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Message: <blockquote data-quote="replicant2" data-source="post: 2335941" data-attributes="member: 16498">Gates of FireNo, it's not fantasy, it's historic fiction. But my whole-hearted, enthusiastic recommendation is Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire.I love A Song of Ice and Fire; so far it's my favorite fantasy series next to Tolkien. But I also wouldn't hesitate to say that Gates of Fire, as a standalone book, is better.It's the story of the 300 Spartans and a handful of allies that held their ground in a narrow pass between the mountains and sea at Thermopylae, sacrificing their lives to stall the two million man army of Persia. If it's combat you want, this has it in spades. Bloody, brutally realistic, shoulder-shoulder shield wall fighting. Pressfield writes so well you feel the fear and the shock of clashing troops.And there's so much more -- a terrific look at life in bronze-age Greece, awesome characters, genuine emotion, an appreciation for the life and unparalleled military training of the Spartan culture, the greatest warriors of their age (and arguably any age).</blockquote>