Amazon
The backstory to this book is the revolt of an individual named Tiridates against King of Kings Phraates, which occurred after the civil war in the Roman world had finally come to an end with the defeat and deaths of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. As with many things concerning the Parthian Empire, little is known about Tiridates, which is a gift to storytellers.
Congratulations on reaching a landmark birthday, Pacorus. And to celebrate the gods have sent you a present. As your friends gather at Dura to commemorate the man who is a Parthian legend, the immortals send a storm from the east to plunge the empire into fresh conflict.
Do not be angry. They honour you and wish to see you doing what you do best, warlord, no matter how much blood is shed.
As friends are lost and the peace he has fought so hard for crumbles before his eyes, a weary Pacorus is forced to lead his army once more into battle. But the new campaign is different from previous ones, as old enemies become new allies and the world and certainties he has known are turned upside down.
Can he restore the man he has pledged his allegiance to, or will the powerful rebel alliance prove irresistible and create a dark chasm into which Parthia will be sucked?
‘Amazon’ is the ninth volume in the Parthian Chronicles and follows on from ‘The Cursed Kingdom’.
A map of the Parthian Empire can be found on the maps page of this website.
A note on the House of Egibi. This was one of the more well-known trading organisations in ancient Babylon, which was featured in ‘The Cursed Kingdom’ and ‘Amazon’. Some sources have suggested it was a banking house but there is no evidence there were banks as we know them in the modern world in ancient Babylon. More likely, they were families or tribes engaged in commerce and money lending. There were other Babylonian trading houses, such as the Misiraa, Didi, Bel-eteru and Nur Sin, but the House of Egibi was the largest and most powerful.
