Review of Gods of Men, the Delian War
Posted: 26 Feb 2022, 13:07
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Gods of Men, the Delian War" by Philip Remus.]
In Gods of Men, the Delian War, Philip Remus wrote comprehensively on the ancient Greek war and the reason behind it. In the book, he discussed the two major cities of the Greeks; the Spartans and Athens. These cities were held together by a treaty made to help curb the possibility of wars between them. Both towns had different allies, which they vowed to protect. However, along the line, a war against one of the Athenian allies pushed Athens into war, and although the Spartans called for peace and reconciliation, Athens had become prepared and began various attacks against the allies of Sparta. The war had an unwanted end to it. Find out about that from the book.
The book was divided into three parts: the pre-war lifestyle, planning the war, and the war proper.
The book had a lot of positive points. The book was written with specific dates and locations to authenticate the information contained in it and to give the reader a better understanding of the war. The different parts in the book were closely linked. The flashbacks were appropriately used to show the connection between past and present events. The book was written in comprehensible English and contained very few grammatical errors. Also, there were major characters that stood out in the book, thanks to the author's detailing of their personalities. First has to be Brasidas, a strong and courageous young soldier. There was another brutal fighter named Lysander; he was described as a handsome young man with a boyish face and was admired by all. Another character I found interesting was Pericles, the king of Athens. Lastly, the king of Sparta with his ephors and wise men, including Father Tellis (Brasidas' father). The author gave out a lot of information on these characters, and they were the spine of this story; they gave life to the book.
There were some negative points in the book as well. Being that the book had an element of fiction to it, it's important to note that some of the characters were very remote and a lot wasn't said about them after their first introduction. Also, the story contained high narrative descriptions of war, violence, and plagues; those may not settle well with some readers. Also, descriptions of same-sex scenes and orgies may not sit well with some readers.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I didn't deduct more than a star because the book was written so comprehensively, and there are clear indications that the author put so much work into the book. However, I removed a star because it included many foreign languages that were not interpreted for the benefit of readers not familiar with those words. Also, it contained a lot of graphic descriptions of war and violence. The book was professionally edited. I found just two errors in it.
I recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction. Also, lovers of war and crime stories will enjoy this one. Anyone seeking to precisely understand the cause of the ancient Greek war will have a great time reading this book.
******
Gods of Men, the Delian War
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
In Gods of Men, the Delian War, Philip Remus wrote comprehensively on the ancient Greek war and the reason behind it. In the book, he discussed the two major cities of the Greeks; the Spartans and Athens. These cities were held together by a treaty made to help curb the possibility of wars between them. Both towns had different allies, which they vowed to protect. However, along the line, a war against one of the Athenian allies pushed Athens into war, and although the Spartans called for peace and reconciliation, Athens had become prepared and began various attacks against the allies of Sparta. The war had an unwanted end to it. Find out about that from the book.
The book was divided into three parts: the pre-war lifestyle, planning the war, and the war proper.
The book had a lot of positive points. The book was written with specific dates and locations to authenticate the information contained in it and to give the reader a better understanding of the war. The different parts in the book were closely linked. The flashbacks were appropriately used to show the connection between past and present events. The book was written in comprehensible English and contained very few grammatical errors. Also, there were major characters that stood out in the book, thanks to the author's detailing of their personalities. First has to be Brasidas, a strong and courageous young soldier. There was another brutal fighter named Lysander; he was described as a handsome young man with a boyish face and was admired by all. Another character I found interesting was Pericles, the king of Athens. Lastly, the king of Sparta with his ephors and wise men, including Father Tellis (Brasidas' father). The author gave out a lot of information on these characters, and they were the spine of this story; they gave life to the book.
There were some negative points in the book as well. Being that the book had an element of fiction to it, it's important to note that some of the characters were very remote and a lot wasn't said about them after their first introduction. Also, the story contained high narrative descriptions of war, violence, and plagues; those may not settle well with some readers. Also, descriptions of same-sex scenes and orgies may not sit well with some readers.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I didn't deduct more than a star because the book was written so comprehensively, and there are clear indications that the author put so much work into the book. However, I removed a star because it included many foreign languages that were not interpreted for the benefit of readers not familiar with those words. Also, it contained a lot of graphic descriptions of war and violence. The book was professionally edited. I found just two errors in it.
I recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction. Also, lovers of war and crime stories will enjoy this one. Anyone seeking to precisely understand the cause of the ancient Greek war will have a great time reading this book.
******
Gods of Men, the Delian War
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon