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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another great story from a gifted writer!,
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This review is from: The Sand-Reckoner (Hardcover)
Gillian Bradshaw moved onto my auto-buy list with her previous novels, _The Beacon at Alexandria_ and _Island of Ghosts_. _The Sand Reckoner_ proves that she's only getting better and better with each new work. _The Sand Reckoner_ is filled with sympathetic characters, high stakes, fabulous historical detail, witty dialogue, and lovely, lovely writing. I saved this book as a reward for completing some unpleasant chores, and then read it all in one sitting, happily absorbed in the world of ancient Syracuse. This novel is really the story of two men: one a boy genius slowly coming to terms with his gifts; the other, his slave, a proud man torn between his affection for his master and his hatred of his slavery. Along the way, we get glimpses into the restricted lives of Greek women, early Roman warfare, the Museum at Alexandria, and some breathtaking works of engineering genius by an ancient master. Ms Bradshaw has the rare gift of truly making the past come alive. Her settings are always unusual and her characters are a delight. I look forward to reading her next book. Whatever she chooses to write about next, I'm sure I'll enjoy it.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Breath of Fresh Air,
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This review is from: The Sand-Reckoner (Hardcover)
Within the first few paragraphs of The Sand Reckoner, I was whisked into the delightful character of Archimedes, ancient Greek of mathematical genius. I had let the book sit unread for several months because the cover looked so sedate, and the subject matter Ñ a mathematician Ñ seemed rather unexciting, but this book was a breath of fresh air after reading so many other "heavy" historical fictions full of serious battles, treachery, and gore. What was it about this book that made me eager to gobble it up? For at least the first half of the book, we are immersed in the charming character of Archimedes, a young man who is completely ignorant of his genius. His modesty and occasional social blunders were endearing and he made me smile. His budding romance with King Hieron's daughter, Delia, although not historically recorded, is certainly plausible, and I was wishing it really could have been so. Besides the fascinating story of Archimedes' development of murderous machines to defend his city of Syracuse, and which he came to depise for their deadliness, we also are treated to the story of his slave, Marcus. Hiding his Roman citizenship, Marcus is confronted with choosing between loyalty to Syracuse or to the Romans who besiege the city. Marcus' character is completely different from that of Archimedes, and nearly as intriguing. As his crisis becomes more intense, we follow him with the same emotional involvement as we follow Archimedes. The plot interweaves the stories of these two main characters along with the stories and personalities of other characters such as Philyra, Archimedes' sister, who is loved by the slave Marcus, a love which you hope will succeed somehow. King Hieron is a lovable king, who author Bradshaw has imbued with great wisdom in his quest for peace and justice. The characters that Bradshaw has developed kept making me think that she herself must be a wonderful person...that her own personality must somehow be shining through these characters. There is some danger, suspense, and adventure in this book, but it captured me with its charm, wit, and a general feel-good atmosphere.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A brilliant novel about Archimedes,
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This review is from: The Sand-Reckoner (Tom Doherty Associates Books) (Paperback)
At first glance a novel about the greatest mathematician of antiquity wouldn't be a big draw to me - maths certainly isn't my strong suit. But I liked the other books by Gillian Bradshaw that I had read so thought it worth giving this one a go.How glad I am that I did! The Sand Reckoner is a hugely enjoyable, lighthearted tale about Archimedes and the way in which his engineering projects helped protect his home city of Syracuse. The author has woven a love story between Archimedes and the sister of King Hieron of Syracuse and there is also a side-love story between Archimedes' slave and his sister. Mathematics does make quite a contribution to this story and works really well. Archimedes is portrayed as a genius sometimes completely lost in his own world with his slave Marcus keeping him safe. The characters all have their own voices and are believable - especially the difficulties that they have over mistakes that they make. King Hieron is almost too good to be true, but a historical note from the author suggests that he really was like that. Let's hope so! It was also interesting about the differences between the Romans and the Greeks in antiquity and how they saw each other. Although the classics are often studied in schools and colleges this book really brought it to life for me. I highly recommend this book to those who like to transport themselves to other times in history through reading.
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