Rise of an Empire: How One Man United Greece to Defeat Xerxes's Persians Paperback – February 19, 2014

I cannot praise this book enough. I knew quite a bit about the Persian Wars before I picked this book up, but Dando-Collins talks about a lot of things you wouldn't find in an examination of just the wars, such as a pretty in-depth look at how ostracism worked among the Athenians. The book follows the Athenian hero, Themistocles. While the bulk of the book is about his rise to power and his part (and the Athenian part) of the war, he also has an entire chapter dedicated to the Battle of Thermopylae. It covers all the most relevant and fascinating parts of the Persian Wars (including separate chapters on Marathon, Artemisium, Plataea, etc.) without getting bogged down in any needless details. Any fan of Greek naval warfare will love the chapter on the Battle of Salamis - Dando-Collins does a great job of putting the reader in the thick of the action.If you enjoy 300 but want to learn about the real history behind the movie, this will be perfect for you. Nearly every character from the films is discussed at some point, so you see the real figures that inspired them.I have previously read Dando-Collin's "Legions of Rome," and as great as it is, he has outdone himself with this book. You can tell the research was exhaustive, and he writes in a style that is part novel at times. Kudos to Stephen Dando-Collins for another outstanding work.

Good reading but some dates mentioned were confusing to follow. Overall, well written and apparently well researched. Classic renowned war novel.

I'm a huge fan of Stephen Dando-Collins from his books on the Roman legions, and was eager to read a book focusing on classical Greece. I heard his writing style described once as "the style and pacing is similar to a novel" except the people, conversations, and events all actually happened. I enjoyed it immensely, as always!

Interesting, factual account of a true Greek hero. If you are interested in how Greece defeated the Persian threat, you will enjoy this book.

The book chronicles the life of Athenian politician and military leader Themistocles, a man who rose to power at the time of his city-state's greatest need in the face of Persian ambitions over Greece. It's a short read, and the author doesn't dwell much on the land battles of Marathon and Platea as they've been extensively described in other books, focusing instead on the politics within Athens and across Greek city states, and the naval battles of Artemisium and Salamis. Historically accurate, full of insightful anecdotes, it's a well-written and efficient summary of the mighty struggle of Greece's disparate and disjointed realms against the awesome juggernaut of the centralised Persian empire.

I don't understand the use of Roman names for the Greek Gods.But an important book about a man who's achievements deserve more publicity.A very good read.Chuck GriffinAIA

not as good as persian fire but good read in its on. while not as in-debt as persian fire it hits all the major points

Great book, great service, A plus X 10

Since my boyhood the miracle of Greece's victory over Persia has astonished me.This book has given me a more detailed view of the events.Well done!