Tagged: marcus
The IX by Andrew P. Weston
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
Soldiers from varying eras and vastly different backgrounds, including the IX Legion of Rome, are snatched away from Earth at the moment of their passing, and transported to the far side of the galaxy. Thinking they have been granted a reprieve, their relief turns to horror when they discover they face a stark ultimatum:
Fight or die.
[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook copy in conjunction with the blog tour in exchange for an honest review.]
One of the things that Roman historians and various scholars debate is what happened to the Ninth Legion. One day they were flushing out rebellious tribes in Caledonia and the next they’ve vanished into thin air. Logic would point to their disappearance being caused by a total massacre of the legion and yet no bones have been found. So what happened to them? Well, Andrew P. Weston attempts his own little explanation for their disappearance as well as other mysterious warrior disappearances throughout the history of warfare.
While Marcus from the Ninth Legion is one of the characters and the book is called The IX, he’s not the main character. Instead, Weston chose to follow around 3 distinct voices. Their stories start when they were all ambushed and things get really interesting when they think they’ve been killed in action only to wake up and be told by extremely tall people that they now have to save an entire ancient civilization. That really threw me for a loop because the stark ultimatum they find, ‘fight or die’, made me think that we’d be in for a gladiator show. And that’s really the opposite of what happens. Marcus and the others, including some of the tribesmen that killed him and his compatriots have to work together to protect the remnants of an ancient civilization from the mysterious Horde. I can’t go into too much detail or I’ll spoil all of your fun, but needless to say that the Horde is not what it seems.
One of the greatest strengths of Weston’s writing is how much he thought out his world. He has created an amazing scientific world where science and history combine to great effect. The only real problem with this world is how we see it. We see it through the eyes of various peoples, including the people that brought Marcus and the others there but at the same time much of the language is very technical. You see, in order to fully appreciate Weston’s world I think you have to be a fan of hardcore science fiction. That’s fine, but I’m generally not a fan of that so I found a lot of the technical explanations either confusing or boring. But at the same time I think even fans of hardcore science fiction would get bored by some of the monologue explanations for how this or that works. If Weston had cut down a little on the explanations I also think the narrative would have flowed better. It was okay as it was, but it still could have been improved.
Overall, The IX is something I’d recommend to hardcore science fiction lovers who happen to know a little history. Even if you don’t know a little Roman history, you’ll still appreciate and enjoy all of the effort Weston put into creating his world. Because of that, although this book is quite long by most standards, it will quickly be a page-turner you don’t want to put down.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
Echo Prophecy by Lindsey Fairleigh
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(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
Discover what’s hidden–a powerful, mythic race, an ancient Egyptian prophecy, and a love strong enough to shatter the boundaries of time.
Alexandra Larson isn’t human…but she doesn’t know that. As far as Lex is concerned, she’s simply an ambitious and independent archaeology grad student with a knack for deciphering ancient languages, especially the various forms of Egyptian. When she’s recruited to work on her dream excavation, her translating skills uncover the secret entrance to an underground Egyptian temple concealed within Djeser-Djeseru–the famous mortuary temple of Queen Hatchepsut. Lex is beyond thrilled by her discovery…as is the enigmatic and alluring excavation director, Marcus Bahur.
As the relationship between Lex and Marcus heats up, a series of shocking revelations leave the young archaeologist reeling. Once Lex discovers the truth of her ancient Egyptian roots–the truth of her more-than-human nature–the people she trusts most make one final, terrifying revelation: Lex is the central figure of a four-thousand-year-old prophecy. She is the only thing standing between the power to alter the very fabric of time and an evil megalomaniac…who also happens to be her father. As events set in motion over four millennia ago lead Lex and Marcus from Seattle to the heart of Egypt, the fate of mankind depends on one thing: the strength of Lex’s love.
[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]
As you guys all know, I’m an ancient Egypt fanatic. There’s just something about ancient Egypt that appeals to me, so it was pretty much a guarantee I’d pick up this book and at least give it a try. So did Echo Prophecy measure up to my expectations?
Absolutely! Lindsey Fairleigh knows far more about ancient Egyptian mythology, culture and language than I ever could have hoped for. She actually knows something about how hieroglyphs are translated and that there isn’t only one form of Egyptian (i.e. Middle Egyptian is an entirely different animal from New Kingdom Egyptian). I very nearly fainted when she actually used the properly translated names of the Egyptian gods like Heru, Aset and Set instead of the more commonly used Greek translations like Horus, Isis and Seth. I was just blown away by the way she incorporated the Egyptian mythology into the story and used it to create a believable explanation for the Egyptian gods.
As for the characters, I loved Lex. She was believable because not only does she react like a normal person would to finding out about a whole secret race, she is also flawed. Throughout the story she seems pretty unsure of herself until she gradually grows more and more confident. It’s a natural progression and I love Lindsey Fairleigh for doing it that way rather than having her accept everything all at once. Marcus was also a great character and I found that his actions were very well explained by his major secret. I don’t want to give too much away, but let’s just say that obviously Marcus isn’t everything he appears to be.
In the beginning the plot is pretty slow. That didn’t really bother me because it let me get my bearings for a little bit as Lex’s dreams became more and more frequent. But Lindsey Fairleigh didn’t dawdle for too long because soon everything was happening at once and Lex’s world changed completely. Despite the insanely fast pacing at some points, I never felt like the character development was forgotten. Even in the moments where there was huge suspense, everyone grew as a character either through their actions, words or when more backstory was revealed.
Even if you aren’t the biggest ancient Egyptian fan, I highly recommend Echo Prophecy. It’s a well-written, fast-paced novel with just enough romantic tension to keep the slow parts interesting. I can’t wait for the next book to see how Lindsey Fairleigh handles that huge cliffhanger she left at the end.
I give this book 5/5 stars.