The Last Light of Rome: The 1453 Siege of Constantinople (Shadows of Rome Book 1)

Constantinople, 1453.For a thousand years, the Queen of Cities has endured siege, fire, betrayal and famine. Now Sultan Mehmed II comes with the greatest army the Ottoman world can muster, a fleet to choke the sea, and cannon large enough to break the bones of ancient walls.Inside the city, Emperor Constantine XI prepares to make his final stand.Among those who answer the call is John Grant, a Scottish mercenary and former scholar, fighting under the Genoese captain Giovanni Giustiniani. At his side stand Richard, the English longbowman with a sharp tongue and a loyal heart; Radek, the silent Bohemian veteran; Matteo, the reckless Florentine swordsman; Henrik, the northern giant with a polehammer; and Katrin, the quartermaster whose courage may hold the Company together when steel and faith begin to fail.They did not come for glory. Some came for coin. Some came because there was nowhere else to go. Some came because, when the last light of Rome began to fade, someone still had to stand in its defence.As Mehmed's guns thunder against the Theodosian Walls and division tears at the city from within, John and his companions are drawn into the brutal final days of an empire. Mines, bombardments, desperate assaults, starving streets and broken faith will test them beyond endurance. And when the walls finally crack, every man and woman must decide what they are willing to die for.The Last Light of Rome is a gritty historical novel of loyalty, siege warfare, faith, friendship and defiance, set during the fall of Constantinople.For readers who enjoy grounded military historical fiction, Byzantine and Roman history, late-medieval warfare, and character driven stories of ordinary people caught in the shadow of great events. Read more