SummaryTo the Romans, the greatest enemy the Republic ever faced
was not the Goths or Huns, nor even Hannibal, but rather a
ferocious and brilliant king on the distant Black Sea:
Mithridates Eupator VI of Pontus, known to history as
Mithridates the Great. At age eleven, Mithridates inherited a small mountain
kingdom of wild tribesmen, which his wicked mother governed
in his place. Sweeping to power at age twenty-one, he
proved to be a military genius and quickly consolidated
various fiefdoms under his command. Since Rome also had
expansionist designs in this region, bloody conflict was
inevitable. Over forty years, Rome sent its greatest generals to
contain Mithridates and gained tenuous control over his
empire only after suffering a series of devastating defeats
at the hands of this cunning and ruthless king. Each time
Rome declared victory, Mithridates considered it merely a
strategic retreat, and soon came roaring back with a more
powerful army than before. Bursting with heroic battle scenes and eloquent
storytelling, Michael Curtis Ford has crafted a riveting
novel of the ancient world and resurrected one of history's
greatest warriors.
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