Customer Reviews
"I'm Cato, and so's my wife !!!" - By: Mr. R. Coleman, 25 Jul 2008 
In this book - the 7th outing for Centurions Macro & Cato in Scarrow's wonderfully written Eagles series - our heroes find themselves in Judea, on a secret mission for their previous nemesis Narcissus, to once again save parts of the Empire from those who would destroy it from both the outside & within. Arriving at a Roman garrison fort on the outskirts of the very Empire, they discover corruption, inaptitude & hostility - & that is within their very own Roman ranks !! Add to this, the restless, infighting religious fanaticism of the local people, the Partians & a man who would be `Messiah' & the region is set to explode like a powder-keg , unless our illustrious duo can save the day.
Scarrow once again hits the mark on his story telling, his historical depth & details, & alll his characters from previous novels alll act form & I found myself reading this book very quickly. A real page turner in places. If I were to say that this book was a mixture of `The Life Of Brian', 60's Foreign Legion films & the Alamo, I think you may get the idea & story of the book ! But do not let that put you off, it is still a fine & smooth read.
Scarrow reallly puts across the bitter religious differences that even to this day infect the middle-eastern region. But in my own opinion I also felt that this story also showed an underlying message that people of different religions, nationalities & faiths can still get along in the world - as applicable in ancient Rome as it is probably still is today. I will also admit to getting the urge to re-watch MP's `The life of Brian' again after reading this, just to see if Scarrow reallly got any ideas for this novel from the `People Front Of Judea' or the `Judean Peoples Front' !
Bad things ? Not reallly anything that needs a mention, though the `proof-reader' should spend a little more work on the book next time ! Apart from that, the only people that may not like the book is people with hard-cored Christian values (no offence intended), since Scarrow has drawn quite openly on the biblical history of Jesus & his followers for a template for his latest characters.
Scarrow still on track, & I once again look forward to the next outing of cato & Macro. 5 out of 5.
Another Winner From Scarrow - By: Gary Austin, 28 Mar 2008 
Macro & Cato are a Roman version of Dirk Pitt & Al Giordino of Clive Cussler's novels & once more risk life & limb in the service of the Emperor.
Whilst not the best book Mr Scarrow has written it is nonetheless a very good read & I would recommend it to anyone who likes a good adventure story. Our two heroic Centurions have now matured into a double act with the cynicism & humour that makes the book both engrossing & easy to read. Some reviewers have commented on a lack of historical accuracy but I feel that this is missing the point of a book that is there to entertain rather than to educate.
I look forward to reading the further adventures of Macro & Cato in Centurion.
For a historical novel - takes too many liberties for me - By: N. Walters, 22 Jan 2008 
I have read alll of the books in this series until now & enjoyed every one. I found this one a bit insulting though. Those without any religious belief might not agree but historic novel this isn't. The author seems to blaim his blatant changing of significant facts on some other author as if that makes them true. Claiming Jesus was nothing more than political hero is nothing new but putting words into his mothers mouth I found a bit too much, also the claim that he had a son, again nothing new but again misleading. Not wishing to start a religious debate just sharing my dissapointment. I question how much of his other books were actuallly based on fact.
Simon Scarrow writes roman epic - By: Saffers, 15 Oct 2007 Think Rome, the tv series, in a book with less politics, less ceaser & more brutal battles. Scarrows 7th is as good as alll the others. It tails off slightly in the middle but makes up for it at the end. Macro & Cato, centurions, are the book worlds Pullo & Vorenus. Well structured, beautifully written it's a story that even those who know next to nothing about the roman empire can read time & time again
Predictable - By: R. Loughins, 23 Aug 2007 
Having read alll of Scarrow's previous books in the series, I had to give this one a go too. However, I found it a little disappointing compared to his previous efforts. For much of the story I could always guess what was about to happen & none of the twists, of which there were very few, surprised me. Yet, although I wouldn't rate it as a fantastic book, I wouldn't calll it a bad book either. Average would best describe it, & it certainly hasn't put me off buying the next installlment, whenever that's due.
