Empire Rising

Sweeping Historical Saga in the tradition of Conn Iggulden, Bernard Cornwell and Jean Auel

Beautifully imagined and researched adventure, with terrific action!

Diana Gabaldon, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Born and raised in New York, Sam Barone attended Manhattan College, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965, with a major in Psychology. After a hitch in the Marine Corps, he became a software developer and manager. After spending nearly 30 years in the software development game, he retired in 1999 to start working on his second career: writing.

3157 B.C. At the eastern edge of the great southern desert in Mesopotamia, men are at war. Roaming bandits desperate for food, water, women, and slaves ravage vulnerable town. Yet one thing eludes them: gold. A rogue named Ariamus has joined forces with Korthac, a fierce bandit who saved his life, and together they set their sights on the impenetrable walled city of of Akkad, ruled by the former barbarian Eskkar and his enchanting wife Trella. 
 
Korthac devises a brilliant plan to conquer the city from within. Slipping into Akkad in disguise, he will gradually win the trust of Trella. While Eskkar is away, bringing other towns into his burgeoning empire, Korthac and Ariamus will strike, wreaking havoc on the city in a way it never expects. 
 
Told with rich historical detail and full of violence, sex, passion, and battles reminiscent of the best of Bernard Cornwell, The Road to Empire is a marvelous trip into the past.

Dawn of Empire

'What a cracking story. I've lost two days of writing time because of it and I don't regret it at all. This is a brilliant, fact-paced epic, bringing an ancient people back to roaring life. Superb' Conn Iggulden

A swift pace and heaps of colourful action turn this into a page-turner of the first quality. This great debut novel is bound to win Sam Barone a large following

A lusty debut. The imminent raid by the barbarians creates an inherent, delicious sense of tension throughout, until the final unleashing of pure, bloody slaughter

Dawn of Empire reminds me a lot of Wilbur Smith at his best. Beautifully imagined and researched adventure, with terrific action!

What a cracking story. I've lost two days of writing time because of it and I don't regret it at all. This is a brilliant, fast-paced epic, bringing an ancient people back to roaring life. Superb

Born and raised in New York, Sam Barone attended Manhattan College, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965, with a major in Psychology. After a hitch in the Marine Corps, he became a software developer and manager. After spending nearly 30 years in the software development game, he retired in 1999 to start working on his second career: writing. Dawn of Empire is his first novel. The sequel, Empire Rising is published in 2008.

Three thousand years before the birth of Christ. An epic conflict is about to begin. The price of victory? Civilization. The price of defeat, a return to the dark ages. 
 
The hopes of civilization rest on one man's shoulders: Eskkar, once a barbarian, nowa warrior in charge of defending a small town which lies in the path of a vastbarbarian war party. The last time the invaders came to Orak, they spared no one and the tiny candle of trade and agriculture that had begun there, the first in all of human history, was extinguished. 
 
But Eskkar and Trella, the beautiful slave girl he has been given by the grateful townsfolk, and the raggle-taggle army he has inherited are not going to flee. They will fight against the overwhelming odds with foolhardy bravery, subtle ingenuity and the last drop of their blood. On this tiny band the lathe of history will turn: victory or darkness?

Sam Barone

At the dawn of history, an epic war is about to begin in the deadly quest for honour. 
 
The city of Sumer, ruled by a brutal murderer and his vicious, power hungry sister, is poised to give birth to the mightiest empire in history. No one stands a chance as it brings a bloody war to all those who stand in its way, determined to crush and enslave those on its borders. 
 
The little city state of Akkad must prepare its fledgling nation to fight for its very survival. Akkad's warriors are a loyal and courageous brotherhood, but this is not a battle of villages or of roving warrior bands; it is a battle for Empire and a fight to the death...

Sam Barone

Books by Sam Barone

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