The Arcadian
After finally experiencing the defeat and ejection of the long-dominant, invading Moors in the 1500s, the constantly tumultuous peninsula of Iberia is now undergoing an internal battle between the Christian Spanish and Portuguese kingdoms. Into this particularly violent maelstrom, Telamon, a time-traveling consummate warrior now in the role of an ironsmith, finds himself drawn into the center of conflict, an unwelcome but all too familiar fate. His “curse is to return to life… always as a soldier.” Soon he finds uncannily familiar companions from his past lives through the ages drawn into his orbit and questioning their own faith and sanity as they become entwined into the explosive events surrounding them all. A young girl, an old crone, a priest, a “bookman,” and an enemy commander join in Telamon’s reluctant and unwanted adventure in the company of a spectacular and fascinating cavalry horse. Their ongoing experiences bring, to each, strange glimpses of other, earlier battles going back over millennia.
Acclaimed author of renowned fiction and nonfiction and expert on all matters of military art and science, Steven Pressfield excels in this genre-shifting instant classic. The novel extends beyond history to deeply explore the culture, faith, setting, and military technology of time, place, and people. Consistent with Pressfield’s other widely read books, all of this is conveyed in a highly interesting and surprisingly easy to understand manner.
Despite the graphic, gritty, and realistic accounts of hardship and battles, there are flashes of spiritual and quite human tenderness among and between the characters. Given the suspenseful and incredibly intense climax, the novel closes with a seemingly incongruous but ultimately beatific and uplifting ending. The master has done it again. A must read for all fans of historical fiction of any kind.
