The Hill of the Dead

The Gladiator/The Eagles #1

by Andrew Quiller

'The man screamed as the blade caught him at the centre of the delicate knee joint, slicing through skin and flesh, cracking the bones, and hacking the cartilage apart. 'Rome A.D. 81. The screams of his admirers echo across the crowded Colosseum as the gladiator Vulpus brings another opponent to the point of death. Wounds gape, blood seeps into the burning sand and the mob howls for the kill. Vulpus raises his sword. And freezes. For the man before him is no stranger. And the gladiator's thoughts turn inwards, back eight years to the sun-baked hill fortress of fearful repute. Back to Masada . .The Hill of the Dead is the first adventure of THE EAGLES, a sensational new series set in the savage days of Imperial Rome.

Genres: Historical Fiction

128 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Pen name of Kenneth Bulmer and Laurence James.

Reviews

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is short and to the point. Quiller is a pen name for several authors including Kenneth Bulmer, which is why I read it. The book begins in the middle of the games with the main event being Vulpus fighting a Jew to the death. About to strike the killing blow, he recognizes his adversary. The next half of the book is devoted to Vulpus' recollection of how he met Samuel ben Ezra. The end of the book brings us back to reality and to the question of whether Vulpus will kill his friend or not. I thought the concept of the bulk of the story taking place within the main characters mind interesting and novel. Essentially the story takes place in a short amount of time, say an hour, perhaps less. While the story is not 'graphic' it is violent with minor sexuality. The sorts of things that you would expect from such a tale given the subject. I enjoyed it immensely and look forward to the other five in the series.

[Leonard Mokos]

Perfect hammock read. Plenty of killing with the sword.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this is actually just "Hill of the Dead." This is a series about a British warrior who becomes a Roman Gladiator. This is quite a good series with a lot of action and bloodshed. I first began getting these because some of them were written by Ken Bulmer. However, I thought most of these books were quite enjoyable.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book I read and re-read as a kid. In hind-sight I think not a great book, but certainly an entertaining read. You will not be a better person for having read this one.