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MARK KNOWLES
HADES
The age of heroes is dead
The exciting new historical novel in Mark Knowles' Blades of Bronze series. You've read the myths of Ancient Greece... now see how life really was in the Age of Heroes.
Decades after the voyage of the fabled Argo, the last remaining Argonauts are scattered to the corners of the Greek world. Orpheus, Jason... old men living on past glories.
The Age of Heroes is dead.
The great victory at Troy is naught but a memory. The gods have abandoned Greece. The last vestiges of once-mighty kingdoms are crumbling and the enemy is nearly at the gates.
The Sea People are coming.
If the golden age has truly passed, never to be reborn, then great men will fade into legend. Only one young man can rise up, channel the spirit of the Argonauts, and inspire and renew the heroism of old... and it may yet be too late.
Will the old world crumble and burn, or will a new hero rise to victory?
JASON
The quest is far from over
They may have won the prize, but will any of them make it home alive?
Jason has fulfilled the mission set him by his uncle, the scheming King Pelias of Iolkos: he and the Argonauts have won the fabled Golden Fleece of Colchis. Jason dreams of glory – of taking his uncle's throne, rightfully his – and, like his warrior shipmates, of home.
But it is not only Pelias who wishes Jason ill. Before the Argonauts can make it back to Iolkos, they must contend with a legion of foes who would see them dead – and a web of allies who are not quite what they seem.
Jason and his warriors must outwit the recondite Circe and the spies of mighty Troy, overcome hostile tribes beyond the Danube, and sail the troubled waters of the Archipelagos, where the Sirens wait to snare unwary seafarers.
Yet Jason's perils are only beginning, for he will soon discover that a truer evil lies closer to home...
ARGO
He has come to take what is yours
Kingdom of Iolkos, Thessaly. 1230 BC.
King Pelias has grown paranoid. Twenty years after deposing his half-brother Aeson, his murderous past comes back to torment him with dreams, headaches and a prophecy: a one-sandaled man who would someday destroy him.
When a stranger descends from the mountains to compete in the games, Pelias is horrified by his resemblance to Aeson. The baby whose death he ordered has become a man. And Jason wants his revenge. But Pelias is as cunning as he is powerful. He gives Jason an impossible challenge: to claim the throne he must first steal the Golden Fleece from the distant kingdom of Colchis.
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Jason assembles a band of Greece's finest warriors to crew Argo. But even with these mighty athletes by his side, he will have to overcome the brutal challenges hurled his way and quickly distinguish friend from foe. His mission, and many lives, depend on his wits and skills with a blade...
The Consul's Daughter
Who watches the watchmen?
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Tribune Ambrosius Milo is the only man in his cohort who enjoys the night watch. Somewhere in the darkness is the man who murdered his wife, and one day he will catch him. But one cold February morning, the fog lifts to reveal the dead body of a young girl on the banks of the Tiber.
Led by their quick-tempered tribune, the watchmen track a grim murder scene and locate several seemingly vital clues. But there is trouble afoot, for this was no ordinary young girl. She is a consul’s daughter and, when her distraught parents come to claim her body, it has mysteriously vanished from the Watch House crypt …
From the intrigues within the Imperial household to the mean streets of Ancient Rome, The Consul’s Daughter is a red-blooded crime novel based on true events and documented characters.
'A richly detailed and bold reimagining of one of the greatest heroic myths ever told. Mark Knowles's depth of knowledge and passion for the ancient Greek world shine through on every page. With powerful prose and gripping action, the Blades of Bronze series glitters like the Golden Fleece itself.'
Matthew Harffy, author of the bestselling 'Bernicia Chronicles' series
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I absolutely adored this rendition of Jason gathering his Argonauts to go and retrieve the Golden Fleece.
Knowles did a wonderful job of introducing a new audience to Jason: a naive young man who takes on a quest to sail across the world in a bid to save his father's life.
Erica Stevenson, creator of Moan Inc
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'A bold and thrilling voyage that plunges you deep into the world of ancient myth with every stroke of Jason’s oar. Knowles’s storytelling captured my imagination from the very first page. It is wonderfully atmospheric’
Daisy Dunn, editor of ARGO: A Hellenic Review, and author of Of Gods and Men: 100 Stories from Ancient Greece & Rome.
'What a spectacular triumph! Knowles has taken a reassuringly familiar legend and elevated it into a new, realistic and engrossing story. This glorious hero quest is packed with intrigue, adventure, mystery, and beautifully written skirmishes, raising the stakes higher and higher as the crew venture into darker and more treacherous lands. The characters are well drawn and compelling, each with their own flaws and motives woven into the plot. The tribal politics, subversion and battle scenes leave you hungry for more of this dazzling epic, so I hope it won't be too long until a sequel is released!'
Sam Taw, author of the 'Tribes of Britain' series
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'The storyline is rich, fleshing out the myth well while packing in enough action and heroics to engage a modern reader'
Midwest Book Review
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'A deeply researched historical epic, so brilliantly brought to life I could taste the salt air on my tongue... Epic battles, well rounded characters sailing through a brilliantly described world'
Adam Lofthouse, author of the best-selling 'Path of Nemesis' series
Mark Knowles has combined historical realities with sure-footed imagination to produce a brilliant evocation of living in the sprawling preindustrial city that was imperial Rome
Dr Paul Millett, senior lecturer, University of Cambridge
Diligently researched and brilliantly written, The Consul's Daughter seamlessly blends imperial politics, the criminal underworld, sex and sword fights: Roman history as the Gods intended.
Ian Drury, Sheil Land Associates
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