Come and take them Book III in the Leonidas Trilogy Persia has crushed the Ionian revolt and is gathering a massive army to invade and punish mainland Greece, but in Sparta the dangers seem closer to home. The Eurypontid king Demaratus is accused of being a usurper, while the Agiad king Cleomenes is going dangerously mad. More and more Spartans turn to Leonidas, Cleomenes's half-brother and son-in-law, to provide leadership. But Leonidas is the younger of twins, and his brother Brotus has no intention of letting Leonidas lay claim to the Agiad throne without a fight. This novel follows Leonidas and Gorgo as they steer Sparta through the dangerous waters of domestic strife and external threat, working together as a team to make Sparta the best it can be. But the forces that will destroy not only Leonidas but his Sparta are already gathering -- not just in Persepolis and Sardis, but in the hubris of a rising Athens and the bigotry and xenophobia of his fellow Spartans. The murder of two Persian ambassadors by an agitated Spartan Assembly sets in train the inevitable conflict between Sparta and Persia that will take Leonidas to Thermopylae -- and into history. This is the third book in a trilogy of biographical novels about Leonidas and Gorgo. The first book, A Boy of the Agoge, described Leonidas's childhood in the Spartan public school. The second, A Peerless Peer, focused on his years as an ordinary citizen. This third book describes his rise to power, his reign, and his death.

The smaller of twins, born long after two elder brothers, Leonidas was considered an afterthought from birth -- even by his mother. Lucky not to be killed for being undersized, he was not raised as a prince like his eldest brother, Cleomenes, who was heir to the throne, but instead had to endure the harsh upbringing of ordinary Spartan youth. Barefoot, always a little hungry, and subject to harsh discipline, Leonidas had to prove himself worthy of Spartan citizenship. Struggling to survive without disgrace, he never expected that one day he would be king or chosen to command the combined Greek forces fighting a Persian invasion. But these were formative years that would one day make him the most famous Spartan of them all: the hero of Thermopylae. This is the first book in a trilogy of biographical novels about Leonidas of Sparta. This first book describes his childhood in the infamous Spartan agoge. The second will focus on his years as an ordinary citizen, and the third will describe his reign and death. About the Author Helena P. Schrader holds a PhD in history from the University of Hamburg, which she earned with her groundbreaking biography of General Friedrich Olbricht, the mastermind behind the Valkyrie plot against Hitler. She has published four nonfiction works on modern history and has been published in academic journals including Sparta: Journal of Ancient Spartan and Greek History. Helena has done extensive research on ancient and archaic Sparta. She has combined her research with common sense and a deep understanding of human nature to create a refreshingly unorthodox portrayal of Spartan society in this biographical trilogy of Leonidas, as well as in her three previously published novels, The Olympic Charioteer, Are They Singing in Sparta? and Spartan Slave, Spartan Queen. Visit her website at www.helena-schrader.com or learn more about Sparta from her website Sparta Reconsidered at www.elysiumgates.com/ helena.

Leonidas was a warrior king of the Greek city-state of Sparta. In the Second Persian War he led the Greek hoplites at the Battle of Thermopylae in an attempt to defend the pass from the Persians led by king Xerxes, sacrificing himself and 300 Spartans.

Sparta at the start of the fifth century BC is in crisis. The Argives are attacking Sparta's vulnerable island of Kythera, but King Cleomenes is more interested in meddling in Athenian affairs. His co-monarch, King Demaratus, opposes Cleomenes' ambitions, and soon the kings are at each other's throats. Exploiting this internal conflict, Corinth launches a challenge to Spartan control of the Peloponnesian League, while across the Aegean Sea, the Greek cities of Ionia are in rebellion against Persia -- and pleading for Spartan aid. King Cleomenes' youngest half-brother Leonidas has only just attained citizenship. He has no reason to expect that this revolt will shape his destiny. At twenty-one, Leonidas is just an ordinary ranker in the Spartan army, less interested in high politics than putting his private life in order. He needs to find reliable tenants to restore his ruined estate, and, most important, to find the right woman to be his bride. Meanwhile, his niece Gorgo is growing up. Not particularly pretty, she is, nevertheless, precocious and courageous -- qualities that get her into trouble more than once. This is the story of both Leonidas and Gorgo in the years before Leonidas becomes king of Sparta and before the first Persian invasion of Greece sets Leonidas on the road to Thermopylae. This is the second book in a trilogy of biographical novels about Leonidas and Gorgo. The first book, A Boy of the Agoge, described Leonidas's childhood in Sparta's infamous public school. This second book focuses on his years as an ordinary citizen, and the third will describe his reign and death.

The King of Sparta Leonidas is one of the most well known and remembered of all Sparta's mighty military leaders. The leader of the famous Battle of 300, it was his bravery and cunning that would ultimately propel the Greeks to victory over the invading Persians. He would go down in history as a legendary leader and brave, valiant warrior for his strength in the face of opposition and his selfless willingness to lay down his life for his country. His rise to kingship was rather unorthodox, but he would go down as one of the most legendary. He showed a keen understanding of how to make the best of the tools one has at their disposal, and to use one's strategy, even in the face of insurmountable odds. He understood that much more than his own fate, that was at stake in the battles he would face. This courage was not only what led to his legendary status, it ultimately gave the Greeks the courage they needed to fend off foreign invaders and remain a sovereign collection of city-states. The brave, self-sacrificing efforts of Leonidas and his men would go down in history and lore. Throughout history, he has been propped up as the ultimate warrior, who fought with skill and cunning, and was willing to give up his life for the greater good of the country. He was able to inspire the same feelings of kinship and bravery in his fellow soldiers, which was a key part of their success as warriors. Since he was raised in the brotherhood of warriors, he was able to speak the language of the warrior, making him a huge benefit as king and leader during a tumultuous time in Spartan history...

In 480 BCE, 300 Spartan soldiers sacrificed themselves so that Greece would unite against the Persian invasion. This is the story of Leonidas I, the man who led them. Readers experience the rich culture of this ancient Greek city-state, a domain notorious for its intellectualism and diplomatic prowess. Readers will learn about how Leonidas I furthered democracy while maintaining the prosperity of his people, even in the face of adversity. Santillian and Macgregor Morris team up to prove that there is much more to Sparta than its magnificent military might.