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rebelmouse's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book.
I liked seeing Cato's growth as a young lad in the army and his relationship with Macro.
I also enjoyed the information about army life as a new recruit, such as the weapons, training and command structure. I also enjoyed this historical aspects of the book which did not feel heavy or weighed down with too much detail.
Although the synopsis advises a trip to Britain in AD42; this does not happen until way into the second half of the book, but once we got there I really enjoyed the events that transpired. Although to me this part of the book felt a little rushed.
At the end of this book, there is a nice ending hinting at the next instalment, which I am really looking forward to reading.
I liked seeing Cato's growth as a young lad in the army and his relationship with Macro.
I also enjoyed the information about army life as a new recruit, such as the weapons, training and command structure. I also enjoyed this historical aspects of the book which did not feel heavy or weighed down with too much detail.
Although the synopsis advises a trip to Britain in AD42; this does not happen until way into the second half of the book, but once we got there I really enjoyed the events that transpired. Although to me this part of the book felt a little rushed.
At the end of this book, there is a nice ending hinting at the next instalment, which I am really looking forward to reading.
vanlir's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
gabrielrobartes's review against another edition
3.0
Solid, competent, entertaining but no Patrick O'Brien.
erbergli's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
stephwd's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first in Scarrow’s Eagle series and I am a little anal about always insisting on starting at the beginning of a series rather than jumping in half way through even if, as in the case of Scarrow, he has already written some 11 novels as part of said series. However, I was really excited about discovering this. I studied A Level Latin and some ancient history at University. I am intrigued by all things Roman and Spartan in particular and having absolutely adored Madeline Miller’s ‘The Song of Achilles’ last year, was genuinely looking forward to discovering a series that I could read over several months or even years given Scarrow’s productivity. Sadly, this is not to be…I doubt I will be returning to Macro or Cato or their ludicrous legion.
'Under the Eagle’ tells the story of Quintus Licinius Cato, who joins the notorious Second Legion in 42AD in the rough wilds of Germany facing the barbarian hoards. Yet having achieved precisely nothing here, they are sent out into an even more barbarous country: Britain. Yet their enemies are not just without, but also within as the Macchiavellian Narcissus, the Emperor’s freedman, appears to send them on a deadly mission that could well destroy them.
Ok so this was a nice little action adventure. There were some good battle scenes that created a good bit of tension and drama. I liked the character of Cato whose intellectualism and lack of ease in the Second Legion was endearing in juxtaposition to the savagery and machismo of the men around him. There were also some effectively drawn counter characters: the morally torn Vespasian and his rather scheming wife, Flavia; the plebeian and very human, illiterate Macro who is clearly intended as a foil to Cato; the mendacious Narcissus. There was an engaging plot here and there was some engagement in terms of character.
However, this is all rather outweighed by the flaws in the novel:
Firstly, despite the fact that many of the characters are drawn from history (including Narcissus, Flavia and Vespasian), this lacked any real kind of historical accuracy. The Roman army is presented as a group of British squaddies and there is no real sense of the attitude they actually held towards battle or the extensive training they underwent. Cato joins the legion at 17 and this is considered young: this was not the case where most boys were trained from the age of 12 or younger and girls gave birth at 14 upwards. Food appeared plentiful and mealtimes terribly civilised – where was the puke collector? There is thus a significant a lack of accuracy here. In comparison to novels such as ‘The Swarm’ and Sansom’s Shardlake series that are so meticulously researched and factually detailed in order to create a realistic portrayal of the worlds in which they are set, this fell dismally short.
Secondly, there was a real issue with the language. It was not simply the plethora of vituperations that peppered the text and may well have had a certain accuracy in conveying the men’s brutal attitudes, it was the inaccuracy of the character’s dialogue. The way in which they spoke about sex was peculiar– at one point Macro tells Cato not to consider him a ‘bum bandit’ for instance. Not only is this implicitly offensive to a modern audience, but it is quite the antithesis of the Roman attitude to homosexuality where it was often considered a normal part of life and where men frequently engaged in homosexual relations given the fact that many spent virtually their entire lives in the male exclusive military as was so sensitively depicted by Miller. The modernity of their language and attitudes was simply not in keeping with the time of the novel. Even in referring to Britain and Germany under these terms was inaccurate as this is not how the Germanic tribes or Goths were perceived at all.
Thirdly, there is the basic premise with which the novel begins – a chest is abandoned in a swamp that later must be retrieved for the amount of gold that is contained within it. I refuse to believe that given the wealth of the Roman Empire at this stage that one chest of gold would have made that much difference. Now it may well turn out in later novels that there is something far more significant in said chest, but that is not the case in this novel and this thus made the whole mission on which the narrative is based seem both superficial and ridiculous. In fact, at heart this was part of the problem with the whole narrative. It was clearly setting us up for a series rather than giving us a narrative in its entirety. In principle, I have no problem with this; many great authors have done the same to great success – think Philippa Gregory and Suzanne Collins or on a more literary level, Emile Zola, but there has to be enough within the novel to satisfy the reader in the first place and make them want to bother reading a further 5,000 pages or more.
Finally, there is a flaw, I feel, with Scarrow’s writing. As an English teacher, I am constantly telling students to describe and not to overuse dialogue. This was Scarrow’s crucial error. The novel is almost entirely dominated by dialogue and as a result, there is not enough sense of place; at times, it is even unclear exactly who is speaking as Scarrow does not differentiate his characters’ voices nearly enough and rather than adding drama and immediacy, the dialogue slows the pace and infuriates.
I wouldn't say that I did not enjoy the novel, I did! However, I felt that it was deeply flawed and ultimately, for all the moments of excitement, there was simply not enough here to make me want to read ‘The Eagle’s Conquest’ in which I can only see more of the same.
I would probably give this 2.5, but as I am in a generous mood (what with the end of marking and the lovely London sunshine,) I will go with a 3.
'Under the Eagle’ tells the story of Quintus Licinius Cato, who joins the notorious Second Legion in 42AD in the rough wilds of Germany facing the barbarian hoards. Yet having achieved precisely nothing here, they are sent out into an even more barbarous country: Britain. Yet their enemies are not just without, but also within as the Macchiavellian Narcissus, the Emperor’s freedman, appears to send them on a deadly mission that could well destroy them.
Ok so this was a nice little action adventure. There were some good battle scenes that created a good bit of tension and drama. I liked the character of Cato whose intellectualism and lack of ease in the Second Legion was endearing in juxtaposition to the savagery and machismo of the men around him. There were also some effectively drawn counter characters: the morally torn Vespasian and his rather scheming wife, Flavia; the plebeian and very human, illiterate Macro who is clearly intended as a foil to Cato; the mendacious Narcissus. There was an engaging plot here and there was some engagement in terms of character.
However, this is all rather outweighed by the flaws in the novel:
Firstly, despite the fact that many of the characters are drawn from history (including Narcissus, Flavia and Vespasian), this lacked any real kind of historical accuracy. The Roman army is presented as a group of British squaddies and there is no real sense of the attitude they actually held towards battle or the extensive training they underwent. Cato joins the legion at 17 and this is considered young: this was not the case where most boys were trained from the age of 12 or younger and girls gave birth at 14 upwards. Food appeared plentiful and mealtimes terribly civilised – where was the puke collector? There is thus a significant a lack of accuracy here. In comparison to novels such as ‘The Swarm’ and Sansom’s Shardlake series that are so meticulously researched and factually detailed in order to create a realistic portrayal of the worlds in which they are set, this fell dismally short.
Secondly, there was a real issue with the language. It was not simply the plethora of vituperations that peppered the text and may well have had a certain accuracy in conveying the men’s brutal attitudes, it was the inaccuracy of the character’s dialogue. The way in which they spoke about sex was peculiar– at one point Macro tells Cato not to consider him a ‘bum bandit’ for instance. Not only is this implicitly offensive to a modern audience, but it is quite the antithesis of the Roman attitude to homosexuality where it was often considered a normal part of life and where men frequently engaged in homosexual relations given the fact that many spent virtually their entire lives in the male exclusive military as was so sensitively depicted by Miller. The modernity of their language and attitudes was simply not in keeping with the time of the novel. Even in referring to Britain and Germany under these terms was inaccurate as this is not how the Germanic tribes or Goths were perceived at all.
Thirdly, there is the basic premise with which the novel begins – a chest is abandoned in a swamp that later must be retrieved for the amount of gold that is contained within it. I refuse to believe that given the wealth of the Roman Empire at this stage that one chest of gold would have made that much difference. Now it may well turn out in later novels that there is something far more significant in said chest, but that is not the case in this novel and this thus made the whole mission on which the narrative is based seem both superficial and ridiculous. In fact, at heart this was part of the problem with the whole narrative. It was clearly setting us up for a series rather than giving us a narrative in its entirety. In principle, I have no problem with this; many great authors have done the same to great success – think Philippa Gregory and Suzanne Collins or on a more literary level, Emile Zola, but there has to be enough within the novel to satisfy the reader in the first place and make them want to bother reading a further 5,000 pages or more.
Finally, there is a flaw, I feel, with Scarrow’s writing. As an English teacher, I am constantly telling students to describe and not to overuse dialogue. This was Scarrow’s crucial error. The novel is almost entirely dominated by dialogue and as a result, there is not enough sense of place; at times, it is even unclear exactly who is speaking as Scarrow does not differentiate his characters’ voices nearly enough and rather than adding drama and immediacy, the dialogue slows the pace and infuriates.
I wouldn't say that I did not enjoy the novel, I did! However, I felt that it was deeply flawed and ultimately, for all the moments of excitement, there was simply not enough here to make me want to read ‘The Eagle’s Conquest’ in which I can only see more of the same.
I would probably give this 2.5, but as I am in a generous mood (what with the end of marking and the lovely London sunshine,) I will go with a 3.
libraryofadoll's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
abananapeel16's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
4.75
A non guilty 'guilty pleasure', love the style of writing & a healthy dose of roman escapism.
psoglav's review against another edition
3.0
OCENA (overall rating) ★★★✫ 3.5/5 stars
Radnja (story) ★★★
Ideja (plot idea) ★★★
Okruženje (setting) ★★★★
Pripovedanje (writing style) ★★★✫
Likovi (characters) ★★★✫
UTISAK (summary) - odličan istorisjki roman koji prikazuje život rimskih legionara. Najbolji deo je bitka sa Germanima, dok u drugom delu romana radnja je malo slabija i predvidiva.
Radnja (story) ★★★
Ideja (plot idea) ★★★
Okruženje (setting) ★★★★
Pripovedanje (writing style) ★★★✫
Likovi (characters) ★★★✫
UTISAK (summary) - odličan istorisjki roman koji prikazuje život rimskih legionara. Najbolji deo je bitka sa Germanima, dok u drugom delu romana radnja je malo slabija i predvidiva.