Killer of Men

By: Christian Cameron

Narrated by: Peter Noble

Length: 19 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's Summary

In the epic clash of Greece and Persia, a hero is forged - a monumental novel from the author of the Tyrant series.  

Arimnestos is a farm boy when war breaks out between the citizens of his native Plataea and their overbearing neighbours, Thebes. Standing in the battle line for the first time, alongside his father and brother, he shares in a famous and unlikely victory. But after being knocked unconscious in the melee, he awakes not a hero but a slave.  

Betrayed by his jealous and cowardly cousin, the freedom he fought for has now vanished, and he becomes the property of a rich citizen. So begins an epic journey out of slavery that takes the young Arimnestos through a world poised on the brink of an epic confrontation, as the emerging civilisation of the Greeks starts to flex its muscles against the established empire of the Persians.   

As he tries to make his fortune and revenge himself on the man who disinherited him, Arimnestos discovers that he has a talent that pays well in this new, violent world - for like his hero, Achilles, he is 'a killer of men'.

©2019 Christian Cameron (P)2019 Orion Publishing Group

Absolutely fantastic

I love historical fiction, but I've been spoiled by the likes of George MacDonald Fraser, Bernard Cornwell, Gary Jennings, and the like. Long books with fascinating characters, intriguing historical detail, unbelievable worldbuilding, plots and schemes and wars so thick and fast you can't bear to stop reading (or listening) even for an instant.

I have tried many other authors and series, but am consistently disappointed. I thought I had found all the good historical novels that are out there.

I was wrong. This book is a work of staggering skill and talent; all I said above, about Cornwell and Fraser, applies here. The tale rings true and never slackens in its relentless, addictive, interesting action and character and detail. 5 stars for sure.

8 people found this helpful

Mixing adventure and philosophy

I felt this book started a bit slow, however, about 1/4 of the way through it really picked up. After that, it was a constant treat to listen.

The story is one of struggle, growth, mastery and wisdom. As the protagonist suffers and deals with his injustice, he processes his rage, first through fury and ultimately through submission to law. It is a good story with excellent themes and I will certainly but the second work and continue.

4 people found this helpful

Greek Uhtred

If you're a fan of Bernard Cornwell's series' as well as a fan of Hellenic history then this is the series for you. In a similar fashion as Cornwell, the main character's story parallels the major event and figures of the era, in this case the beginning of the Persian Wars and the Ionian revolt. A must for any fan of historical fiction. The narrator is iffy at first but ultimately fits the mold perfectly.

3 people found this helpful

enthralling

I was glued to every word. straight on to the next next book. great narrator.

2 people found this helpful

Equal to Saxon Tales

Loved it. Like discovering another Uhtred-like protagonist. Mature, compelling, and well-researched writing. The narrator took some getting used to; his natural voice sounds like that of a pretty old man so it feels like a stretch sometimes for him to do the voice of women and young people, but after while I stopped noticing and I think he’s really quite good.

1 person found this helpful

Slow Start But Action Packed

It took a while to get used to the first person narrative but the story line and narrator were excellent. Lots of action just like the title suggests.

1 person found this helpful

wow

I can't believe how hooked I was on this fantastic book. do yourself a favor. give this a listen

1 person found this helpful

yep

one of the best books I have heard so far. great story. great delivery. just all around great

1 person found this helpful

very pleasant surprise!

If you like Cornwell, Ben Kane, and military-historical fiction authors like them, this is for you. A long book that I didn't want to end -- I was liking it so much I was shocked when narrator said "epilogue". The story is told by an old man looking back on his life and he adds wisdom & insights to his past, which the author does brilliantly. I just picked up the second book on Audible and can't wait to start.

Note on my narrator score: Peter Noble has an excellent voice, pacing, and delivery overall but has a very nasty habit of not maintaining volume when he switches to some characters. I find this terribly annoying, since I have to rewind, turn up to hear what was said, only to be blasted once he comes back to regular narration.

Well damn

I was not sure if I would like this book because I am more of a scfi/fantasy kind of guy but I loved it. I have to say that the writing was just amazing and with the narrator this book became an awesome experience that I will remember.

Killer of a Book!

An old man tells the story of his incredible life to the young, I've been here before, most recently with Angus Donald's most excellent Robin Hood series and I have to say this is right up there. This time, it's a venerable Arimnestos, once a young farm boy who becomes a very young warrior only to find himself enslaved. What unfolds is an incredibly vivid tale of war, destruction, forbidden love and one man's journey within a truly epic ancient conflict. I found the slavery part particularly engaging as it took a quite unexpected direction compared to the norm for novels of this type.

Like a lot of old men, the old Arimnestos is guilty of a bit of repetition and possibly Cameron was let down a little by his editors as the brief sequences where we come out of the story and back to the storyteller and his young listeners are a tad grating as he says the same thing time after time. This might annoy some but really it's more a wrinkle on an old, handsome face than some massive, hair-sprouting mole sprouting from an ugly story's nose.

Peter Noble gives a genuinely fabulous performance. He has a beautifully posh rasp that suits the elder Arimnestos as a story-teller, a throaty growl for the warriors as he gets into the action scenes and wonderfully he is able to chisel it all instantaneously to a mirror-like smoothness when he switches to a young female character. He brings real life to the tale and is never phased by the tricky place and character names.

This is obviously going to be a seriously epic series with battles on land and sea, betrayals, politics and tragic loves. If Cameron can keep up this level of intensity then it's going to be a bit of a classic!

11 people found this helpful

pure brilliance

I love historical fiction, started with I claudius in late70s ish, since forced retirement in 2003 I've read all of bernard cornwell Simon scarrow and many many more, I read this on release and now revisit on Audible.
The detail in Christian Camerons' work, the almost minute by minute of a characters' life, is the closest of any work to being them, the empathy touches the soul with real joy despair love hate tiredness adrenaline grief and every emotion, how can it be improved? By the raw performance worthy of an oscar in the superb narration of Peter Noble.
Ah and this isn't even my favourite novel of the narrator. Thankyou Christian

3 people found this helpful

Fantastic story telling

Absolutely loved it..epic. A must listen..perfect balance of history, story telling and entertainment. Must listen

1 person found this helpful

superb book

brilliant book, great coming of age book. will be listening to the second . gripping

1 person found this helpful

Brought Ancient Greece Alive

Absolutely loved this book, I'm an ancient history buff and I've read a lot about Athens and Sparta so to have the main character come from Plataea was genius. The story was fast paced and detailed and held my attention from beginning to end. Off to download the next in the series.

1 person found this helpful

I changed my mind

I didn't like the format of the narration at first but about a third of the way though I released I was gripped ans really like it by then.
geart story .. the end

1 person found this helpful

The best historical fiction author

A great series, superb writing, thrilling story, evocative setting, bone-crunching action. The narrator was absolutely fantastic.

1 person found this helpful

Great story

Very good book
Long which I like looking forward to the next one. I recommend

1 person found this helpful

brilliant series

excellent listen .. great story , excellent lead character and good performance by the narrator .. Can't wait for the next one

1 person found this helpful

Dominick Flynn [e-mail]

I would love to review killer of me as I can’t download it from my library is proving to be quite difficult can you help me download it from your end of the spectrum❓❓❓🥴🥴