Tides of War, Steven Pressfield
Tides of War, Steven Pressfield
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Tides of War

Author: Steven Pressfield

Narrator: Derek Jacobi

Abridged: 7 hr

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/05/2000


Synopsis

The Peloponnesian War, one of history’s most pivotal conflicts, comes to vibrant life in this “unabashedly brilliant, epic, intelligent, and moving” (Kirkus Reviews) novel from the bestselling author of Gates of Fire.

“Pressfield’s battlefield scenes rank with the most convincing ever written.”—USA Today

Brilliant at war, a master of politics, and a charismatic lover, Alcibiades was Athens’ favorite son and the city’s greatest general.

A prodigal follower of Socrates, he embodied both the best and the worst of the Golden Age of Greece. A commander on both land and sea, he led his armies to victory after victory.

But like the heroes in a great Greek tragedy, he was a victim of his own pride, arrogance, excess, and ambition. Accused of crimes against the state, he was banished from his beloved Athens, only to take up arms in the service of his former enemies.

For nearly three decades, Greece burned with war and Alcibiades helped bring victories to both sides—and ended up trusted by neither.

Narrated from death row by Alcibiades’ bodyguard and assassin, a man whose own love and loathing for his former commander mirrors the mixed emotions felt by all Athens, Tides of War is an epic saga of an extraordinary century, a war that changed history, and a complex leader who seduced a nation.

About The Author

Steven Perssfield is the author of the novels The Legend of Bagger Vance, Gates of Fire, and Tides of War. He lives in Los Angeles.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Clif on March 13, 2008

Tides of War is a good historical novel. However, it's for readers that can tolerate a complex narrative that describes events over the 27 year span of the Peloponnesian War (431 to 404 BCE). The story is told through three narrators; a man interviewing his grandfather Jason who in turn was a lawyer......more

Goodreads review by Raffaello on July 21, 2022

Non è al livello di quella meraviglia di Le porte di fuoco. Contiente diverse pagine splendide, ma anche lunghe parti noiosette. Il colpo di scena finale (forse atteso, ma non in questo modo?) è proprio ben riuscito.......more

Goodreads review by Clemens on December 24, 2021

Read this book in 2011, and its another terrific standalone book , this time about the Athenian Greek, Alcibiades. Set between the year 431 until 404 BC it will tell us the triumphs on land and sea in the Peloponnesian War, his ultimate downfall and banishment, followed in the end by subsequent exile......more

Goodreads review by Ben on August 05, 2008

This requires one to be a little bit of a history geek. It's an epic set in the Peloponnesian War. The narration style can be a bit confusing, and some momentum is lost by the end, but the characters are intriguing, and Pressfield's writing style falls somewhere comfortably between classical and mod......more

Goodreads review by Joanito_a on October 01, 2020

"Κατά την άποψή του, η Αθήνα δεν ήταν μια πόλη που έπρεπε να υπηρετήσει αλλά μια σύζυγος που ήθελε να κερδίσει" "Δεν είμαι εγώ αυτός που θα ζητήσει την εξόντωση του φίλου μας , Πολεμίδα, αλλά η μοναχική θεά την οποία ο ίδιος λατρεύει" "Και ποια είναι αυτή η θεά; "Η ανάγκη" "Η τόλμη γεννά την ύβρη. Η ύβρ......more


Quotes

“Pressfield’s battlefield scenes rank with the most convincing ever written.”USA Today

“Pressfield serves up not just hair-raising battle scenes . . . but many moments of valor and cowardice, lust and bawdy humor. . . . Even more impressively, he delivers a nuanced portrait of ancient Athens.”Esquire

“Unabashedly brilliant, epic, intelligent, and moving.”Kirkus Reviews

“Pressfield’s attention to historic detail is exquisite. . . . This novel will remain with the reader long after the final chapter is finished.”Library Journal

“[An] astounding, historically accurate tale . . . Pressfield is a master storyteller, especially adept in his graphic and embracing descriptions of the land and naval battles, political intrigues and colorful personalities, which come together in an intense and credible portrait of war-torn Greece.”Publishers Weekly

“On every page are color, splendor, sorrow, the unforgiving details of battle, daily life, and of the fighter’s lot. . . . Pressfield produces an even greater spectacle—and, in its honest, incremental way, an even greater heart-tugger, than in his acclaimed tale of the battle of Thermopylae, Gates of Fire.”Kirkus Reviews

“[Pressfield] continues to excel in depth of research, humanization of antiquity, and power of description.”Los Angeles Times

“While Pressfield excels at portraying battles and naval contests, the whole pivotal era leaps to life under his skilled and exciting pen.”Booknews

“It’s a painful tale to read, but the very pain is testimony to Pressfield’s ability to make us feel and believe in his re-creation of the Greek world. Like all great historical fiction, he does not alter the facts, but merely illuminates them with enlightened speculation. Pressfield ends his story with a reminder that his story is fiction, not history. It’s a necessary reminder. After living in his world for 400 pages, it’s difficult to believe it’s not the real thing.”The Herald-Sun