Simon Scarrow (born 3 October 1962) is a British author. Scarrow completed a master's degree at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

after working at the

Inland Revenue The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation t ...

, and then went into

teaching Teaching is the practice implemented by a ''teacher'' aimed at transmitting skills (knowledge, know-how, and interpersonal skills) to a learner, a student, or any other audience in the context of an educational institution. Teaching is closely ...

as a lecturer, firstly at East Norfolk Sixth Form College, then at

City College Norwich City College Norwich is a college of further and higher education in Norfolk, England. It is one of the largest colleges in the country. The College has expanded in recent years following mergers with Easton College in 2020 and Paston College ...

. He is best known for his '' Eagles of the Empire'' series of

Roman military The military of ancient Rome, according to Titus Livius, one of the more illustrious historians of Rome over the centuries, was a key element in the rise of Rome over "above seven hundred years" from a small settlement in Latium to the capital o ...

fiction set in the territories of the Roman Empire, covering the second invasion of Britain and the subsequent prolonged campaign undertaken by the rump of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. As of December 2019, there are 18 books in the series; the latest, "Traitors of Rome", was published in 2019. He has also written another series, ''

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

'', focusing on

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

and

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, whose first title, '' Young Bloods'', was published in 2006. The second volume, '' The Generals'', was released on 31 May 2007 and the third volume '' Fire and Sword'' was released in January 2009. The fourth and final novel of the series was released in Jun 2010 and is called '' The Fields of Death''. He began publishing a new series in 2011 titled ''Gladiator''.

Books

The last fifteen of Scarrow's novels have been Sunday Times bestsellers. His works have been translated into over twenty languages and have sold several million copies. He has been awarded two prizes for his fiction and counts the King of Jordan as one of his fans. At present his Roman series has been optioned by a Hollywood studio to be produced as a TV series. Asked by the ''Edinburgh Book Review'' about the inspiration behind his interest in the Roman era, Scarrow said, "Firstly, great

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

teachers – Gordon Rodway and then Reg Nash, who inspired a love of the language and more enduringly a fascination with Roman history and culture. Secondly, when I was growing up in the seventies swords and sandals epics seemed to be on the TV regularly. Not to mention the brilliant ''

I, Claudius ''I, Claudius'' is a historical novel by English writer Robert Graves, published in 1934. Written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius, it tells the history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and the early years of the Ro ...

''". Scarrow cites the inspiration for his 'earthy' characters as being from his time in the

Officer Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...

''Eagles of the Empire'' series

The '' Eagles of the Empire'' series centres upon two main protagonists,

Quintus Licinius Cato ''Eagles of the Empire'' is a series of historical military fiction novels written by Simon Scarrow. The series began in July 2000 with the publication of ''Under the Eagle'', and as of March 2022 there have been 20 novels released in the serie ...

and Lucius Cornelius Macro, who are both Roman soldiers. Macro, a veteran with nearly 15 years' service (at the start of the first novel) in the Roman Army, has recently been appointed to the Centurionate. Cato is in his teen years, grew up in the Imperial Palace as a slave, and at the start of the series joins the Eagles as Macro's Optio. The first book starts in 42 AD. The books cover the experiences of the two soldiers, initially as experienced centurion and new optio, in battles in Germania and the invasion of Britain by Claudius as part of the

Legio II Augusta Legio II Augusta ( Second Legion "Augustus'") was a legion of the Imperial Roman army that was founded during the late Roman republic. Its emblems were the Capricornus, Pegasus, and Mars. It may have taken the name "''Augusta''" from a victory ...

. The 6th book '' The Eagle's Prophecy'' has them serving as part of the Imperial Navy east of Italy. The 7th and 8th put them in Rome's eastern provinces as agents of the Emperor's secretary

Tiberius Claudius Narcissus Tiberius Claudius Narcissus (died ) was one of the freedmen who formed the core of the imperial court under the Roman emperor Claudius. He is described as ''praepositus ab epistulis'' (in charge of correspondence). Life He reportedly had gre ...

. The 9th sees them shipwrecked on the island of

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...

, fighting against a full-scale uprising. The 11th is set in Rome with the leads hoping to save the emperor from the shady Liberators. ''The Blood Crows'' is set once again in Britannia. The two protagonists are faced with defeating tribal rebels. The two characters Cato and Macro were additionally used in one book of the '' TimeRiders'' series: ''Gates of Rome''. They served as supporting characters when the three protagonists travel back to ancient Rome. Scarrow allowed his brother Alex to make use of the characters in his novel. In 2007 the publisher announced the intention to cease using the word "Eagle" in the title of books in this series, starting with ''Centurion''. The change was apparently because the publisher wanted to attract more new readers to the series. #''

Under the Eagle ''Under the Eagle'' is the first book in the ''Eagles of the Empire'' series, by Simon Scarrow and is his debut novel, introducing the characters of Quintus Licinius Cato and Lucius Cornelius Macro. It was published in 2000. Plot summary Prolo ...

'' (2000) #'' The Eagle's Conquest'' (2001) #'' When the Eagle Hunts'' (2002) #'' The Eagle and the Wolves'' (2003) #'' The Eagle's Prey'' (2004) #'' The Eagle's Prophecy'' (2005) #'' The Eagle in the Sand'' (2006) #'' Centurion'' (2007) #''

The Gladiator ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (2009) #'' The Legion'' (2010) #*''Blood Debt'' (2009, short story) #'' Praetorian'' (2011) #'' The Blood Crows'' (2013) #'' Brothers in Blood'' (2014) #''

Britannia Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Great ...

'' (2015) #'' Invictus'' (2016) #'' Day of the Caesars'' (2017) #'' The Blood of Rome'' (2018) #''

Traitors of Rome Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

'' (2019) #'' The Emperor's Exile'' (2020) #'' The Honour of Rome'' (2021) #'' Death to the Emperor'' (2022)

''Revolution'' series

'' The Revolution Quartet'' centres upon the lives of

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

and Arthur Wellesley, later the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

. The first book in the quartet starts in 1769, and follows the two young men through their youth and on to their military careers. #'' Young Bloods'' (2006) #'' The Generals'' (2007) #'' Fire and Sword'' (2009) #'' The Fields of Death'' (2010)

''Gladiator'' series

The '' Gladiator'' series is aimed at the

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

audience, unlike his ''Eagle'' series. # '' Gladiator: Fight for Freedom'' (2011) # '' Gladiator: Street Fighter'' (2012) # '' Gladiator: Son of Spartacus'' (2013) # '' Gladiator: Vengeance'' (2014)

''Roman Arena'' series (with T. J. Andrews)

:Also acts as something of a prequel to the ''Eagle series'' as it features an earlier appearance of both characters Macro and Narcissus. #''Arena'' (2013) ## ''Barbarian'' (2012) ## ''Challenger'' (2012) ## ''First Sword'' (2013) ## ''Revenge'' (2013) ## ''Champion'' (2013) :::n.b. these novellas were available as e-books prior to publication of the full title.

''Invader'' series (with T. J. Andrews)

#''Invader'' (2016) ##''Death Beach'' (2014) ##''Blood Enemy'' (2014) ##''Dark Blade'' (2014) ##''Imperial Agent'' (2015) ##''Sacrifice'' (2015) :::n.b. these novellas were available as e-books prior to publication of the full title.

''Pirata'' series (with T. J. Andrews)

#''Pirata'' (2019) ##''The Black Flag'' (2019) ##''The Gates of Stone'' (2019) ##''Hunters of the Sea'' (2019) ##''Sea of Blood'' (2019) ##''The Pirate Chief'' (2019) :::n.b. these novellas were available as e-books prior to publication of the full title.

''Roman Caratacus'' series (with T. J. Andrews)

#''Warrior'' (forthcoming 2023) ##''The King in Rome'' (2022) ##''The Druids' Lair'' (2022) ##''Brothers of the Sword'' (forthcoming 2023) ##''The War Prince'' (forthcoming 2023) ##''Lord of War'' (forthcoming 2023) :::n.b. these novellas were available as e-books prior to publication of the full title.

Stand-alone novels

The following are books which are either stand-alone novels or have yet to be confirmed as parts of a series. #'' The Sword and the Scimitar'' (2012) -- covers the Great Siege of Malta #''

Hearts of Stone "Hearts of Stone" is an American R&B song. It became a #1 hit on two of the Billboard three lists, ''Best Sellers in Stores'' and ''Most Played in Jukeboxes'' in 1955 for The Fontane Sisters. It was written by Eddie Ray and Rudy Jackson, me ...

'' (2015) -- covers WWII period Greek island of Lefkas #'' Playing With Death'' with Lee Francis (2018) -- Crime story #'' Blackout'' -- covers WWII period Germany

Writer in Residence

In November 2006, Simon Scarrow was accepted to fill the post of

Writer in Residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys (also known as The Langton Grammar School for Boys and simply referred to as The Langton) is an 11–18 foundation grammar school for boys and mixed sixth form in Canterbury, Kent, England. It was establish ...

, a position he said he was "honoured to accept".

Personal life

Simon lives in Norfolk with his wife Louise and their dog ‘BB’ (named after BB Glazer, the ferocious agent in the TV series Frasier). Besides writing, Simon gives talks on history and writing at festivals. His leisure interests include skiing and scuba diving.

References

External links

* (Scarrow brothers Alex and Simon)
Simon Scarrow at Facebook
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Scarrow, Simon 1962 births English historical novelists Writers of historical mysteries Writers of historical fiction set in antiquity Alumni of the University of East Anglia People educated at Kent College Living people Place of birth missing (living people)