New Catholic fiction from Arx Publishing:
In the early 6th century AD, the Christian Roman Empire was on the ropes. Warlike Germanic nations had conquered its western provinces and reorganized them as barbarian kingdoms. Though the eastern Empire survived with its capital at Constantinople, it was still under constant pressure from blood-thirsty Hunnic tribes who raided across the Danube frontier and from unprovoked full-scale invasions by the powerful king of Persia.
At a time when Roman power seemed about to collapse, a hero arose who did what no one thought possible. He went toe-to-toe with the Empire’s most dangerous enemies. Belisarius: The First Shall Be Last (Arx Publishing, January 2007, paperback, 248 pages + maps, ISBN: 9781889758787, list price: $14.95) is a historical novel by Paolo A. Belzoni that recreates the early life of this fascinating man. “I wrote the book mainly for Catholic homeschoolers — older kids,” Belzoni said. “Catholics will recognize many dearly-held aspects of their own beliefs in this book, from Belisarius’s large family, to his respect for helpless human life even among his enemies, to his desire to protect Roman innocents from the ultimate Culture of Death—pitiless barbarians bent on pillage and slaughter.”
Filled with action and intrigue, the book is replete with historical and religious detail drawn from ancient historians. “The story of the most famous general of the Eastern Roman Empire is well worth telling,” commented Colleen Drippè, editor of Hereditas: A Catholic Literary Magazine. “Young readers will learn a bit about the sixth century, one of the less studied epochs of history, while meeting a gallery of interesting characters drawn from all parts of the empire and outside.”
