Written with passion, and with a clear intention to present the experience of soldiers, whenever they lived. The result isn't anachronism but a reality lent to ancient Greece, along with a timelessness.

The highs and lows of the soldier's life are here. I say lows because those Spartans were mad as a cut snake, in my eyes. Highs: you know of the self-sacrifice at Thermopylae.

Gates of Fire is incredible. Framed as the story of the sole Spartan survivor of the Battle of Thermopylae, telling his story to the Persian Emperor Xerxes, Gates of Fire is about more than the battle. It's about the world of the warrior, and the psychology that leads men to triumph in battle.

Our narrator, Xeo, went through childhood in an unremarkable minor city until it was sacked by the Argives. He lived as a refugee in the hills with his cousin Diomanche and a blind slave, learning to hunt and track, and then went to Sparta because the Spartans were the finest warriors in all of Greece. The story moves on two tracks towards the confrontation at Themopylae, where 300 handpicked Spartans and a larger number of Greek allies fought a desperate rearguard action against the massive Persian army to give the rest of Greece time to gather forces and fight back.

The spiritual core of this book (and it does have one), is the centrality of fear in the warrior's experience, and the way that fear can be conquered. The Spartans have an entire discipline around mastering fear, and there are long and fascinating discussions of what courage is. I'll not spoil the answers, since they are worth waiting for.

On a personal level, I'm a Spartan revisionist. We need to acknowledge that they were a brutal slave state built on pederasty. So all the noble Spartan lords carping on about freedom and liberty is a kind of dark joke. But Gates of Fire is fantastic that even this revisionist loves it.

I'm no lover of brothers in arms novels nor of battlefield butchery, however I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Historical research is evident throughout the narration, I was impressed by the accuracy of the historical facts and the faithful portray of the Spartan society. I was moved by many scenes and dialogues between the characters which investigate interesting psychological and philosophical issues.

The language is beautiful employing the actual Greek vocabulary therefore providing a interesting linguistic perspective which I haven't found in any other historical fiction book.

The story line jumps back and forward and it reminded me of classical literature (e.g. Homer's ring composition).
This book might not be everyone's cup of tea due to the emphasis on battle talk and the insights on soldier's psyche but these elements are undoubtedly a true reflection of Spartan society.

Initially, knowing a bit of ancient Greece history and society aspects in general, I was sceptical of the account of Spartan attitude towards women, I thought that the strong female characters to be exaggerated, however, after some research on my part, I found that the events in the book are actually very plausible and believable. Lady Arete is my favourite character.

This book is not just for the boys and deserves 5 well earned stars.

I wish I knew with more certainty which parts of this were established facts, which were speculation and which were completely made up; with this knowledge my enjoyment would have been greatly enhanced. I do enjoy historical fiction, provided it's more history than fiction. Not knowing is distractingly aggravating.

I'm going to have to read some non-fiction on this subject else this is really going to bug me.

Steven Pressfield's first foray into historical fiction is a masterful account of the battle of Themopylae (thermos = hot, warm, fire; pylos = spring or gate; hence "Gates of Fire").

Told from the perspective of a captured, critically wounded Spartan helot (all the Spartans died, after all) who is being questioned by Xerxes (King of Persia) for information about the Greeks, the story presents a sympathetic, insider view of Spartan society and accurately presents the values of Greek civilization in contrast to that of the Persians. Pressfield is intimately familiar with the major historical accounts of the battle and fills in the many gaps with events and conversations that could have, and possibly should have, happened.

Leonidas, one of two kings of Sparta, leads 300 Spartans to Thermopylae in the attempt to delay the Persian army from reaching Greece before the Greeks have time to prepare the resistance. In ancient times, Thermopylae was the site of a narrow pass between the mountains and the sea, only wide enough for a few men to walk shoulder to shoulder. Joined by allies from other Greek cities (Argos and Thespis, as I recall), the total number of fighting men was approximately 1,200 to face Xerxes mighty army, which ancient accounts number in the millions. The Spartans use superior technology (bronze armor and weapons), superior training, and superior tactics (the deadly phalanx) to hold the Persians for three days. Even Persia's elite fighting force, the dreaded Immortals, are unable to defeat the Spartans.

Treachery, however, proves the undoing of the Spartans. Ephialtes (not the misshapen expatriate Spartan of the moview "300") sells information to the Persians, revealing a hidden path through the mountains. Surrounded, the Spartans refuse to surrender, preferring to fight to the death in order to demonstrate their superiority and to strike fear into the hearts of the Persians, who will soon have to face larger Greek armies. The death toll for the Persians is in the high thousands.

(Although not in the book, the sacrifice of the Spartans ultimately pays off. For, after sacking Athens, Xerxes is defeated in two decisive battles: Salamis, in which the Athenian navy destroys the Persian fleet, deprives Xerxes of much needed supplies; Plataea, in which the combined armies of Sparta and other allies defeats the Persian army. Greece, and along with it, Western Civilization is saved from Persian slavery, and the path is paved for the Golden Age of Athens.)

The book is an incredibly good read. I have recommended the book to many different people of various backgrounds and interests. None have been able to put it down.

Kada znas kako se bitka zavrsava, ali ti likovi toliko prirastu za srce, da se nadas nekom preokretu u zelji da prezive

Soldiers are philosophers by trade, as opposed to nature. Whether they are gifted logicians or readers or not, their profession demands a close association with death and life, fear and courage, love and hate, joy and sorrow. A soldier gets acquainted with these, not as abstract ideas, but as intimate realities which are a part of the day-to-day environment.

When faced with such larger-than-life concepts, though, words often fail, no matter how important or meaningful a place they hold in every day life. I've tried once or twice to put some of this/these into words myself, because I felt a need to share with people outside my line of work just what it is that goes through our heads. We service-folk aren't mythical or demonic, we aren't legendary or infamous, we are neither "The Greatest Generation," nor the worst. But having tried to communicate something of what I've seen and felt, I realize now just why so many who served so honorably chose to remain so silent as to their experiences.

This book, Gates of Fire, says all of those things I couldn't say.

As you may guess, the book centers upon the Battle of Thermopylae, the same subject as the movie 300. As you read through the book, you will see why that movie treated it the way it did. The heroism on display at that time in that place makes any comic book superhero look silly by comparison; it's only natural that Leonidas & Co. should have their own line of action figures. Seriously.

But the book goes further than just the names, dates, and places; it is not "history" in the strictest sense, though it strives for such accuracy as historical records can offer. More so Gates of Fire delves into the why and the wherefore: why did these men go, knowing they would die? how were they able to stand and fight knowing that eventually they would be butchered where they stood? what could possibly have motivated the greatest "Alamo" the world has ever known? The book excels in this effort, bringing the concepts of the heroic into terms that the average reader can immediately grasp, or at least imagine.

The book also shows quite graphically the scenes of warfare. As one seasoned veteran asks a shaken youngster "What did you expect? What sort of wounds did you suppose the sword and spear would cause?" But it also shows in painful detail the moments of poignancy: the moments spent at home with loved ones, carved indelibly into the soldiers' hearts; the moments after the battle when soldiers realize they have survived the carnage to live once again; the unbelievable courage of the families they leave behind.

I have never marched in a phalanx with spear and shield. I have never truly closed with the enemy, or grappled with him in anger. But if you want to know what a soldier thinks, lives, and feels, read this book. The times and technologies have changed, but the principles have really not. Thank you, Mr. Pressfield for writing this.

DNF @ 100 pages.

Like...I don't know what happened here. It's the freaking Spartans. It's ancient Greek historical fiction. Why didn't I love this?

I did not enjoy myself at all. I never even made it to Thermopylae. I was just so...tedious to me. It's littered with the Greek terminology for things to a degree that seems almost comical and I was just. so. bored. I put it down the first time when we get a montage of Spartan boys training and their overseer is basically the drill sergeant from Full Metal Jacket. That's just not my bag. When I picked it back up, I read two more chapters and was just so bored. Literally, the history book I have covering this time period was more interesting to me than this fiction book.

I am now 0 for 2 in Greek historical fiction. I weep. Fed by my tears, the floodwaters rise. Farms are destroyed. Livelihoods lost. The land lies fallow. Darkness comes.

Δεν είμαι ιδιαίτερα φαν βιβλίων με θέμα μάχες και πόλεμο αλλά μου άρεσε αρκετά η ιστορία αυτή! Άνετα τη προτείνω σε αναγνώστες που θέλουν αναλυτική περιγραφή μιας μάχης και να μάθουν για την εκπαίδευση των Σπαρτιατών αλλά και τι τους ενέπνεε για να πολεμήσουν!
Μου άρεσε πιο πολύ η ιστορία και ο χαρακτήρας του Διηνέκη και η σύζυγος του Αρέτη έθεσε κάποια ερωτήματα περί θανάτου που ομολογώ έχω σκεφτεί και εγώ έχοντας χάσει αγαπημένο μου πρόσωπο! Επίσης πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα η στάση και ο χαρακτήρας των γυναικών που έστελναν τους συζύγους και τα παιδιά τους στον πόλεμο και πως αντιμετώπιζαν την πιθανότητα του χαμού τους!
Μια γενικά πολύ καλή ιστορία!

Oh this book. One of, if not the best book I’ve ever read. Gripping my heart so much that it pounded throughout the book with thrill and excitement. So good, that I thought of returning to the pages constantly throughout each day. It’s been a while since I’ve read through a book for my own pure joy and this one was spectacular.

Read this book in 2011, and its the absolute best standalone book that I've read about the battle of Thermopylae.

Written with passion and verve it takes us readers to the pass of Thermopylae, and by using the narration of the sole survivor of this momentous Battle it will alive with all the usual horrors and deaths.

Thus set in the year 480 BC, Persia invading the Greek lands, and King Leonidas and his three hundred making ready to march to Thermopylae to fight for freedom and democracy.

Six days of heroic Spartan culminating defiance against the millions of Persians is brought to us in a most wonderful and superb fashion by the author, and in which the Spartans will reach their end after having given all, and that heroism of all the Spartans will inspire later on the rest of the Greek City-states to a new resilience against these invaders from Persia.

Highly recommended, for this is a top-class retelling about the Battle of Thermopylae, and that's why I like to call this epic tale: "A Glorious Gates Of Fire"!

-Potencia y tensión combativa.-

Género. Novela Histórica.

Lo que nos cuenta. Un superviviente de la batalla de las Termópilas recuerda su infancia en Esparta, su formación y los eventos que le llevaron a formar parte de los soldados que intentaron detener al gran ejército de Xerxes en su invasión de la Antigua Grecia.

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