Tides of War: A Novel of Alcibiades and the Peloponnesian War - Softcover

Pressfield, Steven

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553381393 ISBN 13: 9780553381399

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group, 2001

Synopsis

Brilliant at war, a master of politics, and a charismatic lover, Alcibiades was Athens' favorite son and the city's greatest general.

A prodigal follower of Socrates, he embodied both the best and the worst of the Golden Age of Greece. A commander on both land and sea, he led his armies to victory after victory.

But like the heroes in a great Greek tragedy, he was a victim of his own pride, arrogance, excess, and ambition. Accused of crimes against the state, he was banished from his beloved Athens, only to take up arms in the service of his former enemies.

For nearly three decades, Greece burned with war and Alcibiades helped bring victories to both sides -- and ended up trusted by neither.

Narrated from death row by Alcibiades' bodyguard and assassin, a man whose own love and loathing for his former commander mirrors the mixed emotions felt by all Athens, Tides of War tells an epic saga of an extraordinary century, a war that changed history, and a complex leader who seduced a nation.

About this title

Review:

If readers of epic historical fiction are influenced in their literary choices by successful films in the genre, then the timing of Steven Pressfield's Tides of War could not be better, with the cinematic release of Ridley Scott's Gladiator. Ironically, the very qualities that distinguish Scott's movie are here in greater concentration: tremendous historical sweep; strong, well-defined characters and bloody confrontations. The one area in which Pressfield definitely possesses the edge, though, is the fierce intelligence and rigorous authenticity of his remarkable book. As a picture of the ancient world, it is nigh unbeatable but it is the characterisation of the soldier protagonist Alcibiades (who becomes a central figure in the war between Athens and Sparta) that is Pressfield's greatest achievement.

Alcibiades is a brilliantly wrought conflation of ancient and modern sensibilities, the perfect conduit into this savage world. On the battlefield, Alcibiades has never known defeat but his success has created ill feeling among his political opponents in Athens. A trumped-up charge of treason forces him to flee to Sparta, where he engineers a series of military triumphs. However, his heart lies in Athens and, through a series of savage confrontations (both on the battlefield and in the equally dangerous political arena), he moves inexorably towards his unwritten destiny. It will be no surprise to the readers of the equally impressive Gates of Fire that this exuberant panoply of a far-off age is so luminously rendered. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

"Pressfield's battlefield scenes rank with the most convincing ever written."--USA Today

"Pressfield serves up not just hair-raising battle scenes . . . but many moments of valor and cowardice, lust and bawdy humor. . . . Even more impressively, he delivers a nuanced portrait of ancient athens."--Esquire

"Unabashedly brilliant, epic, intelligent, and moving."--Kirkus Reviews

"Pressfield's attention to historic detail is exquisite. . . . This novel will remain with the reader long after the final chapter is finished."--Library Journal

"Astounding, historically accurate tale . . . Pressfield is a master storyteller, especially adept in his graphic and embracing descriptions of the land and naval battles, political intrigues and colorful personalities, which come together in an intense and credible portrait of war-torn Greece."--Publishers Weekly

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0553381393
• ISBN 13: 9780553381399
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 448