Book: In the Shadow of the Sword in English

Global Empire and the Rise of a New Religion

Vzrušujúce rozprávanie Toma Hollanda i vzniku arabskej ríše. Záverečná časť trilógie.

No less than the collapse of the Roman Republic or the Persian invasion of Greece, the evolution of an Arab empire is one of the supreme narratives of ancient history; a story dazzlingly rich in drama, character and achievement. Just like the Romans, the Arabs came from nowhere to carve out a stupefyingly vast dominion - except that they achieved their conquests, not over the course of centuries, as the Romans did, but in a matter of decades. Just like the Greeks during the Persian wars, they overcame seemingly insuperable odds to emerge triumphant against the greatest empire of the day - not by standing on the defensive, however, but by hurling themselves against all who lay in their path.

In the Shadow of the Sword effectively completes Tom Holland’s trilogy describing the Ancient World. It represents an extraordinary achievement by the most exciting and readable young British historian working today.

Holland has a rare eye for the detail, drama and the telling anecdote . . . A vibrant, bloodthirsty popular history, told with a rich sense of irony and irresistible narrative timing' DAILY TELEGRAPH