Review: Whom Gods Destroy, by Vincent B. Davis II

Blurb

Sertorius must stop at nothing to stamp out a Greek rebellion before it engulfs the Republic in flames.

Rome – 97 BC. Quintus Sertorius is now serving as a legate in Greece. It’s supposed to be a peacetime mission, but quickly Sertorius discovers there is more happening beneath the peaceful veneer of democracy’s birthplace.

Roman citizens are disappearing. Whispers are spreading that there is a force operating in the shadows bent on Rome’s destruction.

Sertorius and his companions are determined to find out who is behind all this, but quickly the enemy is on the offense. Friends disappear. Attacks in the night. Blood in the streets.

My Review

In Book IV, our hero Legate Sertorius has been assigned to Proconsul Titus Didius, an arrogant, disagreeable general with a chip on his shoulder and a need to excel no matter what it took to get there. This time they are traveling to Greece, which by all rights should be an easy mission. Except for the general’s mandate:

“Is this not a peacetime campaign, sir?” I asked. Of course it was, but I already knew it was erroneous to assume anything with my new commander.
“For now. We expect no trouble with the Greeks. They’ve been beaten into submission for some time now. But I’ve worked too hard to secure the wealthy province of Greece to return home without a triumph, so at some point we will have to find 5,000 men to kill.”
“On a peacetime mission?” I did not question what he meant about working hard to secure his province… they were supposed to be drawn by lot. He twisted his neck to pop it, poorly restraining his irritation at my insolence.
“Correct, legate. My last command was in Macedonia. There we found a tribe of reprobates who needed to be wiped from Gaia’s earth. Now they are rotting on the fields of Pella and I am a triumphator. I will not be returning to Rome with less than I did last time.” Didius stopped again and met my eye. “Your job as my legate is to find the right men to kill.”

Needless to say, Sertorius is not thrilled with this stipulation. But he is a good soldier and does his best to keep order, though the Romans soon discover that the Greeks are not nearly as peaceful as they expected. In fact, rebellion is brewing. There’s lots of action here, and every time Sertorius gets his men out of a potential disaster, Didius eyes him askance, suspecting him of vainglorious behavior—or possibly even treachery. This certainly makes the legate’s job even worse. There really is treachery afoot, from someone inside the Roman legion, for there are too many instances where they are caught unawares and attacked by forces larger than their own. This book is a real page-turner and once again, Sertorius comes within a hair’s breadth of destruction. But he has more adventures ahead! And, if I’m not mistaken, a confrontation with Sulla who has taken Sertorius’s wife under his alleged protection.