Tyrant [Unabridged] [Paperback]

Valerio Manfredi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 2006

It is Sicily 412 BC: the infinite duel between a man and a superpower begins. The man is Dionysius, who has just made himself Tyrant of Syracuse. The superpower Carthage, mercantile megalopolis and mistress of the seas. Over the next eight years, Dionysius' brutal military conquests will strike down countless enemies and many friends to make Syracuse the most powerful Greek city west of mainland Greece. He builds the largest army of antiquity and invents horrific war machines to use against the Carthaginians, who he will fight in five wars. But who was Dionysius? Historians have condemned him as one of the most ruthless, egocentric despots. But he was also patron of the arts, a dramatist, poet and tender lover.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Valerio Massimo Manfredi is professor of classical archaeology at Luigi Bocconi University in Milan. He has published nine works of fiction, including the 'Alexander' trilogy, which has been translated into 24 languages in 38 countries. He has written and hosted documentaries on the ancient world, and has written screenplays for cinema and television.

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan; Unabridged edition (October 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0330426540
• ISBN-13: 978-0330426541
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 5 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,475,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Informative but not excellent, July 27, 2006

By 

Sukanya Ramanujan (Bath, UK) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tyrant (Hardcover)

Tyrant by Manfredi is a very informative and well researched book. The book gives us a wealth of information about Sicily- geographic and political- the relations with Sparta and Athens. It is also interesting for someone who has read accounts of the Peloponnesian war to see some of the events occuring in the backdrop and their impact on Sicily.
However there are quite a few things about the book that impact its quality. One is the translation. I am unaware of how the author builds the narrative in Italian but in English, the narrative jarrs. The dialogues also are confusing at certain points and do not flow continuously. One is forced to go back and re-read at certain places to figure out who is speaking what. Another is the characterisation of Dionysius. The transformation of Dionysus into the ruthless tyrant because of circumstances is well done but could have been better done in my opinion. There is not much focus on Dionysius and what goes on in his minds- the turmoil and the angst. We see his friends and his brother observing and regretting his changes and reflecting on them but we do not see things from Dionysius' perspective.
The book does have its touching moments. And the bond between Leptines and Dionysius and the character of Philistus is very well brought out.
On the whole, it is a good book and if you are a history buff its definitely worth a read.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Rewarding, Informative Book, May 18, 2006

By 

J. Aronson (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tyrant (Hardcover)

This is my first Manfredi book, but I frequently read historical fiction. This book is a biography about a historical character, not an adventure or event set in the past.

The protagonist of the biography has great strengths and great flaws. The evolution of the character during the story gives the reader cause to often reevaluate my views of the protagonist.

I also liked that the book was well researched while being set in a time and place that is less discussed than others. I feel like I learned more reading Tyrant than reading yet another book set during the Greek / Persian wars for example.

The author is a history professor from Italy and he chooses not to insert a great deal of his own conjecture about motives into the protagonist. Instead the book challenges the reader to come up with their own motives for the actors in the story. So be prepared for a story that covers all the historical facts, but does not reveal all the details about the thoughts in the character's minds.

2.0 out of 5 stars Better than sleeping pills, January 2, 2011

By 

Shane (Mukilteo, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Tyrant (Paperback)

In a word, Slow. Very slow. Especially the second half of the book. The excitement is missing. No real drama our tension. In fact, it may not even be as good as his effort with Rubicon, which was very slow, but st least had a modicum of tension and suspense (even though we knew the outcome.)