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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Doherty crosses the Hellespont!, 13 Feb 2003
Paul Doherty (or P.C. Doherty, or Paul Harding, or Michael Clynes, or Anna Apostolou,
etc., take your pick) usually writes of medieval England. His Brother Athelstan series, his
Sir Roger Shallot series, his Canterbury Tales series, and his Hugh Corbett series are all
riveting accounts of Merry Olde told with great interest and authority on the time and
place. Doherty, certainly a learned man in his own "write," is well documented. His
Egyptian series and now his Alexander the Great works probably only show how erudite
he is! "The Godless Man," the second of the Alexander the Great tomes, seems to lack not only
the enthusiasm but the documentation Doherty usually provides to become really
thorough. Granted, this is a work of fiction and authors do not have to be historically
accurate or even convincing, for, after all, it's the storyline that primarily counts, not
incidental elements. Taking on Alexander the Great is a more daunting task that concentrating on one of
Chaucer's pilgrims! Of course, "The Godless Man" is not really about Alexander; instead,
it is the story of Telamon, who is The Great's physician. Assisted ably by Cassandra,
Telemon must solve the puzzle of a mass murder in the Temple of Hercules in the newly
occupied city of Ephesus. And such a quandry, as the denizens of that capital city are not
too keen to help the occupying force, concerned with their own immediate problems.
They've seen occupying armies come and go and they suspect that the Macedonians won't
hang around either! But Alexander is insistent that these murders (and subsequent ones to keep the plot
suspenseful) be solved, for it reflects directly upon him and his abilities to occupy a
conquered city.
Telamon, a childhood friend of Alex's, rises to the occasion and some 300 pages later
succeeds. Doherty seems intent, himself, upon a conquering of sorts--to conquer the world of
historical fiction. And may he succeed, as he's a delightful writer to read. However,
veering away from England seems to lose something in its translations. This book is
worth the read, but arguably he should concentrate on his own native shores, or else go
beyond what he has presented and work for a more mesmerizing plot. He seems to spend
too much time trying to justify what he's doing in time frame in the first place. The subtitle
of the book is "A Mystery of Alexander the Great" and is a bit misleading. Probably few
historical figures are more interesting than Alexander and Doherty gives little insight
(other than to proclaim emphatically that he and Hephaestion were NOT lovers!)into one
of the greatest generals of all time. Fans of Doherty (and I am one) won't flee the gates,
however. Doherty deserves his praise!
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by P.C. Doherty
by P.C. Doherty
by Dr Paul Doherty
by Paul Doherty
