Gladiatrix, by Russell Whitfield
The main character is Lysandra, a Spartan priestess who is captured and sold into 
The tale in Gladiatrix begins with a very brutal battle between her and another woman in the arena. Lysandra is a skilled sword fighter, and manages to stay alive. She is then brought to the facility that trains women to fight. This is where most of the story takes place, and where we learn more about Lysandra and the other women held captive there.
The training is hard and at times brutal. The rivalry between the women as well – and as they come from all parts of the Roman empire – there are lots of conflicts among the women, both based on differences in background and in differences in status. Lysandra is both beautiful and arrogant, and makes enemies left and right. As well, her beauty attracts unwanted attention from the male trainers.
Lysandra is an intriguing character. Being Spartan, she frequently reflects on the superiority of her own intelligence, education and upbringing. She considers everyone else her inferior. Her physical prowess is extraordinary. Her primary weaknesses are her complete lack of empathy and her startling tactlessness and her aloof pride.
It is an interesting tale, of gladiatorial training, bloody and brutal fighting, of life as slaves, of violence and humiliation, as well as of courage, love, sex, and relationship. It is a very violent tale. There is a great deal of killing in the book, as well as some very violent rape scenes. There is also a lot of eroticism and sex in the book, including some lesbian love scenes. And the language is very blunt. So this is an explicit, colorful and tough book.
Despite the rough edges of the book and its toughness, I liked the book. Gladiatrix is a thrilling first novel, well written, and combines fascinating historical detail with blistering action. Readers who like Bernard Cornwell and Simon Scarrow will find much to enjoy in Gladiatrix.
(For more about gladiators, see also Sand of the Arena, by James Duffy.)
Praise:
“A great debut that shines an entirely new light on the glory and the bloodshed of the Roman arena…It’s exciting stuff, with well rounded characters, nail-biting duels to the death and vividly depicted settings. Gladiatrix makes Gladiator look very tame indeed!”
–Simon Scarrow, author of Under the Eagle
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.A Fine Boy for Killing, by Jan Needle
Filed under: Jan Needle, Main character, William Bentley, book review, historical fiction, recommendation
This is the first volume of Jan Needle’s series of nautical fiction adventures called The Sea Officer William Bentley Novels. The novel is a very promising start to this series, 
In A Fine Boy for Killing, the focus is much more on daily life in the ship itself, and less on naval action, battles and heroism. Needles presents a much more realist view of the Navy than any other writer of this particular era that I have read so far. HMS Welfare is helmed by Daniel Swift, a notoriously ruthless captain. Bentley is actually his nephew and favorite, and looks up to his uncle. However, what he learns from his uncle, and tries to make sense of to the best of his abilities, is a view of the common sailor as a little more than a beast – scum, cowards, treacherous and deceitful.
The novel is focused on the inner life of the ship, both among the officers and midshipmen, and among the common sailors. We witness how excessive use of force by the sadistic Captain Swift, as well as hostile attitudes towards the crew from all officers, gradually builds tremendous tension in the ship. Floggings take place more or less daily on this ship – they are given for the slightest offenses. The abusive atmosphere aboard the Welfare is thick and immediate, as is the struggle for power over the ship.
I liked this book a lot, and could hardly put it down. It is an intense story, quite dark, yet rich in its characterizations, with a good plot, lots of attention to detail and good pace. It is a book devoid of naval action, and without heroes and heroism – there are no Hornblower’s or Lord Ramage’s here – but the perspective of A Fine Boy for Killing is very interesting and quite intriguing. A great start for this new series!
See more nautical fiction book reviews!
Praise:
“. . . A superbly written and engaging nautical adventure tale.”
– Midwest Book Review
“…A powerful story of lost humanity, its violent emotions and unremitting bleakness are shattering.”
– Guardian
“…His portrayal of the Age of Fighting Sail is gritty, realistic and thoroughly entertaining…”
– James L. Nelson Author of The Brethren of the Coast Trilogy
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