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Casca #1
Casca The Eternal Mercenary
Book by Barry Sadler
156 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
256 people are currently reading
1340 people want to read
About the author
Barry Sadler
109 books78 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
American author, musician and former green beret.
To the general public he is most known for the hit single "Ballad of the green berets"
After his musical career he decided to write a series of novels centered around the character "Casca Rufio Longinius" Who is cursed for piercing Jesus on the crucifix with a spear and is forced to forever remain a soldier until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
In the mid 1980s Sadler moved to Guatemala City where he was shot in the head one night in a taxi. He spent 7 months in a coma and died more than a year later.
American author, musician and former green beret.
To the general public he is most known for the hit single "Ballad of the green berets"
After his musical career he decided to write a series of novels centered around the character "Casca Rufio Longinius" Who is cursed for piercing Jesus on the crucifix with a spear and is forced to forever remain a soldier until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
In the mid 1980s Sadler moved to Guatemala City where he was shot in the head one night in a taxi. He spent 7 months in a coma and died more than a year later.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 146 reviews
May 9, 2021
This book is over the top ridiculous (women spontaneously orgasm when they see the main character fight because he is so manly) and yet it is so unapologetic about its ridiculousness that I can't help but enjoy it. Casca is a good example of the pulp art form unleashed from the shackles of the social constraints of the early twentieth century and brought into the late twentieth century. It revels in the excesses that early pulp would only be able to hint at.
In other words, if you are looking for a really good book then pass this one by. If you want an overload of unadulterated brain candy then I couldn't recommend this more.
In other words, if you are looking for a really good book then pass this one by. If you want an overload of unadulterated brain candy then I couldn't recommend this more.
December 19, 2017
I could not get enough of this series when I was younger. For a fifth grade boy, what is cooler than a series about an immortal mercenary killing & sexing his way through the centuries? Yeah, that's right, not much. Alright, for clarification, a fifth grade chunky nerd boy.
February 1, 2022
Back in the early 80s a Marine I served with could not stop talking about this series.
Better late than never.
Audiobook: What a mix. A little noir, a little gruff, a lot bloody... and it comes together nicely.
Better late than never.
Audiobook: What a mix. A little noir, a little gruff, a lot bloody... and it comes together nicely.
May 12, 2016
Barry Sadler’s The Eternal Mercenary’s cringe-worthy moments overshadow the pulp entertainment.
You know that Jesus fella? Son of God, crucified for the sins of the world, rose from the dead? Yeah, that guy. Well, the Bible records a Roman soldier piercing His side with a spear to make sure He was dead. In The Eternal Mercenary, that’s the main character, Casca. In this series, Jesus condemns Casca to remain as a soldier until the Second Coming. Casca can feel pain, but he can’t die. The Eternal Mercenary opens during the Vietnam War, where some medical professionals are examining a soldier with a severe brain injury. Given that this soldier has fragments of a mortar shell lodged in his brain, he should be dead, but upon closer inspection, his skull and brain seem to be healing themselves. Most of the novel, however, is a flashback of how Casca came to be. Though it’s the best plot route for the time period—with Casca becoming a gladiator—I would have rather had the Vietnam story.
When it comes to action movies, I don’t have high standards. Stuff blows up; I’m happy. It doesn’t matter if it’s mindless entertainment. With pulp reads I’m the same way—I just consider them a good break from my literary preference and I don’t sweat the details. So… what’s the problem? Well, I’d say if you’re anything other than a white guy, you may have a harder time getting past the issues here. So the women in the novel: pretty much just there for sex. That may be a reality of war, but there’s barely a female presence in The Eternal Mercenary and what is there is insulting. One prostitute gets a man murdered in front of her, then is immediately attracted to the men who take liberty in searching her BECAUSE SHE’S A HOOKER AND HOOKERS LOVE SEX ALL THE TIME, SEE? Sure, she could be the type of broken woman who just happens to fall into that category, but not with how the rest of the women (rare as they are) are in this novel. The most important woman in Casca’s multi-millennial existence gets four pages. I don’t think she even has a line of dialogue.
When it comes to different races, you have the stereotypical Asian mentor. There’s also a horrible black gladiator with horrible descriptions, but, um, at least Nero says he’s got a beautiful black hide? If you like descriptions of muscular men, Casca has you covered, too. You should probably flex while reading this book. Anyway, there’s 30-something of these Casca novels. We’re coming up on 40 years of these books and they’re still being published. Sadler had his crew of ghost writers. The guy who took over? He has ghost writers, too. It seems like a lot of words to stem from… this. Despite all that, I’ll give Sadler credit: Even though Casca can’t die, he does fear being buried alive, etc., so that keeps some tension in the read, but really, turn off your brain and your standards and turn on your appreciation for Casca killing and/or humping anything that gets in his way. Two stars.
You know that Jesus fella? Son of God, crucified for the sins of the world, rose from the dead? Yeah, that guy. Well, the Bible records a Roman soldier piercing His side with a spear to make sure He was dead. In The Eternal Mercenary, that’s the main character, Casca. In this series, Jesus condemns Casca to remain as a soldier until the Second Coming. Casca can feel pain, but he can’t die. The Eternal Mercenary opens during the Vietnam War, where some medical professionals are examining a soldier with a severe brain injury. Given that this soldier has fragments of a mortar shell lodged in his brain, he should be dead, but upon closer inspection, his skull and brain seem to be healing themselves. Most of the novel, however, is a flashback of how Casca came to be. Though it’s the best plot route for the time period—with Casca becoming a gladiator—I would have rather had the Vietnam story.
When it comes to action movies, I don’t have high standards. Stuff blows up; I’m happy. It doesn’t matter if it’s mindless entertainment. With pulp reads I’m the same way—I just consider them a good break from my literary preference and I don’t sweat the details. So… what’s the problem? Well, I’d say if you’re anything other than a white guy, you may have a harder time getting past the issues here. So the women in the novel: pretty much just there for sex. That may be a reality of war, but there’s barely a female presence in The Eternal Mercenary and what is there is insulting. One prostitute gets a man murdered in front of her, then is immediately attracted to the men who take liberty in searching her BECAUSE SHE’S A HOOKER AND HOOKERS LOVE SEX ALL THE TIME, SEE? Sure, she could be the type of broken woman who just happens to fall into that category, but not with how the rest of the women (rare as they are) are in this novel. The most important woman in Casca’s multi-millennial existence gets four pages. I don’t think she even has a line of dialogue.
When it comes to different races, you have the stereotypical Asian mentor. There’s also a horrible black gladiator with horrible descriptions, but, um, at least Nero says he’s got a beautiful black hide? If you like descriptions of muscular men, Casca has you covered, too. You should probably flex while reading this book. Anyway, there’s 30-something of these Casca novels. We’re coming up on 40 years of these books and they’re still being published. Sadler had his crew of ghost writers. The guy who took over? He has ghost writers, too. It seems like a lot of words to stem from… this. Despite all that, I’ll give Sadler credit: Even though Casca can’t die, he does fear being buried alive, etc., so that keeps some tension in the read, but really, turn off your brain and your standards and turn on your appreciation for Casca killing and/or humping anything that gets in his way. Two stars.
May 13, 2016
Casca is straight up pulpy shlock. It's non-apologetic about it, and keeps a decent pace, which are probably the only things I'll find to compliment this book on.
Certainly not the prose, which is functional at best. The book has many occasions where 70's slang wreck the suspension of disbelief in this Roman-era story. I know we don't know how people actually sounded in the first few centuries of Rome, but the least an author can do is try to minimize how much the characters sound like people from the year the book was written.
And I definitely can't compliment the research or historical accuracy. Barry Sadler appears to care about ancient fighting and Asian philosophy, and that's about it. Everything else comes off as a bit slipshod, using little more than a half-remembered history class anecdote or a perfunctory flip through an Encyclopedia.
All these issues would leave me with a humorously cheesy 2 - 3 star read, were in not for the reality that Sadler appears to be a huge bigot.
Looking through reviews, I found it interesting how many pulp enthusiasts bring up the sexism and racism, only to sort of shrug it off with excuses, like saying it was just a sign of the times.
No. That's crap. He was a huge racist at the time of this books writing, and he's an even bigger racist now. And it's all in the most cliched terms popular with macho writers of the era. There's heavy orientalism all over the place, because the only Asian in the story of course teaches him martial arts. The sections featuring the "yellow man" seem fitting with all the guys in the 70's and 80's who loved to exoticize everything from the far east, or the "orient" as they probably prefer. I imagine a lot of crappy tea sets and wall scrolls purchased in China town, a dog-eared copy of the book Shogun, and some cheap replicas of terracotta soldiers. It seems weird for a guy who actually served in Vietnam, but I'm guessing he mostly enjoyed the prostitutes.
Also, the only black character in the whole story is the sort of stereotype I expected from an African character written in the 1870's, not the 1970's. The black character, Shubala, literally reminisces about raping and sacrificing a blonde white girl and sacrificing her to his dark gods. And what's sad is they still get more personality than any woman in the story.
The women in Casca have two functions, being whores and getting raped, often both. Only one woman in the whole story who he enters into a relationship with is met when he debates whether or not he should let bandits rape her, and decides to intervene mostly because she has nice legs. He generally doesn't even say her name, mostly referring to her as woman, probably because Sadler kept forgetting her name.
So I don't really feel compelled to read more of these, and I don't think it's okay to just ignore all the problematic elements. There's tons of great adventure stories, many of them predating Sadler's work, that are not horribly bigoted, so there's no excuse for muddling through Sadler's awful opinions. This book is like trying to watch a movie while a racist old man gives his opinions on every actor that's not a white male. It's not like Sadler even came from a specific point of view with a thesis that you could argue with, just off-handed, lazy stereotypes littering the entire novel.
There are better ways to get your pulp fix. Unless you're just a fan of vintage racism.
For those who are curious what quotes really got to me, I found myself highlighting provocative passages as I read for my book club. I have sorted them below by category:
On people of other races:
“He had, however, apparently seen something in the legionary that told him to leave well enough alone, so Casca had not had the pleasure of whipping his ass. But the yellow man was something else – and fair game.”
“Looking him over, Casca grumbled to himself in his normal manner, If that big black bastard bumps me just one more time in the chow line, I'm going to rip off that oversized piece of skin he is so proud of and shove it down his throat.”
“Like a beast of the desert or jungle, Jubala watched and waited. Patience was a necessary virtue for survival in his tribal lands. He waited and prepared. He made sacrifice to his gods, those terrible beings of the night and the jungle. Two days before, when he had been permitted to go out on the town, he had cornered a young blonde prostitute of no more than fourteen years… He felt a shiver of pleasure run over him as he relived the moment when after he had taken his pleasure of her and she lay at his feet whimpering and bleeding she had looked up through tear-streaked eyes and asked for the denarius he had promised. Jubala felt a sexual thrill run over him as he remembered picking her up from the floor of her dingy room by the Tiber and covering her mouth with his hand while he took his knife and slowly slid it into her stomach, savoring her pain and death spasms as he drew the blade up slowly, ever so slowly, her back arching so that her intestines spilled out on the floor. He sacrificed to his gods, and in the ritual of his people he had ripped out her still-beating heart and eaten it while she still trembled... Good, he thought, good.”
“Shit, Casca thought, that black's trying to work on my mind. Well, I got news for you, boy. That bullshit don't play with me.”
“Meanwhile, Jubala watched all that went on, and his heart was as black as his face. One day he promised himself, One day, white dog...”
“Jubala stood, hands and feet manacled, his head erect. He was filled with pride... like a wild beast from the country where he was sired... the essence of primitive force.”
"This ain't no fun, man. I wish to hell I hadn't let my old man hype me on that return to Israel jazz. I wouldn't be out here now trying to blow up a bunch of ragheads."
On the topic of women:
“After what Salome had done to him he was not about to let something like Sporus's hurt feelings interfere with his getting some of that good Armenian pussy. That luscious thing had one of the prettiest… ”
“The night officer said I could take off – and now I find you two taking it off. Well, right now, young soldier, you are going to pay for messing with my woman – and then I am going to slice her ears off so she won't ever listen to anyone else's bullshit."
“The senior MP pinched her on the butt and whispered in her ear, "Later?" Rheza nodded and rubbed her ripe tits along his arm. After all, a girl needed a protector.”
“Hydra's nine heads, that woman's tongue could make these Greek goats give cheese instead of milk. If only she wasn't so much bigger than me I would give her a sound thrashing and gentle her. He chuckled to himself. I wonder if I could talk her into being in on the robbery? He laughed out loud at the thought. Casca would have his hands full with her.”
“You are the first friend I have had in fifty-five years. That is not a small thing. Go home, friend, and do yourself a kindness and beat your wife."
“Minitre was at the dock, waving farewell, pleased with himself. After all, he had participated in a great adventure. Even better, he had taken Casca's advice and beat the hell out of his wife with a stout rod. Surprisingly, instead of counterattacking, she had become instantly meek and anxious to please.”
“Rome exhausted herself like some great whore on blood and slaughter.”
“Not that he was averse to such things as a little healthy ass slapping in the heat of passion when he was well-mounted in the saddle.”
“They were pathetic. They had no idea at all of what it took to get him aroused. If Salome were still alive she could have made a fortune teaching these high- class whores how to use their equipment”
"Your little man Crysos died well enough for you. He told me nothing. But I still had the satisfaction of using him like a woman. In your name I told him I was doing it. He screamed like a woman, too."
“The crowd went insane. Several women climaxed in their excitement and tried to throw themselves to the arena below.”
On the topic of his muscles:
“He was glad to have those extra pounds of muscled-up beef.”
“Casca was a solid knot of sinewy muscle and tendons.”
“After all, I am a pretty healthy hunk of beef, and you would be in real trouble if they sold me by the pound." Laughing, he touched Minitre's shoulder gently.”
“Apparently he liked the man's looks ... tough... his carcass well-scarred from many fights... heavy- muscled... confident.”
“He headed east toward the Forum, his well-muscled hide drawing more than one interested look from the Roman ladies,”
“He spilled his seed into the bellies of faceless women as if trying to find something that could not be…”
“…the wife of a senator. She had given him fifty gold denarii for one evening. She had garlic breath, but nice legs.”
“The sounds of her breaking up were like a woman – or horse – in pain, as…”
On the matter of weird phrasing for historical fiction:
“Their commander had lately got a bug up his ass, and the general consensus was that the old bastard was bucking for a promotion; he had the troops out constantly, doing facing maneuvers and close order drill. Casca didn't mind.”
“That old fart had about as much compassion and sense of humor as a pit viper with hemorrhoids.”
“The Tenth Legion had a reputation for kicking ass and killing, a reputation that was well-deserved.”
“He got all the rejects... the troublemakers and murderers. Damn top management... don't know what they're doing.”
“Casca had not had what you might call your standard buddy-buddy relationship with the patrician class.”
"Now, what the crap is that about? Is that all you can do? Can't you say anything?"
Certainly not the prose, which is functional at best. The book has many occasions where 70's slang wreck the suspension of disbelief in this Roman-era story. I know we don't know how people actually sounded in the first few centuries of Rome, but the least an author can do is try to minimize how much the characters sound like people from the year the book was written.
And I definitely can't compliment the research or historical accuracy. Barry Sadler appears to care about ancient fighting and Asian philosophy, and that's about it. Everything else comes off as a bit slipshod, using little more than a half-remembered history class anecdote or a perfunctory flip through an Encyclopedia.
All these issues would leave me with a humorously cheesy 2 - 3 star read, were in not for the reality that Sadler appears to be a huge bigot.
Looking through reviews, I found it interesting how many pulp enthusiasts bring up the sexism and racism, only to sort of shrug it off with excuses, like saying it was just a sign of the times.
No. That's crap. He was a huge racist at the time of this books writing, and he's an even bigger racist now. And it's all in the most cliched terms popular with macho writers of the era. There's heavy orientalism all over the place, because the only Asian in the story of course teaches him martial arts. The sections featuring the "yellow man" seem fitting with all the guys in the 70's and 80's who loved to exoticize everything from the far east, or the "orient" as they probably prefer. I imagine a lot of crappy tea sets and wall scrolls purchased in China town, a dog-eared copy of the book Shogun, and some cheap replicas of terracotta soldiers. It seems weird for a guy who actually served in Vietnam, but I'm guessing he mostly enjoyed the prostitutes.
Also, the only black character in the whole story is the sort of stereotype I expected from an African character written in the 1870's, not the 1970's. The black character, Shubala, literally reminisces about raping and sacrificing a blonde white girl and sacrificing her to his dark gods. And what's sad is they still get more personality than any woman in the story.
The women in Casca have two functions, being whores and getting raped, often both. Only one woman in the whole story who he enters into a relationship with is met when he debates whether or not he should let bandits rape her, and decides to intervene mostly because she has nice legs. He generally doesn't even say her name, mostly referring to her as woman, probably because Sadler kept forgetting her name.
So I don't really feel compelled to read more of these, and I don't think it's okay to just ignore all the problematic elements. There's tons of great adventure stories, many of them predating Sadler's work, that are not horribly bigoted, so there's no excuse for muddling through Sadler's awful opinions. This book is like trying to watch a movie while a racist old man gives his opinions on every actor that's not a white male. It's not like Sadler even came from a specific point of view with a thesis that you could argue with, just off-handed, lazy stereotypes littering the entire novel.
There are better ways to get your pulp fix. Unless you're just a fan of vintage racism.
For those who are curious what quotes really got to me, I found myself highlighting provocative passages as I read for my book club. I have sorted them below by category:
On people of other races:
“He had, however, apparently seen something in the legionary that told him to leave well enough alone, so Casca had not had the pleasure of whipping his ass. But the yellow man was something else – and fair game.”
“Looking him over, Casca grumbled to himself in his normal manner, If that big black bastard bumps me just one more time in the chow line, I'm going to rip off that oversized piece of skin he is so proud of and shove it down his throat.”
“Like a beast of the desert or jungle, Jubala watched and waited. Patience was a necessary virtue for survival in his tribal lands. He waited and prepared. He made sacrifice to his gods, those terrible beings of the night and the jungle. Two days before, when he had been permitted to go out on the town, he had cornered a young blonde prostitute of no more than fourteen years… He felt a shiver of pleasure run over him as he relived the moment when after he had taken his pleasure of her and she lay at his feet whimpering and bleeding she had looked up through tear-streaked eyes and asked for the denarius he had promised. Jubala felt a sexual thrill run over him as he remembered picking her up from the floor of her dingy room by the Tiber and covering her mouth with his hand while he took his knife and slowly slid it into her stomach, savoring her pain and death spasms as he drew the blade up slowly, ever so slowly, her back arching so that her intestines spilled out on the floor. He sacrificed to his gods, and in the ritual of his people he had ripped out her still-beating heart and eaten it while she still trembled... Good, he thought, good.”
“Shit, Casca thought, that black's trying to work on my mind. Well, I got news for you, boy. That bullshit don't play with me.”
“Meanwhile, Jubala watched all that went on, and his heart was as black as his face. One day he promised himself, One day, white dog...”
“Jubala stood, hands and feet manacled, his head erect. He was filled with pride... like a wild beast from the country where he was sired... the essence of primitive force.”
"This ain't no fun, man. I wish to hell I hadn't let my old man hype me on that return to Israel jazz. I wouldn't be out here now trying to blow up a bunch of ragheads."
On the topic of women:
“After what Salome had done to him he was not about to let something like Sporus's hurt feelings interfere with his getting some of that good Armenian pussy. That luscious thing had one of the prettiest… ”
“The night officer said I could take off – and now I find you two taking it off. Well, right now, young soldier, you are going to pay for messing with my woman – and then I am going to slice her ears off so she won't ever listen to anyone else's bullshit."
“The senior MP pinched her on the butt and whispered in her ear, "Later?" Rheza nodded and rubbed her ripe tits along his arm. After all, a girl needed a protector.”
“Hydra's nine heads, that woman's tongue could make these Greek goats give cheese instead of milk. If only she wasn't so much bigger than me I would give her a sound thrashing and gentle her. He chuckled to himself. I wonder if I could talk her into being in on the robbery? He laughed out loud at the thought. Casca would have his hands full with her.”
“You are the first friend I have had in fifty-five years. That is not a small thing. Go home, friend, and do yourself a kindness and beat your wife."
“Minitre was at the dock, waving farewell, pleased with himself. After all, he had participated in a great adventure. Even better, he had taken Casca's advice and beat the hell out of his wife with a stout rod. Surprisingly, instead of counterattacking, she had become instantly meek and anxious to please.”
“Rome exhausted herself like some great whore on blood and slaughter.”
“Not that he was averse to such things as a little healthy ass slapping in the heat of passion when he was well-mounted in the saddle.”
“They were pathetic. They had no idea at all of what it took to get him aroused. If Salome were still alive she could have made a fortune teaching these high- class whores how to use their equipment”
"Your little man Crysos died well enough for you. He told me nothing. But I still had the satisfaction of using him like a woman. In your name I told him I was doing it. He screamed like a woman, too."
“The crowd went insane. Several women climaxed in their excitement and tried to throw themselves to the arena below.”
On the topic of his muscles:
“He was glad to have those extra pounds of muscled-up beef.”
“Casca was a solid knot of sinewy muscle and tendons.”
“After all, I am a pretty healthy hunk of beef, and you would be in real trouble if they sold me by the pound." Laughing, he touched Minitre's shoulder gently.”
“Apparently he liked the man's looks ... tough... his carcass well-scarred from many fights... heavy- muscled... confident.”
“He headed east toward the Forum, his well-muscled hide drawing more than one interested look from the Roman ladies,”
“He spilled his seed into the bellies of faceless women as if trying to find something that could not be…”
“…the wife of a senator. She had given him fifty gold denarii for one evening. She had garlic breath, but nice legs.”
“The sounds of her breaking up were like a woman – or horse – in pain, as…”
On the matter of weird phrasing for historical fiction:
“Their commander had lately got a bug up his ass, and the general consensus was that the old bastard was bucking for a promotion; he had the troops out constantly, doing facing maneuvers and close order drill. Casca didn't mind.”
“That old fart had about as much compassion and sense of humor as a pit viper with hemorrhoids.”
“The Tenth Legion had a reputation for kicking ass and killing, a reputation that was well-deserved.”
“He got all the rejects... the troublemakers and murderers. Damn top management... don't know what they're doing.”
“Casca had not had what you might call your standard buddy-buddy relationship with the patrician class.”
"Now, what the crap is that about? Is that all you can do? Can't you say anything?"
December 14, 2019
So happy to see this as part of Amazon's Kindle Unlimited; otherwise I would never have had the chance to read it. Why do the paperbacks bring such a high price online or anywhere for that matter? What makes them so special?
Casca is just a man doing his job. Because of this he is cursed to live as a man constantly at war. Never getting sick, wounds heal at a terrific rate, and never being able to die. Becoming a slave, a gladiator, a slave yet again, and finally as freeman he is ready to be quits of Rome.
Reads very straight forward like any men's adventure books I've read in the past. Written plainly without flourish; simply enjoyable. So compelling.
Now be forewarned. This is not an offensive book. But if you wear modern sentiments on your sleeve, well, you will find quite a bit to complain about. Don't be that person.
Recommended!
Casca is just a man doing his job. Because of this he is cursed to live as a man constantly at war. Never getting sick, wounds heal at a terrific rate, and never being able to die. Becoming a slave, a gladiator, a slave yet again, and finally as freeman he is ready to be quits of Rome.
Reads very straight forward like any men's adventure books I've read in the past. Written plainly without flourish; simply enjoyable. So compelling.
Now be forewarned. This is not an offensive book. But if you wear modern sentiments on your sleeve, well, you will find quite a bit to complain about. Don't be that person.
Recommended!
May 15, 2020
What a good idea: the Roman centurion who shoved the spear in Christ's side and was cursed-- to wander the Earth until he returns.
So he's a mercenary. No idea if Barry (aka Ballad of the Green Beret) Sadler wrote the books or they just stuck his name on them.
As a former Green Beret and thriller writer, I think this series would make a great reboot.
So he's a mercenary. No idea if Barry (aka Ballad of the Green Beret) Sadler wrote the books or they just stuck his name on them.
As a former Green Beret and thriller writer, I think this series would make a great reboot.
May 21, 2020
Bad writing, bad history, bad plotting, zero characterization, badly done, misogynistic, jingoistic while appealing to the most primal basest part that resides in all of us all the while making the reader less than who we were before reading this wanna be less than pulp trash. I'm on to the next chapter in this saga because I'm happy to let my mind go to trash because just maybe the world will rise above those who want to 'make America great again', and save us from the ethos that permeates this trash.
Oh yeah, I should mention this series is available for free at Hoopla and I work on the New York Times or Los Angeles Sunday crossword puzzles while listening to this incredibly insignificant except for 12 year old boys series.
Oh yeah, I should mention this series is available for free at Hoopla and I work on the New York Times or Los Angeles Sunday crossword puzzles while listening to this incredibly insignificant except for 12 year old boys series.
July 16, 2023
The story about a roman soldier who killed Jesus on the cross and became immortal, a very interesting book. Science, fantasy, action, adventure with some historical facts, this reminded me of Duncan Mcleod from the Highlander series that I enjoyed when I was a kid. This book is by no means a masterpiece, the writing style is simple but I sure had a lot of fun with it. This is definitely worth reading.
"For he was Casca, the eternal mercenary, the soldier condemned to fight forever" 4*
"For he was Casca, the eternal mercenary, the soldier condemned to fight forever" 4*
August 4, 2016
Wonderful! Pleasantly surprised with this author and his book! I loved his music, and his bravery and patriotism, but this expands that respect and admiration. He puts, in my opinion, a new facet into historical-fiction novels.
The writing is smooth, and easy to understand and follow, even the Latin portions. There are not a lot of characters or sub-story lines to follow, so that allows the reader to stay attentive. He is articulate and imaginative. I found myself actually looking forward to book #2 while only half-way through #1!
I have recommended this book to my son, a high school history teacher because of the historical-fiction, and his love and respect of the military.
Casca is a warrior that I would love to meet today! That is how real Barry Sadler made the hero to me!
Well done, good and faithful servant, well done!
The writing is smooth, and easy to understand and follow, even the Latin portions. There are not a lot of characters or sub-story lines to follow, so that allows the reader to stay attentive. He is articulate and imaginative. I found myself actually looking forward to book #2 while only half-way through #1!
I have recommended this book to my son, a high school history teacher because of the historical-fiction, and his love and respect of the military.
Casca is a warrior that I would love to meet today! That is how real Barry Sadler made the hero to me!
Well done, good and faithful servant, well done!
December 4, 2018
Ok truth be known I only read this because it’s late in the year and I’m trying to speed it up and reach my reading challenge goal. Iv’e been reading a number of lengthy novels lately and wanted some simple mind-bubblegum to chew on this time and as I recall I read this one once before oh like 30 years or more ago. It’s not fine wine improving with age, my youthful male fantasies were fired up by this years ago now it’s like watching some 60’s sitcom it’s light and campy but I can’t believe how much I use to enjoy this stuff. Anyway if your male age 12 to 25 go for it you will probably enjoy it and the historical fiction part is not that bad, otherwise if your a woman there is nothing in this for you that you would find interesting and most people might find it more just typing than writing and lacking much of a plot in the end it’s probably the reader more than the eternal solider who suffers the most in this series.
November 24, 2009
This story is quite amazing. Casca Rufio Longinus is the Roman soldier who pierced Jesus' side with a spear. For this, he is cursed with immortality. This book spans the first 130 years following his curse, much of it spent in slavery. Part of Casca's curse is that he'll always be a soldier, too. The rest of the series focuses on different points in military history all across the world, from ancient times to the present.
What strikes me about the story is the bittersweetness. He establishes friendships and romances that can never last, and the characters he meets in each book will likely never return in a later story. All he has are his own memories.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.
What strikes me about the story is the bittersweetness. He establishes friendships and romances that can never last, and the characters he meets in each book will likely never return in a later story. All he has are his own memories.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.
March 12, 2019
So you just a soldier doing your job. You shove a spear tip into the side of this supposed messiah, except he is the real thing. He curses you to wander the earth till his return. Not bad right, immortality and all. Oh but he also curses you to be a soldier forever at war, never to know peace. This is the story of Casca the Roman legionnaire that stabbed Christ. Forever wandering the earth fighting one war after another. Great adventure series. Very recommended
February 18, 2023
I really didn't like this. It was recommended to me and I wonder if this edition in the ebook was an early draft, or an unedited version or soemthing. Pretty badly written.
December 6, 2022
This book is an epic tale of a man cursed to be a soldier until the end of time and I liked his journey through the ancient world. Casca has a code of honor but Jesus cursed him to eternal life for his mercy killing at the cruxifiation. It is a great read for adventure lovers who like action and history but not for a non-fan of the genre. I gave it four stars but I think some people would like the violence or the seeking of sex as a sport. The tragedy of war is not explored in this book except as a tragic cycle that Casca must live until the prince of peace comes to relieve him of his duties. Barry Sadler hopefully get into the horrors of war that will bring home the gravity of Casca's damnation.
November 24, 2018
A friend recently gifted me with all 22 books in this series, a favorite of hers and her entire family. I like the premise, but will need to read another one or two to see if the series, for me, is worth pursuing. The problem is, I have read other books and manuscripts on this premise that I have truly adored, and while this is engaging, the writing didn't sweep me away as those have. But, as I said, I'm willing to give the series at least one more book, if not two.
February 4, 2018
I never was a fan of sci-fi/fantasy; but several decades ago, I couldn't get enough to read when I was serving on active duty in the military. Any book back then was fair game.
I ran across the paperback book "Casca #1: The Eternal Mercenary" on a rack at the base exchange. I was so taken in by the original story, I started collecting every book I could find in the series (at that time it was 8 or 9 books with 2-4 new books added each year) by Barry Sadler. (A US Army Green Beret combat medic, Sadler also wrote and sang the hit song: "Ballad of the Green Berets" in 1966.)
The author's knowledge of history, ancient warfare, and military tactics was quite extensive. I know it's good when the writer can take fictional characters, flesh them out, weave them into real, historical events and times, and make a detailed, credible, educational, and engaging story out of it. I could identify with some of the military jargon, military attitude, and mindset. The author and I quickly developed a kinship, of sorts.
This book begins in 1970, at the 8th Field hospital in Nha Trang, Vietnam. The hospital receives an influx of wounded soldiers. Major Julius Goldman, an Army surgeon, examines a critically injured soldier named Casey Romain. Sergeant Romain has a massive head shrapnel wound the doctor knows is not survivable. Calling his CO, Colonel Bob Landries over to consult, they're both shocked the soldier isn't already dead from the sheer magnitude of the head trauma. Sergeant Casey Romain's brain is, literally, seeing the light of day. Incredibly, the mortal head wound is actually healing before their very eyes.
The doctor's hurried x-ray examination also discovered something metallic embedded in Romain's thigh. Due to the angle, they couldn't identify it. Also, his body is heavily criss-crossed with old scars; many seemingly from edged weapons. Sergeant Casey Romain has become a singularly unique medical curiosity and conundrum to Major Goldman and Colonel Robert Landries.
The doctors surgically removed the shrapnel from Romain's brain simultaneously with the unidentified metal mass in Romain's thigh. To their incredulous shock, the mass was an ancient, handmade, bronze arrowhead. Also, Romain is now muttering Latin in his delirium; not college Latin, but the Latin of the ancient Caesars. Fluently. Sergeant Casey Romain's real identity is Casca Rufio Longinus; the Roman legionnaire who thrust his spear into the side of Jesus Christ at His crucifixion on Golgotha hill in Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago!
Jesus, after being pierced by Casca's spear, opened His eyes and looking down at Casca, said: "Soldier, you are content with what you are, then that you shall remain, until we meet again..." A startled Casca nervously wiped his mouth with the back of his hand; accidentally ingesting some of Christ's blood spatter from the spear wound.
Immediately, Casca underwent a physical transformation into an immortal. He can no longer die, doesn't age, never gets sick, has incredibly fast healing, and never gets far from his chosen occupation of soldier/mercenary. Plus, his blood is now poison; toxic to any living thing. Even mosquitos won't bite him.
Casca gradually discovers his curse in the ensuing weeks afterward. Thus, Casca, "The one who must wait", remains alive to this day and will continue, never having any lasting peace, until Jesus Christ's second coming. (sort of akin to this book series.)
Casca and Dr. Goldman embark on a journey together through the years. The first book covers Casca's life for 130 years after the crucifixion; much of it in slavery. Casca periodically revisits Goldman (the setting for the start of each next book) and recounts his life and experiences through history; the emancipated bronze arrowhead being Casca's calling card.
After leaving the military, I occasionally revisited the Casca series for a couple more years. I finally stepped off the treadmill after reading "Casca #19: The Samurai." Why? The story line became predictable, pedantic, and ceased to be interesting to me. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing.
Since Barry Sadler's death in 1989, the Casca series (started in 1979) has continued on with contributing ghost writers. I believe the Casca series is now close to, or just over over 50 books. If you enjoy reading serial fiction/fantasy genres, give these books a try; but start with #1 by the original author. It sets the stage and the tone for the rest of the series.
I ran across the paperback book "Casca #1: The Eternal Mercenary" on a rack at the base exchange. I was so taken in by the original story, I started collecting every book I could find in the series (at that time it was 8 or 9 books with 2-4 new books added each year) by Barry Sadler. (A US Army Green Beret combat medic, Sadler also wrote and sang the hit song: "Ballad of the Green Berets" in 1966.)
The author's knowledge of history, ancient warfare, and military tactics was quite extensive. I know it's good when the writer can take fictional characters, flesh them out, weave them into real, historical events and times, and make a detailed, credible, educational, and engaging story out of it. I could identify with some of the military jargon, military attitude, and mindset. The author and I quickly developed a kinship, of sorts.
This book begins in 1970, at the 8th Field hospital in Nha Trang, Vietnam. The hospital receives an influx of wounded soldiers. Major Julius Goldman, an Army surgeon, examines a critically injured soldier named Casey Romain. Sergeant Romain has a massive head shrapnel wound the doctor knows is not survivable. Calling his CO, Colonel Bob Landries over to consult, they're both shocked the soldier isn't already dead from the sheer magnitude of the head trauma. Sergeant Casey Romain's brain is, literally, seeing the light of day. Incredibly, the mortal head wound is actually healing before their very eyes.
The doctor's hurried x-ray examination also discovered something metallic embedded in Romain's thigh. Due to the angle, they couldn't identify it. Also, his body is heavily criss-crossed with old scars; many seemingly from edged weapons. Sergeant Casey Romain has become a singularly unique medical curiosity and conundrum to Major Goldman and Colonel Robert Landries.
The doctors surgically removed the shrapnel from Romain's brain simultaneously with the unidentified metal mass in Romain's thigh. To their incredulous shock, the mass was an ancient, handmade, bronze arrowhead. Also, Romain is now muttering Latin in his delirium; not college Latin, but the Latin of the ancient Caesars. Fluently. Sergeant Casey Romain's real identity is Casca Rufio Longinus; the Roman legionnaire who thrust his spear into the side of Jesus Christ at His crucifixion on Golgotha hill in Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago!
Jesus, after being pierced by Casca's spear, opened His eyes and looking down at Casca, said: "Soldier, you are content with what you are, then that you shall remain, until we meet again..." A startled Casca nervously wiped his mouth with the back of his hand; accidentally ingesting some of Christ's blood spatter from the spear wound.
Immediately, Casca underwent a physical transformation into an immortal. He can no longer die, doesn't age, never gets sick, has incredibly fast healing, and never gets far from his chosen occupation of soldier/mercenary. Plus, his blood is now poison; toxic to any living thing. Even mosquitos won't bite him.
Casca gradually discovers his curse in the ensuing weeks afterward. Thus, Casca, "The one who must wait", remains alive to this day and will continue, never having any lasting peace, until Jesus Christ's second coming. (sort of akin to this book series.)
Casca and Dr. Goldman embark on a journey together through the years. The first book covers Casca's life for 130 years after the crucifixion; much of it in slavery. Casca periodically revisits Goldman (the setting for the start of each next book) and recounts his life and experiences through history; the emancipated bronze arrowhead being Casca's calling card.
After leaving the military, I occasionally revisited the Casca series for a couple more years. I finally stepped off the treadmill after reading "Casca #19: The Samurai." Why? The story line became predictable, pedantic, and ceased to be interesting to me. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing.
Since Barry Sadler's death in 1989, the Casca series (started in 1979) has continued on with contributing ghost writers. I believe the Casca series is now close to, or just over over 50 books. If you enjoy reading serial fiction/fantasy genres, give these books a try; but start with #1 by the original author. It sets the stage and the tone for the rest of the series.
December 6, 2017
Stands the test of time
Read this the first time as a teenager. Enjoyed it immensely then. And this re-read gave me the same sense again. Intriguing.
Read this the first time as a teenager. Enjoyed it immensely then. And this re-read gave me the same sense again. Intriguing.
March 1, 2024
The book that I read this month was Casca by Sadler Barry. This book is about the Roman soldier who stabbed the spear into the side of Jesus as he was up on the cross. When that event happened Jesus cursed this soldier to walk the earth until he came again. In other words, until the second coming. This book is a series of all the major world events such as the world wars, Vietnam, the Cold War, etc, and how the cursed man “Casca” played a part in all of them. The first book is about Vietnam and how people found his “dead” body but realized it was healing at an abnormal rate. It then does a flashback explaining how Casca got this curse and how he slowly started noticing what was happening to him. At the time of the curse he did not believe Jesus, he thought he was just a crazy man. I liked this book and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series down the road. This book is really good. It has some action and a fun storyline. I highly recommend this book and would rate it 5/5 stars!
March 20, 2015
A character living forever is always a special hook. Younger fans would think Barry has ripped off the Highlander TV show, except this book was first written back in 68 or so. Barry wrote this series for quite for a while BEFORE the first Highlander movie came out. I think I might have read a Casca book or two back in the 70's, along with the likes of the Executioner and Destroyer books as well.
I like this concept and how Casca was condemned by Jesus to live "until they meet again". This first book Casca spent most of his time as a slave in one form or another. You would think if he vastly outlived all his peers, that he would have became more of a learned man. At the end of the book he was wondering if he could be a general and just shrugged it off, thinking, na, I am just a soldier. Yes, but a soldier for over 150 years! Come on Casca, I am sure you should have learned all about tactics and ways to do things. Apply that knowledge, don't just settle for being a follower.
Also, he never really got the concept of Jesus. You would think he would have become a follower, seeing how he is living proof of Jesus's power.
I will try book 2 and maybe book 3 to see how Barry treats Casca. I am expecting some development of this character. Not just doing the same thing for hundreds of years.
I like this concept and how Casca was condemned by Jesus to live "until they meet again". This first book Casca spent most of his time as a slave in one form or another. You would think if he vastly outlived all his peers, that he would have became more of a learned man. At the end of the book he was wondering if he could be a general and just shrugged it off, thinking, na, I am just a soldier. Yes, but a soldier for over 150 years! Come on Casca, I am sure you should have learned all about tactics and ways to do things. Apply that knowledge, don't just settle for being a follower.
Also, he never really got the concept of Jesus. You would think he would have become a follower, seeing how he is living proof of Jesus's power.
I will try book 2 and maybe book 3 to see how Barry treats Casca. I am expecting some development of this character. Not just doing the same thing for hundreds of years.
June 23, 2017
Long before the Highlander, there was Casca the immortal.
I used to read these books as a kid in high school. I had completely forgotten about the character until recently when I read a review of this book, the first in the Casca series that chronicles the adventures of the immortal mercenary.
Suffice to say I bought it and reread it in a day. It's not a perfect story and some parts felt rushed but all-in-all, I thought it stood solidly against the test of time. It brought back awesome memories from my youth and it reacquainted me with an old ambiance I haven't felt in a really long time. It felt good reading a story about a tough, no-nonsense warrior unashamed of who or what he is.
If you like your fighting brutal and observations unfiltered with some poignant nuggets of history strewn in between, start reading this series and begin with this book.
You could do far worse.
I used to read these books as a kid in high school. I had completely forgotten about the character until recently when I read a review of this book, the first in the Casca series that chronicles the adventures of the immortal mercenary.
Suffice to say I bought it and reread it in a day. It's not a perfect story and some parts felt rushed but all-in-all, I thought it stood solidly against the test of time. It brought back awesome memories from my youth and it reacquainted me with an old ambiance I haven't felt in a really long time. It felt good reading a story about a tough, no-nonsense warrior unashamed of who or what he is.
If you like your fighting brutal and observations unfiltered with some poignant nuggets of history strewn in between, start reading this series and begin with this book.
You could do far worse.
January 20, 2009
Casca is the Roman soldier who pierced Jesus on the cross. Well not historically, but in this Barry Sadler novel Casca is the name given to the soldier. This series of books starts off with Jesus condeming Casca to forever be what he is until they meet again. The story line is very interesting. The character is believable. I found this book as a teen and loved it then. The language used in this novel is a little graphic from time to time (more than I should have read as a teen). For some reason I came back to this book in thought and decided to buy it. It is not in print and therefor a costly book to buy; however, if you like the audio books it is affordable in that format. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a little history mixed with fiction.
October 16, 2017
I had bought this back when I was in high school but never had time to sit down and read back then.
Being a huge fan of pulp, Casca seemed to be a character that I would enjoy. And I wasn't disappointed, Casca is the Roman legionnaire that pierces Jesus Christ on the cross to ensure that he is dead. Because of this Jesus curses him to wander the earth as a mercenary until the second coming.
Although we start in Vietnam in a field hospital, we quickly jump back to follow the first 130 years of Casca's life after his encounter at the cross.
It looks to be a pretty cool premise, and extremely fast read... I'll probably try a few more in the series to find out where Sadler is going to take this character.
Being a huge fan of pulp, Casca seemed to be a character that I would enjoy. And I wasn't disappointed, Casca is the Roman legionnaire that pierces Jesus Christ on the cross to ensure that he is dead. Because of this Jesus curses him to wander the earth as a mercenary until the second coming.
Although we start in Vietnam in a field hospital, we quickly jump back to follow the first 130 years of Casca's life after his encounter at the cross.
It looks to be a pretty cool premise, and extremely fast read... I'll probably try a few more in the series to find out where Sadler is going to take this character.
October 16, 2015
The first book in a long running series like this is either hit or miss, and I think this one missed the mark, but only a bit. I would have to read a few other books to see how this all starts to play out.
One of the odd things I found in this book is the dialogue. When you think of ancient Rome, you don't expect to hear the soldiers talking about getting a piece of a**. Or calling people scum. These year zero A.D. people were talking like they came from the streets of any big U.S.A. city from the 1970's.
One of the odd things I found in this book is the dialogue. When you think of ancient Rome, you don't expect to hear the soldiers talking about getting a piece of a**. Or calling people scum. These year zero A.D. people were talking like they came from the streets of any big U.S.A. city from the 1970's.
December 24, 2008
The first in the series about a mercenary, who was once a Roman Soldier, who lives forever and is always at war. It's a great idea, deserving the four stars, but the writing is not quite as good as that.
July 13, 2012
Bravo! What a great idea and finely crafted stoiry. I have prowled internet sites and book stores to collect all the paperbacks in the series written by Barry Sadler. I have 20 of the 22 and will complete them all. If Casca nust wait....I will bide with him.
December 10, 2020
I have only recently heard about this series. It is still being continued by a different author as Barry Sadler died in 1989 (the circumstances around his death are very bizarre). Sadler wrote 22 books about the immortal soldier Casca Rufio Longinus. In the Bible it tells of a soldier who pierced Jesus’ side with a spear as he lay dying on the cross. In the Casca books, it is Casca who is that soldier. However, the story the series tells is something not found in the Bible. After Casca stabs Jesus, Jesus’ blood flows on Casca’s hands and Jesus says to him: “Soldier, you are content with what you are. Then that you shall remain until we meet again. As I go now to my Father, you must one day come to me." Now Casca finds himself completely immortal and he is not too happy about it. He goes from battlefield to battlefield and continues living up to the present day.
The scope of Casca’s journey is seen from the beginning of the book. It is the Vietnam War and Casca is brought into the hospital with a head wound that appears to be healing right before the doctor’s eyes. This leads to Casca telling his doctor, Julius Goldman, who he is and how long he has lived. From this setup, the book gives us the story of Casca’s life from the cross, to becoming a slave, and then once again a soldier. The book only focuses on the Roman Empire about 150 from the cross.
The book moves very quickly and tells a lot of stories very briefly before moving along. It is best when it allows Casca’s story to breathe more. One of my favorite parts is when he becomes a slave in the Roman mines and his mind begins wandering what would happen if he were buried alive during a collapse. We also have a section where Casca becomes a gladiator and through another fellow slave learns the way of Confucius. Of course, the gladiator combat is very bloody, and we experience the chopping off the limbs along the way.
The only real criticism I have for the book is that it glosses over parts of Casca’s life way too quickly. There is a story about Casca falling in love and choosing to leave before his wife realizes he is getting old. I would have liked this section to go on a little longer. However, despite this critique, I enjoyed the book.
The book is about combat and there is a lot of it. It will be fun to see where Casca goes next. Will he find peace? Or will he continue to see his life as a curse? The series has about 1800 years of history and war before we see Casca in the rice paddies of Vietnam. This leaves a lot of room for the story to grow.
The scope of Casca’s journey is seen from the beginning of the book. It is the Vietnam War and Casca is brought into the hospital with a head wound that appears to be healing right before the doctor’s eyes. This leads to Casca telling his doctor, Julius Goldman, who he is and how long he has lived. From this setup, the book gives us the story of Casca’s life from the cross, to becoming a slave, and then once again a soldier. The book only focuses on the Roman Empire about 150 from the cross.
The book moves very quickly and tells a lot of stories very briefly before moving along. It is best when it allows Casca’s story to breathe more. One of my favorite parts is when he becomes a slave in the Roman mines and his mind begins wandering what would happen if he were buried alive during a collapse. We also have a section where Casca becomes a gladiator and through another fellow slave learns the way of Confucius. Of course, the gladiator combat is very bloody, and we experience the chopping off the limbs along the way.
The only real criticism I have for the book is that it glosses over parts of Casca’s life way too quickly. There is a story about Casca falling in love and choosing to leave before his wife realizes he is getting old. I would have liked this section to go on a little longer. However, despite this critique, I enjoyed the book.
The book is about combat and there is a lot of it. It will be fun to see where Casca goes next. Will he find peace? Or will he continue to see his life as a curse? The series has about 1800 years of history and war before we see Casca in the rice paddies of Vietnam. This leaves a lot of room for the story to grow.
March 19, 2023
"The Eternal Mercenary" by Barry Sadler is a military fiction novel that was first published in 1970. It is the first book in the "Casca" series, which tells the story of a Roman soldier who is cursed by Christ to live forever as a mercenary.
The novel begins in the year 30 AD, with the protagonist, Casca Rufio Longinus, serving as a centurion in the Roman army. Casca is the soldier who pierced the side of Jesus Christ with his spear during the crucifixion, and as a result, he is cursed to live forever. He is betrayed by his own men and sentenced to death, but he miraculously survives the execution and goes on to live a life of endless warfare and adventure as a mercenary.
The book is fast-paced and action-packed, with plenty of battles and skirmishes as Casca travels around the world throughout history. The story takes place in a number of different settings, including ancient Rome, medieval Europe, and even World War II-era Germany. The descriptions of the battles and military tactics are well-researched and detailed, making the action scenes especially gripping and intense.
Casca is an interesting protagonist, and the reader is given insight into his thoughts and emotions as he struggles to come to terms with his immortality. He is a complex character, torn between his desire for companionship and his fear of getting close to anyone who will inevitably age and die while he remains forever young. He also struggles with his guilt over his role in the crucifixion of Christ, and he spends much of the book searching for some kind of redemption.
One of the strengths of the book is its historical accuracy. Sadler clearly did his research, and the novel is filled with details that make the different time periods come to life. From the weapons and armor used by the soldiers to the political and social structures of the different societies Casca encounters, the book is full of interesting and informative historical tidbits.
However, there are also some weaknesses to the book. For one, the plot can be somewhat repetitive at times. Casca tends to find himself in similar situations throughout the book, fighting in battles and getting involved in political intrigue in different historical settings. Additionally, some of the characters feel a bit underdeveloped, with their motivations and personalities not always clearly defined.
Another issue with the book is the way it handles certain themes. While the story is overall quite enjoyable, it can be uncomfortable at times due to its portrayal of women and people of color. Women are often depicted as objects of desire, and the few female characters in the book are typically relegated to the sidelines. Similarly, people of color are often portrayed as savage or exotic, and the book can be insensitive in its handling of racial issues.
In conclusion, "The Eternal Mercenary" is an engaging military fiction novel with an interesting premise and a well-researched historical setting. While there are some weaknesses to the book, including a somewhat repetitive plot and problematic handling of certain themes, it is still an enjoyable read for fans of the genre. The series has a dedicated fan base, and for those who enjoy this first book, there are many more in the series to explore.
The novel begins in the year 30 AD, with the protagonist, Casca Rufio Longinus, serving as a centurion in the Roman army. Casca is the soldier who pierced the side of Jesus Christ with his spear during the crucifixion, and as a result, he is cursed to live forever. He is betrayed by his own men and sentenced to death, but he miraculously survives the execution and goes on to live a life of endless warfare and adventure as a mercenary.
The book is fast-paced and action-packed, with plenty of battles and skirmishes as Casca travels around the world throughout history. The story takes place in a number of different settings, including ancient Rome, medieval Europe, and even World War II-era Germany. The descriptions of the battles and military tactics are well-researched and detailed, making the action scenes especially gripping and intense.
Casca is an interesting protagonist, and the reader is given insight into his thoughts and emotions as he struggles to come to terms with his immortality. He is a complex character, torn between his desire for companionship and his fear of getting close to anyone who will inevitably age and die while he remains forever young. He also struggles with his guilt over his role in the crucifixion of Christ, and he spends much of the book searching for some kind of redemption.
One of the strengths of the book is its historical accuracy. Sadler clearly did his research, and the novel is filled with details that make the different time periods come to life. From the weapons and armor used by the soldiers to the political and social structures of the different societies Casca encounters, the book is full of interesting and informative historical tidbits.
However, there are also some weaknesses to the book. For one, the plot can be somewhat repetitive at times. Casca tends to find himself in similar situations throughout the book, fighting in battles and getting involved in political intrigue in different historical settings. Additionally, some of the characters feel a bit underdeveloped, with their motivations and personalities not always clearly defined.
Another issue with the book is the way it handles certain themes. While the story is overall quite enjoyable, it can be uncomfortable at times due to its portrayal of women and people of color. Women are often depicted as objects of desire, and the few female characters in the book are typically relegated to the sidelines. Similarly, people of color are often portrayed as savage or exotic, and the book can be insensitive in its handling of racial issues.
In conclusion, "The Eternal Mercenary" is an engaging military fiction novel with an interesting premise and a well-researched historical setting. While there are some weaknesses to the book, including a somewhat repetitive plot and problematic handling of certain themes, it is still an enjoyable read for fans of the genre. The series has a dedicated fan base, and for those who enjoy this first book, there are many more in the series to explore.
August 3, 2017
I would love to read the whole series of books if they are like this one. There is a lot of action written with an edge that is raw and somewhat violent. I am not an expert, but I would call this pulp fiction. The main character is great. He is THE soldier at Christ's crucifixion who thrusts a spear into the dying Jesus' side as told in the story from the Bible. Casca, the soldier, is cursed by Jesus and condemned to live forever as a soldier. As the story unfolds we discover that his wounds heal miraculously, he never gets sick, he does not age, and his strength and martial skills only continue to improve. The character reminds me a bit of Marvel Comic's Wolverine and the main character from the Highlander movies, an immortal. Unfortunately he does not posses the sick comedic qualities of Marvel's Deadpool. He outlives his masters during his time as a slave in the copper mines, a stint as a gladiator, and years on a rowing chain, surviving extremely poor conditions. He is not exactly a good guy, but he is not bad, and he seems like he is on a journey to discover the mystery of his own existence. This book is not for kids because of its violence and debauchery, so I guess I would classify more as a guy's read. The author's characters use language from the 1970's, so if you are looking for something historically correct, you will be disappointed. Be advised that there are obvious sexist and racist undertones, too. Still, I found it to be quick and enjoyable.
November 19, 2018
Without a doubt this is one of my favourite series. I have probably read it three or four times since buying it almost 40 years ago and I still enjoy it. Now that is value for your money.
The premise is great - one of the Roman soldiers taking part in the crucifixion of Christ (he is the one who actually kills Christ with a spear) and is doomed to live as a soldier, in one form or another, until He returns.
This first book starts with Casca, or Casey Romain as he was known in the American army in Vietnam, is grievously wounded and appears near death. But that is when Jewish American doctor Julius Goldman sees Casca ends up learning his story.
While some of the writing is far from the best I've ever read since first reading this book as a teenager, and I'll scream if I read, "Until we meet again" one more time, I just love the character and the adventures Casca has as his lives his damned life the best he can. He has his own moral code that he follows and death, usually a violent and painfully one, comes to those who violate it.
Overall, this is a fun book and series that are fairly quick reads. How many ways can you kill someone? Apparently, there are lots. I thoroughly enjoyed them and think that they are worth the time spent reading.
The premise is great - one of the Roman soldiers taking part in the crucifixion of Christ (he is the one who actually kills Christ with a spear) and is doomed to live as a soldier, in one form or another, until He returns.
This first book starts with Casca, or Casey Romain as he was known in the American army in Vietnam, is grievously wounded and appears near death. But that is when Jewish American doctor Julius Goldman sees Casca ends up learning his story.
While some of the writing is far from the best I've ever read since first reading this book as a teenager, and I'll scream if I read, "Until we meet again" one more time, I just love the character and the adventures Casca has as his lives his damned life the best he can. He has his own moral code that he follows and death, usually a violent and painfully one, comes to those who violate it.
Overall, this is a fun book and series that are fairly quick reads. How many ways can you kill someone? Apparently, there are lots. I thoroughly enjoyed them and think that they are worth the time spent reading.
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