Broken Shield

The caw of foraging gulls and whisper of waves gliding up the beach were things of the past. Now sunshine lit the coloured plumes of horsehair that marked the senior men among the onrushing legionaries. Pumping legs sent water spraying high as the Romans from the remaining ships charged from the sea to the aid of their fellows. Whistling over their heads, iron bolts thrown from the machines on the warships' decks slammed with sickening regularity into Bastetani warriors.

Baria is left a smoking ruin. The townspeople killed or enslaved by the Romans. Determined to strike back, Caros learns from a survivor of a sunken galley that the Romans have hidden two warships on the coast.

Desperate to raise more warriors to his column, Caros must first prove to the Iberians that he can defeat Rome's iron-hard legionaries.

After a bloody battle that earns him a narrow victory, he marches north and his column swells with freed slaves, veteran warriors, and mercenaries from far shores.

When the Romans cross the Ebro, Caros and his warriors are trapped with the Carthaginian army, surrounded by twenty thousand determined legionaries.

Treated with contempt by the Carthaginian general, Caros' loyalty is tested until at last, the general provokes Caros into a course of action that will have deadly consequences.

This is the 5th title in the Sons of Iberia series set during the Second Punic War. Each title can be enjoyed as a standalone read.