The Pict by Jack Dixon
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(Paperback)
- Pub. Date: August 2007
- 192pp
- Sales Rank: 468,098
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Product Details
- Pub. Date: August 2007
- Publisher: iUniverse, Incorporated
- Format: Paperback, 192pp
- Sales Rank: 468,098
- ISBN-13: 9780595442430
- ISBN: 0595442439
Synopsis
Calach stood. His anger was surfacing, and he felt suddenly seized by the demons he had been struggling to contain. Sioltach stared at Calach in admiration as he quickly translated his words.
"Why have you lost one legion, soon to be followed by another? Look, and see! Your soldiers are wide-eyed Roman lads, fighting beside non-Romans who were your enemies longer than they have been your slaves. They are bewildered by a strange and frightening land. They are bound to you not by loyalty, but by fear, and when their fear ends, only hatred will remain.
"For all of your pomp, you have none of what inspires men to victory. Your soldiers fight for nothing but the glory of an empire that has crushed their own nations and tribes. They have no wives to inspire them, and no parents to mock them should they shrink from battle. They have no country, or if they do it is not Rome, and it is in ruins."
Agricola began to grow pale. He was certain that he would die at the hands of this man whose spirit he could not comprehend.
Customer Reviews
Pictby Anonymous
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December 11, 2007: The Picts were a conglomeration of barbaric tribes residing in Scotland from the earliest years A.D. until their assimilation into the traditional Scottish culture about a thousand years later. Jack Dixon?s first book is based on his research of this obscure society of which very little is known today. The author has built a somewhat fictional storyline around a legendary, non-fictional warrior named Calach. The Picts have traditionally remained independently surviving tribes until the massive Roman army invades Pict land, slaughtering women and children in their pathway to total conquest. Calach rises to the occasion by organizing the tribes into a valiant fighting force of savages who paint their tattooed bodies with a blue tint and disorient the Roman legions with haunting music. I hesitatingly present The Pict with only four stars. The oversized font makes the book easy to read, but the page count disguises the book?s brevity. This book is way too short, consistently lacking a depth of description and detail, however this is my sole complaint. The cover design is outstanding, the author?s research seems to be accurate, and the compositional style is straightforward. The tightly edited, interesting storyline saves the day. Mr. Dixon has presented a meaningful depiction of an obscure moment in history that fans of historical fiction will enjoy.
Pictby Anonymous
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November 21, 2007: Jack Dixon has done an great job of writing an historical novel that is highly readable, action filled, and evocative. The book begins with the background of the Picts, a mysterious people who lived in what is today Scotland. From the distant mists of the past they come fleeing the barbaric hordes from Eastern Europe, who come to destroy the Picts and drive them from their homeland on the European continent. They cross the North Sea, to the British Isles, are befriended by the Scoti of Ireland and settle in the highlands in the north of Brittania. The book?s hero, Calach, leads his people in a heroic, though sometimes almost hopeless, campaign against the powerful, invading Romans, with the love of his life, Fiona, at his side. The battle scenes are well drawn. I would rate them R this is not a book for children under fourteen. Mr. Dixon creates loads of righteous outrage at the depredations of the Romans against defenseless Pict villagers, which impels his hero to wage merciless war against the invaders. There is romance, though it is secondary to the primary action, the life and death struggle against the mighty Roman Empire. The last half of the book truly is a page turner, with enough surprises along the way to keep the book from becoming just another muscles and blades saga. I believe anyone who enjoys ancient history should find this an interesting, informative and entertaining work. Congratulations to Mr. Dixon on a fine first novel.
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