Publisher: Headline (Trade Paperback – 14 November 2023)
Series: Eagles of the Empire – Book 22
Length: 398 pages
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
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One of my favourite historical fiction authors of all time, Simon Scarrow, returns with another epic adventure that places his long-running Roman protagonists right in the middle of the deadliest fight imaginable with Rebellion.
I have made no secret of the fact that I am a massive fan of Simon Scarrow, especially when it comes to his main Roman historical fiction series. While I have deeply enjoyed Scarrow’s books set in other periods, such as his awesome Berlin Wartime thrillers Blackout and Dead of Night, it is Scarrow’s Eagles of the Empire series that I come back to every time. Following two veteran Roman officers who manage to find themselves sent to every battlefield imaginable, the Eagles of the Empire books have dominated the historical fiction market for over 20 years, and I have had such an incredible time reading every entry in this series. Eagles of the Empire has been a staple series for this blog ever since I started The Unseen Library, and I have reviewed multiple entries, including The Blood of Rome, Traitors of Rome, The Emperor’s Exile, The Honour of Rome and Death to the Emperor. Due to how much fun I have with these fantastic historical adventures, I always make time to read the latest Eagles of Empire book each year, and I finally managed to read the late 2023 entry, Rebellion. The 22nd book in the series, Rebellion was an exceptional and bloody read that places Scarrow’s protagonists in their most dangerous battle yet.
AD 60, Britannia. The Roman province of Britannia is in utter turmoil as the queen of the Iceni tribe, Boudica, leads her people in total rebellion after suffering the greed and cruelty of Rome too long. Despite the best efforts of retired centurion Macro, Boudica’s growing force of Britons managed to destroy the veteran’s colony of Camulodunum, and now her army is emboldened to take back the entire province in a bloody spree of vengeance.
Campaigning on the other side of the province, Governor Suetonius desperately attempts to lead his army back to Londinium as soon as word reaches him about the uprising. Forced to move ahead with a smaller force, led by Prefect Cato, Suetonius hopes to rally the rest of the troops in Britannia to make time for his army to arrive. However, Suetonius is unprepared for the savagery of the desperate rebels and the incompetence of the officers he left behind, and he soon finds himself hopeless outnumbered.
As the Roman forces attempt to salvage the situation, Cato finds himself lost without his longtime comrade Macro beside him. Convinced that Macro died at Camulodunum, Cato is determined to avenge his friend no matter the cost. But Macro’s fate is far more complicated than the Roman’s realise, as he has been taken prisoner and is trapped in Boudica’s camp where everyone wants him dead. As the Roman host desperately makes their final stand against the rebelling tribes, can these two grizzled soldiers survive this bloody battle, or has their luck finally run out?
Scarrow once again presents a fast-paced and powerful piece of historical fiction that proves impossible to put down. Focusing on a particularly fascinating and iconic piece of history, Rebellion is an outstanding novel that once again thrusts Scarrow’s beloved protagonists right into the middle of the carnage.
The author had to achieve a lot in Rebellion, especially after the epic cliffhanger the prior novel, Death to the Emperor, left us on. The events leading up to Boudica’s rebellion have been in play since the author’s very first book, and it was only a matter of time before Scarrow showcased it in this series. Death to the Emperor did a really good job setting the rebellion in motion, and Scarrow needed to majorly capitalise on that in this latest novel. Luckily, he was more than up to the task, presenting a captivating story that covers the key events of the rebellion.
After starting with a fun and bloody introduction that helps to highlight just how much trouble the Romans are in, Rebellion swiftly returns to the protagonists. The first part of the book is told primarily from Cato’s perspective, as he accompanies the Roman general and a small force back to the imperilled capital in a desperate march. This sets up a lot of the later narrative, especially as you get a sense of how out of position the Romans are and how desperate events have become. Rebellion’s plot got even more interesting when the story spent several chapters focussing on Macro. Now, I never for a second believed that Macro had been killed in the previous book, so I do not consider it a spoiler to mention that he was a major part of Rebellion. His scenes were easily the highlight of the first half of Rebellion, especially as he endured being a prisoner of the rebelling tribes and his former lover, Boudica. These scenes are so tense and emotionally charged, as Macro is forced to watch his comrades be butchered all around him, while also learning some surprising secrets. Despite the horrors he witnesses, Macro still manages to be a bullish and utterly frustrating figure for his captors, and I loved seeing the various ways he tries to fight back. Naturally, these two separate storylines converge as the book continues, although things only get darker once Cato and Macro are back together.
The second half of Rebellion is so damn fast-paced, exciting and intense that I honestly read the whole thing in a single night. Everything about this second half is very impressive, as the characters go through hell time and again. Much of this involves an extended chase sequence as the Romans are forced to flee the advancing wrath of Boudica. The sheer desperation, despair and sacrifice involved in many of these scenes is extremely moving, and Scarrow did not sugarcoat just how brutal and bloody things got at the hands of the rebelling Britons. The continued perspective spilt between Cato and Macro during these sequences works great, and Scarrow really captures just how fraught the situation is.
While I loved this long chase sequence and the brawls involved with it, the main highlight of Rebellion was always going to be the final battle between the Romans and Boudica. Scarrow takes his time setting up this battle, which really heightens the anticipation, as the characters make their preparations and reflect on the fight to come. The conclusive battle was everything you would hope it to be, and Scarrow showcases the epic confrontation, one of the bloodiest in Roman British history, in fantastic detail. The action is intense, fast and shocking, and you are constantly on the edge of your seat waiting to see how events would unfold and whether the protagonists would survive. Everything comes to a powerful and desperate finish, and readers will be thrilled by how this entire novel comes together.
As with most books in Scarrow’s Eagles of the Empire series, Rebellion can be read as a fun standalone novel, although in this case reading one or two of the previous entries might be beneficial. This is because most of the storylines from the last few books have involved the events that led to Boudica’s revolt, and it was great to see it finally see this ongoing arc finally come to fruition. At the very least, I would advise people to read the prior novel, Death to the Emperor, before getting into Rebellion. Death to the Emperor was one of Scarrow’s best recent book in the series, and it ends with the battle for Camulodunum and a cliffhanger regarding Macro. The two books form a powerful pairing, and I strongly believe that the impact of Rebellion was enhanced by reading the events of Death to the Emperor first. However, if you choose to dive into Rebellion as a standalone, you will still be in for a good time because Scarrow ensures that the plot is very accessible and easy to follow for new readers. This proves to be an awesome Eagles of the Empire book as a result, and I look forward to the next entry in the series, especially after some of the cool revelations that came out in this impressive novel.
I loved the historical aspects of Rebellion as Scarrow does an amazing job of exploring the events of Boudica’s revolt in detail. As I mentioned above, the set-up for the revolt was handled flawlessly in Death to the Emperor, and Scarrow did a great job following it up with the main event here in this sequel. Many of the key aspects of this conflict, including the sacking of Londinium, the forced march of the Roman army, and the general panic of the citizens in Britannia are shown in impressive detail, and Scarrow does a great job of setting the scene and showing just how close the Romans were to defeat. The author does not pull any punches when it comes to how bad things got, and the inhuman actions both sides committed really raised the stakes of the book. Scarrow also does an outstanding job of filling in historical details that were not effectively covered by the surviving sources. For example, I liked his take on the destruction of the Ninth Legion at the start of the book, which was reminiscent of the Teutoburg Forest massacre. Scarrow further enhances the story by providing an intriguing potential viewpoint on both sides of the revolt. Interactions between Cato, Macro, and several different Briton characters really highlight how both sides thought they were in the right, and the differing views around the conflicts amped up the emotions of the story. However, it was his fantastic depiction of the final battle that I particularly enjoyed. Despite its fame, reliable details about this battle are scarce and I think that Scarrow presented a very reasonable depiction, showing the tactics the desperate Romans likely used. This battle really came to life thanks to Scarrow’s outstanding storytelling, and you can just envision the fight between the tightly formed Roman legionaries and the massed hordes of Britons. All this historical detail was just superb, and I loved how authentic and brutal it helped to make Rebellion.
In addition to the amazing and compelling historical elements, Rebellion also featured some moving character work. The plot of Rebellion featured an interesting combination of long-running protagonists, real-life historical figures, and new characters introduced for this book. I think this cool combination of characters worked extremely well, and it helped to tell an amazing and complex story. Naturally, most of this focus goes towards the characters of Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro, who we have had so many adventures with over the years. Cato is again showcased as the young but tough veteran campaigner and tactician, and I liked his intriguing storylines in Rebellion as he was involved in all the major battles and conversations. While I am not sure that every key idea for Rome’s victory needed to come from Cato, it did allow him to serve a vital role in Rebellion, providing the reader with the best overview of Rome’s tactics and strategies during the war.
Due to Cato’s role as the leader, much of the more emotionally charged character work was left to the usually impassive and unflappable Macro. Macro actually goes through a lot in Rebellion, as after losing several friends in Death to the Emperor, he is captured by the Britons. Despite his steely resolve and fighting spirit, this imprisonment leaves its mark on Macro, especially when as he learns some disturbing secrets. Macro also bears a certain amount of guilt in Rebellion, as he feels responsible for Boudica’s uprising, and he worries about all the deaths he seems to have caused. I love this moving and powerful look at Macro, and it was great that Scarrow can still give him some additional depth this far into the series. Throw in compelling and intriguing looks at the two opposing leaders of this war, Boudica and Roman Governor Suetonius, as well as some other great characters, many of whom do not survive the entire book, and Rebellion proved to be an exception novel that expertly showcased its amazing cast.
Simon Scarrow once again wows me with his outstanding Roman historical fiction novel, Rebellion. This latest exceptional Eagles of the Empire book was everything I hoped it would be as Scarrow expertly places his protagonists in bloody heart of Boudica’s revolt. Loaded with action, intriguing historical detail, and fantastic emotionally charged character moments, Rebellion had me hooked from the very beginning, and I loved every second I spent reading it.
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