Leonidas of Sparta: A Peerless Peer

Leonidas of Sparta Trilogy #2

by Helena P. Schrader

As Kindle Edition available too.

King Leonidas of Sparta lived for half a century before his defiant death at Thermopylae.  This, Book Two of the Leonidas Trilogy, traces Leonidas’ evolution from ranker to commander as he develops his leadership skills, grows into his civic responsibilities and finds the woman he needs in Gorgo, the precocious daughter of his half-brother Cleomenes.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Greece

523 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Dr. Helena P. Schrader is a highly acclaimed author with a remarkable portfolio of six critically acclaimed non-fiction history books and twenty historical novels. A testament to her storytelling prowess, twelve of her novels have earned one or more prestigious literary awards, with three titles achieving Amazon best-selling status.

Helena's deep historical insight stems from her PhD in history from the University of Hamburg, where her ground-breaking biography of a leader of the German Resistance to Hitler earned her doctorate. Her rich experiences also include a distinguished career as an American diplomat in Europe and Africa.

Her expertise spans critical historical periods and subjects, including:

Aviation

The Second World War

Ancient Sparta

The Crusader States

Award Highlights:

Helena's dedication to historical accuracy and compelling narratives has been recognized with numerous accolades:

"Cold Peace" Won the Independent Press Award for Political Thrillers 2024 and was "Runner-Up for BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023" from the Historical Fiction Company

"Moral Fibre" won GOLD in the Global Book Awards for 20th Century Historical Fiction 2024

"Where Eagles Never Flew" won the Hemingway Award for 20th Century Wartime Fiction from Chanticleer International Book Awards 2021

"Envoy of Jerusalem": Book Excellence Award for Best Biography 2017.

As the highly respected Feathered Quill Reviews noted: "Helena Schrader’s in-depth stories, fantastic characters, and ability to write an unforgettable tale make her one of the best authors out there!”

For a comprehensive list of awards and more information, please visit her author website.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goodness, I do so wish the rating system was more expansive: however my rating is 4.5.
This novel is the continuation of Schrader's fictional biography of King Leonidas, segueing neatly from the first volume in the trilogy. Completely engrossing, and so marvelous how the author took whatever crumbs we know of Leonidas's life at this stage and kneaded them together into such an enjoyable and plausible story. Leonidas is now out of the agoge and on active duty. He has his Baptism of blood at his first combat experience. Rising from the ranks, he is given his first taste of command: leading a handful of men. We are given a good description of his inner state while facing the Argives. He is appalled at so much wanton destruction at what he calls the "Farm of Horrors". For the most part the novel concentrates on his personal life on active duty and beyond as a reservist. Leonidas rises to more responsibility in the military command structure and after viewing a particularly gruesome Persian retaliation realizes Hellas must band together and fight the Persian menace.

I enjoyed reading his impressions of Athens on a visit there with a fellow soldier. His leadership of a convoy of Corinthian grain ships followed by an exciting sea battle w/ Phoenician triremes were impressive.

The characters were developed well, even some of the more minor ones. Leonidas is not a "superman" although his cleverness, compassion, and charisma are beginning to be revealed; he does have self-doubts and could even be priggish and over scrupulous in trying to be a "peerless Peer."

Very highly recommended.

[David Tindell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writing historical fiction is always tricky, regardless of the era or subject, and if you set the book in ancient times it's even trickier. In the case of Helena Schrader's three-book series on Leonidas of Sparta, she nails it. Rich with detail about the city-state of Sparta, circa 500BC, Schrader tells the story of its most famous king. This volume is the second of the trilogy, as Leonidas grows to manhood, starts a family and begins to realize his destiny. My only question, and it is probably a picky one, is the tenor of the dialogue. Although no modern phrases or colloquialisms were used, Schrader does have her children saying "Mom" and "Dad", and there are other instances where characters' speech sounds a bit too modern. Perhaps I'm overly conditioned to the more formal manner of speech we see in the movies and especially in the recent TV series of Spartacus. And who is to say, really, how people actually talked in those days? There was slang and profanity and everything else, just like today. Getting past that is easy, though, and we see not only Leonidas, truly one of the great leaders not only of ancient history but of all human history, but the culture in which he was born and raised, a society that was in many respects far more advanced even than mighty, haughty Athens in terms of political progress and women's rights.

[Jared · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read. Schrader is good at bringing the Spartan society to life but I struggled with the time jumps in this book more than the first. I understand that she needs to move the story along and cover a large swath of history but sometimes there is no transition and it is jarring how many important events happen "off screen"

[gj indieBRAG · Rating 5 out of 5]

We are proud to announce that A PEERLESS PEER by Helena P. Schrader is a B.R.A.G.Medallion Honoree. This tells a reader that this book is well worth their time and money!

[Misty Dietz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic! I want to go back in time to walk through the agora, take part in the rich festivals, and watch the Olympic contenders. Ms. Schrader had done a thoroughly fabulous job bringing such a legendary man to life.

[John Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

just finished this book really enjoyed cant wait to get the 3rd one in the series

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, as the second of the series. The author seems to have really come into her stride on this book. She weaves a very compelling tale and I found myself devouring the book.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this, the author brings to life the people and places of sparta and her enemies creating just the right combo of historic detail and page turning anticipation !