Alistair Forrest

“Forrest has the gift of the true story teller – the ability to engage his readers’ interest from the very first sentence…” Sir Patrick Cormack, Chairman of the All Party Arts and Heritage Group, Chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee, Life President of the House of Commons Magazine and Chairman of the Editorial Board.

Douglas Jackson, author of Caligula: “Alistair Forrest's Libertas is a fast-moving tale of fortitude, survival and eventual retribution told against the background of Rome's bloody civil war. In the mountains of southern Spain Melqart grows up unaware of the unseen forces which are drawing the armies of Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great's sons towards an explosive collision in a valley close to his beloved village of Munda. As the action sweeps dramatically between Spain, Sicily and the shores of Africa Melqart is drawn ever deeper into the conspiracy by his friendship with Sextus. The young Spaniard must fight for his life and his family's freedom and Forrest vividly recreates the epic battle that gave Caesar the prize he sought so avidly.”  

Review by Lynn Guest, Historical Novels Review (Issue 48 May 2009): Southern Spain in the 1st century BC. Melqart and his family live in the prosperous town of Munda under a benign Roman procurator. In the surrounding mountains, the Kemeletoi, a mysterious ancient tribe, live in harmony with the townsmen. Although isolated, Munda cannot escape Roman politics and the ambitions of Julius Caesar. When the sons of his rival, Pompey, take refuge in the valley, Caesar and his army pursue them. Munda’s peace is shattered and its citizens are taken to Rome as slaves. Melqart, no warrior but gifted with an inventive mind, must call on all his courage and skill to rescue his enslaved family and to liberate Munda. His adventures carry him from Spain to North Africa to Sicily.

Forrest is good on landscape, especially on southern Spain, which is lovingly described. Melqart makes an unusual but attractive hero, resolute even when scared half to death and maturing as the novel progresses. Forrest brings the Mediterranean world and its various peoples alive. Daily life and that of the soldier are well depicted; casual cruelty and torture are balanced by a strong sense of nature worship and mysticism. The complicated battle scenes are particularly excellent and easy to follow.

Libertas is a good read: pacy, exciting and often funny. Forrest makes us care about Munda. He captures the tragedy of a people dragged into the horror of a vicious war brought about by circumstances over which they had no control and could hardly understand. And three cheers for Quaestor2000 for supporting off-beat historical fiction.

That's All She Read:

"My regular readers are watching me spread my wings and read novels from other than the Middle Ages. Thanks to the proliferation of independent publishing, and in the case of Libertas, many more small publishers, divers authors' love for and knowledge of so many more times and places is becoming available. This novel is a case in point." Read more...

Amazon reviews:

See Amazon UK reviews here, and Amazon US reviews here.

"I loved, loved, LOVED this book! If I wasn't on the train I might have cried at the more tragic bits. Love the ending with the eagles! I didn't put it down for the whole train journey - ridiculously captivating!" Cassie Adlington, student

“Libertas is a heady mixture of a ripping yarn, a serious history lesson, a guided tour of parts of Spain which are so very different from the way they are now. It’s peopled by real characters, and though it’s part of an historical genre that’s dominated by authors like Bernard Cornwell and Conn Iggulden, it more than deserves its own niche."  Peter Corbett, Journalist

“Pito is the narrator of Libertas and leads you to believe there are more stories to come from this well-written tale. It takes place in the times of Pompey and Caesar and their final dispute that leads to the overthrow of the republic, and is mostly concerned with events in Hispania (Spain as it is now). The action of a major and bloody battle takes place around Munda, Pito’s home, which is situated in what is now Andalucia, not too far from Malaga. The descriptions of the battle are excellent as the lines of warring legions jostle for position until the crashing of man to man combat takes place and leaves the battlefield awash with blood. Pito befriends one of Pompey’s sons, Sextus, who has managed to evade Caesar’s clutches. Always beneath the surface of the book is the air of mysticism, gods and the apparent influence over events that is the domain of the eagle. I can tell this has all been very painstakingly researched and that the historical characters are accurately portrayed and the descriptions of the way people lived and loved is as realistic as is possible. The writing is executed in just the right way to evoke feelings that the person writing this tale actually lived through it and marvels that he is still alive to record the exciting and poignant events that he witnessed. The words work beautifully and the prose is evocative; it’s an intelligent and sharply observed book and the author definitely wants us to continue reading the saga – I for one look forward to the next instalment.” Phil Reuben, Designer