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42 ratings | 24 reviews | avg rating:4.33

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Mark Knowles

Goodreads Author

Born

in Manchester, The United Kingdom

Website

https://www.markknowles.info

Twitter

@mark77knowles

Genre

Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Influences

Robert Harris; Steven Pressfield

Member Since

October 2016

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/mark77knowles

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I've loved ancient history ever since I sat down with my folks when I was a little boy and watched my first Ray Harryhausen movie. I read degrees in Classics and Management Studies at Downing College, Cambridge, and emerged not really having a clue about what to do for a wage. After various jobs and a decade working as a frontline officer and supervisor within the Metropolitan Police Service, I changed careers to run a Classics Dept at a school in Harrogate. I am a big fan of experimental archaeology and rowed on the reconstructed Ancient Athenian trireme ‘Olympias’ during her last sea trials in Greece in 1994. I hope somebody builds something similar in the next few years before I'm too decrepit to pull an oar!

The Night Watchmen (vigiles) ...more

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What are you currently working on?

Mark Knowles I've picked up the threads of the sequel to 'The Consul's Daughter' from where I left off a few years back. The recent process of being published and …moreI've picked up the threads of the sequel to 'The Consul's Daughter' from where I left off a few years back. The recent process of being published and its precursor has really given me a shot in the arm to become more efficient in managing my time, because I'm a full-time teacher now.(less)

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Mark Knowles I was a relatively junior officer stood half frozen on a crimescene one morning, by a canal in central London. I was talking to another officer and we…moreI was a relatively junior officer stood half frozen on a crimescene one morning, by a canal in central London. I was talking to another officer and we were discussing how such scenes might have been handled in Victorian times, when The Met was still in its infancy. I think he mentioned an urban myth that a body had once been pushed to the other side of a canal so that it came under another borough's jurisdiction.

This got me thinking about how - of indeed if - murders were investigated in Ancient Rome by the city authorities. 'vestigia' means 'traces' in Latin, from where we get the modern concept, but there is really no evidence, written or otherwise, that tells us anything about the procedure at scenes of crime, although we do know about various punishments. I decided on my next set of rest days to become a member of the British Library to research the roles of the 'vigiles', the night watch, and the concept for the book really came from there.(less)

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Mark Knowles’s books

Average rating: 3.52 · 985 ratings · 212 reviews · 8 distinct works • Similar authors

	Argo (Blades of Bronze, #1) 3.41 avg rating — 515 ratings — published 2021 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Jason (Blades of Bronze, #2) 3.55 avg rating — 208 ratings — published 2022 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hades (Blades of Bronze, #3) 3.42 avg rating — 161 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Consul's Daughter: A red-blooded crime thriller based on true events 4.19 avg rating — 101 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Argo espadas 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Argo espadas de bronce 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Argo espadas de bronce 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	espadas de bronce 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Mark Knowles's Blog

Fantastic 1977

I was born in 1977 and Elvis died but, for billions of people, these were not the reasons it will be forever memorable: 'Star Wars' was released. This film was not an immediate blockbuster: only a few dozen theatres showed it for its opening weekend, during which it was out-earned by 'Smokey and the Bandit'. Fearing a flop, George Lucas had booked a vacation in Hawaii and Harrison Ford reflected u Read more of this blog post »

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Published on July 12, 2018 02:43

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Series by Mark Knowles

Blades of Bronze (3 books)
by

Mark Knowles (Goodreads Author)

3.45 avg rating — 884 ratings

Mark is Currently Reading

Mark Knowles is currently reading

On The Spartacus Road: a Journey Through Ancient Italy

by Peter Stothard

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Jul 21, 2018 02:35PM

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Mark’s Recent Updates

Mark Knowles is now friends with Victoria Evelyn
Jul 30, 2026 05:59AM · like
Mark Knowles made a comment on Full Metal Rabbit’s review of Jason (Blades of Bronze, #2) " Thank you, FMR. Crap grammar as an ancient languages teacher is something I need to be alert to. Also, I really wish I did get a few obols’ equivalent ...more "
Jun 14, 2026 02:13AM · see review
Mark Knowles is now following Emma Gibbs and Bindy Mellor
Aug 04, 2025 07:12AM

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Quotes by Mark Knowles (?)

“And still the desperate and the needy came shuffling through the city gates from all parts of the empire in a misguided search for food and shelter and hope.”
― Mark Knowles, The Consul's Daughter: A red-blooded historical crime thriller based on true events

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