Book description
Herodotus tells us that not all of the three hundred Spartan warriors
died at the hands of Xerxes, King of the Persians, in the battle of the
Thermopylae: two were saved bringing a life-saving message back to the
city... This is the saga of a Spartan family, torn apart by a cruel law
that forces them to abandon one of their two sons - born lame - to the
elements. The elder son, Brithos, is raised in the caste of the
warriors, while the other, Talos, is spared a cruel death and is raised
by a Helot shepherd, among the peasants. They live out their story in a
world dominated by the clash between the Persian empire and the
city-states of Greece - a ferocious, relentless conflict - until the
voice of their blood and of human solidarity unites them in a thrilling,
singular enterprise
Valerio Massimo Manfredi is professor of classical archaeology at
Luigi Bocconi University in Milan. He has published nine works of
fiction, including the bestselling Spartan and The Last
Legion. The Alexander trilogy has been translated into 24
languages in 38 countries. He has written and hosted documentaries on
the ancient world, and has written screenplays for cinema and
television.
