Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Rebellion by Simon Scarrow. My thanks to Poppy and Sophie at Ransom PR for inviting me to take part in the tour and to Headline for my review copy.
Simon will be appearing at a number of in person events in the coming weeks:
About the Book
AD 60. Britannia is in turmoil. The rebel leader Boudica has tasted victory, against a force of tough veterans in Camulodunum.
Alerted to the rapidly spreading uprising, Governor Suetonius leads his army towards endangered Londinium with a mounted escort, led by Prefect Cato. Soon it’s terrifyingly clear that Britannia is slipping into chaos and panic, with ever more tribal warriors swelling Boudica’s ranks. And Cato and Suetonius are grimly aware that little preparation has been made to withstand a full-scale rebellion.
In Londinium there is devastating news. Centurion Macro is amongst those unaccounted for after the massacre at Camulodunum. Has Cato’s comrade and friend made his last stand?
Facing disaster, Cato prepares his next move. Dare he hope that Macro – battle-scarred and fearless – has escaped the bloodthirsty rebels? For there is only one man Cato trusts by his side as he faces the military campaign of his life. And the future of the Empire in Britannia hangs in the balance.
Format: Hardback (416 pages) Publisher: Headline
Publication date: 9th November 2023 Genre: Historical Fiction
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My Review
Rebellion is the 22nd novel in Simon Scarrow’s ‘Eagles of the Empire’ series. It’s a series I only discovered when I read the previous book, Death to the Emperor, which I absolutely loved. Obviously, ideally one would read the series from the beginning but don’t be put off if, like me, you’re new to it because Rebellion can be enjoyed as a standalone given there is plenty of information about previous events. I particularly liked the inclusion of a cast list which contains some witty pen pictures of individual characters, my favourite being ‘Tongdubnus, an Iceni warrior, but a poor swimmer’. There’s also a map which is helpful in understanding the distance between locations featured in the book and a diagram illustrating the chain of command in the Roman army which I found incredibly useful.
The events in Rebellion carry on directly from the closing chapters of the previous book. As it opens, friends and comrades Macro and Cato find themselves separated. In fact, neither knows if the other is still alive. Cato, in particular, fears Macro may have perished in the deadly attack on Camulodunum by the rebel tribes led by Boudicca. (I don’t think it’s giving too much away to say that Cato and, more particularly, Macro have history with Boudicca.)
Bound together more by their hatred of Rome than anything else, the rebel tribes take brutal and bloody revenge on the Roman settlements they pass through. Whipped up into a religious frenzy by their Druids, their treatment of prisoners is especially cruel and merciless. Those who are squeamish may wish to skip a couple of the scenes.
As you’d expect, the book has many exciting set pieces, including a gladitorial style one-on-one contest, the doughty defence of a building against an attack by looters and a Roman cavalry charge. ‘Then the passage of time, which seemed to have slowed moments before, suddenly came on in a rush as the leading squadron ploughed in amongst the rebels with a thud of horseflesh on shields, flesh on flesh and the clatter of weapons and the sharp whinnying cries of horses as they knocked men down…’
But there are also tender moments, involving both reunions and partings. And you can always rely on Macro to provide some pithy humour, here describing his wife Petronella. ‘The best woman in the Empire. Brave as a lion, tough as a first spear centurion, and she throws a right hook that would knock a professional boxer on his arse. She can hold her drink and she’s a wildcat in the sack.’
Both sides know there will be a final reckoning. And Cato and Macro are under no illusion as to what they face. ‘We’re outnumbered, and the fate of the province hangs by a thread… This won’t be a battle where a smart manoeuvre wins the day. It’s going to be a long, hard fight with victory for whichever side has the stomach to outlast the other.’
If you like your historical fiction fast and furious, populated with vividly drawn characters and full of authentic period detail, then you will love Rebellion.
In three words: Action-packed, authentic, gripping
Try something similar: The Wall by Adrian Goldsworthy
About the Author
Simon Scarrow is a Sunday Times No. 1 bestselling author with several million copies of his books sold worldwide. After a childhood spent travelling the world, he pursued his great love of history as a teacher, before becoming a full-time writer. His Roman soldier heroes Cato and Macro made their debut in 2000 in Under the Eagle and have subsequently appeared in many bestsellers in the Eagles of the Empire series, including Centurion, Invictus and Day of the Caesars. Many of the series have been Sunday Times bestsellers.
Simon is also the author of a quartet of novels about the lives of the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte – Young Bloods, The Generals, Fire and Sword and The Fields of Death; a novel about the 1565 Siege of Malta, Sword & Scimitar; Hearts of Stone, set in Greece during the Second World War; and Playing With Death, a contemporary thriller written with Lee Francis. He also wrote the novels Arena and Invader with T. J. Andrews. His first Berlin thriller, Blackout, set in WW2 Berlin and first published in 2021 was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick with Dead of Night following to critical acclaim earlier in 2023. Simon lives in Norfolk
Connect with Simon
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