Tyrant

Historic fiction gives you a flavour of what it might have been like 'back then'. You don't expect it to be perfectly accurate in everything but the the big landmarks, the big events and people. The gaps in our knowledge are filled in with the author's intuition and imagination. And for me, Manfredi does a great job. Let's not forget that he is Professor of Classical Archaelogy too -- so, despite being a popularizer, he is basing his works on a fairly solid grasp of the history.

Some people might find the translation (he's Italian and wrote the book in Italian) a little clumsy, the dialogue at times a bit cheesy and unlikely, or the scenes a little over dramatic -- and if you are fussy like that... try something drier, you are welcome to it.

For the general reader, this is a great yarn, a welcome distraction from the mundane existence of 21st century living and an opportunity to learn something of a time about which most of us know nothing. I enjoyed it, as I have his other books.

Manfredi fans will also enjoy books by Stephen Pressfield, such as "Gates of Fire" and "Last of the Amazons" -- Pressfield writes in English and his battle scenes are gut-wrenchingly gripping.


Thought Provoking with Interesting Characters   December 30, 2005
 2 out of 4 found this review helpful

Great. This book kept me interested and had some concrete insights into why dreams die with the dreamer. In the case of the Tyrant of Syracuse, the father, because of who he was had no worthy son to carry on his dream. Because of this development (reminded me of the portrayal of the weak son of Edward from Braveheart), the Tyrant was pressured to act in ways that might otherwise be hard to understand. This book proposes a believable psyche that helps explain this beautiful nugget of history and the incredible mixture of triumph and frustration that followed the King of Syracuse. The only two items I would have enjoyed had they been present was a bit more detail on the arms, weaponry, and tactics - they were covered well but my personal likes lean more toward greater detail. I also would have liked some more insight into the Tyrants literary efforts - I cannot find a translation of the work of this warrior-poet-king.


Good, but not great.   August 19, 2005
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

After reading the Alexander trilogy I was expecting the same high standards but it never quite lived up to my expectations. The story of Dionysius and his rise to power in Sicily is facinating. He has taken a subject of some complexity and crammed it into one book. This makes the storyline feel rushed at times and the ending was disappointing due to its abruptness. Never the less, it is still an enjoyable read and worth buying. It is good, but not great and far from his best.