This is the first Frank Yerby novel I have read in many years. Back in the 1970s, I read several of his historical novels and remember enjoying most of them. This one takes place in Ancient Greece prior to and during the Peloponnesian Wars. The hero of the novel is Ariston who was raised a Spartan, was sold as a slave to Athens and then was adopted by a wealthy Athenian. The storyline could have been a Greek tragedy written by Sophocles or Euripides. In fact both of these playwrights play a role in the novel along with Socrates, Plato, Alkibiades, and other notables of classical Greece. The themes of the book include politics and the ideals of democracy (evidently opposed by Socrates), war, love and sexual orientation. I wasn't quite sure how Yerby really felt about homosexuality. The book is full of descriptions of male love and at the first of the novel, Ariston appeared to be leaning in that direction. Later he is sold as a slave to work in a male brothel and his attitude toward homosexuals takes a 180. Anyway, overall this was a good glimpse into life in ancient Greece. I sometimes got a little confused as to who all the players were with the Greek names, etc. But Yerby obviously did his research on this one and I would recommend it.

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