Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ditto, 26 Feb 2008
Have to agree with the previous review, and the book synopsis makes things clear.
Just wanted to add that I was reading this book at lunch today, wandered back to my office, still reading it, and then had to keep picking it up and reading a paragraph when I could.
Love books on Greek history, especially in the time of Alexander the Great, and this is well-written and well-researched and the hero, Kineas, is very likeable.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Plenty of Action in this Book, 17 Jan 2008
Christian Cameron is a former US Naval Intelligence officer and the co-author, with his father, Ken Cameron, of the acclaimed Gordon Kent military thriller series. He has also written Washington and Caesar, a novel of the American Revolution. He lives with his family in Toronto.
For me, this is another new author, hardly surprising as he has only written one other novel by himself. The previous one Washington and Caesar as I said above is about the American Revolution, not a subject I would read by choice but this books is a different proposition entirely Cover a period and a subject much more to my liking.
The synopsis is there for all to see, so no additional information from me is required, apart from my own opinion of the book. I thought it was an enjoyable read. The author kept the story flowing smoothly and there was lots of action and excitement and the author has taken the trouble to research the period well. I may be slightly biased in my opinion, because as I have already said the subject matter is one that I enjoy but I do not think anyone who wanted to buy this book would be disappointed in it.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good but not great, 30 April 2008
Tyrant, the solo fictional debut of Christian Cameron, who with his father writes naval thrillers under the nom de plume of Gordon Kent, is a pretty handy addition to a genre I can best describe as pre-Christian historical military fiction. Fans of the likes of Conn Iggulden's Emperor series, Simon Scarrow's Eagle series or Steven Pressfield's work are likely to enjoy Cameron's tale of Greek mercenaries, fresh from Alexander the Great's campaigns, fighting against impossible odds on the plains of what is now the Russian caucasus. Certainly both the setting and the cast of characters (the latter a mix of Greeks, western European mercenaries and local tribesmen) feel fresh, the historical details feel accurate and for the most part there is enough action to sustain a sense of excitement.
Good though the book for the most part is however, it is by no means perfect. For a start it felt longer than its 400 pages, and at certain points I found it hard to sustain interest in it. This is mostly due to pacing issues during the third quarter of the book where the reader, like the characters, is left waiting for something to happen. Tightening up the narrative and getting rid of some of the flabbier bits of the book would not have gone amiss.
Speaking of flab, my other major gripe is that as the book progresses at times it increasingly veers towards the prentensious. Not only did I find the repeated 'dreams' experienced by Kineas, the central character, an increasingly wearisome plot device, but some of the authors' descriptions of people, places and events tended towards the overly florid and excessive at times.
Despite all this when the action get's going Tyrant remains an enjoyable read. Intended as the first in a series I will be interested to see where Cameron takes Kineas and the other characters he has introduced here. If he or his editors can correct the weaker elements on display in this first book then this could have the makings of a successful series. A good start if not a great one.
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