This exciting novel carries us on through the next stages in Sertorius' life. We see him right after the defeat at Arausio, the battle in which he has lived through, among very few, and several other survivors joining him, his friend, Lucius, and lover, Arrea near the town of Arelate. Among these men is Centurion Scrofa, to me one of the most unforgettable characters in Roman fiction, an erstwhile prisoner of the Cimbri, now without thumbs and feeling completely useless. He had been released and sent back to the Roman lines as an example of what fate would await for Romans should they still oppose the Cimbri. Sertorius does make it back to Marius' camp with a handful of broken POWs, after being turned away at another fort. Marius has instituted his military reforms. On Marius' orders, the freshly promoted Tribune Sertorius infiltrates the Cimbri camp, disguised as a member of an allied tribe. He proves his worth in single combat, in hunting, and breaks a wild horse even the stable master could not. Upon his return from leave in Rome to visit his family, in Massilia, he does buy a horse and a slave, Apollonius, and also notes a possible insurrection, foiling an assassination attempt. There follow several big battles, finally wiping out the Cimbri, so they are no more threat. We see the beginning of the rift between Marius and Sulla. We do meet again the man who had helped him and the POWs escape, a Lusitanian, whom I feel we'll encounter again. As the book closes, Sertorius, on his way back to Rome again tells us: "I had my life, no war to worry about, a horse and a friend alongside me"--Apollonius, now a freedman--"and a future ahead of me." We shall see how bright it will be in the next installment. I anticipate the continuation eagerly.

This story was amazing; the only thing spoiling it were a few proofing errors. There were some anachronisms: "barrel of potatoes", stirrups, which weren't used by Romans until centuries later, and, my old bugbear, some okay's. There were some wrong word choices. Among them: "alter" instead of altar, shuttered instead of shuddered; heard instead of herd, brows burrowed instead of brows furrowed--the last a favorite, making me smile. I wondered: would Sertorius have such a close relationship with his slave? The author did a marvelous job describing the various battles and the camaraderie among the men.

Highly recommended. ( )