Senatus Populus Que Romanus discussion

Greetings,

My name is James Mace and I am the author of the "Soldier of Rome" series. Please know that I am not here to try and push people into reading my books. If you have read them, great! I enjoy any and all feedback as it helps me improve as a writer. My main reason for being here though, is that Roman history is one of my passions and I enjoy the opportunity to discuss books and movies with others who share the same interest.

Some of my favorite Roman authors include: George Shipway, Paul Maier, and William Altimari. And though he does books on Greece rather than Rome, Stephen Pressfield is a must read for anyone who enjoys novels about the ancient world.

Please note that while I am happy to discuss any and all media surrounding Rome, I feel I must be prudent when offering critiques of Roman historical novels. Since I am an author of that genre, I don't want to be too quick to offer criticism of a fellow author's work as that can be construed as a conflict-of-interest (though positive reviews I have no problem giving). If anyone does want my candid opinion of a book or author, please send me a private email and I will gladly discuss it with you then.

I hope to see more people on this page and I look forward to talking with you all. Best regards,

James

Thanks for letting us know about your books! I don't think they are available in Australia (which is where I am) but I'm going to try and order a copy of the first one from the US. I saw in a bio of you that you are a full time soldier, which is unusual. Do you find that this helps you to understand the mindset of Roman soldiers? How did you first become interested in Rome? Hope you don't mind me asking all these questions.

No worries at all. In fact, I am honored that you've taken such an interest in my books. :)

Yes, I am a full-time Soldier. I currently serve in the Idaho Army Guard and have been in for over fifteen years. I served in Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and hold the rank of Sergeant First Class / E7. Does being a soldier help me with the mindset of Roman legionaries? Honestly, I would have to say so. One thing that I have found is that when you start researching soldiers from previous wars we really are not all that different. Some people think that the characters in my books resemble a platoon of U.S. Army infantrymen rather than Roman legionaries, yet I can't help but wonder what they are basing this on. Honestly, if it were possible to go back 2000 years and see Roman soldiers interacting with each other on a day-to-day basis we would find that (language barriers aside) they really were not much different than soldiers of today.

My Dad got me interested in Rome about the time I was twelve. He knew I always liked military history, so he started showing me books and such on what he considered to be the best fighting force ever known. He and my Mum are still fans of the series "I, Claudius," and after watching that I had to read the books. Since then I've made the Roman Empire a life study.

If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.