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    The Spartan Dagger: A Novel
    The Spartan Dagger: A Novel
    The Spartan Dagger: A Novel
    Audiobook14 hours

    The Spartan Dagger: A Novel

    Written by Nicholas Guild

    Narrated by Pete Bradbury

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    A good old classic Greek revenge story In the 4th Century B.C., Sparta had established control over most of Mainland Greece, and nowhere was her despotic rule more brutal than in her own territory, where over three centuries before Sparta had conquered the original population, the Helots. Every year, to remind the Helots that they were slaves, the Spartans sent out their young men to murder their defenseless subjects. On one of those nights, after having seen his parents killed, a fourteen year old Helot boy named Protos escapes, killing one of his pursuers. The Spartans hunt him relentlessly, but Protos will not consent to be a helpless victim. The hunters find that their own weapons are turned against them as Protos fights to escape Spartan rule. With the help of a young half-Egyptian witch woman, Protos makes his way to Thebes, which is on the verge of a rebellion against Spartan domination. By an act of almost suicidal daring, Protos helps the Thebans regain control of their city, setting the stage for the long war between Thebes and Sparta.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateDec 27, 2016
    ISBN9781490620497
    The Spartan Dagger: A Novel

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    Reviews for The Spartan Dagger

    3.5/5

    6 ratings2 reviews

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    • 1/5
      He is a good writer but aside from the obvious fact that his plot is too violent, his main theme appears to be that the way to solve any problem is to kill the opponent(s) even if that means to massacre. He attempts to let himself off the hook by justifying a few, but not all, of the slaughters by saying the people being killed were not decent. That does not make slaughter decent. Taking a life is the most heinous crime and nothing justifies it.

      He also attempts to "soften" his approach by saying now and then that the hero and heroine team, especially the hero is occasionally remorseful. The author does not mean this - - this is only his literary technique.

      And yes he makes the killing machine into a hero and his murderers girlfriend a heroine. A very dangerous strategy with potential for profound social influence on those incapable of thinking independently.

      The entire piece is trash. If it's well written, then the author probably uses a team. 8ve no idea what his own writing is like. But if someone writes such trash it reflects some problem in their own thinking. It also reflects a problem with violence in his country's society.

      I'd give it one star but the plot is interesting minus the long list of heartless serial murders and whoever edited it 8s a good writer. The narrator is not too bad but his speaks in a rise and fall cadence which can annoy.

      To add, the killing spree also acclimatizes the reader so that the less mature might either find it heroic or imagine that it's OK to have a romantic partner who is capable of all that without realising how extremely dangerous such a person would be.

      I'm a classicist and archaeologist myself. No, it didn't do anything for me. It's not realistic, it's absolutely far fetched but not in a positive way.

      As, well, if he truly has literary ability he does not need to resort to serial killing and massacre to sell. He does so since he lacks skill as a good writer.

      Not recommended. Don't waste your time.

      Just changed it to one star. The problem not only concerns the violence but the intent of both the author and the protagonist. He does not even write of fighting technique or provide character complexity. Fighting is not fighting but one sided butchery with the perception that anyone the protagonist dislikes is "bad" and "deserves to die". Yet the protagonist is presented as a demi-god type figure although all he can do is kill. He has no other skill and no positive qualities. This is pure narcissism glorified and seems a projection from the mind of the author.
    • 4/5
      A gripping, easy to read novel set in the 4th century BC for a period of about 20 years against the backdrop of the war of Thebes against Sparta in which Spartan power and grip of its subject people the helots began to weaken. Two twin Spartan brothers, members of the krypteia, the secret organization which keeps tight control on helots and to which the most promising future military leaders are admitted, seek out and kill the family of Protos, a helot. Protos kills one brother and takes his xuele knife: the "Spartan dagger" of the title. He and the other brother, Eurytus, want to take revenge on each other. Protos has a natural affinity for knife-throwing and escapes Spartans sent after him. He meets an Egyptian "witch" and healer, Nebit, who, throughout his life with her, guides him with her dreams and prophecies. He meets Epaminondas, a Theban general, and together with Pelopidas and their men, set off to destroy Sparta. He conceives the desire to free his people. The Thebans first weaken Sparta at Leuctra, where Epinamondas' unusual oblique formation is used successfully against the Spartan phalanx. Leuctra was given short shrift in this novel; for a detailed fictional description I recommend Hanson's [The End of Sparta]. This battle puts steel into the Thebans' spines and they know they can defeat the Spartans--maybe not right away, but eventually. Much of the novel is either battles or is a cat-and-mouse game between Protos and Eurytus. Sometimes the two are forced by circumstances to be temporary allies. But there is a final duel between the two; Eurytus has lost his left hand earlier. The character development was outstanding; each of the main characters grew in maturity. For Protos, it was from vengeance to the larger goal of freeing his people and for Eurytus, in spite of his fear, shame, and doubt, although badly injured, fighting in spite of them to restore his honor. I wondered at the mention of Pelopidas with **nothing said** of the Sacred Band. Historically, they were pairs of male lovers under his command. Although Protos seemed too perfect and learned the techniques of war as well as reading and writing quickly, he did suffer one wound where he lay near death and did take a long time to recover. This was logical. Usually similar novels have the hero be wounded and recover miraculously quickly. Highly recommended.