expected when you’re reading a gladiator book.. But I didn’t expect this boo...more When I found this book and read the plot summary, my first thought was “Holy crap! It’s like Spartacus/Gladiator for girls!” Awesome! Since Spartacus is one of my favourite TV shows and Gladiator is an epic film, I had high hopes for this book. But despite my high hopes, I was not prepared for how much I would absolutely love this book!

When going into this book, I expected the violence, the fame, and the bloodlust — all expected when you’re reading a gladiator book.. But I didn’t expect this book to be so full of emotion. Love, lust, rage, loss, suffering, revenge. I found myself hoping, praying, crying, and sympathizing. This book seriously yanked at my emotions! Gladiatrix is so much more than just a bloody life of a gladiator. It follows the life of a slave — with all the hurts, dreams, and losses that that entails.

I felt every betrayal, every pain, and every loss so much more potently through the words of a book. I’ve seen them on screen in Spartacus and Gladiator, but Russell Whitfield magnificently weaved the story to tug at my emotions and really make me feel for the main character — even if I was annoyed with her. I felt like everything that happened to her was happening to me.

At the beginning, I fell in love with the main character, Lysandra. I completely sympathized with her situation. She was once an honoured Spartan warrior priestess but was captured and thrown into a world of gladitorial arts and slavery. That’s obviously a huge change and something that would be extremely difficult to adapt to. So I completely understood when Lysandra lost her will to fight and felt as if she shamed her people and her priesthood.

From there, I constantly flipflopped between being annoyed with her and admiring her and sympathizing with her. She proved to be arrogant and self important. It was an interesting form of arrogance though. It’s not like she ignored everyone because she thought she was better than them. She thought she was better than them so she felt obligated to walk around saying, “I’m more knowledgeable than you so it’s my duty to help you.” So I guess it was a bit of a double edged sword. She was a little annoying, but at least she was trying to be helpful.

But on the other hand, she is incredibly knowledgeable and strong, and I LOVE that in a character. And throughout all her hardships, I found myself wanting to reach out and hug her or something.

As a bit of a warning, this book is very sexual and very violent. That could turn people away from it. As for me, I love a good sex book and I like action movies so violence doesn’t bother me. But in addition to just having sex, Gladiatrix does have some pretty vulgar scenes (rape). So keep that in mind if you’re thinking about reading the book.

But back to the subject.. I thought the romance in the book was brilliantly crafted. I fell in love with Lysandra’s relationship with her lover and every word felt so genuine and real. At first I was kind of put off by the lesbian relationship, only because I can’t really relate and I thought I’d prefer something that catered more toward my own sexual orientation.. but after a while, I didn’t care any more. I loved the relationship and I could relate to their feelings completely.

My biggest gripe with this book was the ending. There was a huge build up but I kind of felt unsatisfied and let down, though it was obvious that the main character felt the same way — she didn’t like how things ended. Now the second book, Roma Victrix, takes place four years later, so I’m concerned that I may not get the satisfying ending I wanted from Gladiatrix. But I guess I’ll just have to read the next book and find out!

Thanks for a great read, Russell Whitfield!(less)

like · see review

Oct 19, 2012 Laura rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: enjoyed

I finished reading this a while ago, but hadn't updated this apparently!!

I enjoyed this book very much... It did take a little while to get into it at first and some of the characters are hardly likable at all. But as I read further, I began to see that each of the different characters had traits that were valued or disregarded by each of there own 'kind' and that I believe this to all be part of the author's intent.

Lysandra of Sparta - for example - is so conceited at times that you almost want...more

like · see review

Apr 14, 2009 Debbie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I’ve had a soft spot for books dealing with Sparta or gladiators so this book immediately grabbed my attention. I was surprised how much I enjoyed the book despite the fact that I really did not like Lysandra. It’s rare that I find a book with a main character that gets on my nerves and yet I still enjoy the story. Lysandra’s arrogance is so above and beyond ridiculous that you can’t help but shake your head over it. Whitfield also did a great job at developing the characters of the other gladia...more

like · see review

Aug 07, 2012 Zeke Chase rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, feminist

Rating: 3.3 / 10

At first glance I should love this book. I do have a certain fondness for “historical” fiction or, more accurately, sword and sandal, which in a broad sense may or may not involve either swords or sandals. I have a particular fondness for ancient Roman sword and sandal, and I count myself lucky that Roman is very big right now. Every second book on the shelves at Chapters in the general fiction section takes place in ancient Rome.

Most of it, however, is garbage. To truly understa...more Rating: 3.3 / 10

At first glance I should love this book. I do have a certain fondness for “historical” fiction or, more accurately, sword and sandal, which in a broad sense may or may not involve either swords or sandals. I have a particular fondness for ancient Roman sword and sandal, and I count myself lucky that Roman is very big right now. Every second book on the shelves at Chapters in the general fiction section takes place in ancient Rome.

Most of it, however, is garbage. To truly understand why, check out my review of “Hannibal's Children” by John Maddox Roberts. One of the biggest problems with Roman fiction is that with such a plethora of interesting male characters to choose from – Caesar, Antony, Cicero, or some of the more elaborate, like Caligula, whom raped his own sisters, or Attila the Hun, whom ate his own sons – the women tend to be forgotten, or relegated to the sidelines where they wilt and wither away.

Here is a story of female slaves used in the arena as gladiatrices – female gladiators. For the longest time, historians doubted the existence of gladiatrices, but they're now accepted to have existed. Domitian was particularly fond of them, and without surprise, this takes place in Domitian's era.

The story follows Lysandra, a Spartan priestess for Athene shipwrecked in Turkey and forced into slavery. Trained since childhood in martial arts to glorify Athene, she becomes a natural and quick crowd favourite in Halicarnassus.

However, for all it's wonder, the story is, quite simply, boring. At least for the most part. I was captivated in the beginning, but I quickly found myself speedreading, and eventually completely uninterested in the outcome of the novel. This, I believe, is due to the prose, which is rather stilted at times, and the character development. I don't really care for any of these characters, although I did come to hate Sorina and Nastesen. Lysandra is an arrogant dunce, for the most part. Sorina is blindly tribalistic. Eirianwen's love seems to be based on physicality alone. Catovulcos doesn't know which way he's going.

The prose is quite amateurish. Apparently in Britain they're not allowed to use contractions. Sorry, they are not allowed... And nothing is left up to interpretation. Every sentence with with some breathing room is reiterated to specify exactly what Whitfield intended to say. Bad sentence structure is often countered with a re-envisioning of the same sentence again.

Readers be forewarned, this book also contains some graphic sex scenes, very few of them straight. Many of the gladiatrices are lesbian or lesbian-leaning, and Lysandra's sex scenes are described in vivid detail – nicely written I will say, and of course I have to praise Whitfield for including the anus in Lysandra and Eirienwen's, and Penelope's, sexuality. Moreover, there is a graphic rape scene about halfway through the novel, which is almost a little too gratuitous even for my taste.

I appreciate the premise, and I appreciate the exploration of themes like Amazonian feminism, rape, and Roman imperialism, but the story itself I felt bored reading. It won't get an abysmal mark from me, but I won't be reading the sequel.(less)

like · see review

title link	preview: Gladiatrix
avg rating	preview: Gladiatrix Goodreads rating: 3.48 (343 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3003222-gladiatrix?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347671990l/3003222.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3003222-gladiatrix?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Gladiatrix by Russell Whitfield[/url]

Gladiatrix (Gladiatrix #1)

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (7)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by Russell Whitfield

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Gladiatrix

Gladiatrix (Gladiatrix #1)

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

combineOther Editions (7)

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by Russell Whitfield

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Gladiatrix

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (7)