Carthage Rome Total War
Carthage is the second and the last republic available in the game. This age-old Rome enemy begins the game having several colonies spread across the Mediterranean. The Carthago, capital of the country, is located in the North Africa and is surrounded by allies.
Rating: 2/5Note: I received this book for an honest review through the Goodreads.com giveaway. Regardless of how I obtain a book I am committed to providing uncensored thoughts in my reviews (because, really, I have no idea how to censor myself).Summary: Fabius is Scipio's servant, sworn to serve and protect his master at home and on the battle field. Scipio, Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus, is the adoptive grandson of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Roman general who defeated Hann Rating: 2/5Note: I received this book for an honest review through the Goodreads.com giveaway. Regardless of how I obtain a book I am committed to providing uncensored thoughts in my reviews (because, really, I have no idea how to censor myself).Summary: Fabius is Scipio's servant, sworn to serve and protect his master at home and on the battle field. Scipio, Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus, is the adoptive grandson of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Roman general who defeated Hannibal at the Battle of Zuma in 202 BC. With family honor at stake, and Fabius by his side, Scipio must sacrifice, keep alive, and play politics with Roman Senators to fulfill his destiny and destroy Carthage.
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(And I know what this summary sounds like, but contrary to my reading habits that stem from summaries such as these, this is not an m/m novel nor is it a romance. Sadly, I think I would have enjoyed that much better.) Review: I really wanted to love this book, I love Total War games and the epilogue had a great battle scene that seemed so promising.
Written by a historian, this novel is filled with tons of accurate historical information. If this was a non-fiction work, I'd rate it highly.However, this isn't a non-fiction work, it is a fiction novel despite being based on historical facts. The characters lack depth, this is my description of the Romans, as presented in the novel:'RRRAR'.beats chest in a show of testosterone fueled male power. 'Rome! Kill Carthage!' .brandishes a weapon.Really. There is little more below the surface than an obsession of the main characters to kill, maim, and destroy Carthage.
There is also a lack of emotional depth. I felt more emotion for Fabius' damn dog than Scipio's doomed love of Julia.I don't know how Romans spoke but I'm pretty sure they didn't refer to each other so formally, always using their bazillion names, when even talking to close friends. Also, when speaking, the characters would do so in looooong paragraphs to disclose as much information as possible. This would happen sometimes in the oddest scenes. For example, when Fabious and Scipio watch a child sacrifice in Carthage, Fabius, after an initial shocked reaction, goes on to explain in depth the history of child sacrifice. The conversations were stiff, didn't flow naturally.As an even better example of how unrealistic the human interactions were in this novel, imagine this scene: You are a slave, captured and forced to work in miserable conditions. You walk off a ship carrying cargo, doing your job, trying not to get flogged or, worse, killed.
Here is the scene from the book (pg. 206):As he and Scipio passed, a slave came down a gangplank and heaved another basket to the ground, sweating and cursing. He glanced ruefully at Fabius, who had stopped to look. 'Feel free to give a hand, if you have nothing better to do,' the salve said in a heavily accented Greek. 'I'm just about done in.'
O.o The slave just asked a guard to help! What is it, in the baskets?' Fabius asked.' Tin ore, from the Cassiterides, the Tin Isles,' the man said. 'At least, that's what the Punic sailors call the place, after the Greek name, but I know it differently. Some of us from the west of the island call it Albion, and others Britten.
You see, it was my home, where I was happily going about my own business until I was snatched during a raid by a neighboring chieftain, sold to the Gauls, traded by them for an amphora of wine to an Italian shipper, and then given by him as a present to a Carthaginian merchant to oil some deal. So I find myself here, the slave of a.This goes on as I yawn from boredom.The writing style is about 80% tell and 20% show. Too many long-winded discussions and speeches.
This is quite unfortunate since I am a huge fan of the Total War games. I play Rome and Rome II (although they have made some things easier in Rome II, it is still a good game). This book did nothing to make me more excited to play.
I don't think this book was a good addition to the Total War name. I have found this a tough book to review, i have been searching for what i hope is the best comparison to describe it. (not sure I cracked it but here goes)The book right from page one suffers from and gains from its link to the video game (are they still called that. Damn I'm showing my age) I loved the first Rome Total War, but it sucked time like a black hole.
It and the Intro to the book gave the book a bit of a Manual feel. Then there is the style of the book, it instructs the reader, it I have found this a tough book to review, i have been searching for what i hope is the best comparison to describe it. (not sure I cracked it but here goes)The book right from page one suffers from and gains from its link to the video game (are they still called that. Damn I'm showing my age) I loved the first Rome Total War, but it sucked time like a black hole. It and the Intro to the book gave the book a bit of a Manual feel. Then there is the style of the book, it instructs the reader, it gives a depth of background to Rome at the time that you dont find in many Roman fiction titles, the army, the politics and how they all fit together, all like a lesson plan, or a game world build.All that may have you screaming.NOOOO don't buy it. But that's because i haven't tempered it with.David Gibbins is an excellent writer, i think he may have to blend his normal thriller style with the historical fiction writing to really lift the series to the next level.
But what he does provide in this book is an insight into a period of Rome that few have covered, and a look at the political machinations of the Roman senate and upper echelons or power, and how the powers that be, may have finally ended up in front of the walls of Carthage. David does start to bring out his ability with characters creation, but i think some of that growth was hindered by the semi instructional style of the book.I really want to see how this series progresses and grows. Here is a book I enjoyed and that taught me something, its not often I feel as if I have been educated throughout a book and entertained at the same time.I really think you should try this book and stick with it to the end, If you're a gamer you will love the information it gives on the different empires and the different army units and how to use them in battle.
If you are a reader of fiction, then you will enjoy coming at a story from a different angle. I'm very interested to see how book two pans out. I'd love to see some comments on others views of this book.But basically go buy the book.(Parm)Other booksReview of last book by David GibbinsJack Howard1. Atlantis (2005)2. Crusader Gold (2006)3.
The Last Gospel (2008)aka The Lost Tomb4. The Tiger Warrior (2009)5. The Mask of Troy (2010)6.
The Gods of Atlantis (2011)aka Atlantis God7. Pharaoh (2013). I don’t read a huge amount of tie-in fiction, especially game tie-ins, but when Destroy Carthage arrived through my letterbox I was significantly intrigued enough to give it a try. Romans, espionage, politics, war-elephants and catapults sounds like a winning combination to me.A big chunk of the book, unsurprisingly, is taken up with the historical events leading up to the final Roman assault on the city of Carthage.
The battles themselves are suitably bloodthirsty, frenzied events. Actually, I I don’t read a huge amount of tie-in fiction, especially game tie-ins, but when Destroy Carthage arrived through my letterbox I was significantly intrigued enough to give it a try. Romans, espionage, politics, war-elephants and catapults sounds like a winning combination to me.A big chunk of the book, unsurprisingly, is taken up with the historical events leading up to the final Roman assault on the city of Carthage. The battles themselves are suitably bloodthirsty, frenzied events.
Carthage Rome Total War 2 Units
Actually, I was pleasantly surprised by just how gory things actually got. I have to admit that I was hoping for something along these lines when I started reading. I do like a bit of gore.
I’m a huge fan of Spartacus, the recent TV series, and I particularly loved the fight scenes. They have a chaotic abandon that’s infectious. Destroy Carthage has moments that evoke exactly the same sort of reaction.
A bit of unrestrained violence can never be a bad thing when you’re reading about warriors. Can’t go wrong with a beheading or two can you?This author has real flare for capturing the chaos to be found at the heart of any conflict. His writing never sugarcoats the harsh reality of battle, warriors die in a variety of gruesome ways. At one point Gibbins describes how Fabius views his first real experience in a fight. He likens it to having tunnel vision, never worrying about what is to his right or left only what is directly in front.
Everything boils down to him and the opponent he is directly facing off against, the mechanics of war are stripped right back to the bare bones.The book covers quite a large chunk of Fabius and Scipio’s respective military careers, from their late teens to early middle age. The reader gets insight into their time learning/training in Rome and then through the various campaigns they were both part of. The events in this novel take place prior to the time of the Roman Empire. It was interesting to discover that the Romans didn’t have a standing army just a draft that was called upon only in times of war.As this is a game tie-in novel there were a couple of things that I was wondering about. I’m not an avid gamer, casual at best, but I’d imagine that the story in the novel would probably link pretty closely to the game. I got the distinct impression that when characters were discussing tactics this was aimed at readers who are also potential gamers.
Are these some sort of subtle game hints perhaps?There is also a little part of me that is insanely curious about how this sort of fiction comes about. The game developers obviously want a tie in to the existing franchise but must give the author a certain amount of leeway to develop their own take on historical events. Choosing a well-established historical fiction author was exactly the right way for the publishers to go; David Gibbins is a known quantity. Earlier this year I read his most recent novel, Pharaoh, and I was won over by his writing. The same blend of attention to detail and skillful storytelling are on display here.Overall, Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage is an entertaining read. There are loads of violent skirmishes, plenty of history, and I was suitably impressed.
If the purpose of this novel is to generate interest in the game, I think it’s fair to say that the novel has more than adequately managed its job. I found myself switching between writing this review and looking at trailers for the game online. Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage is an interesting beast, being both a historical novel and a promotional tie-in to SEGA's hit real time strategy game Total War: Rome 2, of which I am definitely a fan (having racked up about 70 hours of playing time so far, and hundreds more on other titles in the Total War series). While it succeeds more in the latter aspect than in the former, it still manages to be a worthwhile and exciting introduction to the world and warfare of the Roman Republic, helped n Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage is an interesting beast, being both a historical novel and a promotional tie-in to SEGA's hit real time strategy game Total War: Rome 2, of which I am definitely a fan (having racked up about 70 hours of playing time so far, and hundreds more on other titles in the Total War series). Shall try to sound less crabby about the reader experience than it feels, a day after finishing this. Roman battle instruction manual ?Gibbins does not allow his considerable academic expertise to enhance his fiction, that's for sure. No, we are given big indigestible chunks of lecture material.
This occurs as either clunky dialogue between characters who arrive somewhere and then stand looking at it while having the improbable 'conversation', or, as the standard infodump where one would n Shall try to sound less crabby about the reader experience than it feels, a day after finishing this. Roman battle instruction manual ?Gibbins does not allow his considerable academic expertise to enhance his fiction, that's for sure. No, we are given big indigestible chunks of lecture material.
This occurs as either clunky dialogue between characters who arrive somewhere and then stand looking at it while having the improbable 'conversation', or, as the standard infodump where one would not expect an infodump.Little action occurs for such an ambitious range of settings, other than the gory, detailed killing scene that the trade-publisher editor commanded at 20 to 30 page intervals whether we need one or not.Setting itself does not figure into this narrative, other than, thank goodness, a little bit about Carthage. Macedonia gets a few paragraphs. Later the reader is transported to ancient Spain (called incongruously in the text, Celtiberia) but without any description of either the journey which surely would have been of interest to an ancient Roman, or of the landscape on arrival. The 'Celts' are extremely stereotyped, to the point of humor.A redeeming feature is that this novel is not a sappy romance with a happy ending. On the other hand, that cover image is just so swords-and-sandals; really, what is wrong with the cover people at these Big Publishers?
Are they stuck in time? When one thinks of the excellent artifacts that could have been used for a cover image in a less obvious way, or even a 3D model of Carthage's fascinating harbor, one could weep.As long as authors abdicate to control by fawning commercial staff regarding cover images and PR/hype, the trite covers will continue. I won this in a giveaway, otherwise I likely never would have read this book.It's evident that the author really knows his ancient military history and also fetishizes the Roman Empire as many antiquarian authors and historians do. Unfortunately that zeal didn't help him develop his characters in complex and interesting ways.Gibbins tends to use character dialogue to explain ideas and the implications for Rome. While I'm certain that many of the ruling class had conversations like that, I doubt I won this in a giveaway, otherwise I likely never would have read this book.It's evident that the author really knows his ancient military history and also fetishizes the Roman Empire as many antiquarian authors and historians do.
Unfortunately that zeal didn't help him develop his characters in complex and interesting ways.Gibbins tends to use character dialogue to explain ideas and the implications for Rome. It was such an adventure, such an enjoyment and so much fun reading. It wasted no words yet not so much that you could piece things together.Each section was like a movie; a really good movie that really in the truest sense of the word is epic. One thing that I appreciated that it was written in such a way that it leaves room for imagination not in the sense that I found frustrating but help up the ante. It seemes each sections end with a semi-cliff hanger, that by the third part I got used it b It was such an adventure, such an enjoyment and so much fun reading.
It wasted no words yet not so much that you could piece things together.Each section was like a movie; a really good movie that really in the truest sense of the word is epic. One thing that I appreciated that it was written in such a way that it leaves room for imagination not in the sense that I found frustrating but help up the ante. It seemes each sections end with a semi-cliff hanger, that by the third part I got used it but could help but want for more. Where section open and resolved the conflict you want more details but you find yourself happy with the taste so you can imagine your own ending. The end was totally unexpected. I admit the signs were there but I imagined so many different endings that seem typical. The things I love most about reading fiction is plot lines and character development.
For me, this novel lacked both of these. There were 10 year gaps throughout and my curiosity and desire to know and connect with any character was not satisfied.Don't get me wrong, I love me a bit of ancient history but this is more like a recount/timeline rather than a story. A battle plan, with guts and gore being the basis for description is what this is.I may be disliked for this review but look up, I said, The things I love most about reading fiction is plot lines and character development. For me, this novel lacked both of these. There were 10 year gaps throughout and my curiosity and desire to know and connect with any character was not satisfied.Don't get me wrong, I love me a bit of ancient history but this is more like a recount/timeline rather than a story. A battle plan, with guts and gore being the basis for description is what this is.I may be disliked for this review but look up, I said,'For me.' I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.I'm fascinated by ancient Rome and enjoy reading about the era, the people and their world.
However this is much more of a war story than what I expected. It was pretty gory in places and I found some of the story hard to follow. I think that the politics of the time could have been better explained in the story so I understood the motivations of the characters.I also think that the map of the Roman world could have been better. There was very little detai I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.I'm fascinated by ancient Rome and enjoy reading about the era, the people and their world.
However this is much more of a war story than what I expected. It was pretty gory in places and I found some of the story hard to follow. I think that the politics of the time could have been better explained in the story so I understood the motivations of the characters.I also think that the map of the Roman world could have been better. There was very little detail and I wasn't sure at times what they were talking about.
Originally posted atIn the last couple of weeks I have been catching up with my Roman fiction, it is a genre that I like very much, and when I was offered to review Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage I readily jumped to the occasion, being both a story set in the Roman times AND being inspired by the popular computer game Total War Rome AND being written by an author who knows his Roman times, I knew it has to be good. T Originally posted atIn the last couple of weeks I have been catching up with my Roman fiction, it is a genre that I like very much, and when I was offered to review Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage I readily jumped to the occasion, being both a story set in the Roman times AND being inspired by the popular computer game Total War Rome AND being written by an author who knows his Roman times, I knew it has to be good. The author David Gibbins already has a great repertoire of books behind his name and is a New York Times best selling author. David Gibbins has studied archeology intensively and has worked in teaching Roman archeology and ancient history. Several of his earlier book also had the focus of Roman history behind them.The aim of Total War Rome: Destroy Carthage is to make a tie-in with the popular computer game.
If you know the video game you undoubtedly picture the large scale infantry battles. Well, Destroy Carthage is quite something different.
When I first thought of this tie-in I was thinking of how such a large scale battle could be captured in a book but David Gibbins steers into another direction. Instead of laying the focus on the large battles, the focus is on two characters: Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus or Scipio for short and Fabius Pretoronius Secundus.
Scipio isn´t a fictional character. It is Scipio's career that creates the framework of the story for Destroy Carthage.The first thing that falls to note in Destroy Carthage is the level of history that is used.
In the beginning of the book there are several explanations of terms that are used throughout the book and as soon as you start reading the introductory notes proved to be valuable and really helped to set the mood and intention of the story straight. Just take the whole setup of from the items used in the fights, banners to swords, giving those few explanations about the gear all through to the different types of units like chariots and elephants and siege weapons this gave a really grand feel to Destroy Carthage. Added to this is the accurate timeline. The story picks up in 168 BC at the battle of Pydna then skips back to 3 month prior before that battle and later going to 167 BC etc. Now within each of these parts David Gibbins tells a lot of the overall developments and the events that shaped Scipio's career, first focusing more on the background of Scipio and how he is a bit of the prodigy of the legend of Carthage, how Scipio Africanus (the grandfather of the Scipio you follow in Destroy Carthage) brought Hannibal down and how this legacy of this shadows Scipio. Later the focus is on the part of the title of the book Destroy Carthage has on task to live up to as well.The pacing of the story of Destroy Carthage is done in a different way then what I had expected.
The combination of the different parts and the dialogues therein with the different characters really has it’s own way. Like I mentioned above the story does take place over course of several years and the events do follow up on each other, and leads to an inevitable encounter, but how this is build up is quite unique. Because besides the fighting of the Roman army, you really get to see and feel the background of mainly Scipio and Fabius and how they are planning their next moves. This gave a nice insight in the history of Scipio’s career but also causes both Scipio and Fabius to be highlighted as important characters, they are the main characters so this was a plus for me.
Since the timeframe does skip forward a few years each time I found that the focus on several characters was a nice feature and a must to get to know more about the actions of why they were initiated. The conversing of Scipio with his advisers and Fabius really felt like they were sitting around a table strategically plotting their next actions. In the spur of those moments you really felt the tension rising.
However there is one small note about the characters, when you first get to meet each one they do seem new and fresh and they actually do have their own personalities for example Scipio is determined, honour bound but quite ruthless and brutal at the same time. Fabius is on some level just as brutal but more reigned in until he is facing of the enemy in battle. I was hoping to actually see more of an character development overall in the story, however this wasn’t really happening. It’s not really a bad point of the book since I think the focus of the story was more on showing the rich history of Scipio that led to the destruction of Carthage, but there are enough fictional characters like Fabius that could have taken the storyline perhaps that much further.Now for the part where Destroy Carthage excels which is battle and intrigue. A definite plus of Destroy Carthage are the graphic battle scenes. In the beginning of the book with the battle of Pydna you already get a glimpse, but later the single encounters with assassins and the siege of Carthage only add more in the story. In describing the action scenes David Gibbins doesn’t leave out the gory detail accompanied in the hand to hand combat of the Roman Legionaires.
Now I have read quite a few battles scenes but haven’t encountered any that inspired a feeling of this magnitude. This feeling is also mainly achieved by all the things that David Gibbins includes when “kitting” out the armies, from cavalry, shield formations, elephants and siege engines; everything is included and really inspires the grandness and viciousness of the Roman empire.Destroy Carthage manages to directly set the setting straight for the Total War Rome series. It’s graphic, action/packed and often violent in the combat scenes but also has a lot of other elements working in its advantage like the intrigue you are used to see in the Roman times. The element that makes Destroy Carthage stands out is the usage of detail of the ancient Roman history, David Gibbins really shows that he knows his history. From weapons to siege engines and other units but also its geography. It´s a great feature and an even greater pleasure to read. By focusing on Scipio’s career with bringing down Carthage really added another dimension to the existing videogame making the switch from the big battles scenes towards focusing on what went on more behind the scenes of the major battles.
The start up of the story had the right pacing and only further increased to be more interesting as the story progressed, jumping to different times and taking the storyline further towards an inevitable encounter in the end. Though you have the narrow focus on several characters, this didn’t draw away the attention on the larger scale and the battle are just superbly plotted out. The clashes of the warriors are described in utter detail that greatly reflects the brutal face-to-face combat scenes.
And with the mentioning of The war has just begun on the last page, I know we will be seeing more of this series! I am an avid player and fan of the Total War series so I bought this novel solely based on their recommendations. I am sorry I did.There are many reasons I loathed this book but I'll do my best to keep my reasoning fairly high level.1. The author is all tell and no show. It reads more as a textbook than an epic adventure or war-time thriller. There is very little character development and when the reader finally gets some dialogue, it is dry, robotic and unconvincing.
I also cringed continuall I am an avid player and fan of the Total War series so I bought this novel solely based on their recommendations. I am sorry I did.There are many reasons I loathed this book but I'll do my best to keep my reasoning fairly high level.1. The author is all tell and no show. It reads more as a textbook than an epic adventure or war-time thriller.
There is very little character development and when the reader finally gets some dialogue, it is dry, robotic and unconvincing. I also cringed continually at how much modern vernacular is used. I couldn't distinguish between ANY of the characters and couldn't find any human motivations behind any of the character's actions besides their unreasonably passionate hatred of anything Carthaginian.
Scipio's pandering for his underdeveloped love interest, Julia, is unconvincing and annoying at times. The only time I came even CLOSE to feeling something was when their hunting dog gets killed and NO ONE CARES. They don't even bury the poor thing. They simply go about their day and let the crows eat their dog of nearly 10 years.2. The author's opening battle of Pydna is overly brief and inaccurate. This battle is considered the turning point for Ancient battle formations in that the Cohort could finally outclass the world famous Phalanx due to the cohorts better maneuverability and the mass volleys of Pila Legionnaires would release before closing in for combat. NEITHER of these points is made by the author and we are also made to experience a skirmish against Iberian troops where the Pilum is used incorrectly as a stabbing spear in close quarters.3.
Gibbons is a Scipio fanboy. Scipio Africanus was handed a victory against Hannibal at Zama. Hannibal at the time of Zama, roughly 35 years before the events of Gibbon's novel, was suffering from disease, desertion, abandonment by Carthage's Nobles, and also faced a superior force of Romans at Zama. Jar Jar Binks could have commanded the Romans at Zama and still come out on top. All we get is mindless hero worship of Scipio by nearly all the main and supporting characters with little reason other than that 'he beat Hannibal.' A skilled author could have explained that Rome was using Scipio's victory as a means to keep morale high as Rome had not had a significant victory in over 35 years and needed the publicity but this is never done.
All we are given are countless statements about Scipio being great because Scipio was great. It's boring and insulting to educated readers.4. Overly gory with an under developed plot. The author seems more comfortable telling us in painful detail how a Barbarian Leader's entrails are spilling out of himself rather than give us a gripping, and historically accurate account of a battle. Even when we get to the TITLE of the book, Destroy Carthage, most of the preliminary action and strategy leading up to the battle is ignored and the reader finds himself in another 'blood and guts' back alley cluster screw. I slogged through ALOT of boring detail and useless exposition for the climax and was sorely disappointed with what I was given.Overall, extremely disappointed in this novel and even more so in Sega and Creative Assembly for tricking me into buying this snooze fest. I bought this book with the ability to find what made Romans a great empire.
I knew that I wouldn't find any lovestory or anything else than the title promotes: war. In fact I found much more. There was a lovestory, feelings about life and the ideal roman: A mixture dignity, ethics and structured ferocity. All of these incarnate in the person of Scipio which preface the Roman type that will become master of nations in History. The interesting was that beneath the incredibly violent scenes where I bought this book with the ability to find what made Romans a great empire. I knew that I wouldn't find any lovestory or anything else than the title promotes: war.
In fact I found much more. There was a lovestory, feelings about life and the ideal roman: A mixture dignity, ethics and structured ferocity.
All of these incarnate in the person of Scipio which preface the Roman type that will become master of nations in History. The interesting was that beneath the incredibly violent scenes where people (which deserve it or not) are dying in many cruel ways, the writer gives the answer how a roman was thinking not only to win but to dominate to the whole known world at that time. I enjoyed and the person of Polybius because I always had the curiosity of how a Greek which was one of the 1,000 Achaean nobles who were transported to Rome as hostages, he finally became one of the biggest admirer about Romans.
It was something between a novel and a documentary about the destroy of Carthago but also about the way that Romans transformed from amateurs to professionals. The book - which is a tie-in with the game 'Total War: Rome II - was good if you're a fan of the ancient Romans, or maybe just a fan of ancient history in general. It certainly has plenty of descriptions of very intense violence, so if that bothers you then I'd recommend not reading this, but to be fair to the author, it certainly isn't inappropriate to the time period in which battles were indeed extremely violent and bloody.The book was good but not great. The ending has a rather abrupt feel t The book - which is a tie-in with the game 'Total War: Rome II - was good if you're a fan of the ancient Romans, or maybe just a fan of ancient history in general.
It certainly has plenty of descriptions of very intense violence, so if that bothers you then I'd recommend not reading this, but to be fair to the author, it certainly isn't inappropriate to the time period in which battles were indeed extremely violent and bloody.The book was good but not great. The ending has a rather abrupt feel to it, as it leaves the fate of one of the main protagonists throughout the book totally unresolved.
Still, all in all, worth a quick read if you're into the history of the ancient Romans. This is the first historical fiction book I recall reading specifically about the fall of Carthage. I'd read about Hannibal which was a few decades before, and of course about Julius Caesar, which was after. As I've often thought, this was an awfully rough time to be alive. The story follows Scipio Africanus and his best friend/right hand man as they grow up and complete the destruction of Rome's greatest enemy. It is a shame in a way, as Carthage was founded by the Phoenicians, and the Phoeni This is the first historical fiction book I recall reading specifically about the fall of Carthage. I'd read about Hannibal which was a few decades before, and of course about Julius Caesar, which was after.
As I've often thought, this was an awfully rough time to be alive. The story follows Scipio Africanus and his best friend/right hand man as they grow up and complete the destruction of Rome's greatest enemy. It is a shame in a way, as Carthage was founded by the Phoenicians, and the Phoenicians had likely been to the Americas and had definitely been around Africa at this time. Who knows where else they had gone. Lots of knowledge lost. I've played all the total war games since they came out and was excited to get stuck into this book from the start.I really enjoyed the first few chapters of the book and even though some parts seemed to drag on a little bit I was happy to push through to experience the final battle scene of the book.
But once I reached the final few chapters it turns out the battle has already begun and most of the action scenes have passed. There was little to enjoy from the final few scenes and I was not lef I've played all the total war games since they came out and was excited to get stuck into this book from the start.I really enjoyed the first few chapters of the book and even though some parts seemed to drag on a little bit I was happy to push through to experience the final battle scene of the book. But once I reached the final few chapters it turns out the battle has already begun and most of the action scenes have passed. There was little to enjoy from the final few scenes and I was not left satisfied with the ending.I would recommend the book if you enjoy historical fiction and would probably read any further installments only because of the potential that this series has. Received a copy of Total War Rome Destroy Carthage as a free giveaway from Goodreads. It's a good read, but not one to keep you up at night.
The level of research is impressive as is the merging of fictional characters with actual historical persons. Development of the main characters is well done. For a Roman history buff this would be an excellent read. I found descriptions of cities, fortifications, and battle plans a bit too detailed. The descriptions of executions and battle slaughter was t Received a copy of Total War Rome Destroy Carthage as a free giveaway from Goodreads.
It's a good read, but not one to keep you up at night. The level of research is impressive as is the merging of fictional characters with actual historical persons. Development of the main characters is well done. For a Roman history buff this would be an excellent read. I found descriptions of cities, fortifications, and battle plans a bit too detailed.
The descriptions of executions and battle slaughter was too gory for my taste. My copy of the book was an 'Advance Reading Copy', and as such I found a few glitches, which I assume would have been picked up in the final version. I found this to be an interesting book. I knew very little about the Punic Wars (that ancient history class in college was a long time ago) and found Gibbins narrative very informative.
Some of the gore was a little too realistic for my tastes and I mentally closed my eyes. I also found that the transitions between the different times a little rough. I would also have liked if the map of the Roman world was a little more detailed. Some of the places mentioned in the book weren't on the map and I I found this to be an interesting book. I knew very little about the Punic Wars (that ancient history class in college was a long time ago) and found Gibbins narrative very informative.
Some of the gore was a little too realistic for my tastes and I mentally closed my eyes. I also found that the transitions between the different times a little rough. I would also have liked if the map of the Roman world was a little more detailed.
Some of the places mentioned in the book weren't on the map and I had to look them up to make sense of their place in the story. Gibbins' historical retelling of a period of time that has so little actual coverage was interesting and laudable. HIs reimagining of the battle of Pynda, the siege of Intercatia, and even much of the siege of Carthage was very interersting especially in some of the detail of the armies and probable cultural mores of the time.
But the book felt a bit forced at times as if his editor was telling him to add more action, or grusom war stuff, while he was really more interested in imaganing the miss Gibbins' historical retelling of a period of time that has so little actual coverage was interesting and laudable. HIs reimagining of the battle of Pynda, the siege of Intercatia, and even much of the siege of Carthage was very interersting especially in some of the detail of the armies and probable cultural mores of the time. But the book felt a bit forced at times as if his editor was telling him to add more action, or grusom war stuff, while he was really more interested in imaganing the missing history. Canadian-born underwater archaeologist and novelist. Gibbins learned to scuba dive at the age of 15 in Canada, and dived under ice, on shipwrecks and in caves while he was still at school. He has led numerous underwater archaeology expeditions around the world, including five seasons excavating ancient Roman shipwrecks off Sicily and a survey of the submerged harbour of ancient Carthage.
In 1999- Canadian-born underwater archaeologist and novelist. Gibbins learned to scuba dive at the age of 15 in Canada, and dived under ice, on shipwrecks and in caves while he was still at school. He has led numerous underwater archaeology expeditions around the world, including five seasons excavating ancient Roman shipwrecks off Sicily and a survey of the submerged harbour of ancient Carthage. In 1999-2000 he was part of an international team excavating a 5th century BC shipwreck off Turkey. His many publications on ancient shipwreck sites have appeared in scientific journals, books and popular magazines. Most recently his fieldwork has taken him to the Arctic Ocean, to Mesoamerica and to the Great Lakes in Canada.After holding a Research Fellowship at Cambridge, he spent most of the 1990s as a Lecturer in the School of Archaeology, Classics and Oriental Studies at the University of Liverpool. On leaving teaching he become a novelist, writing archaeological thrillers derived from his own background.
His novels have sold over two million copies and have been London Sunday Times and New York Times bestsellers. His first novel, Atlantis, published in the UK in 2005 and the US in September 2006, has been published in 30 languages and is being made into a TV miniseries; since then he has written five further novels, published in more than 100 editions internationally. His novels form a series based on the fictional maritime archaeologist Jack Howard and his team, and are contemporary thrillers involving a plausible archaeological backdrop.
I boycotting this one Because in the last Civilization V game that I played Hannibal was portrayed as White which is totally inaccurate. Now they are saying he is an Arab lol what nonsense. Carthage was an ancient BLack civilization. Carthegian general Hannibal was a BLack man. A Black General. From Africa/Carthage that almost defeated mighty Rome. Now they are saying he is an Arab lol what?
Rome messed up and so did Civ V or was it 4. They really drew attention to this subject when they made him white lol. Ever seen the temptations the movie about the black musicians in the 60's yea, Hollywood wanted them to release an album cover with not their picture but a photo of some white kids playing at the beach lol same thing here. Another attempt to white wash history. Well sry you can do your own research and find out that this guy was Black not white and certainly not Arabic they don't even claim him lol. Arabs don't even claim this guy he was not Semetic lol.
Ever heard of Black man who is still white yea they come up with all sorts of crazyniss to deny Blacks any moral or self resepcet that their ancestor achieved greatness in antiquity. Ever heard of the 'Hamitic' Black man look it up lol. You will find out this phrase was coined by a guy named Segliman.
Much like this and Hannibal look it up. We have always been led to believe that Carthage was a white or Semitic enclave in North Africa, and that it's people were very different from the indigenous Africans. Wayne Chandler,therefore, first addresses himself to this question. I shall not go over this matter which has been dealt with at length in other journals. Suffice it to say, that the Phoenicians were not homogeneous.
Whatever their early beginnings (which Diop calls Africoid) and whatever their close connections, as brothers and allies of the Dynastic Egyptians, their racial composition became rather complex in certain periods. At the time of Hannibal, however, there is no question that they had so intermixed with the African people in Carthage that the African element had become the dominant strain, not in Phonecian city-states of Tyre and Sidon but in Carthage itself. This contention is proven by skeletal remains, by inconography, by many cultural elements found in the historical strata associated with Hannibal. The works of Pittard and Gsell, in particulae establish this.'
Ivan Van Sertima This was taken from the late great Dr. Ivan Van Sertima 'Hannibal was Black' 'Carthage was Black' ancient Africa was 'Black' 'Rome's greatest nemesis was a Black man' Mainstream society keeps him buried though.
Remember Gladiator with Russel Crowe, in the beginning of the movie where he was being carried in a cart and it was a black man pushing him in the cart to go into being a gladiator slave.well yea both of them had been caught and forced to fight but Russel asked the black man where he was from and he said 'Im from Carthage' and yea he proved to be a awesome warrior. 'When they explain their own historical past or study their languages, that seems normal.
Yet, when an African does likewise to help reconstruct the national tempermant of his people, distorted by colonialism, that is considered backward or alarming.' 'Our investigations have convinced us that the West has not been calm enough and objective enough to teach us our history correctly, without crude falsifications' 'Only a loyal determined struggle to destroy.cultural aggression. and bring out the truth, whatever it may be, is revolutionary and consonant with real progress; it is the only approach which opens to the universal.
Humantarian declarations, are not called for and add nothing to real progress'. The point of this is not about racism this is about a restoration of the records. This is to set the record straight. A restoration of a consciousness of the African people and the reconquering of a Promethean one.
It's clich'e that Africans/Blacks have no History. And it's not going to work for long. I can see if I was lying about this, that this stuff has not been summoned up already, that it hasn't already been debated/proven right to enlightened minds but it's out here, this is not esoteric knowledge, this stuff is out here. This stuff is old.
Most people are just scared or are content with the way things are but, their lying. How can you support a liar? Well Carthage was Phoenician, they settled there becuase it was a great place central for trade and had great land for producing food. So the majority of the carthaginian people were middle eastern in apperence. They do think Hannibal was black since the numidians were mostly african. But the problem i have with hannibal is he had a shot of winning the whole war but didnt take it. Then again scipio was the winner and what would make you look better?
Beating a military mastermind or just a average joe? Some historians think hannibal wasnt as good as everyone thinks. Well Carthage was Phoenician, they settled there becuase it was a great place central for trade and had great land for producing food.
Carthage Buildings Rome Total War 2
So the majority of the carthaginian people were middle eastern in apperence. They do think Hannibal was black since the numidians were mostly african. But the problem i have with hannibal is he had a shot of winning the whole war but didnt take it. Then again scipio was the winner and what would make you look better? Beating a military mastermind or just a average joe? Some historians think hannibal wasnt as good as everyone thinks.
Millbro The Priestess of Tanit, in Carthage, and in this game, Father Delattre found her Sarcophagus(found her tomb) her cadaver was found inside (her corpse was found), she was a woman, a Negro/Black woman, they studied her remains and concluded that she belonged to the Negro race. This Priestess was part of the elite in Carthage/ a highly religious position was held by a Negro/Black woman. This civilization is Negro /Black/ African. > 'Among the various races in Carthage, the most highly placed socially, the most resepected, the one that held the levers of political command, the one whom they owed that civilization, if we are to judge by the material proofs presented instead of interpreting them in line with prejudices we have been taught, was the Negro race.'
This is ridiculous, Hannibal was not black he was of Semitic origin. We know this to be true because of similarities between Carthage's beliefs, language and culture which much resembled that of the Arabs, Hebrews, and Akkadians,etc. We know the Southern African (black) people have nothing to do with the northern African empires, because they lacked many of the technologies as their neighboring empires or peoples. The Hamatic man, was created in the 19th century as an application of scientific racism. The Hamatic man is backed up by no evidence at all, and therefor should not be believed. The The notion that the northern African empires( Carthage, Egypt,etc) where predominantly black is a ridiculous claim backed by no evidence what so ever. Also, race is not biological; If you Judge a man by race then why do you not judge him by height and eye color?
QUOTE='Vintage0218'We have always been led to believe that Carthage was a white or Semitic enclave in North Africa, and that it's people were very different from the indigenous Africans. Wayne Chandler,therefore, first addresses himself to this question. I shall not go over this matter which has been dealt with at length in other journals. Suffice it to say, that the Phoenicians were not homogeneous. Whatever their early beginnings (which Diop calls Africoid) and whatever their close connections, as brothers and allies of the Dynastic Egyptians, their racial composition became rather complex in certain periods. At the time of Hannibal, however, there is no question that they had so intermixed with the African people in Carthage that the African element had become the dominant strain, not in Phonecian city-states of Tyre and Sidon but in Carthage itself.
This contention is proven by skeletal remains, by inconography, by many cultural elements found in the historical strata associated with Hannibal. The works of Pittard and Gsell, in particulae establish this.' Ivan Van Sertima This was taken from the late great Dr. Ivan Van Sertima 'Hannibal was Black' 'Carthage was Black' ancient Africa was 'Black' 'Rome's greatest nemesis was a Black man' Mainstream society keeps him buried though. Remember Gladiator with Russel Crowe, in the beginning of the movie where he was being carried in a cart and it was a black man pushing him in the cart to go into being a gladiator slave.well yea both of them had been caught and forced to fight but Russel asked the black man where he was from and he said 'Im from Carthage' and yea he proved to be a awesome warrior. Ivan Van Sertima sounds like someone who need to be more educated with archaeology and science. The claim that the Carthaginians are black because of found bone remains Is false.
You cant tell a persons race by their bone remains 100%. Because not all all races are a hundred percent pure. I'm sure that the Carthaginians themselves might have mated with blacks, but the claim of them being completely black is insane and backed by no evidence. Hello, I don't post here often, but I saw this and had to weigh in. Vintage is badly misinformed. First off, the makers of Civilization V and Rome Total War II are not the same people, so boycotting one to harm the other is unlikely to do much damage to the the intended target.Secondly, Africa is a geographic expression not an ethnic or 'racial' one.
Carthage Elephants Rome Total War
Africa is a very large place, with diverse peoples who have often been divided by difficult terrain. Simply because someone is from Africa, does not mean you would automatically consider them 'black'. Race is a can of worms, that most anthropologists would rather not get into. It's inexact, full of political pitfalls, and nationalist pride. I don't know what Hannibal looked like. There is no uncontested image of him surviving in the modern day.
His appearance and race was probably similar to his countrymen and those people probably appeared similar to the ones that live in Tunisia today. Terms like 'Hamitic' and 'Semetic' are outdated and no longer used much outside of loopy race scientists.
In fact the 'Hamatic' and 'Semetic' languages now considered the same language group, Afro-Asiatic.We know the Carthagenians spoke an Afro-Asiatic language like the rest of the people of North Africa. Language is not a good indicator of race though. Afro-Asiatic is spoken by people living in such far away places as Mali, Somalia, Israel, Iraq, Malta, and Morrocco and there is a wide range of morphology in these people.
Still, I would say that most people of North Africa 2300 years ago looked like the people of North Africa today.Dr. Ivan Van Sertima is to put it bluntly, a crank. He is similar to the race scientists of the early 20th century and has made bizzare claims such the Mesoamerican peoples being African immigrants. He is in the same league as those who tried to prove that an Aryan race founded civilization and thus can be safely ignored.Lastly, I would like to point out that trying to find empowerment and racial pride in the civilizations of North Africa (Carthage, Egypt, etc) is a quiotixic endevor at best for African Americans. Most African Americans are decended from subsaharan West Africans (along with a healthy dose of European blood.) North Africans did occasionally cross the Sahara into West Africa, but mostly to buy slaves, thus creating the great slave markets that Europeans would later exploit in the colonization of the New World.
Your Average African American might have some ancestors who were North Africans, but he's more likely to have Viking blood then that of a Pharoh. An African American taking pride in the works of Ancient Egypt is like an Swede taking pride in the building of the Great Wall of China. It's possible that some of his ancestors worked on it, but not very likely. Simply because Sweden and China are on the same landmass (Eurasia), doesn't mean they had a lot of contact in the pre-modern world.
The same goes for Africa, which has some of the harshest enviroments in the world and travel was noriously difficult.