A review by ianbanks
Lion of Macedon by David Gemmell

5.0

This novel marked a step up in the career of David Gemmell. Structurally, it's different to all of his other books while thematically it looks at a much wider canvas than many of his other books. It's flawed, but not in a way that really hinders the story.

For a start, it's "properly" historical: it's not a pastiche of a period, like his Arthur novels. It occurs in a time and place from our history and features characters who really existed doing things that really happened. As to the veracity and truth of these happenings, well, that's a subject for a longer review and one that I'm not really qualified for (I had an acquaintance who was a mad-keen Ancient Greek history buff who read this and HATED it for the liberties it took. History buffs often tend to dislike novels set in their areas of interest, it seems). However, this is a work of fiction and it is branded as such. It's also a work of fantasy so YMMV, as they say.

Unlike all of his other novels to date, this takes place over a long period of years. Gemmell gave a lot of his other novels a sense of history and passed time by including flashbacks, but here he's telling a largely biographical story and needs to have events stick largely to the historical record, so what we get is a story that feels more epic in its scope by virtue of just following a character over several decades. We also get to see Parmenion change more organically and believably: his growth occurs as a result of events and time. He reflects on what happens and it affects him in he long-term.

We also see the effects of decisions made by characters and their long-term consequences. Earlier novels have dealt largely with pivotal events and how they play out; here we get the build-up, climax and eventual pay-off of these battles. It makes for a more thoughtful experience for the reader and the writer as he is forced to deal with the aftermath of his creation's actions in a way that keeps the story moving. Thematically, that makes for a better story as it puts a lot of Gemmell's pet ideas and tropes under a microscope. Fortunately they survive the experience and are better for it.

The characters are also better developed: the growth of Parmenion over time makes for a more rewarding read as he changes from a headstrong, ambitious and conflicted boy into an adult who overcomes or absorbs these traits into his personality. The motives of Tamis, Derae and Philip are also better explained here than similar plans by other characters in Gemmell's earlier books as well: the way Tamis moulded Parmenion into the man he becomes and how that becomes undone as she explores possible futures has been done in other novels but it is more devastating here as we see them play out over time and her dismay becomes ours.

The only real flaws for me were the way that the setting was levered into making this story part of Mr Gemmell's established universe: the use of Sipstrassi magic by "Aristotle"; mentions of The Source and the Chaos Spirit; the obligatory trip to an Underworld where Parmenion learns a "vital" character lesson... all of these felt unnecessary to this story and more like easter eggs for fans.

But they don't take away from the importance of this book to Gemmell's development as a writer or the fact that this is a great story, well-written and exciting.