Book #31: Emperor's Axe

Book #31 finished already! I only finished book 30 on Sunday, and here I am on Tuesday writing about the next book. It's another one from a series that I can absolutely devour and get lost in the story. And it's another series and author that I have discovered this year. It's one thing I'm enjoying about this challenge, discovering and loving the work of hitherto unknown to myself authors! Please throw recommendations my way, as I'm sure soon enough I'll run out of ideas!

I can hardly believe that I considered putting the first book in Alex Gough's Imperial Assassin books down after the first couple of chapters. But I am glad that I didn't. I found myself immersed this time in the third instalment, Emperor's Axe within pages! Axe finds itself picking up directly after the end of the previous book. The Emperor Caracella has killed his brother in self defence, and so a consolidation of power must happen.

Anyone who knows anything about the Roman Empire knows that the position of Emperor was precarious at best. An Emperor could find himself assassinated by other factions who thought they were worthy to wear the purple, and so having come to power, steps had to be taken to secure loyalty and therefore their position in power.

Despite being co-Emperor with his brother and father, Caracella finds that he still needs to buy the loyalty of the senate, praetorian guard and the legions. On top of this, there are factions within Rome, who would look to depose him and install someone else in power. This is where Silus and Atius come in. Initially, to Silus' displeasure, they are merely acting as executioners, something which Silus objects to, after all, he is a trained spy and assassin rather than a thuggish executioner.

At his request, he and Atius are sent on a mission to escort the new governor of Numidia (a Roman province in north Africa) and his family, into a region where rebellion is brewing against the new Emperor. Their orders in a nutshell, to assist in the transition of power, and if necessary, to dispose of the previous Governor. Of course they never make the province, as the Governor's son is kidnapped by a mysterious group, and taken to Alexandria in Egypt.

The remainder of the book is in Alexandria, as Silus and Atius look to unravel the kidnapping of the governor's son, which in true style they do, but at what cost?

I particularly like how well researched these books are, the scene setting of ancient Alexandria is brilliant, as once again a vibrant, multicultural city is brought to life, along with the inevitable tension that simmers underneath between the various cultures. We explore more and more the tensions between the Christians and the other major religions of the time, culminating in a major riot in the city.

There's more character development for Atius and Silus. I'm glad that Alex Gough has done this, as often in a series, you do find that the characters become slightly One-Dimensional. But it's far from that here. Atius, the Christian, has up to this point only been a Christian on the fringes. However in Alexandria, he is able to delve a bit deeper into his faith alongside like-minded people, away from the persecution of Rome. Silus still has his limits, however I think that this book may see the start of those limitations breaking down. He has had nothing to lose since the murder of his wife and daughter, however he now does have someone he truly cares for and looks out for as a daughter. He also opens his heart to a woman properly for the first time since the murders. They're both ruthless killers however, and they don't let their emotions get in the way of things in this book.

All in all, I really enjoyed this third instalment of the Imperial Assassin series, and cannot wait to see where book four takes them! I would definitely recommend Alex Gough to anybody who enjoys the Historical Fiction genre, and anyone else who might be interested to be honest!

Emperor's Axe: 2.5cm

Total Read so far: 31 Books, 96.5cm

Total left to read: 96.5cm

I'm officially halfway there!