The Falling Sword

Clash of Empires, Book 2

By: Ben Kane

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Length: 15 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

One final clash

Reeling from his defeat at the hands of the Macedonians, Rome's furious General Flamininus gathers his legions for the final strike on King Philip's mighty phalanx.

An empire on the edge

Both leaders know the victor will rule Greece, and both armies will do everything in their power to claim the ultimate prize.

Two heroes prepared to die

Fighting on opposing sides, Felix and Demetrios think they have survived the worst of the campaign. But between vicious infighting, unruly locals, and intense battle, both will be tested as the final showdown between two great civilisations begins...

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Ben Kane (P)2019 Orion Publishing Group

Steven Pacey still the best

Great historical fiction story telling. Loved the characters from the first Clash of Empires and really enjoyed this second offering, but seriously, I came here for Steven Pacey. He would make reading law review interesting.

Great listen

Steven Pacey does it again! And the story remains exciting throughout the entire time. Highly recommend!

Excellent

What an impressive series thus far. I can only hope there is more to come. The loss of characters you’ve come to enjoy reading about is tough, but overall a great story.

Ben Kane does it again!

Flew through this book! Ben Kane is a master at historical fiction and the performance by Steven Pacey is phenomenal!

Another Home Run!

Ben Kane, proves his worth, again with this book. The character drama is great, and is a very satisfying listen.

Book never took off for me.

I love Roman stories but this one just never hit me. Characters, story line it all failed to catch for me. Dropped out after three hours.

Good book, but I lost interest.

I love this writer and the way he creates so many unforgettable, fascinating characters. But I couldn’t keep my attention with this book. Maybe it’s my fault. I will have to try again one day.

Still going to read more Ben Kane. Planning to read the Eagles trilogy very soon. Kane has a fantastic writing style. Narrator very good.

Drama and Accuracy

This series is a perfect blend of historical accuracy and high military drama. Its only major shortcoming is the lack of any well-developed female characters, but I'm ready to blame that on their absence in source material, rather than on the author. Narration is very well done, too--the complexity of every character is well expressed in tone and accent. If you're an amateur military historian with a penchant for the classical period like me, this is the series for you. Gimme more, Kane!

A perfect continuation

Not as much action as the first. Lots of major things happen. These characters are so well written. I thoroughly enjoyed both books. I teamed up at certain points while at work.

I returned this one, could not stand it.

I bought this based on the good reviews but I just got so irritated with it I returned it. In brief my issues are 1) a simple ( not in a good way) narrative. 2) whole stretches of narrative that I could not understand what the point was. 3) simple, and incorrect narrative of an attack on a defended wall.
A possibly unfair summary: compared to Sidebottoms novels, which are not perfect, this is a children’s book.

Kane's Raising His Standard!

The second in Ben Kane's 'Clash of Empires' series takes the excellent start he made with the first book and dials everything up another notch. Like a number of writers in this genre he is able to portray great action and what feels like a quite authentic insight into the lives of both the foot soldiers and the generals. And that's what sets this series aside from many of these others. Kane has created a big set of characters and we live with them in the heart of the Macedonian phalanxes with Demetrius and his comrades and we get to stand shoulder to shoulder in the iron-hard lines of the Roman legions with Felix and Antonius. The battles are visceral and bloodthirsty and so are the lives that these doughty foot soldiers lead with all the petty intrigues associated with the rank and file. What's more we see the other end of the scale, Prince Philip, a charismatic but oftentimes ruthless hero king plagued with concerns for his nation and those around him. Set against him is the gloriously ambitious and constantly scheming Roman politician / general Flamiminus who weaves an ever more complex web of politics and intrigue as he tries to get his name into the history books.

Of course if you have an audiobook that requires the portrayal of everything thing from the lowest of cut throats to the haughtiest Roman senator stopping at pretty much all stations in between then there aren't many better skilled at making the leap between arrogant royalty and snivelling toady than Steven Pacey. He's one of my favourite narrators and as this book progressed it became clearer all the time that he is actually the perfect fit for it. And it isn't just his wide-ranging delivery that makes the characterisation here seem quite like Joe Abercrombie's First Law series. It might sound odd to compare historical fiction with a fantasy series but much of the writing is similar between the two . . . in a very good way!

All of this wouldn't be enough without a great storyline and here Kane manages to deliver as well. As the battles unfold, the politics unravel and the petty squabbles of the foot soldiers escalate all of the four story arcs march under the greater set of events. Within this there are some genuinely touching moments but you should note Macedon and its surrounds were deadly places for soldiers and particularly in the later stages there are some genuinely eye-popping moments. I found myself on a couple of occasions thinking, 'did that really happen?' in genuine shock. Now that, is the mark of a good story.

Great story, great characters.

Ben Kane writes books that are compelling, informative and entertaining. The characters he creates transport you back in time to witness the historic events unfolding. Ben's attention to the details of life at the time makes reading his books an immersive experience. The Falling Sword is another great Ben Kane book that I cannot recommend highly enough.

not every hero's story has a happy ending ..

at first I didn't like the the storyline, however I have to admit it started to grow on untill I found myself liking it ...

fantastic story and historical authenticity

Steven Pacey's performance is unparalleled in the many Audio books I've listened to. His accents and storytelling skill brought this already brilliant piece of historical fiction to life.

very good

Another fine addition to tales by BK. Would recommend reading the prequel a forehand. Hopefully, a sequel to follow.

Another Ben Kane hit

Really heats up in this second part, the kind of characters and battles expected from Mr Kane! Also, a little cameo appearance makes this a must for any Ben Kane fan !

Quite a difficult subject for the author to tackle

The story is well told but the complexities of locations and the many characters, some too little differentiated marred my overall enjoyment. Not Ben’s finest.

Great

A great book, with well written characters you become attached to. An easy listen, narrated well by Steven Pacey

Gripping, from start to finish.

a great story which brings ancient history to life due to the balance of real historical characters and sub plots of ordinary soldiers. Great narration too, this helped bring the story to life.

great

as always very well done indeed great story , very well read
thoroughly enjoyed it