Sword of Rome: The Complete Campaigns

Sword of Rome #1-5

by Richard Foreman

The best-selling Sword of Rome novellas are collected together for the first time in one epic collection. The Sword of Rome series of novellas follow Julius Caesar and his centurion Lucius Oppius during their campaigns in Britain, Gaul and the Civil War. The stories are a blend of action, intrigue and Ancient History. 'Sword of The Complete Campaigns' 'Sword of Standard Bearer'. Britain, 55 BC. Julius Caesar's invasion of the wild and mineral-rich land is becalmed, a stalemate exists between the forces of Rome and Britain. But the standard bearer of the Tenth Legion, Lucius Oppius, is about to display a depth of courage that will change the course of the invasion. 'Sword of Alesia'. Alesia, 52BC. Caesar's army stands upon the brink of annihilation, caught between two enemy armies. Oppius is ordered to venture north of Alesia to capture Vercingetorix's war chest of gold. He will be accompanied in his mission by one of Caesar's agents, the beguiling Livia - the centurion's former lover. As Caesar and Mark Antony face a battle for their lives outside the walls of Alesia, Oppius will have to fight against the odds to find and secure the gold. Yet will completing the mission exact too high a price? 'Sword of Gladiator'. Rome, 51BC. Lucius Oppius has left the battlefields of Gaul to venture to Rome. But he is about to discover the capital of the Empire can be every bit as dangerous as its provinces. Under orders from Caesar to secure an item of intelligence that will help him become a Consul again Oppius is manipulated into taking part in a gladiatorial contest. Oppius soon discovers that while in Gaul your the enemies stand before you in a shield wall in Rome they stab you in the back... 'Sword of Rubicon'. Ravenna, 50BC. Caesar's forces stand upon the borders of Gaul and Italy. The prospect of a civil war grows ever likelier each day. In Rome, Cicero attempts to secure a peace. Against him, a powerful faction in the Senate is bent upon destroying Caesar, for personal and political reasons. War hinges upon the will of Pompey, the only man capable of stopping Caesar. Caesar stands upon the banks of the Rubicon, an enemy of the state. The die is cast. An empire will now be at war, spearheaded by the two great men of the age... 'Sword of Pharsalus'. Pharsalus, 48BC. The battle will decide the fate of a civil war and empire. Caesar's forces are outnumbered, but he believes his veterans will not be outmatched. For one veteran, Lucius Oppius, the battle will be about revenge rather than glory. Oppius has vowed to avenge his father's death. His enemy is Flavius Laco - a former gladiator and an agent of Pompey the Great. Against the backdrop of one of Ancient History's most momentous battles two soldiers will wage their own personal war... Caesar, Pompey, Mark Antony, Brutus and Cicero all feature in the climax to the bestselling Sword of Rome series. Richard Foreman's books have been widely praised. Praise for ' Son of Rome'. ' Son of Rome forges action and adventure with politics and philosophy. This superb story is drenched in both blood and wisdom - and puts Foreman on the map as the coming man of historical fiction'. - Saul David, Author of the Zulu Hart series. Praise for ' The Complete Innings'. "Classy, humorous and surprisingly touching tales of cricket, friendship and crime." - David Blackburn, The Spectator.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Roman

318 pages, Paperback

First published July 30, 2013

About the author

Richard Foreman is the author of numerous best-selling Kindle books, including Augustus: Son of Rome and the Sword of Rome series of novellas which follow Julius Caesar and his centurion Lucius Oppius during their campaigns in Britain, Gaul and the Civil War. The stories are a blend of action, intrigue and Ancient History.

He is also the author of Warsaw, a literary novel set during the end of the Second World War, and the historical novel A Hero of Our Time, as well as the Raffles series of historical crime novellas.

His latest novel, Band of Brothers: The Game's Afoot, is a story is action, intrigue and historical insight set in medieval times.

He has worked as a literary consultant and publicist to a number of bestselling authors, including Tom Holland, Conn Iggulden and Simon Scarrow. He is now a publishing director at Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books, with his business partner Matthew Lynn.

He lives in London.

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action, history and a damn great read !

The author is obviously very talented and knowledgeable. What I like is the use of details in actual historical events and those persons who were actually involved. What also impresses me is the knowledgeable manner in which the authors describes weapons, strategies and troop formations for that time period. Also, after the conclusion of the story the author takes the time to explain where further information may be found about Rome, it’s wars, battles and weaponry. Caesar’s actual crossing of the Rubicon into Italy was pivotal, bold and symbolic but was rather mundane in actuality. The authors version was quite plausible and the battle was both gripping and the action well described. I just love the authors writing style !

[Gordon Lawrence · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very poor.
Badly written with very poor action scenes.
Ridiculous use of quotations from Shakespeare and other writers.
Characterisation very limited and cliched.
I cannot understand why people rate this highly. What ratings would people give good writers like Scarrow and Cornwell if they give this rubbish five stars?

[Paul Cookson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced and interesting

If you like your fiction with a historic Roman story, this is pretty good. A number if shortish stories making a really good read. There are better stories about ancient Rome around the time of Julius Caesar, but this is a darn fine effort and well worth a read

[Daisy Popper · Rating 2 out of 5]

An ok read

Subject matter was the factor in choosing this book however it was seriously repetitious and predictable in its character progression. The battle scenes of combat were poorly constructed however it’s an ok read on a wet Sunday afternoon

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

to short

enjoyed this book but would have liked more details both in characters and history a a a a a a

[Sean Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

[David Elkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cast the die

A great tour of the late republic with action, humor and pathos. Characters are real and the history well told.

[Brian Seare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Triumphant

Another excellent story which you cannot put down.It is the battle which confirmed Caesar his wish for his way that Rome should be governed.

[Steve Withers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light

Quick moving, but overall very light in development. A good way to access a brief history of the end of the Roman republic. Just remember though that this is fiction based on history

[Guy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this series of Novellas. As a previous reviewer mentioned, I thought the lines of Shakespeare and others being quoted did not sit too well with me, along with other anachronisms. Having said that, I loved the pace and the stories really engaged me.

I shall certain read the follow up novel, Augustus: Son of Caesar. I do hope that the series is completed fully as I enjoyed the stories so much and have become interested in Oppius and his future.

Recommend .

[Haydn Pope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner!

Richard Foreman is one of the best writers, as far as I'm concerned, of Roman army fiction, about soldiers, fighting, hard drinking and whoring. But in this novel we learn something else, there is sensitivity, friendliness, rather than comrades, and horror upon horror someone considered marriage! Well worth investing in.

[Rowan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sword of Rome is mediocre at best. Once you look past the missing punctuation, awkward sentence structure, and spelling mistakes, you’ll find that the story’s only redeeming quality is the historical setting.

[AZ B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Secara umum, cerita yang disajikan cukup menarik. Tetapi, tidak sesuai ekspektasi. Harapannya, cerita banyak membahas konflik baik itu perang maupun diplomatik, tetapi pada buku ni lebih membahas hubungan personal antar tokoh. Konfliknya hanya sebagai sampingan saja.

[Jeff Parry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard Work

I found this collection very hard work. It is poorly written and spoilt by some odd syntax and quotes from Shakespeare, Napoleon and several others. There is little character development and, in a crowded field of better writers dealing with this period, you just feel that others have done it much better.

[[ J o ]]

Read the first book in the Sword of Rome series, Standard Bearer. 1 Star, therefore will not continue with the series.