The Risen

A Novel of Spartacus

By: David Anthony Durham

Narrated by: Steven Crossley

In this thrilling and panoramic historical novel, we see one of the most storied uprisings of classical times from multiple points of view: Spartacus, the visionary captive and gladiator whose toughness and charisma turn a prison break into a multicultural revolt that threatens an empire; his consort, the oracular Astera, whose connection to the spirit world and its omens guides the uprising's progress; Nonus, a Roman soldier working both sides of the conflict in a half-adroit, half-desperate attempt to save his life; Laelia and Hustus, two shepherd children drawn into the ranks of the slave rebellion; Kaleb, the slave secretary to Crassus, the Roman senator and commander saddled with the unenviable task of quashing an insurrection of mere slaves; and other players in a vast spectacle of bloodshed, heroism, and treachery.

In The Risen - the term the slaves in revolt have adopted for themselves - an entire teeming world comes into view with great clarity and titanic drama, with nothing less than the future of the ancient world at stake. No one brings more verve, intelligence, and freshness to the novel of the classical age than David Anthony Durham.

©2016 David Anthony Durham (P)2016 Tantor

Critic reviews

"[W]ell-done.... [A] competent piece of historical fiction." ( Kirkus)

Interesting Story

I think it was a great story, however the way it was written I always felt like I was missing chunks of it. It had a tendency to switch characters at intense parts and then tell it through the new character what happened to the other character that you just switched from. Also it sometimes left out other pieces of information altogether about some of the characters and bring them to a definite close.

A Solid Telling

I finished this quickly. It's a compelling story of failure and resilience. Spartacus is the least interesting character with a host of individuals on both sides of the conflict. The author succeeds at investing your interest in each, of seeing each life as a vivid telling. The only shortcoming is the ending, which is bound by history to be somewhat disappointing.

Unexpected but good.

So, I'm sure a few people are like me and see the STARZ show about Spartacus and imagined the book would be a lot more similar to the show. Unfortunately, it wasn't like the show (as much as I thought it would be) however, the book did not disappoint at all. just want people to know this book isn't just a written version of the show with slight differences. the only real problem I had was the narrator's voice was dull and rather hard to listen to for long periods of time like on road trips. other than that the book itself was great, and I wish the show could be made later to mirror this telling.