En el año 117, la Novena Legión Hispana, de guarnición en el Muro de Adriano, se internó en las nieblas de Caledonia y adquirió estatus de leyenda cuando cuatro mil hombres desaparecieron en las tierras altas de Escocia sin dejar rastro. Veinte año después, Marco Flavio Aquila, hijo de uno de los centuriones de la legión maldita, llega a Britania al mando de una cohorte de auxiliares galos para estacionarse en Isca Dumnoniorum. Su primer mando transcurre plácidamente hasta que aparece en la región un druida que provoca el levantamiento de la población britana. Su pericia consigue salvar a sus hombres y el fuerte fronterizo, pero resulta gravemente herido y debe abandonar el servicio. Retirado y deprimido, se le presenta la oportunidad de correr la mayor oportunidad de su vida porque al norte del Muro de Adriano corre el rumor de que ha reaparecido un poderoso amuleto de guerra: el Águila de una legión romana. Sólo puede ser el Águila de la Novena, y Marco está dispuesto a arriesgar su vida para devolver el honor a la legión de su padre, arrebatar el trofeo a los bárbaros, y resolver el enigma de la misteriosa desaparición de la legión.

Roman centurion Marcus Flavius Aquila has his first command, and, at his request, it’s in Roman Britain. Marcus’s father was part of the lost Ninth Legion, which disappeared after marching north beyond Hadrian’s wall. Not long after Marcus takes command, his men must defend the fort against a British uprising. Marcus’s uncle has retired in Britain, and Marcus goes there to heal from the battle wound that has left him lame for life. Just as Marcus begins to contemplate his future, he gets the opportunity to head into the north country to see if he can find out what happened to the lost legion and recover their eagle.

This story seems like capture the flag on steroids. Finding the missing eagle is only half the battle. If Marcus is successful in locating it, he’ll still need to get it back to the safety of Roman occupied territory. The desperate flight south through Scotland had me thinking of Richard Hannay’s flight across the same landscape almost two millennia later. It’s an exhilarating read! ( )

Reason read: TIOLI and BAC
This is the first book in a series in the Roman Britain Trilogy. It's an adventure story than could be appropriate for youth and adults. A new to me author. A series that I could read more but not sure that I will. ( )

The Eagle of the Ninth is part of the reason I like at least browsing the LT challenges even if I am not willing to commit completely. I don't think Rosemary Sutcliff's tale of Roman Britain would even have crossed my path were it not for the British Author Challenge. And what a tale it was: Marcus Flavius Aquila has taken up soldiering in Britain where his own father disappeared twelve years before as part of the Ninth Legion that marched north to put down rebellion and was never heard from again. Sutcliff is a masterful writer, able to balance setting, character and action in a way that draws you into the time and space of the story. I read this for the BAC challenge and have the other two in the series ready to go. We follow Marcus as he heads into the north region to find the lost Eagle standard of the legion. ( )

good