Blood Oath (Gladiator School Series #1)

by Dan Scott

Overview

Introducing Gladiator School, a thrilling series set in ancient Rome. Young Lucius's privileged life crumbles when his father Aquila is accused of being a spy and a traitor. Now, Aquila has mysteriously disappeared—and, in order to support their family, Lucius's brother Quintus has taken the dreaded blood oath to become a gladiator.
 
While Quintus risks his life in the arena, Lucius fights for their survival among the slaves and criminals he meets in this new world—and vows to prove his father's innocence. Where has Aquila gone? Why has he abandoned everything he once stood for? And what is the meaning of the coded messages that Lucius has been receiving? Action packed and exciting, Blood Oath will keep kids turning the pages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781908177483
Publisher:	Salariya
Publication date:	06/02/2015
Series:	Gladiator School Series , #1
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	635,453
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.70(h) x 0.60(d)
Lexile:	700L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Dan Scott was born in Surrey, England. Growing up, he became interested in ancient Rome and his love of historical fiction provided plenty of inspiration for the adventure stories he began to write as a child. Eventually, his characters and stories developed into the action-packed Gladiator School series.

Editorial Reviews

04/01/2015
Gr 5–7—When Lucius's father, a prominent Roman senator, is accused of treason and flees from Rome to escape arrest, Lucius and the rest of his family are left shamed and destitute. While he believes in his father's innocence, the rest of his family does not, especially his older brother Quintus, who decides to join their uncle Ravilla's gladiator school in the hopes of earning money and honor for his family. Fearing for his brother's life, Lucius becomes an errand boy at the school to keep an eye on Quintus. He soon begins to suspect Ravilla of having malevolent intentions. The first in a series, this novel is suspenseful and intense. Scott does not shy away from the harsh realities of gladiator life or ancient times, including violence, death, and slavery, which brings a grim, raw authenticity to the story. Several footnotes are included, providing useful definitions for the various Roman and gladiator terminology scattered throughout. While the reveal of Ravilla as the primary villain is somewhat predictable, his cruelty and cunning elevate him to a truly threatening antagonist for Lucius. Little is resolved by the novel's end, but readers will more likely be eager to read the next installment than disappointed over the loose ends. VERDICT Fast-paced and action-packed with a surprising amount of depth, this historical novel is a good pick for reluctant readers as well as those looking to start a new and compelling series.—Laura J. Giunta, Garden City Public Library, NY

School Library Journal

2015-02-16
An upper-class Roman teenager trains for gladiatorial combat after his family suddenly falls on hard times in this imported opener.Readers primed for lots of arena action from the melodramatic cover are in for disappointment. Left destitute after the abrupt disappearance of their father, meek Lucius takes a job as a messenger in his uncle Ravilla's gladiator school, and his older brother, Quintus, enrolls as a "novicius," or novice fighter. Scott folds in colorful references to life in the first-century city ("a meat vendor who was selling piles of fresh red lungs was splattering everyone in the vicinity with blood"), Latin words with, often, explanatory footnotes, and many specialized terms for gladiatorial gear. Despite this, he provides only occasional glimpses of fighters on the training grounds and just two actual bouts—neither featuring Quin. Instead, most of the story is given over to the brothers' bickering over whether their father is guilty or not of espionage for the previous imperial regime and Lucius' fretting as he sees Quin becoming more attached to the gladiatorial "familia" than his own. Worse yet, though Lucius confronts Ravilla after finding out that his uncle is up to no good, the episode cuts off abruptly sans resolution, revelation, or even cliffhanger.Isolated splashes of gore notwithstanding, an angst-y, anemic setup volume offering little incentive to look up sequels. (overview map, appendix of gladiator types) (Historical fiction. 10-12)

Kirkus Reviews