Shades of Artemis: A Novel of Ancient Greece and the Spartan Brasidas (English Edition)

Shades of Artemis recounts the life of Brasidas, Sparta’s most audaciouscommander, from his upbringing in the Spartan military school called theAgoge to his induction into the ranks of the ancient world’s finest warriors.Overcoming petty jealousies and the politics of his own country, he finallyrises to the rank of general and embarks on a daring mission to bring Athensto its knees and an end to the Peloponnesian War.With the death of Pericles, the politician Kleon becomes the architect ofwar policy in Athens, directing the strategy against Sparta. Thucydides, theAthenian general and chronicler of the conflict, bears witness to the brutalityof ancient combat, the devastating plague that strikes his city, and theambition of fellow Athenians that rely on war to sustain them.In the last quarter of the fifth century BC, these three men would meet inbattle on the plains of northern Greece and determine the course of WesternCivilization’s first world war.