What do you think?
Rate this book
Wrath of the Furies
The new magistrate of Justitia has a difficult task before him. Rome is a bed of deceit and murder and with the Emperor travelling the empire, it falls to him to keep order. However, with a highly skilled assassin slaughtering members of Rome's elite and a mysterious organisation plotting to take power in the Emperor's absence, the magistrate will face constant danger. Magistrate Lucius Magro Decius must learn the ways of Rome with all hast or find himself bleeding in the dirt.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
251 pages, Paperback
First published February 4, 2014
About the author
Robert Southworth
15 books30 followersI was born and raised in a small village in the midlands of England. I have enjoyed a varied working life, from my first job as a box boy at a hosiery firm to senior team for a retail company. In between, I have been a soldier, engineer and sole trader. I started writing professionally late in life but was lucky enough to have my first novel accepted by a traditional publisher. After, looking at the publishing trade in general, I decided that I prefer to have control over all aspects of the creative process. However, if the right offer came along, then I am of course open to discussions. Seven further novels completed and I am delighted with that decision.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 2, 2014
Highly entertaining and well-written book. I read half of the ebook and the whole audiobook and really enjoyed it. I'd recommend both formats to readers looking for a good way to pass the time - if you like Roman fiction but fancy something a little different from the usual blood-and-thunder then this should be up your alley!
March 5, 2014
another great story from Rob. if you've read his other books you won't be disappointed ;)
March 9, 2017
‘Wrath of The Furies’ is a fast-paced, crime thriller full of deceit, corruption and bloody murders set in the time of the Emperor Hadrian.
Newly-appointed special Magistrate Lucius Magro Decius, ably assisted by seasoned former-Centurion Bako, finds himself exploring the grand villas, back-alleys and dark cellars of ancient Rome as he tries to piece together the mystery surrounding the massacre of the fabled IX Legion and the involvement of a secretive organisation of Rome’s rich and powerful elite plotting to seize power; with a skilled assassin always seemingly one step ahead of him.
With well-drawn, believable characters and a descriptive sense of both period and place, this is a thoroughly enjoyable novel which sets the scene for what, I hope, will be an on-going series to rival the author’s ‘Spartacus Chronicles’.
Newly-appointed special Magistrate Lucius Magro Decius, ably assisted by seasoned former-Centurion Bako, finds himself exploring the grand villas, back-alleys and dark cellars of ancient Rome as he tries to piece together the mystery surrounding the massacre of the fabled IX Legion and the involvement of a secretive organisation of Rome’s rich and powerful elite plotting to seize power; with a skilled assassin always seemingly one step ahead of him.
With well-drawn, believable characters and a descriptive sense of both period and place, this is a thoroughly enjoyable novel which sets the scene for what, I hope, will be an on-going series to rival the author’s ‘Spartacus Chronicles’.
February 19, 2018
Powerful men will do whatever it takes to maintain or increase their power – even if it destroys an entire Legion. Wrath of the Furies follows the exploits of a newly appointed magistrate; charged by Hadrian to administer justice to all segments of Roman society, no matter how rich or poor. Lucius is not a brave man, nor is he a powerful one, but he does possess the intelligence and perseverance to succeed. A fast paced mystery awaits the reader as Lucius and his crew struggle to identify the man or men responsible for the destruction of the legion while a brutal killer hunts the same men. A tale paved with frustrating stops and starts for the investigators; twists and turns in the plot, surprises galore and an exciting, climatic conclusion. I look forward to the sequel. 4.3 stars
September 23, 2020
Well worth reading
I enjoyed the plot line and the character building and look forward to the sequel/s. However my enjoyment and the flow of the book was tempered by the many typo and grammatical errors. Better proofreading would have greatly improved my enjoyment. For that reason 4 stars
I enjoyed the plot line and the character building and look forward to the sequel/s. However my enjoyment and the flow of the book was tempered by the many typo and grammatical errors. Better proofreading would have greatly improved my enjoyment. For that reason 4 stars
October 5, 2016
Wrath of the Furies is another in Robert Southworth's books about Rome. It is entirely separate from the Spartacus series, but readers will recognise certain common themes. In particular there is the casual and ingrained cruelty of the society, and the stubborn attempts of a few individuals to live contrary to the prevailing trend.
Where this book distinguishes itself from the others is in its exploration of moral dilemmas. Is it right to exact revenge for one appalling betrayal by means of such systematic brutality? In a modern world, surely not, but for the individuals caught up in this vision of ancient Rome, it seems that there is no other way to find justice.
The story unwinds by way of gradual revelation. The reader shares this alongside the main protagonists, who have been charged with upholding the rule of law in Rome. For a culture used simply to employing whatever level of force is necessary to secure a desired goal, considerations of morality and natural justice are alien.
As with Robert's other Roman books, the level of violence is rather higher than my normal preference. To offset that, the progressive nature of the investigation absolutely held my interest.
It's a different spin on Rome, keeping away from the marching of armies and the infighting of the imperial succession in order to focus on the intricacies of a single case. It works on a smaller scale than Spartacus, but evidently springs out of the same vision.
The version I read had suffered from very erratic proof reading, but I understand that this is intended to be corrected before long. That done, future readers will be able to enjoy this book without tripping over words here and there.
Where this book distinguishes itself from the others is in its exploration of moral dilemmas. Is it right to exact revenge for one appalling betrayal by means of such systematic brutality? In a modern world, surely not, but for the individuals caught up in this vision of ancient Rome, it seems that there is no other way to find justice.
The story unwinds by way of gradual revelation. The reader shares this alongside the main protagonists, who have been charged with upholding the rule of law in Rome. For a culture used simply to employing whatever level of force is necessary to secure a desired goal, considerations of morality and natural justice are alien.
As with Robert's other Roman books, the level of violence is rather higher than my normal preference. To offset that, the progressive nature of the investigation absolutely held my interest.
It's a different spin on Rome, keeping away from the marching of armies and the infighting of the imperial succession in order to focus on the intricacies of a single case. It works on a smaller scale than Spartacus, but evidently springs out of the same vision.
The version I read had suffered from very erratic proof reading, but I understand that this is intended to be corrected before long. That done, future readers will be able to enjoy this book without tripping over words here and there.
May 21, 2016
I was warned that this story is quite violent; however, having read Robert Southworth’s Spartacus series and The Reaper’s Breath, I wasn’t too worried.
Wrath of The Furies is written in a similar style to the Spartacus stories in that it is takes place in Rome at the time of the Emperor Hadrian. I admit I don’t know much about the Emperors of Rome and this book humanises Hadrian in an interesting way.
This is very much a crime novel, albeit crimes in true Roman and often horrific ways but the descriptions do not dwell, so that the reader knows what’s happened but is not made to feel bloodsoaked but wants to read on to find out what will happen next. The biggest clue to the identity of the main perpetrator is that he leaves lots of dead ‘bugs’ on the corpses. The main investigator, is Lucius, newly appointed Justitia Magistrate and he is aided by an old ex-gladiator, Beko who, to me was so reminiscent of Spartacus that is was almost like being reunited with an old friend.
The story moves continually – no room for boredom here – the author obviously has good knowledge of the ways of Ancient Rome, their methods of fighting and dealing death and the false ‘friendships’ of those in high up society, all in the name of power and wealth (nothing changes in human nature really) on a large, opulent scale.
I found this to be a riveting story and I read it very quickly, in a few days. Highly recommended.
Wrath of The Furies is written in a similar style to the Spartacus stories in that it is takes place in Rome at the time of the Emperor Hadrian. I admit I don’t know much about the Emperors of Rome and this book humanises Hadrian in an interesting way.
This is very much a crime novel, albeit crimes in true Roman and often horrific ways but the descriptions do not dwell, so that the reader knows what’s happened but is not made to feel bloodsoaked but wants to read on to find out what will happen next. The biggest clue to the identity of the main perpetrator is that he leaves lots of dead ‘bugs’ on the corpses. The main investigator, is Lucius, newly appointed Justitia Magistrate and he is aided by an old ex-gladiator, Beko who, to me was so reminiscent of Spartacus that is was almost like being reunited with an old friend.
The story moves continually – no room for boredom here – the author obviously has good knowledge of the ways of Ancient Rome, their methods of fighting and dealing death and the false ‘friendships’ of those in high up society, all in the name of power and wealth (nothing changes in human nature really) on a large, opulent scale.
I found this to be a riveting story and I read it very quickly, in a few days. Highly recommended.
August 30, 2014
Lovely story. I contacted the author about the editing issue apparently he was using whitesmoke and it did damage to his manuscript. So i downloaded it again and was worth the wait. Realistic characters based in a fine plot what more can a reader ask for.
May 7, 2014
Dreadful! Read at your own risk! The blurb made it sound fantastic, but it didn't live up to its promise. Proofreading errors galore.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews