Title: Adventures of the Ninth Legion of Rome: Book 1: The Sacrifice
Author: Hurley D. Mahan
Publisher: Westwood Books Publishing LLC
ISBN: 978-1643611464
Genre: Historical Fiction/Fantasy
Pages: 308
Reviewed by: Aaron Washington

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Adventures of the Ninth Legion of Rome – The Sacrifice gives the reader a beautiful experience of adventure, action, shocking war stories and drama. Reading through the chapters is thrilling, as one gets to understand how ranks in different army’s work. I was impressed with Marcus Artorius Agricola from the start of the book. He had all the attributes I would want my commander to have if I was part of a Legion. Marcus was the commander of a Legion which had earned the greatest honors. That alone made him one of my favorite characters. Marcus was focused, had a plan and listened to his soldiers in the Ninth Legion.

The Legion’s journey to conquer the Pict tribes in the north of York was strategically planned, and the commander and other senior officers surveyed every area. The dedicated group of soldiers worked as a team and paid attention to Marcus. I admired their loyalty and how they dealt with issues that arose in the group. Petra and Allred were my other favorite characters. It was well described that Allred was a great hunter. The two were among the few slaves who had remained loyal to the Legion which was a very admirable attribute.

I had expected the Legion’s journey up north of York would be smooth, with little or no obstruction. The soldiers were well prepared, the slaves followed orders and the commander was fully in charge. I was enjoyably impressed with the twist as the legion encountered something different. The Ninth Legion was in an unlikely manner taken to England and found it amusing that the soldiers could not understand how the flying horses came after them. The other mysterious things were the horseless carriages, and the unfamiliar Pict houses being seen.

The Legion had circumnavigated the big city and that explained why they were in a different time. I found reading about the mystery and adventures of the Legion and time traveling thrilling. I was fully engrossed and wanted to read on non-stop. Mormaer was the reason for their time traveling; how entertaining. I sort of did not want Mormaer to be found when the commander gave the Legionnaires an order to look for him. His addition in the story made it exciting.

It was great reading about the different weapons the Legion used to fight. The entrance of Germans in the picture and their machinery came as a challenge, as the Legion had gotten used to using shields and swords, which were no match to the modern weapons the Germans had.

I love reading a good story and I sure enjoyed reading Adventures of the Ninth Legion of Rome – The Sacrifice. I got to be attached with some characters, that I imagined going on a mission with them. I followed everything Marcus and Walker did and even felt as if I was a part of their team. Hurley D. Mahan is an excellent writer who knows how to keep the reader hooked. Though the book had the major theme of tasks in the military and battles, the author incorporated other themes including love, loyalty and the role of the family in the book. Hurley D. Mahan’s book is a great read and will be loved by readers who enjoy fantasy, adventure, war and literature in general.