Wolf's Gold, Anthony Riches

Publishers: Hodder & Stoughton

Pages: 371

Main Characters:

Marcus, Julius, Felicia

Wolf’s Gold is the fifth book in Anthony Riches's action packed Empire series. In his latest book, Riches takes our hero Centurion Marcus Corvus and his Tungrians away from their recent victory in Germania to the far reaches of the Empire. Their destination is Dacia on the north-eastern edge of the Empire, and their job is to protect an important gold mine that supplies the Imperial Treasury with tonnes of gold every day! The mine has come under threat from the Sarmatians, a rebellious tribe that lives in the area. The Sarmatians are a war-like people who are feared for their skills in archery and for the poisoned arrows they use against their enemies.

However, as Marcus and his fellow officers find out, the rebellion is not as straightforward as it seems, as the King of the Sarmatian horde, Asander is not as hostile to Rome as is first thought. However, he is a puppet for his hot headed brother-in-law Inarmaz, who is violently opposed to Roman rule in Dacia. Marcus and his Tribune, Scaurus work hard to have Inarmaz removed as a threat from the Sarmatian army. However, they soon find out that the temptation of gold is not easily quenched, as traitors from within their own ranks plot to seize the gold mine and steal all of the Emperor’s gold, whilst setting their old comrades up to face a severe fight. The likes of which they haven’t seen since Germania.

This was another great edition to Riches’s Empire series. I liked the fact that the Tungrians were taken to another part of the Empire to fight new and interesting allies. I also liked the fact that Marcus’s storyline is built on in this book, as he debates with himself if he should return to Rome to avenge his family’s murder, or just try and move on with his new wife and son.  It gives some insight to where the series is going to go in the next few books, which got me really excited to read the next novel!

I’d suggest this book to anyone who is a fan of other ‘Roman’ novels and authors such as Ben Kane, Simon Scarrow, Conn Iggulden and Gordon Doherty. As a series, I’d highly suggest it to anyone who wants to get into Roman historical-fiction as it is a great series packed full of action, battles and great characters!

For author’s website click here.