The Fire of Ares by Michael Ford

The Fire of Ares is about a bay named Lysander who lives in Sparta and is a slave in the fields. The only thing that Lysander has to his name is a jewel called the fire of Ares; it’s a family heirloom that his father gave to him before he died. He works very hard everyday to treat his very sick mother. She is so ill she is very close to death. One day while working double time in the fields Lysander realizes that he was not paid enough for his days work. So in order to get his full payment he must take ten lashings from a whip. Once he returns home there is a man in his hot named Strabo. Strabo is talking to Lysander’s mother. Then Strabo tells Lysander that his father was a brave Spartan warrior named Thorakis who died in battle and that his grandfather Sarpedon is an ephor (one of the most powerful men in Sparta). So that means that Lysander is a mothax (half Spartan half slave) so he is allowed to train in the Spartan barracks. Lysander is not welcomed be his comrades very well. They beat him, make fun of him, do mean things to him, tell him he is not a true Spartan, and they call him names that I can’t repeat. Lysander shows his skill when at the festival games he beats his arch nemesis Demaratos in the final event to win the gold medal. But still after the games he gets no respect from his fellow Spartans.



I give this book 5 stars. It has nonstop action and it is a great resource to learn about the everyday life of the average Spartan and the typical slave in Sparta. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes action, suspense, violence, and ancient Greece. My favorite part of the book was when Lysander beat demaratos in the festival games. There are two other books in the series the second book is called Birth of a Warrior, and the final book is called Legacy of Blood. both are very good and I recommend both of them as well.