Lion of Macedon - David Gemmell > Reviews

Advantages: Brilliant storytelling with marvelleous attention to detail
Disadvantages: None

This David Gemmell book is arguably his greatest to date. It portrays the life of Parmenion, a man who is constantly manipulated by Fate and the seeress Tamis. It begins in Sparta, one of the two greatest Ancient Greek city states where Parmenion or Savra as he is known at this stage in the book is being educated in one of Sparta’s military schools. Here he is derided and scorned by his classmates because he is not a pure blood Spartan. Whilst ... Read review

Advantages: Story line, Classic stuff
Disadvantages: None, its perfect!

I have to say up front that David Gemmell is one of my favourite authors, as a writer of heroic fantasy he has no equal, his books grab you and pull you along on a journey. Lion of Macedon is unusual for a Gemmell book in that it uses historical references (the Spartan army's defeat of the Athenians of example) as building blocks for the story, this book unlike its sequel "Dark Prince" relies far more on the pace of the action then a mix of magic ... Read review

Advantages: Fascinating story
Disadvantages: Absolutely none

The Lion of Macedon is a fantasic book, and is the book that first got me started on David Gemmel books. It is a story about the life of Philip II, King of Macedonian, the father of Alexander the Great. David Gemmel has taken the historical facts that are known about his life, the politics, the geography and living conditions of the time and has woven a fabulous story around them. The battles, places and people in the story are mostly real, ... Read review

Advantages: Clever plot and well developed characters
Disadvantages: May be slightly too historical for some.

This is an excellent book with well thought out characters and a cleverly developed storyline. Whilst the author sticks quite closly to the facts known about Parmenion's life he mixes these in with his own ideas. This results in a colourful and varied story, which is a mix of action, passion, romance, ancient politics and magic. It details fairly well what Ancient Greece was like at the time and the rivalry between the city states, as well as giving ... Read review

Advantages: Greek history with a touch of fantasy - Brilliant!!
Disadvantages: Not a single one

to put it simply, exceptional! I have read, re-read and read again many, many of D. Gemmell's books. All of them have been superb, but this is definateley in the top 5. The thing that really stands out for me is how well the Author has blended history with fanatsy and brought to like quite possibly the greatest era of greek history. The story is formed around the life of Parmeneon, the half-spartan half-macedonian general of King Philip of Macedon, ... Read review