My thanks to the Author publisher's and NetGalley for providing me with a Kindle version of this book to read and honestly review.
This is the twentieth outing for the indomitable pairing and there is no drop off in enjoyment. As always well written with a real feel for time and place and superb characterisation throughout clever funny with plenty of action. Whilst there are numerous references to our heroes previous escapades it would not spoil the book for first time readers. I myself am up to book twelve and while the jump provides some surprises it in no way spoilt my enjoyment, and at the risk of an unsurprising slight spoiler, the ending leaves little doubt the pair will be back in Britannia for number twenty one.
Totally recommended.

The Honour of Rome by Simon Scarrow

It is AD 58 and retired Praetorian Centurion Macro has arrived in Londinium, Britannia, with his new wife Petronella. It wasn’t plain sailing getting there, to put it mildly, and, now that she’s seen the place, Petronella isn’t impressed. But the plan is to spend Macro’s retirement running the inn and brothel that he co-owns with his formidable mother Portia while also managing a farm in the veteran’s colony of Camulodunum.

If only matters ever went to plan for Macro. It isn’t long before Macro discovers that Londinium is a lawless place, run by gangsters, and he’s managed to get himself noticed by rival gangs after barely a day in this backwater. There will be trouble. And it’s not all plain sailing in Camulodunum either, where the veterans find themselves called up to deal with some hostile tribe members. Petronella’s increasing fears about the safety of Britannia seem well-founded. If only Cato were around to help Macro.

The Honour of Rome is the twentieth (wow!) novel in Simon Scarrow’s ever-popular Eagle series featuring the exploits of best friends and colleagues Centurion Macro and Prefect Cato. The two names go together as well as fish and chips and salt and vinegar (I’m clearly hungry) but this state of affairs has shifted thanks to Macro’s reluctant retirement from the Roman army. The last novel, The Emperor’s Exile, mainly focused on Cato and his troubles in Sardinia, with Macro making an occasional appearance, and this time we’re with Macro, his wife and mother in Britannia, with Cato turning up later on. I must admit that it’s when the two are together that I’m at my happiest. We’ll have to see how that works out in future novels although I think the signs are good.

Nobody attracts trouble like Macro and he’s up to his neck in it almost by the end of page one, as if he wasn’t scarred enough already. You can just imagine Petronella rolling her eyes at him as he gets into one scrape after another. Macro has a formidable foe in this novel in the shape of the gangsters running the local protection rackets. He also joins a force to tackle unrest among the local tribes near Camulodunum. It’s difficult to know which is more deadly.

I’m not a particular fan of novels about gangsters and I discovered with The Honour of Rome that this also extends to Roman gangsters but I really enjoyed the descriptions of Londinium, a city in its earliest days. Barely any time at all has passed since the conquest – which involved Cato and Macro – and there is a real feel of the wild west about the place. It’s also mid Winter, which doesn’t help the feeling of desolation. The reader will be well aware that Boudica’s revolt looms at the time in which this novel is set and so there is extra interest in the references to Macro’s old friend, Boudica herself.

The Honour of Rome is full of action, fighting, military skirmishes and camaraderie between old soldiers. It’s difficult not to be carried along by Macro as he immerses himself in this new environment and finds his place. There is, to be warned, violence and cussing. I liked how this masculine world is also offset a little by the inclusion of the very likeable Petronella and the indomitable Portia.

I did find The Honour of Rome very entertaining as always. While not being my favourite of the series, it is always good to spend time with Macro and Cato, and the clues are there that make me want to read the next novel very much indeed.

Other reviews
The Blood Crows
Brothers in Blood
Britannia
Invictus
Day of the Caesars
The Blood of Rome
Traitors of Rome
The Emperor’s Exile
With T.J. Andrews – Invader
Blackout

Macro has been discharged from the army and is set on retiring to a place he knows well - Britannia. With his half share of an inn in Londinium and the prospect of a plot of land to build a home, things look good for the former centurion. But things are not what they seem in this part of the empire. The local tribes are unsettled and a group of gangs are causing problems for anyone who owns a business. This includes Macro and his inn. It’s simple, they what a cut of your profits and if you don’t pay there will be consequences.
Macro needs a plan to deal with these thugs. If only he could talk to his old friend Cato as he would come up with a plan to deal with the rabble.
Sometimes fate is destiny though as, not long after suffering a beating for not paying up, the former soldier gets his wish and Cato comes looking for refuge to this part of the empire.
It doesn’t take long for the brothers in arms to come up with a plan to deal with the gangs. It’s a long shot. However they never back down from a fight and they will put everything on the line to win - even their lives, for the honour of Rome.
Another outstanding instalment of the Eagle series by Simon Scarrow.
A brilliantly written story with an intense atmosphere throughout, great fight scenes and an unbreakable bond of brotherhood that is intoxicating.
Simon Scarrow has comfortably produced the best series of books about the Roman Empire that I have ever read. Simply put - nobody does it better.

The Honour 9f Rome is a rip roaring adventure from the first page to the last. With Macro returning to Britannia to work ewth his mother in their co-owned tavern, its not long before trouble finds him. Instead of the threat from Barbarian hordes, the back stabbing politics of Rome, Macro is caught up in outright gang warfare on the streets of Londinium. With the help of the cunning of Cato and retired brothers in arms Macro can clear the streets of the extortionist gangs and retire in peace.

I found myself racing through the chapters to get to the reuniting of Macro and Cato. At long last the most endearing characters of historical fiction are reunited. It appears from the ending that this book will not be the last of this daring duo. I for one cannot wait to see what lies in store for Scarrow's Cato and Macro.

Scarrow gives once more a masterclass in historical fiction. The history of Rome is woven into fiction effortlessly and delivers an exciting punch of adventure.

The Honour of Rome marks the 20th edition of Simon Scarrow’s Eagle novels, and somewhat aptly, we’re back in Britannia, where it all originally began. Throughout the series I’ve preferred all of the Britannia set novels over the others, maybe its somewhat nostalgic of me as the original books I fell in love with where set on our damp island. But my feeling remains true with this one, as it feels like the strongest book in the series for a while.

What I did enjoy is having the first two thirds of the novel following Macro alone. It made it stand out from the previous books, and added a sense of freshness that the series needed.

The story itself is split mainly into 2 parts, and deals with and ill fated expedition for Macro and a group of veterans in the wilds of eastern Britannia, and a more personal story of revenge against the gangs of Londinium. Against this backdrop Scarrow cleverly begins to lay the seeds for the Boudican revolt which is due to happen within the next few books id imagine.

Its always great to spend time with Macro and Cato, this was a fun read. Long may they continue.