A War Within: The Gladiator

A War Within #1

by Nathan D. Maki

War Within is Christian historical fiction based in Ancient Rome during the tumultuous "Year of the Five Emperors," AD 196. It was a time of vicious persecution of Christians and brutal civil war.

When tragedy tears his family apart, Antonius is left doubting his faith and seeking vengeance. His quest for retribution will take him from the sands of the Coliseum to the distant battlefields of the Roman Empire, before bringing him back to Rome. There he must decide where his allegiance lies-with his emperor or with his faith, family, and the woman he loves. Will he choose to save his life or give it?

Readers of all ages will thrill to the action, adventure, and romance that fill these pages. But the real war is within. If God loves him, how could this happen? And how could God demand that he forgive?

263 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

I live in Prescott, Ontario, with my beautiful wife Rachel, my rambunctious son Xander, and our two fun-loving but very lazy pugs Pandora and Portia. I graduated with Highest Honors from Ottawa's Carleton University with a double major in Journalism and History. Writing has always been one of my passions and I write in my sparse spare time when not doing pastoral work or managing and operating my own business. I like to say I pastor a church to touch souls, write books to touch hearts, and mow lawns, well, to keep food on the table.

Reviews

[Canuck Snoozie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I love historical fiction, I've not read a lot dealing with the Roman era. However, since this was in my local library and the author lives in my community, I decided to give it a read. I found it to be quite a good read. Packed full of action, with the characters developing nicely. For anyone who loved Jack Whyte's Dream of Eagles series, I would recommend giving this series a read. I enjoyed it.

[Acn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolutely cringy drivel. Just awful but unintentionally funny in a painful sort of way. I'd tell you not to quit your day job mowing lawns but frankly you aren't very good at that either.

[Lexi Billick · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book because I was really excited for a Christian writer adventure story. I was a little disappointed. The writing was just bad and I had to force my way through it. I was still really invested in the characters and that's why I gave it two stars instead of one. I'll probably continue on with the series because I still wonder about what happened to the characters.

[Rachel Maki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! Action and romance all packed in one book. That doesn't come along every day!