What do you think?
Rate this book
Imperium #1
The Sword of Jupiter
An Uncertain Future in a New Past
During the test flight of a prototype faster-than-light craft, Lt. Commander Ky is flung into an ancient past that never existed. Rome has fallen, defeated by the mighty Carthaginian Empire, its survivors chased off the continent and onto what had been the remote province of Britannia. Hounded by the Carthaginians bent on conquering the known world, Rome is on the verge of destruction. Stranded and alone, except for a tactical AI implanted in his head, Ky has lost everything and must find a way to live in a world different than anything he's ever known.
For Ky to survive, he needs a new home. For the Romans to survive, they need a miracle. But can a man from the future work with people so far in his past, or is this match doomed to failure?
During the test flight of a prototype faster-than-light craft, Lt. Commander Ky is flung into an ancient past that never existed. Rome has fallen, defeated by the mighty Carthaginian Empire, its survivors chased off the continent and onto what had been the remote province of Britannia. Hounded by the Carthaginians bent on conquering the known world, Rome is on the verge of destruction. Stranded and alone, except for a tactical AI implanted in his head, Ky has lost everything and must find a way to live in a world different than anything he's ever known.
For Ky to survive, he needs a new home. For the Romans to survive, they need a miracle. But can a man from the future work with people so far in his past, or is this match doomed to failure?
713 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 22, 2021
688 people are currently reading
500 people want to read
About the author
Travis Starnes
43 books89 followersTravis writes science fiction, fantasy, and thriller novels (and the occasional coming-of-age story), with the hope of transporting and enthralling readers. Publishing novels since 2015, Travis’s passion is creating worlds and characters that live and breathe, and experiencing the joy of those stories with his readers.
When not writing, Travis enjoys connecting with readers and other writers, managing the popular Complete Marvel Reading Order website, where he works on his other passion for comics and graphic novels, and spending time with his family.
When not writing, Travis enjoys connecting with readers and other writers, managing the popular Complete Marvel Reading Order website, where he works on his other passion for comics and graphic novels, and spending time with his family.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
January 24, 2022
This started strong And just fell apart by the end.
The main character lacks any personality so his insistence on massive social reform seems baseless. The underlying treason provides tension for the entire book, but the characters reactions, blatantly ignoring it, are just ridiculous. The ending is obvious and very forced. The characters are bland and flat by the end. This whole thing ran out of steam by the halfway point and just fell apart by the end.
The main character lacks any personality so his insistence on massive social reform seems baseless. The underlying treason provides tension for the entire book, but the characters reactions, blatantly ignoring it, are just ridiculous. The ending is obvious and very forced. The characters are bland and flat by the end. This whole thing ran out of steam by the halfway point and just fell apart by the end.
April 23, 2024
Replete with spelling mistakes, editing errors, typographical errors, flat, boring characters, Wikipedia pages of seemingly half-understood history explanations (repeated ad nauseam), awful racial politics and stereotypes, clunky, tonally incoherent writing (including the remarkable phrase “There was a chance this was some kind of chance,” which sounds more like a Homer Simpson quote than a line from a serious novel), a thoroughly unearned cliff hanger ending (which sadly suggests there might be more of these books), and the blandest, most unlikable main character I can remember reading about as an adult (indeed, silent video game protagonists like Chrono and Link have more personality and are more likable than the Gary Stu, Beach Ken mannequin at the center of this book, Ky).
If this was a movie they would have run it on mystery science theater 3000.
I read it as an ebook and I have dozens of pictures on my phone of the book’s spelling and typographic errors as well as egregious turns of phrase (like the chance chance sentence above, plus other stupid mistakes, like using quite instead of quiet, or into instead of enter). I would have taken more photos but I simply grew tired of granting such an awful novel more of my time and effort.
This book would have been a pretty good effort by someone for whom English is a second language, but for a supposed native speaker this reads worse than the English translations of early Nintendo games. I wish the author’s high school teacher would redline this novel and send it back to him.
The author also overuses abstract and non-specific words like “things,” in multiple situations, uses the same words or phrases in one sentence right after another, and uses the wrong adverbs (again making the novel seem like it was written by a non-native speaker) throughout this book. These mistakes make me think the novel was written on an iPhone but even autocorrect wouldn’t make many of these errors (if I were the author I’d use the word “mistakes” here again).
Despite the actual fact that the Romans sacked Carthage and then salted the soil after the Third Punic War (something later Romans themselves noted with unease) in this book, the North African Carthaginians are dark, violent hordes, with skull emblems and a death goddess, hell bent on conquering the diaspora Romans at any cost. Their leaders kill soldiers and messengers on a whim and sexually abuse slaves like an even stupider version of 300. There are, in fact, episodes of Paw Patrol with more nuanced villains. The noble Romans also face off against a Pict culture, but of course are able to come to terms and ally with this white enemy. In the background, the novel also sees the Carthaginians defeat and conquer the Persians, and while I’m no expert (and charitably, the novel at least hints that Carthage was able to overpower Persia thanks to sacking Rome and its wealth) I think it’s unlikely anyone could have conquered the Persians completely at this time.
Truly Republicans have successfully gutted public education if this is what passes for a novel these days. I can honestly think of several diseases I’d rather have than have to read this book or inflict it on others. Rise of Skywalker is Shakespeare compared to this unedited stream of consciousness vomit. I’ve read a little good SF this year along with a fair amount of middling SF. Sword of Jupiter has brought the bar hurtling down past the upper and lower mantle, and at least into the Earth’s outer core. For all the beauty and joy there is in English as a language, Sword of Jupiter is like a slap in the face of the very idea of writing or speaking English. I’m tempted to simply ask the Chinese to take over America since their blessed language, does not, at least, have this book.
That this book is so highly rated is an indictment of American public education, all Roman history and culture (as our video game-bland main character crash lands in alternate universe version Rome), and the entire American experiment. It is truly over folks, it’s time for us to call it quits (or quites if I am the author).
As someone thinking about writing their own novel, on the one hand Sword of Jupiter truly lets me believe that anyone can write anything and get it published. On the other hand, however, like Victor Frankenstein I now fear bringing another monster into a fragile human world. I’d break my own wrists so I could never write again rather than publish something like this book under someone else’s name, let alone my own.
It’s nearly 4AM, I finished this book an hour ago, and I still can’t stop raging about how awful Sword of Jupiter was. I put more effort into reading this book than the author seemed to put into writing it (and I say write because this text clearly wasn’t edited) which feels remarkably unjust.
I finished Sword of Jupiter so you don’t have to read it. Please don’t let my sacrifice (and the sacrifice of my innocent neurons) be in vain (or as the author may have spelled in it this book, vein).
tl;dr: avoid like the space plague
If this was a movie they would have run it on mystery science theater 3000.
I read it as an ebook and I have dozens of pictures on my phone of the book’s spelling and typographic errors as well as egregious turns of phrase (like the chance chance sentence above, plus other stupid mistakes, like using quite instead of quiet, or into instead of enter). I would have taken more photos but I simply grew tired of granting such an awful novel more of my time and effort.
This book would have been a pretty good effort by someone for whom English is a second language, but for a supposed native speaker this reads worse than the English translations of early Nintendo games. I wish the author’s high school teacher would redline this novel and send it back to him.
The author also overuses abstract and non-specific words like “things,” in multiple situations, uses the same words or phrases in one sentence right after another, and uses the wrong adverbs (again making the novel seem like it was written by a non-native speaker) throughout this book. These mistakes make me think the novel was written on an iPhone but even autocorrect wouldn’t make many of these errors (if I were the author I’d use the word “mistakes” here again).
Despite the actual fact that the Romans sacked Carthage and then salted the soil after the Third Punic War (something later Romans themselves noted with unease) in this book, the North African Carthaginians are dark, violent hordes, with skull emblems and a death goddess, hell bent on conquering the diaspora Romans at any cost. Their leaders kill soldiers and messengers on a whim and sexually abuse slaves like an even stupider version of 300. There are, in fact, episodes of Paw Patrol with more nuanced villains. The noble Romans also face off against a Pict culture, but of course are able to come to terms and ally with this white enemy. In the background, the novel also sees the Carthaginians defeat and conquer the Persians, and while I’m no expert (and charitably, the novel at least hints that Carthage was able to overpower Persia thanks to sacking Rome and its wealth) I think it’s unlikely anyone could have conquered the Persians completely at this time.
Truly Republicans have successfully gutted public education if this is what passes for a novel these days. I can honestly think of several diseases I’d rather have than have to read this book or inflict it on others. Rise of Skywalker is Shakespeare compared to this unedited stream of consciousness vomit. I’ve read a little good SF this year along with a fair amount of middling SF. Sword of Jupiter has brought the bar hurtling down past the upper and lower mantle, and at least into the Earth’s outer core. For all the beauty and joy there is in English as a language, Sword of Jupiter is like a slap in the face of the very idea of writing or speaking English. I’m tempted to simply ask the Chinese to take over America since their blessed language, does not, at least, have this book.
That this book is so highly rated is an indictment of American public education, all Roman history and culture (as our video game-bland main character crash lands in alternate universe version Rome), and the entire American experiment. It is truly over folks, it’s time for us to call it quits (or quites if I am the author).
As someone thinking about writing their own novel, on the one hand Sword of Jupiter truly lets me believe that anyone can write anything and get it published. On the other hand, however, like Victor Frankenstein I now fear bringing another monster into a fragile human world. I’d break my own wrists so I could never write again rather than publish something like this book under someone else’s name, let alone my own.
It’s nearly 4AM, I finished this book an hour ago, and I still can’t stop raging about how awful Sword of Jupiter was. I put more effort into reading this book than the author seemed to put into writing it (and I say write because this text clearly wasn’t edited) which feels remarkably unjust.
I finished Sword of Jupiter so you don’t have to read it. Please don’t let my sacrifice (and the sacrifice of my innocent neurons) be in vain (or as the author may have spelled in it this book, vein).
tl;dr: avoid like the space plague
February 6, 2024
Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/wolfmantula
For more reviews, go to: https://wolfmantula.com/recent-posts/
MY ⭐️ RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: Kindle Whispersync
I was honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed this, it was one of those random finds when I was setting up my yearly TBR to include sci-fi and historical fiction novels. The name and book cover immediately stood out so I decided to add it, and I have to say that it was the best decision I’ve made. This is my first time reading anything with time travel since I typically stick to just fantasy, but this is such a fascinating take, because not only is it sci-fi, but it’s a historical story as well, but unlike other novels, shows and films that typically go to the old west, the pre-historic era or medieval England, this takes us on a journey to Ancient Rome, but not just any Ancient Rome, a Rome where Carthage is the super power that has pushed Rome to Brittania and on the brink of annihilation.
As I was reading this, my mind kept going to different things that had similar aspects, such as Stargate and The Orville, there were some episodes in those shows where they went to places that were not as developed, though they tried not to do things that would alter their future. Starnes takes a different approach and has Ky, the main character, helping the Romans by teaching them new things that would help them move along faster as a society since he is stuck in that time. Which reminds me of the comedy, The Black Knight starring Martin Lawrence. The reason that film comes to mind is that his character, Jamal Skywalker, introduces things from his time the way Ky does in The Sword of Jupiter.
There wasn’t a lot that Starnes needed to do to set the world up since it’s based in Ancient Rome and that can easily be pictured, but I still thought he did a great job with his world building. Once the action slowed down, he went into a lot of detail with many of the things that Ky had to introduce to the Romans to help them get better. I loved that he started with some of the most simplistic things and then going into more detail on others, it really makes you realize how far we’ve come as a society. When the action slows down, Starnes does a great job of showing the underbelly of Rome with its political plotting, schemes and conspiracy to make the story that much deeper to deal with a battle within Rome as well as outside of it.
“Just because things aren’t true now doesn’t mean they will always be false. The first step to making it true is by giving my people hope, something they can rally around. Even if you leave and the circle never completes isn’t there value in giving people hope?”
I really enjoyed Ky a lot, specifically loved his interactions and how he had to explain things to the people of Rome, the struggle of speaking to the people of this time really makes for some funny dialogue, but some of the best parts that made me giggle came from his conversations with his AI that is supposed to be helping him and also is growing into sentience. Ky reminds me a bit of Spartacus and Maximus from Gladiator. While he’s not a slave or gladiator, he still has that same kind of essence about him that they give off and makes him such a likable character.
The narration by Kevin Kemp was absolutely brilliant! Any time it feels like the narrator is just as into the story as I am, it makes for a better experience, and Kemp did just that. Not only that, but the range of voices was excellent as well, from old men with soft voices to women and even dark evil character with a deep ominous voice, each one had a distinct sound so that they weren’t the same. This along with Katherine Fenton’s narration of Bloody Rose are going to be tough to choose on who my favorite narration of the year will be.
I am always interested in learning about the past and since this has some historical flair to it, I did a little research of my own of the Punic Wars to see what happened and who was all involved, I found it satisfying that Starnes actually gives a nod to Scipio Sulla, who was instrumental for Rome in defeating the Carthaginians by naming The Games of Sulla, after him. There are a lot of other nods to historical figures in this story as well, which got me diving even more into Roman history. I’ll never get tired of stories that make me want to do this!
For more reviews, go to: https://wolfmantula.com/recent-posts/
MY ⭐️ RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: Kindle Whispersync
I was honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed this, it was one of those random finds when I was setting up my yearly TBR to include sci-fi and historical fiction novels. The name and book cover immediately stood out so I decided to add it, and I have to say that it was the best decision I’ve made. This is my first time reading anything with time travel since I typically stick to just fantasy, but this is such a fascinating take, because not only is it sci-fi, but it’s a historical story as well, but unlike other novels, shows and films that typically go to the old west, the pre-historic era or medieval England, this takes us on a journey to Ancient Rome, but not just any Ancient Rome, a Rome where Carthage is the super power that has pushed Rome to Brittania and on the brink of annihilation.
As I was reading this, my mind kept going to different things that had similar aspects, such as Stargate and The Orville, there were some episodes in those shows where they went to places that were not as developed, though they tried not to do things that would alter their future. Starnes takes a different approach and has Ky, the main character, helping the Romans by teaching them new things that would help them move along faster as a society since he is stuck in that time. Which reminds me of the comedy, The Black Knight starring Martin Lawrence. The reason that film comes to mind is that his character, Jamal Skywalker, introduces things from his time the way Ky does in The Sword of Jupiter.
There wasn’t a lot that Starnes needed to do to set the world up since it’s based in Ancient Rome and that can easily be pictured, but I still thought he did a great job with his world building. Once the action slowed down, he went into a lot of detail with many of the things that Ky had to introduce to the Romans to help them get better. I loved that he started with some of the most simplistic things and then going into more detail on others, it really makes you realize how far we’ve come as a society. When the action slows down, Starnes does a great job of showing the underbelly of Rome with its political plotting, schemes and conspiracy to make the story that much deeper to deal with a battle within Rome as well as outside of it.
“Just because things aren’t true now doesn’t mean they will always be false. The first step to making it true is by giving my people hope, something they can rally around. Even if you leave and the circle never completes isn’t there value in giving people hope?”
I really enjoyed Ky a lot, specifically loved his interactions and how he had to explain things to the people of Rome, the struggle of speaking to the people of this time really makes for some funny dialogue, but some of the best parts that made me giggle came from his conversations with his AI that is supposed to be helping him and also is growing into sentience. Ky reminds me a bit of Spartacus and Maximus from Gladiator. While he’s not a slave or gladiator, he still has that same kind of essence about him that they give off and makes him such a likable character.
The narration by Kevin Kemp was absolutely brilliant! Any time it feels like the narrator is just as into the story as I am, it makes for a better experience, and Kemp did just that. Not only that, but the range of voices was excellent as well, from old men with soft voices to women and even dark evil character with a deep ominous voice, each one had a distinct sound so that they weren’t the same. This along with Katherine Fenton’s narration of Bloody Rose are going to be tough to choose on who my favorite narration of the year will be.
I am always interested in learning about the past and since this has some historical flair to it, I did a little research of my own of the Punic Wars to see what happened and who was all involved, I found it satisfying that Starnes actually gives a nod to Scipio Sulla, who was instrumental for Rome in defeating the Carthaginians by naming The Games of Sulla, after him. There are a lot of other nods to historical figures in this story as well, which got me diving even more into Roman history. I’ll never get tired of stories that make me want to do this!
March 26, 2024
Long may the Consul Live
Great an entertaining story thoughtout, I can't wait for the next book and see how it continues...also love the Sophos
Great an entertaining story thoughtout, I can't wait for the next book and see how it continues...also love the Sophos
March 26, 2023
The few occurrences I found in this book that were annoying were not enough to prevent me from giving it five stars. I really liked the premise and the character development. I suppose the greatest compliment I could give Travis Starnes is the the fact that I didn't bother with the next book in my lineup, I jumped right into book two, The Trumpets of Mars.
March 28, 2023
I don't think that this is even close to as good as Destiny's Crucible. In Olan Thorensen's series, Josef slowly and intelligently tries to introduce new ideas to society, and we get to see their impact. Here, Ky just bombards society with a whole new set of ideas, and we have yet to see their impact. I feel like Thorensen's series is a more intelligent series, while this one is more focused on action. Both are good, but I'm deeply hooked on Thorensen's series, and only mildly interested in the current one.
April 25, 2024
Unexpected and Interesting
I've read several back in time novels and most have a strong leavening of superhero lead. Ky has advancements (nanotechnology + AI) but they come at a cost and he has trouble integrating himself into Roman society. The fallibilities make for a much more interesting character. Also the romance angle is completely unique.
On a technical note a few typos, grammar, and vocabulary errors but nothing that makes reading a chore.
Well worth your time!
I've read several back in time novels and most have a strong leavening of superhero lead. Ky has advancements (nanotechnology + AI) but they come at a cost and he has trouble integrating himself into Roman society. The fallibilities make for a much more interesting character. Also the romance angle is completely unique.
On a technical note a few typos, grammar, and vocabulary errors but nothing that makes reading a chore.
Well worth your time!
January 31, 2022
Awesome Story
This story of a test pilot from the future going back to Roman timeline was a very interesting entertaining book.
This story of a test pilot from the future going back to Roman timeline was a very interesting entertaining book.
April 26, 2023
A well written alternative history with believable characters. well done
August 18, 2025
Really enjoyed listening to this one. Captivating story starting in the future, only to head back to an alternate earth with a jump to the fighting between Romans and Carthaginians. Really enjoyed the story, and how it progressed. Not the biggest fan of the ending just because…yea. But looking forward to continuing this series.
March 20, 2025
DNF. Not bad, just not for me. This falls into that genre of fiction that was very popular in the early days of sci-fi, where a man (it's always a man) gets sent to another world (or the past) with no way back but uses his superior knowledge and experience to save the underdogs of that world. John Carter of Mars, Witch World, the list goes on.
Travis Starnes is a good enough writer, but I don't love this genre and I felt like there was way too much details given.
Travis Starnes is a good enough writer, but I don't love this genre and I felt like there was way too much details given.
September 15, 2025
When you get right down to it, The Sword of Jupiter is very much a post-modern retelling of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Just with a space fighter pilot from the future in place of the Connecticut Yankee and a remnant/offshoot of the Roman Empire in place of King Arthur's Court, but otherwise, the setting is pretty much identical, Britain in the early-mid 1st millennium A.D. with a somewhat civilized group under a forward-thinking leader surrounded by enemies on all sides and with some insidious elements threatening to pull things apart from inside. As with Twain's book, our protagonist makes use of technological know-how to rise to a position of power and authority. However, Starnes opts for a more hard science approach, without even a whiff of magic. His version of Britain is also much more period accurate than Twain's.
Something that I both liked and found frustrating was the characterization of the protagonist. Ky (no last name) comes from a time period in which the Earth and the Solar System have been united under a single government, everyone is born out of tubes, you get your occupation chosen for you pretty much at birth and are assigned to a "batch" with others of your future occupation, who are the closest analogue to families in their lives, romance and intercourse having become passe (if not actually outlawed, technically) within the Empire. Now, initially, I really liked this setup because it flips things on their head, our protagonist rather than being the one with whom the audience has the most in common (as in the original Twain story) has been dehumanized into little more than a cog by his culture and technology so that the savages of the ancient world seem more relatable to the reader by comparison. The problem is that the characterization isn't consistent. Sure it makes sense that having grown up in the bright shiny Brave New World, our protagonist is horrified by the savagery and brutality of the past, but for him to then espouse that his culture believed in individual freedom seems rather ridiculous. You can't make your protagonist a cog in the machine who never really had a choice about his life (and death) and then act like he has a clue about individual liberties and rights. It's shoving a square peg into a round hole. Now there are ways this could be fixed, should Ky realize that he's been brain-washed to ignore his own civilization's horrifying reality, for instance, that would fix most of the problem. However, it doesn't really feel like the novel is leaning that way, and the result is a character whose stated values don't seem to match up with his reality, even as he speaks enthusiastically of the time he came from. It still like the character, but it's hard to know where Starnes is going with him when his background and beliefs are so... mismatched.
The alternate history setting is fine; in essence, the Germanic invasions became a bigger problem earlier so Rome wore itself out fighting them off and then the Carthaginians cleaned their clock, gradually driving them out of their homeland across the colonies of the Republic and finally to Britain. Not the best I've ever read, but as the novel goes on, the author shores things up that initially seems shoddy (particularly, why the Romans are in Britain after losing the Punic Wars, given that Rome didn't control Britain until ~2 centuries after the Punic Wars in our timeline; indeed, at the time IIRC, the Roman Republic controlled... Italy, a little bit of southern France, a few islands here and there, and a bit of Iberia). I have a strong suspicion what sparked the initial change in the timeline, but I will say no more on that.
The story itself is... ok, it starts strong with Ky arriving in the past, dramatically involving himself in the Roman-Carthaginian conflict and then leading the Romans in battle, which is all exciting and dramatic, but after that the book gets into "pulling the Romans into the future by their bootstraps" mode and Ky is trying to convince the Romans to adopt new ideas and new technology and adopt reforms to their society while second-guessing his decision to help them when confronted by their slavery and bloodsports. This makes up, I'd say 2/3rds of the book and, on the one hand, it presents a fascinating look at the difficulty of introducing even simple changes of theoretically obvious merit to an ancient civilization due to cultural, political, and philosophical inertia/opposition, but... there's no getting over the fact that it becomes far more dry and less intriguing than the opening bit. Moreover, it's often hard to guess how much time has passed or how much is left even though a clear deadline is constantly being referred to by the characters. The problem with this is that it's hard to gauge whether Ky's efforts are actually bearing fruit in good time or if they're falling behind. Another issue I had is that Starnes has this circuitous way of writing that often confused me as to what exactly the focus of the chapter would be. He'd start off the chapter and mention something, like blacksmiths and stables, and you'd think, AH! Today is the day he amazes the Romans with the wonders of the stirrup, but then the chapter ends up going in a completely different direction. This happened multiple times and while his writing generally flows nicely and reads well, I couldn't help feeling frustrated by the circuitousness which seemed pointlessly confusing when one sentence at the beginning of the chapter ("the next day I went to the 7th Legion to discuss sanitation") might've helped enormously.
On the plus side, I did like the characters, not only Ky and his AI voice in his head, but the Emperor, the Emperor's daughter Lucilla, and the various others who gradually get drawn into Ky's circle of fellow forward-thinkers. I also thought that Starnes did a decent job depicting the confusion and awkwardness of someone from a romance-less society grappling with the fact he's starting to develop more than friendly feelings for someone, though I would imagine someone in that situation would be a bit more... grossed out by romantic gestures, probably much as one might feel when a nature documentary shows animals mating. However, apart from the fact that he doesn't understand the why, Ky never seems put off by the fact of such interactions in Roman society, which strikes me as odd. I also liked the thought Starnes put into what technologies his protagonist focused on supplying to the Romans.
All in all, the Sword of Jupiter is the kind of thing I eat up, very much in the 1632/Destroyermen/Safehold mold with a premise which while not exactly novel, has enough of a unique spin to prevent it from feeling stale, but held back just a bit by some pacing issues and by some inconsistent character background elements (that's just the thing, in the here and now of the story, Ky always feels like a very distinct and concrete character, but his background just doesn't make much sense (unless there's brainwashing, I think there's brainwashing and possibly some good 'ol Soma, especially given how quickly he began falling in love once he left his old life behind)). Given how much of the book is buildup for the next battle with the Carthaginians, it was a bit disappointing that we didn't actually get to that point, but the book is big enough as it is, so I don't REALLY hold that against it. Moreover, I was sufficiently entertained that I bought the sequel before I'd even finished it and I'm eager to jump into it ASAP.
Something that I both liked and found frustrating was the characterization of the protagonist. Ky (no last name) comes from a time period in which the Earth and the Solar System have been united under a single government, everyone is born out of tubes, you get your occupation chosen for you pretty much at birth and are assigned to a "batch" with others of your future occupation, who are the closest analogue to families in their lives, romance and intercourse having become passe (if not actually outlawed, technically) within the Empire. Now, initially, I really liked this setup because it flips things on their head, our protagonist rather than being the one with whom the audience has the most in common (as in the original Twain story) has been dehumanized into little more than a cog by his culture and technology so that the savages of the ancient world seem more relatable to the reader by comparison. The problem is that the characterization isn't consistent. Sure it makes sense that having grown up in the bright shiny Brave New World, our protagonist is horrified by the savagery and brutality of the past, but for him to then espouse that his culture believed in individual freedom seems rather ridiculous. You can't make your protagonist a cog in the machine who never really had a choice about his life (and death) and then act like he has a clue about individual liberties and rights. It's shoving a square peg into a round hole. Now there are ways this could be fixed, should Ky realize that he's been brain-washed to ignore his own civilization's horrifying reality, for instance, that would fix most of the problem. However, it doesn't really feel like the novel is leaning that way, and the result is a character whose stated values don't seem to match up with his reality, even as he speaks enthusiastically of the time he came from. It still like the character, but it's hard to know where Starnes is going with him when his background and beliefs are so... mismatched.
The alternate history setting is fine; in essence, the Germanic invasions became a bigger problem earlier so Rome wore itself out fighting them off and then the Carthaginians cleaned their clock, gradually driving them out of their homeland across the colonies of the Republic and finally to Britain. Not the best I've ever read, but as the novel goes on, the author shores things up that initially seems shoddy (particularly, why the Romans are in Britain after losing the Punic Wars, given that Rome didn't control Britain until ~2 centuries after the Punic Wars in our timeline; indeed, at the time IIRC, the Roman Republic controlled... Italy, a little bit of southern France, a few islands here and there, and a bit of Iberia). I have a strong suspicion what sparked the initial change in the timeline, but I will say no more on that.
The story itself is... ok, it starts strong with Ky arriving in the past, dramatically involving himself in the Roman-Carthaginian conflict and then leading the Romans in battle, which is all exciting and dramatic, but after that the book gets into "pulling the Romans into the future by their bootstraps" mode and Ky is trying to convince the Romans to adopt new ideas and new technology and adopt reforms to their society while second-guessing his decision to help them when confronted by their slavery and bloodsports. This makes up, I'd say 2/3rds of the book and, on the one hand, it presents a fascinating look at the difficulty of introducing even simple changes of theoretically obvious merit to an ancient civilization due to cultural, political, and philosophical inertia/opposition, but... there's no getting over the fact that it becomes far more dry and less intriguing than the opening bit. Moreover, it's often hard to guess how much time has passed or how much is left even though a clear deadline is constantly being referred to by the characters. The problem with this is that it's hard to gauge whether Ky's efforts are actually bearing fruit in good time or if they're falling behind. Another issue I had is that Starnes has this circuitous way of writing that often confused me as to what exactly the focus of the chapter would be. He'd start off the chapter and mention something, like blacksmiths and stables, and you'd think, AH! Today is the day he amazes the Romans with the wonders of the stirrup, but then the chapter ends up going in a completely different direction. This happened multiple times and while his writing generally flows nicely and reads well, I couldn't help feeling frustrated by the circuitousness which seemed pointlessly confusing when one sentence at the beginning of the chapter ("the next day I went to the 7th Legion to discuss sanitation") might've helped enormously.
On the plus side, I did like the characters, not only Ky and his AI voice in his head, but the Emperor, the Emperor's daughter Lucilla, and the various others who gradually get drawn into Ky's circle of fellow forward-thinkers. I also thought that Starnes did a decent job depicting the confusion and awkwardness of someone from a romance-less society grappling with the fact he's starting to develop more than friendly feelings for someone, though I would imagine someone in that situation would be a bit more... grossed out by romantic gestures, probably much as one might feel when a nature documentary shows animals mating. However, apart from the fact that he doesn't understand the why, Ky never seems put off by the fact of such interactions in Roman society, which strikes me as odd. I also liked the thought Starnes put into what technologies his protagonist focused on supplying to the Romans.
All in all, the Sword of Jupiter is the kind of thing I eat up, very much in the 1632/Destroyermen/Safehold mold with a premise which while not exactly novel, has enough of a unique spin to prevent it from feeling stale, but held back just a bit by some pacing issues and by some inconsistent character background elements (that's just the thing, in the here and now of the story, Ky always feels like a very distinct and concrete character, but his background just doesn't make much sense (unless there's brainwashing, I think there's brainwashing and possibly some good 'ol Soma, especially given how quickly he began falling in love once he left his old life behind)). Given how much of the book is buildup for the next battle with the Carthaginians, it was a bit disappointing that we didn't actually get to that point, but the book is big enough as it is, so I don't REALLY hold that against it. Moreover, I was sufficiently entertained that I bought the sequel before I'd even finished it and I'm eager to jump into it ASAP.
January 8, 2023
solid time-traveller in an alternate universe (Carthage wins the Punic wars) story (good to listen, but lack vividness and scale)
May 11, 2024
A fun alternate-history sci-fi tale.
While it doesn't make the book unreadable, there are many spelling, grammar and homonym errors. Based on a few of them, I suspect at least some of this book was written via dictation with text-to-speech software, and not well proofread afterwards. I don't expect perfection; every editor and proofreader always misses a few things, but there were far more than I would expect from even a half-decent editor.
If you can get past that, however, it's a fun story and I'm looking forward to book two in the series.
While it doesn't make the book unreadable, there are many spelling, grammar and homonym errors. Based on a few of them, I suspect at least some of this book was written via dictation with text-to-speech software, and not well proofread afterwards. I don't expect perfection; every editor and proofreader always misses a few things, but there were far more than I would expect from even a half-decent editor.
If you can get past that, however, it's a fun story and I'm looking forward to book two in the series.
February 12, 2022
entertaining read well worth the time
This is an excellent start to what I hope will be a great series. The setup is a little clunky, but through the protagonist’s narratives later in the book, more is understood of his background. I do not recall reading any military sci if or fantasy quite like this and exploring this world through Ky’s eyes is truly enjoyable.
This is an excellent start to what I hope will be a great series. The setup is a little clunky, but through the protagonist’s narratives later in the book, more is understood of his background. I do not recall reading any military sci if or fantasy quite like this and exploring this world through Ky’s eyes is truly enjoyable.
July 5, 2022
Heroes shouldn't do everything by themselves.
Another alternate universe back in time story. I do not like the the hero does everything. He is unbeatable and has to be every where. Better stories have him causing actions and results, but often by inspiring others. Fun but a little repetitive.
Another alternate universe back in time story. I do not like the the hero does everything. He is unbeatable and has to be every where. Better stories have him causing actions and results, but often by inspiring others. Fun but a little repetitive.
January 19, 2022
Too many typos
There are a jarring number of typos (misspelled names etc) and numerical mistakes (4 soldiers when it should be three, etc) that take away the immersion from a good story
There are a jarring number of typos (misspelled names etc) and numerical mistakes (4 soldiers when it should be three, etc) that take away the immersion from a good story
October 16, 2022
Fantastic story and science
Absolutely worth reading. Does not disappoint. Adventure, political intrigue. Best of all, a writer who can write! He shows instead of tells. A great read and worth my time.
Absolutely worth reading. Does not disappoint. Adventure, political intrigue. Best of all, a writer who can write! He shows instead of tells. A great read and worth my time.
March 8, 2023
Great read
I really enjoyed reading this book. The setting was engaging and the writing was immersive. I couldn't put it down.
The characters are great and behave very human.
I will buy the next book to see how it continues.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The setting was engaging and the writing was immersive. I couldn't put it down.
The characters are great and behave very human.
I will buy the next book to see how it continues.
March 12, 2024
Great blend of future and past
I liked this story set in a parallel universe. It will give more opportunity for things to go differently. The way KY was raised reasonably stems from the distfunction of families today.
I liked this story set in a parallel universe. It will give more opportunity for things to go differently. The way KY was raised reasonably stems from the distfunction of families today.
August 23, 2024
I love well written science fiction!!!
Travis Starnes has proved that he is amazingly creative in this genre!!
I sincerely enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading the next book in this series!!!
Travis Starnes has proved that he is amazingly creative in this genre!!
I sincerely enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading the next book in this series!!!
February 28, 2022
Too detailed
Liked the concept, but skimmed over parts that were too technical. Not enough character development. Might read the second book if not so technical
Liked the concept, but skimmed over parts that were too technical. Not enough character development. Might read the second book if not so technical
March 4, 2022
excellent read
I got into the book, cared about the characters, and believed the world building. Looking forward to the sequel, which I hope is soon.
I got into the book, cared about the characters, and believed the world building. Looking forward to the sequel, which I hope is soon.
March 15, 2022
great read
Interesting story, well written. The interaction of a man from a high tech future with Ancient Rome was very good.
Interesting story, well written. The interaction of a man from a high tech future with Ancient Rome was very good.
July 22, 2022
Go back to make the future better
An enjoyable theme with lots subtle twists and turns. Completely unbelievable but most enjoyable. Look forward to the sequel shortly
An enjoyable theme with lots subtle twists and turns. Completely unbelievable but most enjoyable. Look forward to the sequel shortly
December 10, 2022
Good stuff!
I'm going to definitely read the next book in the series. Enjoyable and kept me turning the page. Good, believable characters.
I'm going to definitely read the next book in the series. Enjoyable and kept me turning the page. Good, believable characters.
December 31, 2022
Interesting
Fun alternative history. I totally recommend it. The Carthaginians are a tad over the top villainous, but I like the depiction of the Picts.
Fun alternative history. I totally recommend it. The Carthaginians are a tad over the top villainous, but I like the depiction of the Picts.
March 17, 2023
That was good... Romans were more modern but still good story, interesting tech and awesome plot!
October 16, 2024
A fine tale
A story of ancient Roman in peril and a man from the future that helped them. Well written. A most read. Very entertaining.
A story of ancient Roman in peril and a man from the future that helped them. Well written. A most read. Very entertaining.
December 21, 2024
Good Read
I was surprised by the story and writing. I love finding new authors to read and I will be reading the rest of this series.
I was surprised by the story and writing. I love finding new authors to read and I will be reading the rest of this series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews