Betrayal

The Centurions #1

by Anthony Riches

Rome, AD 68. Nero has committed suicide. One hundred years of imperial rule by the descendants of Julius Caesar has ended, and chaos rules.

His successor Galba dismisses the incorruptible Germans of the Imperial Bodyguard for the crime of loyalty to the dead emperor. Ordering them back to their homeland he releases a Batavi officer from a Roman prison to be their prefect. But Julius Civilis is not the loyal servant of empire that he seems.

Four centurions, two Batavi and two Roman, will be caught up in the intrigues and the battles that follow - as friends, as victims, as leaders and as enemies.

Hramn is First Spear of the Bodyguard. Fiercely proud of his men's honour, and furious at their disgrace, he leads them back to the Batavi homeland to face an uncertain future.

Alcaeus is a centurion with the tribe's cohorts serving Rome on the northern frontier - men whose fighting skills prove crucial as Roman vies with Roman for the throne. A wolf-priest of Hercules, he wields the authority of his god and his own fighting prowess.

Marius is a Roman, first spear of the Fifth Legion: a self-made man who hates politics, but cannot avoid them in a year of murderous intrigue.

Aquillius, former first spear of the Eighth Augustan, like Hramn, is in disgrace for refusing to dishonour his oath of loyalty. But their paths will lead them to opposite sides of an unforgiving war.

And Civilis, Kivilaz to his countrymen, heroic leader, Roman citizen and patriotic Batavi, will change both the course of the Empire's destiny and that of the centurions.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, War, Audiobook, Roman

360 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 9, 2017

About the author

Anthony Riches began his lifelong interest in war and soldiers when he first heard his father's stories about World War II. This led to a degree in Military Studies at Manchester University. He began writing the story that would become Wounds of Honour after a visit to Housesteads in 1996. He lives in Hertfordshire with his wife and three children.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

FAR superior to the author's Empire series which I gave up after two books!!

Very enthralling novel of the Batavian Revolt, the first volume of a trilogy. There are several subplots: Civilis [tribal name: Civilaz] and the Batavians, a Germanic tribe, who came from what we would call the Netherlands. Others involve the different Roman legions stationed in Germania and the Year of the Four Emperors. The Batavian Guard of the emperor is unceremoniously dismissed after Nero's successor takes over and sent to Germania as an auxiliary unit to fight with the legions of Germania Inferior. The novel follows their fortune. In the course of the novel Civilaz is pardoned from treason twice; he and the Batavians save the day at the Battle of Cremona for the Vitellian forces and finally begin a revolt, for revenge and to maintain their independence. Deciding to support Vespasian's bid for the throne, Civilaz declares in this stirring closing: "Vespasianus wanted a revolt? I'll give him what he asked for. And more. And much much more."

Sentence structure is convoluted. The author could have broken up most of the compound or complex sentences into simple sentences. Sometimes a sentence is so long, I had to reread several times and parse before I get the sense. Sometimes I've even DIAGRAMMED sentences for subject and verb buried under much other verbiage!

I made a chart for names/rank/legion [both regular Roman army legions and Batavians] to keep characters straight and to see how each one fits into the story. I liked the format: the novel's divided into what I'd call scenes [like in a play]. This made it much easier to visualize and to follow action. The book has well-marked stopping places. I personally couldn't read all in one chunk.

Each of two scenes where centurions [one in V Legion, one among the Batavi] harangue the recruits is so much better than an equivalent scene in Book I of the author's other series. Neither is what I'd call coarse or vulgar--the failing of the other earlier one. Any battle or skirmish scenes were well described. I am very glad the author didn't slip in any love interest; that would have been totally out of place here.

I don't like the author's using English terms such as "chosen man" for optio, "leading man" for decanus and "tent party" for contubernium. I also don't like his using English terms for the forts in Germania. I had to discover the proper Latin names for myself. The author must have his reasons, but any logical rationale escapes me. I liked best the put-upon Centurion Marius of the V and Egilhard, the Batavian recruit.

If someone is reading Roman military fiction for the first time, I would recommend reading some background first. I hope to read the whole trilogy. I would have given it a solid 4 or even 5 stars but gave it 3.5 [rounded to 4] because of the distracting and annoying sentence structure and word order. The story was great but the poor writing outweighed it. Highly recommended.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding. I've read everything Anthony Riches has written but this, I think, could be the very best.

[Robin Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review

Anthony Riches Books are one of those rare treats i look forward to every year, his writing stands out from the crowd with a style that engages you as part of the story not a voyeur. His, unlike the majority of Historical Fiction is told from the common view, the everyday grunt and how he is impacted by the decisions and machinations of power.

Betrayal is different, in that by its nature it has to have some level of focus on those pulling the strings of political power, but also while the arc of this story must keep us close to those movers and shakers the author keeps us close to what matters, the men of the legion, the Centurions and most of all the action.

Full review: https://parmenionbooks.wordpress.com/...

[M.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a book that's only 400 pages long, Betrayal by Anthony Riches, took a painful amount of time to read. It is, and perhaps only people who've read the book will understand this comment, as hard to read as the struggles his crack Batavi troops endure as they forge rivers in all their armour. This is a huge shame. I can almost understand what the author was trying to achieve with this novel, and perhaps, for those who know the period well it will be a great success, but as a newly come reader to Roman era historical fiction, I found I needed to rely on my very sparse knowledge from other Roman historical fiction books to even have an inkling of what was happening.

Much of this could perhaps be remedied with a few more 'signposts' for the reader throughout the text. While the author informs us where the action is taking place, it would have been better to have known who the storyline actually involved. The characters all seem to have a number of different names and the author uses them freely, when in actual fact, they all just needed one name, and probably their title before that name - Centurion, Decurion, Legatus etc etc. In a story with so many characters the author really needs to help the reader by informing them as to who they're reading about - there were great swathes of this novel when I literally had no idea which character the storyline was about and how it related to the other person I'd just been reading about. Some of this is due to the story being told, and the 'actual' events that took place, but much of it is just sloppy storycrafting.

The prologue is almost unreadable - sentences taking up the ENTIRE page on my Kindle and it took me three attempts to get through it. I was relieved when the prologue ended and the real story could get under way, but even that relief didn't last too long. While the events of the prologue are later seen to have real significance to the storyline, I think they're mentioned so often, that a 'flashback' would have sufficed. There is painstaking detail about the equivalent of a game of football/rugby but on other occasions, the characters somehow appear 'overnight' in Italy from Germany with very little explanation as to why, and and then travel back just as quickly. It makes me feel that there either wasn't enough to make this a complete story, or that the author was trying to achieve too much in one book.

I do not believe that historical fiction should be 'dumbed' down so that readers can relate to it but it must be told in a manner that's understandable to those who know little about it. This is the seventh work of Roman historical fiction I've read in as many weeks, and apart from one other (which I also struggled with) it is the one I enjoyed the least and also, understood the least. A real shame as I enjoy intelligent novels about the politics of the time, but this completely defeated me.

[Michal · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.4 stars
the book is really good. My problem with it is mainly that it is way too short for such a wide scope of events. The story jumps quite a bit (which is ok for the events described), but only when you are starting to get to know some of the characters, you are at the end of the volume. I think it might have been better to wait and either publish it together with the second volume, or to work more on the depth of the characters in each of the episodes within the volume.

[Richard Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

This is a very detailed book about the tribal revolts of the Germanic tribes against Rome. The time frame is real as well as many of the characters of the story. The Roman armies and the tribal armies descriptions are spot on. A great series to read.

[Clemens Schoonderwoert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This very entertaining book is the 1st volume of "The Centurions" trilogy, and for certain it has been a very exciting one, but it also reminds me somewhat of the Henry Venmore-Rowland's books about the life of Aulus Caecina Severus - later named Alienus, after the fall of the short-term Emperor Aulus Vitellius (Here already Caecina Alienus on pages 122/123, but I leave the final say to the professionals to decide who's right or wrong).
The Historical Note details at the end of the book has been very well researched and explained in a most delightful manner, while at the beginning you'll find a well-drawn map of the "Legions of the German Frontier" as well as a map of the tribe of the "Batavi" and the "Batavodurum" area which is playing a significant part within this tale.
Story-telling is as always of a top-notch quality, for the author has the ability to reel in the reader as fast as possible and to keep the same reader spellbound within this Roman tale with great skill and panache from start to finish.
All the characters come superbly to life within this Roman tale, whether they are real or fictional, and the tale is set in the years AD 68/69, just after the suicide of Emperor Nero, and what will be the beginning of the Year of the Four Emperors.
First of all the crucial characters within this 1st volume of "The Centurions" trilogy are 5 fearless men, of which are 4 Centurions; 2 Batavi and 2 Romans, one Batavi, Hramn is sent home to Batavodurum by the new Emperor Galba for his incorruptible support as the German Imperial Bodyguard towards his dead Emperor Nero, while the other, Alcaeus is sent home with his Regiment under the leadership of Prefect Scar after the Battle of Cremona, and the Batavi Prefect Julius Civilis "Kivilaz" is acquitted for treason and is also sent home to Batavodurum by Emperor Galba, while on the other hand the Roman Centurion Marius is already stationed in the Batavodurum frontier area, and the Roman Centurion Aquillius will arrive there much later on.
What will follow is a fascinating tale of Roman persistence against the Batavi, at the same time local sentiments within the Batavi contingents will lead to a revolt against Rome in the North, while Rome under the then Emperor Aulus Vitellius is fighting a War of power and intrigue in the South, Italy itself, against the upcoming strength of Vespasian and his armies, and all this for the Roman Empire and its Purple and Destiny.
Very much recommended, for this is a wonderful Roman tale which is told with a lot of persuasion and believe, and that's why and "maybe also as a descendent from the Batavi (Dutch: Batavieren), I like to express this book as "A Very Thrilling Engaging Book"!

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

c2017; FWFTB: Batavia, wolf-priest, Fifth, loyalty, homeland. Disappointingly, I battled to get into this one. I just could not keep the characters and place names in my head. This book had none of the easy flow of Mr Riches' previous works and I wonder if there wasn't too much straight forward research and facts rather than concentrating on the characters. In the Acknowledgements, there was a mention that he used an external consultant and perhaps this curtailed the natural, very readable style that the author has shown before. There is no blurb on the cover about this particular book. Recommended to the normal crew with the caveat that, in my opinion, it is not the best book written by the author. " Some fool had not only been half asleep, but had compounded the error by stamping to attention when all around him had finally fallen silent."

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading nine books in Riches' "Empire" series, I had to do an about face when I began to read Betrayal, Book 1 of his "Centurions" trilogy. Not only was I transported back almost 100 years earlier but it's the Year of the Four Emperors and suddenly both sides poised for mortal combat are all members of the Roman army. Quite honestly, I didn't know who to root for. On the one hand, I came to admire Kivilaz, known as Julius Civilis to the Romans, prince of the Batavi and a courageous warrior who demonstrates his bravery and intrinsic leadership in the opening pages of the introduction at the battle of the Medway River. But on the other hand I soon found Centurion Marius, first spear of the Fifth Legion, a man who has come up through the ranks and maintains a fierce sense of loyalty to the empire and to the men who serve with him, equally inspiring.

When we first meet Civilis, he has been unjustly imprisoned for, what the Roman's suspect, support of Gaius Julius Vindex and his Gallic revolt against the emperor Nero.

Vindex attempted to clear the way to the throne for the then governor of Hispania Tarraconensis, Servius Sulpicius Galba. According to the historian Cassius Dio, Vindex "was powerful in body and of shrewd intelligence, was skilled in warfare and full of daring for any great enterprise; and he had a passionate love of freedom and a vast ambition." However, in the novel Civilis has a much different opinion of Vindex that appears to be warranted when Vindex is defeated by the legions of Germania Superior lead by Lucius Verginius Rufus and commits suicide.

Nero has, in the meantime, committed suicide and Galba has taken the throne. Even though Galba's accession was the goal of the Vindex revolt, Galba is of the old school of Roman justice that dictates Roman rebels must be severely dealt with, regardless of who they were attempting to elevate. So Civilis' fate hangs by a thread.

Galba dismisses his Batavian bodyguard, who have served as loyal bodyguards of emperors since the days of Augustus, and replaces them with local Praetorians. He spares Civilis, though, unwilling to put to death what he views as a loyal supporter. But Galba sends Civilis and the Batavi back to their homeland in disgrace, even though Civilis and the eight Batavi cohorts had played an important role in the Roman invasion of Britain in 43 CE and the subsequent subjugation of that country from 43 - 66 CE.

To make matters worse between Rome and the Batavi, the new commander of Germania Inferior, Aulus Vitellius, is convinced by the centurions of the "old camp" who originally charged Civilis with treason, to rearrest him upon his return.

The Rhine legions have not forgotten Nero's betrayal and the part Galba played in it. So, at the beginning of the new year they refuse to take the sacramentum, the oath of loyalty, to Galba. Instead they proclaim Vitellius as the new emperor and all available troops, including the Batavi are swept up to march south to meet the "usurper's" legions.

As the novel progressed, I came to admire Alcaeus, the Batavi's wolf-priest of Hercules, for not only his martial prowess but his deeply seated sense of honor and dedication to his Batavi brothers. I became fond of a new Batavi recruit named Eglehart, too. Although newly inducted into the Batavi auxiliary, he had spent years in training with his father and uncle, veterans who served the legions loyally for over 25 years. So, it's no surprise when he is eventually dubbed Achilles for his courage and skill on the battlefield.

Once again I found Riches' characters vibrant and their friendship with each other compelling. I found myself going about my daily chores chanting "Batavi swim the seas..," the Batavi's battle cry.

Of course Riches' gritty, heart-pounding combat sequences always keep me on the edge of my seat. The novel ends with the climactic battle of Cremona (also known as the First Battle of Bedriacum) where the Batavi face off against a corps of marines and a unit of gladiators fighting for Otho. I found the battle sequence particularly interesting because the battle was also the climax of Doug Jackson's novel, "Sword of Rome", only his hero Gaius Valerius Verrens is fighting with the gladiators and marines. So, I have now had the chance to view this battle from both sides!

Betrayal is another outstanding example of Anthony Riches' craftsmanship and meticulous research and I highly recommend it! I'm really looking forward to Onslaught, Book2, where the Batavian Revolt gets underway in earnest!

[Anne Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is such a masculine book! I suppose it is to be expected that, given the subject of war during the Roman Empire, there would be mainly male characters, but there are no women at all, apart from a few mentions of a priestess and various prostitutes!

Anyway, that aside, I did enjoy the book as I have a keen interest in Ancient History. The details of the complex movements of armies and the battle scenes were well done. The main characters and the dark humour also kept me reading. I did struggle, however, with all of the different locations, despite the maps, and all of the confusingly similar names. I think the book would benefit from a glossary of terms and also a list of characters, plus more information about the ranks in the Roman army.

I am not sure if I will read the subsequent books in the series, but I can recommend this to readers who are interested in the “art” of Roman warfare at the time.

[GBL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anthony Riches is a master of the Roman historical novel; his Empire series are classic novels of the genre. This first novel of the Centurions series again reflects his ability to describe the workings of the Roman Empire and the army.
This series of novels focuses on the period after the death of Nero and in the chaos around the reigns of Galba, Otho and Vitellius. The revolt of the Germanic tribe, the Batavians, under Kivilaz (Julius Civilis) is a diversion for the Roman Empire to manage and is in support of the challenge of Vespasian against the most recent Emperor Vitellius.
A five star novel but I did find the constant shifting from one setting to another rather confusing and it was not always clear where we were despite the addition of subheadings to locate the action.
Now on to Onslaught- the second novel in the series with further action in the Batavian revolt.

[John Cheeseman · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know how a book about such an interesting subject could be so boring? Maybe it's the very similar sounding names all the characters have, maybe it's the completely 2 dimensional characters, maybe it's the confusion caused by the story jumping just after the initial battle, maybe it's that we don't know any of the protagonists back story but are treated like we should, maybe it's the disappointing battle and action scenes or most likely it's a combination of all these issues.
I had high hopes for this and for Anthony Riches as an author but I don't think I'll be bothering with another book of his. To me this had no redeeming features and there are far better historical fiction writers to choose from.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

Got to page 188 and gave up. The characterisation was poor and very confusing with endless numbers of minor characters and seemingly no major ones??! Endless talk and no action. One chap had two names, Roman and tribal - which is fine, but for some reason I didn't pick that up until halfway through the book. Lots of examples of this and generally confusing or poorly explained story. For example, same chap was accused of crime, sentenced to death, reprieved by an emperor, sentenced to death by legions, reprieved by another emperor and then set upon by legions and managed to talk his way out of trouble. At this point I just gave in. The plot was thin and not entertaining.

[Dorin Bîrsan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthony Riches's new Series (The Centurions) is amazing. The books are packed with a lot of action but also with a great and authentic 'experiences' and 'feelings' from that ancient time. Before I have read the two Centurion books, I have read the other serie: The Empire. Both book series are great. However I believe that in 'The Centurions', Anthony has set a different tempo and the narration is in my opinion more tangible.

Fantastic books. In my view, Anthony Riches is a master of this genre.

[Phil Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An eventually well balanced and engaging book, I found following the many perspectives a chore at first but found a rhythm that meant I was able to enjoy it.

The characters appear deep and I look forward to uncovering more of their personalities as the series progresses. Perhaps too much time spent away from some characters could have discouraged me from completing the book.

Otherwise, a classic Anthony Riches series that I will continue to enjoy!

[Nick Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read a few books of Anthony’s before, I was somewhat familiar with his work and knowing that he writes about Ancient Rome. I wanted to read a new book, and finding out this was a trilogy, I borrowed this book from my local library. At first, for me, this book started off slow. Although I soon got quickly into it. This is a fantastic book and I can’t wait to read the other two parts to it.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

With several parallel story lines going on, I felt a little confused about which characters I'm supposed to be rooting for, (they aren't all on the same side so they can't all succeed) but otherwise this was an enjoyable read. A look at the year of the four emperors from a different angle than other accounts I have read.

[Alan Conner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found it difficult to get into as it kept jumping around from one place to the next. Started to become confusing as to which character I was reading about and where they were. I prefer the Empire series but I'll still be buying the next book to see what happens next.

[Alex Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid, competently researched historical novel with strong narrative, good plot development and engrossing writing.

It’s a man’s world & it’s war so don’t expect too much equal opportunity for the fairer sex.

[Raqual Humphries · Rating 1 out of 5]

Im not sure what was going through Anthony's head when he allowed the audible version to be published with this narrator...absolutely ruined a good story.

I couldn't finish listening to it...getting part the first few chapters was a challenge..

[Ivana Richards · Rating 1 out of 5]

I DNF'd this after struggling through 110 pages. The plot is ok, but the book is just so badly written. As other reviewers have commented, some sentences are so long they take up entire paragraphs. Disappointed, as I usually love Roman Historical novels.

[Tim Makin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good start to a series

Good pace, interesting twists, nice lead into 2. I hope this series continues at the standard of his previous one

[David Slater · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written. Can't wait for the next in the series.

[Des · Rating 3 out of 5]

Long, drawn out - disjointed and not very enjoyable. Empire series way better.

[Linda Russ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent

This is a really good read. Anyone who is new to the tales of the legions or the fight for Rome's throne this is a good start.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murder and military mayhem during the year of the 4 Emperors! The Batavian Revolt, part 1. Can't we all just get along?

[rzells]

couldn't really get into it, stopped in the middle

[Blanka Lednická · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stejně jako Římané, i tahle série začíná velmi povedeně. Tak uvidíme, jak to pokračuje dál. Jen si budu muset nějakou dobu počkat. :)

[Jelena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Romans calling themselves gentlemen. Twice. Gave up, can't bear it

[Patrick Raftery · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the best Writers on historical fiction just gets better and better comes with a new series set during the Year of the four emperors cracking read