Theoderic

by Ross Laidlaw

In 489AD a new group of barbarians entered the ravaged and shattered land of Italy. Thirteen years ago the last Roman Emperor of the West had been deposed and the Western Empire lay in ruins, a plaything for the barbarian armies that fought and rampaged across it. Within four years their leader Theoderic stood over his dying predecessor sword in hand as he gasped his last words—"Where is God?". There was little to suggest that 33 years later this man would have proved to be one of the greatest rulers Italy had ever had, a worthy heir to the Emperors he replaced. The Goth bestrode not simply Italy, but Spain, the Balkans and southern France.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Ancient

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2008

About the author

Ross Laidlaw is a Scottish writer of historical, thriller and spy fiction.

Laidlaw was born in Aberdeen and now lives in East Lothian. He attended the University of Cambridge and has spent time working and traveling in southern Africa. In 1979, while working as a geography and history teacher at Belhaven Hill School near Dunbar, Laidlaw's first book was released, The Lion is Rampant, receiving significant praise. He has since released five more books with the most recent being Justinian: The Sleepless One which was released in 2010.

Reviews

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

First published in 2008, 'Theoderic' is a novel based on the life of the Ostrogoth leader who rose to become leader of the remains of the Western Roman Empire. The author admits that, as a work of fiction, he has occasionally moved events forward or backward in the interests of the plot, whilst also adding scenes inspired by famous Hollywood moments. That aside, it makes an incredible read for the most part, with some quite morbid moments. The main let down for me was the rather pointless side plot explaining away Arthurian legends - it should have been scratched by the editor.

[Mieczyslaw Kasprzyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strongly recommended - almost a follow-on to Attila.