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Spartan cover art

Spartan

By: Valerio Massimo Manfredi
Narrated by: Derek Jacobi
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Summary

This is the saga of a Spartan family, torn apart by a cruel law that forces them to abandon one of their two sons, born lame, to the elements. The elder son, Brithos, is raised in the caste of the warriors, while the other, Talos, is spared a cruel death and is raised by a Helot shepherd, among the peasants.

They live out their story in a world dominated by the clash between the Persian empire and the city-states of Greece, a ferocious, relentless conflict, until the voice of their blood and of human solidarity unites them in a thrilling, singular enterprise.
©2002 Valerio Massimo Manfredi (P)2002 Macmillan Publishers Ltd
Thriller & Suspense Historical
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Critic reviews

"Italian archaeologist and novelist Manfredi has crafted another compelling saga set in ancient Greece....Plenty of action, passion, and drama underscore this authentically detailed historical adventure." ( Booklist)

What listeners say about Spartan

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Profile Image for P. E. Haynes

Excellent - particularly the narration

(I rarely give 5 stars; a good, decent book deserves 3 as standard)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a good story, with a decent pace and no obvious gaps from being an abridged version (though I've never read the full book so I might have missed something!)

Much of the story is from the position of the helots, the servant/ slave class that supported the Spartans. But don't let that fool you - it's a great story covering the famous battle of the 300, but more interestingly, the aftermath of that battle.

The story was really brought to life by the excellent narration - I can't praise Jacobi enough. It really highlighted just how good an audiobook can be if the narrator is top class, which Derek Jacobi is.

A good, well-paced, brilliantly read story!

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