Customer Reviews

Nero's Killing Machine: The True Story of Rome's Remarkable 14th Legion

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is Stephen Dando-Collins second book covering the history of a Roman legion, this time he deals with the Fourteenth Legion (14th Gemina Martia Vietrix Legion). I thoroughly enjoyed this author's first book, "Caesar's Legion: The Epic Saga of Julius Caesar's Elite Tenth Legion", so I eagerly awaited the publication of this title. Again I must confess that I have no in-depth knowledge of this period, just a keen and general interest.

I found this book as good as the first, in fact, even better. The one criticism I have is the author's usage of modern military titles instead of those used by the Roman Empire. I had little or no knowledge of the 14th Legion but I found the story fascinating, from its decimation in 54 BC while campaign with Julius Caesar through it's campaign in Germany and latter in Britain where it achieved its immortal fame in putting down the rebellion led by Queen Boudicca.

The narrative is full of interesting accounts and information and the story flows along quite smoothly. There are no illustrations within the book and only a few maps which I think could have been of better quality but suffice to follow the story of the 14th legion.

Overall I think this book would be of interest to anyone who enjoys a decent account of the Roman Empire. It's more of a popular history, and not some stuffy dry text of military manoeuvres, tactics and famous commanders of antiquity but an account of the men who did the fighting and dying and who made the Roman Empire what is was.

Nero's Killing Machine is a fabulous read. The author took me on an enthralling journey through history with the men of the 14th Legion. He makes them and their opponents real flesh and blood people, and gave me an appreciation of what life, and death, was like in the ranks of Rome's legions 2,000 years ago.

Dando-Collins cleverly traces the path of the 14th Legion through several centuries using the texts of Julius Caesar, Tacitus, Dio, Suetonius, Josephus and other ancient Roman writers. Read Tacitus and you'll see Dando-Collins has invented nothing. Even the conversations and speeches are there in the original classical texts.

Julius Caesar is here, but Nero's Killing Machine readers will also find many more interesting people such as the dashing Germanicus Caesar and Arminius his German adversary, the British resistance leader Caratacus, the Batavian rebel Civilis, and the third time lucky Roman general Cerialis.

Dando-Collins also spells out why Boudicca and the Britons revolted in A.D. 60, why they had initial success, and why the 14th Legion eventually beat them despite enormous odds. He also points out how surprisingly brutal the British rebels were to prisoners.

This book is richer and more of a page turner than Caesar's Legion, the first in the author's series on the legions, but I know several people who love that original. My nephew, who doesn't normally read much of anything, picked up Caesar's Legion, couldn't put it down, and read it in two days. He's now a confirmed history fan.

Dando-Collins is to be congratulated for making ancient history more accessible and more enjoyable. His approach, to tell Roman history through the real-life exploits of an individual legion, is unique.

I predict Nero's Killing Machine and Caesar's Legion will become classics. I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Once again, author Stephen Dando-Collins demonstrates his exceptional writing talents. This book is his second account of a Roman legion; in this case, the 14th. He follows this Legion through its long and glorious history. Along the way, he describes in vivid detail its participation in battles against "Herman" the German and Queen Boudicca. These include the famous Battle of Watling Street where the Legion succeeded in defeating a British force that outnumbered it 23 t o 1. In addition to these many battles, the book also provides insight into the day to day life of a Roman soldier. The mundane administrative facts of running an army, such as recruitment, pay, retention, and discharge, are discussed in both a clear and entertaining fashion.

The greatest asset of this book, however, is the author's ability to tell history in a manner that is entertaining. This book is an easy read. The pace is quick and the reader will not want to put it down. The author provides the detail necessary to understand the story without getting bogged down in minutia. The more scholarly readers will be glad to see that the author lists all his sources in an appendix. The book also contain a handy glossary of well recognized Roman terms. Bottom line: This is an historically accurate work of non-fiction. Nevertheless, it reads like a fast paced novel. Good writing is difficult but Dando-Collins makes it look easy.

Having been thoroughly drawn into "Ceasar's Legion," I found myself chomping at the bit to strap on my caligulae and read a similar account of glorious conquest and good old gritty Roman perseverance to see the campaign through. I'm sorry to say that I fear not all of Mr. Collins' research efforts seem to live up to that standard.

While I have no doubt Collins has done more than his fare share of reasearch to write these books, one area he seemed to neglect is the chapter dealing with the Varus Disaster. Collins gives what I feel is a pseudo-historical account concluding that the 17th, 18th, and 19th Legions were annihilated in the middle of the Tuetoburg forest, making a last stand in a hastily built fortification.

He completely failed to mention anything about the overwhelming archaeological evidence found at the base of the Kalkriese berg by Tony Clunn and German archaeologists in the mid 1990's. Nor does he mention the outlying archaeological evidence east of the Kalkriese bottelneck, in the eastern gap of the Wiehengebrige Ridge near Ostercappeln where the remnants of the Roman Army broke out of the forest before finally being destroyed a day later at Kalkriese. Nor does he cite the scatter pattern of artifacts west of Kalkriese which indicate that some of the Roman army broke through the ambush and made a run for it before most were likely mopped up by their pursuers. The Germans even built their own earthen and wicker fortifications there indicating that Arminius had likely planned all along to drag the Romans all the way through his Tuetoburg gauntlet before delivering the coup-de-grace at Kalkriese.

Having read both classical and contemporary literature on this subject, and spent three days traversing the battlefield myself, I was very much looking forward to a fresh take on the facts. But the facts, at least in this portion, were ignored.

Where were history books like this when I was in school? This is a gripping account of Rome's 14th legion throughout its existence: from its founding by Julius Caesar to its demise in the fifth century AD. The prose is clear and most engaging and the battle descriptions are detailed and simply breathtaking. The book is complemented by a series of appendices which give brief outlines of Roman legions, Roman military ranks and brief histories of the Praetorian Guard, the City Guard and the Night Watch. References and a glossary complete this masterpiece. Although I recommend this book to anyone looking for a good exciting read, I particularly recommend it to those who have a special interest in ancient Roman military history.

I opened this book in the hope of finding in the same book both an accurate desription of the history of this legion and to see the life of a legionary illustrated in a "juicy and colorful" way. Different from the dry history books out there. The first part of Dando-Collin's book, ie where he was able to copy from Caesar's Gallic Wars did fulfill my expectations. But the author does not seem to have the courage to admit where he does not know details (once Caesar can no longer guide him), and presents fiction as real. His research must have been quite sloppy, and he starts inventing details. Striking errors like claiming that this legion was named "Gemina Martia Victrix" by Augustus having merged the 14th with a "Martia" legion after Actium are outright wrong. The "Gemina" indeed came from two legions being merged at that time, but the legion XIIII Gemina got the title "Martia Victrix" for its succesful role in defeating Boudicca in 43 AD. And the author's claim that after Augustus all legions were exclusively recruited in the provinces....? Not true either see Legios I, II, III Italica, Legio I and I Adiutrix,... I have given up on this book midstream, and would not even recommend reading it if you get it for free. You might take those errors for real and confuse your knowledge of ancient history. Better go for a purely fictious book in the first place. Or watch a Hollywood movie where you know you get fiction.

But I was very annoyed by author's decision to use modern American military ranks instead of Roman ones. What prompted it I have no idea. Did he think it would make it more understandable for readers? Except which readers? I mean, don't you have to be at least somewhat interested in Roman history to decide to go and read a whole book on one particular legion? And if you are somewhat interested, I am fairly certain that terms - centurion, legate, legion, cohort, etc. do not confuse you!

I don't know about other readers, but personally for me this "replacement" made impossible to enjoy what otherwise would have been a very interesting read... I had read and liked Collins' book on Legio X (where author used proper terminology!), that's why I bought this book. I considered purchasing the next installment (about Legio VI), but decided against it. I just know, it will nug me again every time I'll read about brigadier general or lieutenant colonel walking around in crested helmets...

Other comments: worse book than previous one, though certainly this one is as good (maybe better) read.
very good read because has good and vivid descriptions of battles (Rebellion in Britain under Queen Baudicca being especially interesting).
Worse book because on more than few occasions when there is a gap in historical data about Legio XIIII, author fills us in what was going on in Rome in general, or tells us about exploits of other legions and makes assumption how Legio XIIII would have reacted to the news... There are probably thousands of books about Roman history - if your niche is to tell the story of one legion (BTW: great idea!), stick to it! I don't need to learn from this book a wikipedia version of Roman history of several decades...

Recently I've been trying to study up a little on the Roman Legions because I've been busy painting several cohorts of them. To further my learning about a particular legion I decided to pickup Mr. Dando-Collins book Nero's Killing Machine: The True Story of Rome's Remarkable 14th Legion.

For me this one is a solid 3 star book. While the book itself gave some interesting information, Mr. Dando-Collins writing style never really settled for me. I couldn't decide if he was writing a direct historical reference piece that has a modern writer's interpretation or a historical fiction writer's perspective. I'll also admit I was a little turned off by the mixed use of historical titles and names and their modern equivalent (Appendix B did an excellent job of this. If Mr. Dando-Collins had only referenced it in the book, it would have lent more authenticity seeing seeing Praetor rather than Major General. Btw, another appendix was needed for naval vessels). When merged with not telling the full story of the 14th Legion (sorry, this book tells us of its founding thru the Batavian Rebellion) I wasn't viewing it as a strong candidate. Having said that though, the books greatest strengths are that Mr. Dando-Collins does bring us a remarkable story about a hard luck legion and how they gained eternal fame slaughtering Boudicca and her Briton warriors. Matter of fact, the chapters dealing with the legions tour in Britain and on the Rhine almost won me to ranking this as a 4 star book. In addition, there are some nice references in the back (the legions of Rome, Roman Ranks, the Praetorian Guard, and sources) making it a useful tool for wargamers; just not to the level I was interested in. Additional expansion on the full history of the 14th Legion, appendices dealing with Roman training, camp configuration, and other related information would have raised this one to 4 stars for me.

Reading the other reviews here I see that Stephen Dando-Collins has touched a nerve among the 'purists' in the arena of ancient Roman history. Well, for me, it was a really great read. Imagine a history book that you can't put down. A history book! Nero's Killing Machine (Legion XIV)was populated with real infantrymen and generals who D-C makes come alive. You feel you are really being ambushed in the German forest. You have to live with shame as a star-crossed unit of the Imperial Army. Then vindication and triumph! Legionaires who have served 25 years and more admonish the new recruits. "Draw swords'"Is the mutineer guilty or not guilty?" If the legion roars guilty the mutineer is pushed into the crowd where he is hacked to pieces. This is a book where the combat is hand-to-hand and to kill someone, you must first look them in the eye.

Or you could just go watch the Brady Bunch

I've read almost all of his books and this is the one that I keep coming back to. I've read it three or four times and enjoy it again each time. It's nicely written and extremely interesting.