"Monumental in scale and rich in intimately portrayed characters.”

     In this thrilling and panoramic historical novel we see one of the most  storied uprisings of classical times from multiple points of view:  Spartacus, the visionary captive and gladiator whose toughness and  charisma turn a prison break into a multi-cultural revolt that threatens  an empire; his consort, the oracular Astera, whose connection to the  spirit world and its omens guides the uprising’s progress; Nonus, a  Roman soldier working both sides of the conflict in a half-adroit,  half-desperate attempt to save his life; Laelia and Hustus, two shepherd  children drawn into the ranks of the slave rebellion; Kaleb, the slave  secretary to Crassus, the Roman senator and commander saddled with the  unenviable task of quashing an insurrection of mere slaves; and other  players in a vast spectacle of bloodshed, heroism, and treachery.

     In the pages of The Risen—the  term the slaves in revolt have adopted for themselves—an entire,  teeming world comes into view with great clarity and titanic drama, with  nothing less than the future of the ancient world at stake. No one  brings more verve, intelligence, and freshness to the novel of the  classical age than David Anthony Durham.