Attia arrives in Rome along with twenty other women captives, shackled at their wrists and ankles, tethered together by a thick rope. When she was seven-years-old, Attia's father, Sparro, "swordlord of the legendary Maedi and war-king of Thrace" made her his heir after the death of her mother and unborn brother in childbirth. Attia is the last one to be auctioned and after a bidding war she is bought by Timeus. But Attia has no intention of remaining a slave. Instead, she fights to escape, breaking Timeus's bodyguard Ennius's leg, injuring the guard trying to untie her, breaking Timeus's nose with a kick, and leading vigiles on a chase through Rome. She is eventually captured and finds herself in the house of Josias Neleus Timeus, who tells her that she will be given to his champion and that if she tries to escape again she will be crucified.Timeus's champion is Xanthus Maximus Colossus, Champion of Rome. He is Rome's favourite, an irony since Xanthus hates all Romans. He was taken at the age of ten as a slave from his Britannia home when Rome conquered it. Now in the newly completed Coliseum, Xanthus plans to deliberately lose his match against Taurus the Butcher of Capua, and die. His fellow gladiators, Albinus, Gallus, Lebuin, Iduma and Castor, whom he considers his blood brothers, suspect he is going to throw the fight and die. The horror of so much killing over the past ten years as a gladiator has simply become too much.
But when a terrified Christian is sent into the arena, Xanthus knows he can't let the Christian die, so he decides to kill Taurus. Afterwards at Timeus's house, Xanthus learns that his next match will be against Decimus who killed his master and was purchased by Tycho Flavius. Xanthus is determined to kill Decimus as he is the one who destroyed Xanthus' family.
Two weeks pass and Attia's wounds are still healing. She is taken to the Champion of Rome's room, a small space with simple furnishings. The minute Attia is untied by Xanthus, she attacks him, telling him she will kill him if he touches her. But Xanthus does the unexpected, he doesn't resist and falls to his knees, allowing her to kill him if she wants. This confuses Attia.
Attia decides she will learn as much as she can about Timeus's estate, doing the chores that Sabina assigns her. Attia discovers Timeus's study and her snooping about leads her to discover that Crassus Flavius was the Roman general who conquered Thrace and murdered her father. Xanthus reveals to Attia that Crassus was also responsible for his capture and the burning of his village.When Attia tells him what happened to her people, Xanthus realizes she is the daughter of Sparro, war-king of Thrace and a Maedi princess.
Timeus's sister, Valeria Bassus and her children, eighteen-year-old Lucius and six-year-old Aurora arrive at his villa. Attia is assigned to be Aurora's nursemaid. She finds Aurora to be a sweet girl, and is told the girl cannot go outside because she is ill. Valeria has Attia accompany them to the Coliseum where she witnesses Xanthus battle a very young boy, no more than fourteen years old.
Both Attia and Xanthus accompany Timeus, Valeria and her family as well as the gladiators and many slaves on a trip out of Rome to Pompeii where they will spend the rainy season. For Attia and Xanthus, the trip will further their blossoming relationship and events beyond their control will give rise to the beginnings of a legend.
Discussion
Blood and Sand is an alternative historical fiction novel which means that some events have been altered for the story. For example in her Author's Note at the back of the novel, Wyk writes that in real history, Emperor Vespasian was the legatus responsible for invading Britain in A.D. 43, not the fictional Crassus Flavius in her novel. And in 79 A.D., at the time of the eruption of Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii, Rome was already an empire; Titus Flavius was emperor of Rome and not Princeps as portrayed in Blood and Sand.
The main alteration however surrounds the character of Spartacus whose name appears halfway through the novel. History records Spartacus as a male Thracian gladiator, possibly from the Maedi tribe. It is believed that he was initially a Roman soldier who then escaped, was captured and enslaved to train and fight as a gladiator in a ludus in Capua near Naples. Spartacus escaped the ludus with several other gladiators in 73 B.C and fled to Mount Vesuvius. Spartacus was a brilliant tactician who managed to defeat several attacks by the Roman army. Eventually a wealthy Roman politician and general, Marcus Lucinius Crassus volunteered to end the rebellion and was placed in charge of a large force. He defeated Spartacus and the slaves in 71 B.C. and although it is believed Spartacus died in the battle, his body was never found. While most of the 70,000 followers of Spartacus died in battle, almost six thousand were hunted down and crucified by the Romans, their bodies lining the Appian Way from Rome to Capua. Historians believe Spartacus was not attempting to reform conditions for slaves in Rome or even abolish slavery. Instead, it is most likely that his original goal, to flee Rome and to help those enslaved return to their homes, was changed by those who wanted to plunder Italy.
In Blood and Sand, Wyk's character, Attia, an enslaved Thracian female warrior becomes Spartacus after she helps her friend and eventual lover, Xanthus survive a night of battling fighters from Ardea. To aid her gladiator friend, Attia dresses in black, covering her face and gives herself the name Sparro after her dead father, king of Thrace. However, her name is inadvertently changed to Spartacus by Timeus's nephew Lucius. Spartacus's amazing deeds in this arena, lead Timeus to hire a mercenary to find her. That mercenary turns out to be her father's captain, Crius.
The author has also altered considerably the events surrounding the eruption of Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii. On the morning August 24, 79 A.D. Pompeii was rocked by an earthquake. The eruption began around 1PM in the afternoon with violent earthquakes and pumice and ash falling on the town. An hour later, the sun was completely blocked out by the heavy ash and pumice, making it totally dark in Pompeii. By 4PM in the afternoon, almost six inches of pumice had fallen on the town, blocking the rivers, and clogging the port making escape via boat impossible. By 5PM, so much pumice and ash had fallen that the roofs of buildings began collapsing and people were trapped in some rooms. During this time many of the residents were able to flee, however many also stayed behind, probably believing the eruption would soon end. Pumice and ash continue to fall throughout the night. Around 1AM on August 25, the giant ash cloud above Mount Vesuvius collapsed sending a scalding mud flow racing down its slopes, towards the town of Herculaneum which was completely destroyed. Close to 6:30AM., a third pyroclastic flow consisting of hot ash and gases raced towards Pompeii but was held back by the town wall. However, a series of several more flows overcame the walls, toxic hot gases poured through the town, killing everything in its path. Anyone still in Pompeii was killed, the final flows of gases and ash almost completely burying the town except for the highest walls.
In Blood and Sand, Wyk describes the eruption of Pompeii very differently. "The blackened crest of the mountain spewed flame into the sky. The ground shook violently as a river of molten rock spilled out from Vesuvius and began to snake its way through the streets like a fiery serpent. It consumed the houses and people in its path, slowly but steadily." Attia, Xanthus and their friends are described as fleeing the flowing molten lava flow, through the crumbling ruins of Pompeii as it is also rocked by earthquakes. However, molten lava flows were not part of the Mount Vesuvius eruption - it was pyroclastic in nature. It was the poisonous hot gases that killed people where they lay. They were then covered with large quantities of hot ash and pumice preserving their body contours and allowing for the famed casts to be made almost two thousand years later. Wyk also describes red-hot rocks falling, so large they killed people. While some of the pumice and rocks were large, most were not. It was the quantity of pumice and ash that was the problem - a rate of about 6 inches per hour that quickly filled the streets and courtyards, and covered roofs making them collapse.
Despite its many inaccuracies, Blood and Sand is an entertaining read - just don't rely on it as a historical account. Wyk includes exciting action scenes beginning with the opening chapter, a blossoming romance between the two main characters of the novel, details about life in Rome and uses the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in the novel's climax. The story is told in the alternating narratives of Attia and Xanthus.
Attia, her heart hardened by the destruction of her people and the loss of her beloved father, King Sparro, begins the novel wary of everyone in Rome, determined to seek revenge. However, the kindness of Xanthus and the advice of Sabina who reveals herself to be Thracian, help Attia begin to adapt to her life as a slave who has been given to Xanthus. Despite her harshness, Attia is kind to Aurora (who has the ridiculous nickname of "Rory" in the novel - something decidely un-Roman), the daughter of Timeus and Valeria. She also tries to comfort Lucretia, Timeus's concubine who is physically abused by the wealthy Roman. Although she falls in love with Xanthus, Attia never deviates from her plan to kill Timeus who enslaved her and Crassus who murdered her father and fellow Thracians, even when the opportunity to escape during the destruction of Pompeii presents itself.
In contrast to Attia who is portrayed as the consummate warrior, Xanthus whose real name is Gareth, hates killing so much, he considers deliberately throwing a match to end his own life. He kills only when he has no other choice. Xanthus is honorable and compassionate. He treats Attia with care and compassion, and has nothing but sympathy when Timeus's nephew Lucius is forced to kill a young boy, an act that hardens the naïve, young man.
Readers who enjoy historical fiction and books about Rome should enjoy Blood and Sand, provided they aren't interested in historical accuracy in this alternative history. Readers will also find the dialogue in this novel to be somewhat modern and not representative of the era.
Blood and Sand is Wyk's first novel. She admits to being influenced by modern blockbuster "sword and sandal movies" such as "Gladiator", "300" and the 2010 British television series "Spartacus", whose first episode is titled "Blood and Sand". It should be noted that readers who enjoyed Blood and Sand can read the first chapter of the sequel, Fire and Ash which is due out in 2019.
Book Details:
Blood and Sand by C.V. Wyk
New York: A Tom Doherty Associates Book 2017
310 pp.
Two weeks pass and Attia's wounds are still healing. She is taken to the Champion of Rome's room, a small space with simple furnishings. The minute Attia is untied by Xanthus, she attacks him, telling him she will kill him if he touches her. But Xanthus does the unexpected, he doesn't resist and falls to his knees, allowing her to kill him if she wants. This confuses Attia.
Attia decides she will learn as much as she can about Timeus's estate, doing the chores that Sabina assigns her. Attia discovers Timeus's study and her snooping about leads her to discover that Crassus Flavius was the Roman general who conquered Thrace and murdered her father. Xanthus reveals to Attia that Crassus was also responsible for his capture and the burning of his village.When Attia tells him what happened to her people, Xanthus realizes she is the daughter of Sparro, war-king of Thrace and a Maedi princess.
Timeus's sister, Valeria Bassus and her children, eighteen-year-old Lucius and six-year-old Aurora arrive at his villa. Attia is assigned to be Aurora's nursemaid. She finds Aurora to be a sweet girl, and is told the girl cannot go outside because she is ill. Valeria has Attia accompany them to the Coliseum where she witnesses Xanthus battle a very young boy, no more than fourteen years old.
Both Attia and Xanthus accompany Timeus, Valeria and her family as well as the gladiators and many slaves on a trip out of Rome to Pompeii where they will spend the rainy season. For Attia and Xanthus, the trip will further their blossoming relationship and events beyond their control will give rise to the beginnings of a legend.
Discussion
Blood and Sand is an alternative historical fiction novel which means that some events have been altered for the story. For example in her Author's Note at the back of the novel, Wyk writes that in real history, Emperor Vespasian was the legatus responsible for invading Britain in A.D. 43, not the fictional Crassus Flavius in her novel. And in 79 A.D., at the time of the eruption of Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii, Rome was already an empire; Titus Flavius was emperor of Rome and not Princeps as portrayed in Blood and Sand.
The main alteration however surrounds the character of Spartacus whose name appears halfway through the novel. History records Spartacus as a male Thracian gladiator, possibly from the Maedi tribe. It is believed that he was initially a Roman soldier who then escaped, was captured and enslaved to train and fight as a gladiator in a ludus in Capua near Naples. Spartacus escaped the ludus with several other gladiators in 73 B.C and fled to Mount Vesuvius. Spartacus was a brilliant tactician who managed to defeat several attacks by the Roman army. Eventually a wealthy Roman politician and general, Marcus Lucinius Crassus volunteered to end the rebellion and was placed in charge of a large force. He defeated Spartacus and the slaves in 71 B.C. and although it is believed Spartacus died in the battle, his body was never found. While most of the 70,000 followers of Spartacus died in battle, almost six thousand were hunted down and crucified by the Romans, their bodies lining the Appian Way from Rome to Capua. Historians believe Spartacus was not attempting to reform conditions for slaves in Rome or even abolish slavery. Instead, it is most likely that his original goal, to flee Rome and to help those enslaved return to their homes, was changed by those who wanted to plunder Italy.
In Blood and Sand, Wyk's character, Attia, an enslaved Thracian female warrior becomes Spartacus after she helps her friend and eventual lover, Xanthus survive a night of battling fighters from Ardea. To aid her gladiator friend, Attia dresses in black, covering her face and gives herself the name Sparro after her dead father, king of Thrace. However, her name is inadvertently changed to Spartacus by Timeus's nephew Lucius. Spartacus's amazing deeds in this arena, lead Timeus to hire a mercenary to find her. That mercenary turns out to be her father's captain, Crius.
The author has also altered considerably the events surrounding the eruption of Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii. On the morning August 24, 79 A.D. Pompeii was rocked by an earthquake. The eruption began around 1PM in the afternoon with violent earthquakes and pumice and ash falling on the town. An hour later, the sun was completely blocked out by the heavy ash and pumice, making it totally dark in Pompeii. By 4PM in the afternoon, almost six inches of pumice had fallen on the town, blocking the rivers, and clogging the port making escape via boat impossible. By 5PM, so much pumice and ash had fallen that the roofs of buildings began collapsing and people were trapped in some rooms. During this time many of the residents were able to flee, however many also stayed behind, probably believing the eruption would soon end. Pumice and ash continue to fall throughout the night. Around 1AM on August 25, the giant ash cloud above Mount Vesuvius collapsed sending a scalding mud flow racing down its slopes, towards the town of Herculaneum which was completely destroyed. Close to 6:30AM., a third pyroclastic flow consisting of hot ash and gases raced towards Pompeii but was held back by the town wall. However, a series of several more flows overcame the walls, toxic hot gases poured through the town, killing everything in its path. Anyone still in Pompeii was killed, the final flows of gases and ash almost completely burying the town except for the highest walls.
In Blood and Sand, Wyk describes the eruption of Pompeii very differently. "The blackened crest of the mountain spewed flame into the sky. The ground shook violently as a river of molten rock spilled out from Vesuvius and began to snake its way through the streets like a fiery serpent. It consumed the houses and people in its path, slowly but steadily." Attia, Xanthus and their friends are described as fleeing the flowing molten lava flow, through the crumbling ruins of Pompeii as it is also rocked by earthquakes. However, molten lava flows were not part of the Mount Vesuvius eruption - it was pyroclastic in nature. It was the poisonous hot gases that killed people where they lay. They were then covered with large quantities of hot ash and pumice preserving their body contours and allowing for the famed casts to be made almost two thousand years later. Wyk also describes red-hot rocks falling, so large they killed people. While some of the pumice and rocks were large, most were not. It was the quantity of pumice and ash that was the problem - a rate of about 6 inches per hour that quickly filled the streets and courtyards, and covered roofs making them collapse.
Despite its many inaccuracies, Blood and Sand is an entertaining read - just don't rely on it as a historical account. Wyk includes exciting action scenes beginning with the opening chapter, a blossoming romance between the two main characters of the novel, details about life in Rome and uses the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in the novel's climax. The story is told in the alternating narratives of Attia and Xanthus.
Attia, her heart hardened by the destruction of her people and the loss of her beloved father, King Sparro, begins the novel wary of everyone in Rome, determined to seek revenge. However, the kindness of Xanthus and the advice of Sabina who reveals herself to be Thracian, help Attia begin to adapt to her life as a slave who has been given to Xanthus. Despite her harshness, Attia is kind to Aurora (who has the ridiculous nickname of "Rory" in the novel - something decidely un-Roman), the daughter of Timeus and Valeria. She also tries to comfort Lucretia, Timeus's concubine who is physically abused by the wealthy Roman. Although she falls in love with Xanthus, Attia never deviates from her plan to kill Timeus who enslaved her and Crassus who murdered her father and fellow Thracians, even when the opportunity to escape during the destruction of Pompeii presents itself.
In contrast to Attia who is portrayed as the consummate warrior, Xanthus whose real name is Gareth, hates killing so much, he considers deliberately throwing a match to end his own life. He kills only when he has no other choice. Xanthus is honorable and compassionate. He treats Attia with care and compassion, and has nothing but sympathy when Timeus's nephew Lucius is forced to kill a young boy, an act that hardens the naïve, young man.
Readers who enjoy historical fiction and books about Rome should enjoy Blood and Sand, provided they aren't interested in historical accuracy in this alternative history. Readers will also find the dialogue in this novel to be somewhat modern and not representative of the era.
Blood and Sand is Wyk's first novel. She admits to being influenced by modern blockbuster "sword and sandal movies" such as "Gladiator", "300" and the 2010 British television series "Spartacus", whose first episode is titled "Blood and Sand". It should be noted that readers who enjoyed Blood and Sand can read the first chapter of the sequel, Fire and Ash which is due out in 2019.
Book Details:
Blood and Sand by C.V. Wyk
New York: A Tom Doherty Associates Book 2017
310 pp.
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