Sarah's Reviews > The Silver Branch

The Roman province of Britannia, 292 AD

Justin is an introverted, awkward young military surgeon. His family line, Aquila, has been connected to Britannia for two hundred years, but he has never set foot there till now. A Celtic leader named Curoi, called Carausius in Latin, has declared himself emperor of Britannia and the northern part of Gaul; he has gained temporary recognition from actual Emperor Maximian in honor of Carausius’ sea victories. (By now, the Roman Empire has become a Tetrarchy).

Justin is immediately befriended by a red-headed soldier named Flavius—who turns out to be his cousin, Marcellus Flavius Aquila, direct descendant of Marcus from The Eagle of the Ninth. Flavius is thrilled to meet a kinsman from the Continental branch of the family, and both lads live at the ancestral homestead Marcus and Cottia built when they’re not in the barracks.

One of those whom Justin heals in the infirmary is Evicatos, an exiled Hibernian (Irish) warrior. Cases like his demonstrate Justin’s skills as a doctor and bring him, and his inseparable cousin, to the notice of Carausius himself.

But when Justin and Flavius witness an apparent act of treachery by Carausius’ minister of finance, Allectus, the world as they know it is upended. It’s up to these two, their dignified great-aunt Honoria, Evicatos, a Hibernian jester, an idealistic Centurion, a fussy little man and the boy he rescued from slavery, a washed-up former gladiator, and a small group of elderly farmhands to restore order in Britannia…

Content Advisory
Violence: The penultimate chapters are consumed by battle. Sutcliff largely bypasses literal gore in favor of Justin’s psychological state, which is rather intense and harrowing. After the battle, we see two characters die, one of whom was particularly lovable and heroic.

Two other characters, both older men whom the heroes look up to, are (separately) stabbed to death off-page. Justin is haunted by how he imagines these deaths, with knives glinting in the torchlight. A character who witnessed his adopted father figure die says that the man’s enemies “cut him down like a badger.”

Sex: Nothing. And this is a novel about the ancient Romans.

Language: Nothing.

Substance Abuse: The characters generally opt for beer or wine rather than water, because the drinking water supply back then was a sanitation nightmare.

Politics and Religion: Anthoninus draws an ichthys on the hearth. He looks at Justin and Flavius, gets no reaction, and wipes the symbol away again.



Nightmare Fuel: Justin is severely claustrophobic and has a number of near-panic attacks in small spaces.

Conclusions
A solid look at a period of Roman and British history that I knew very little about. This book is less adventurous and more warlike than its predecessor, The Eagle of the Ninth, but its characters are just as lovable, its familial relationships and friendships are just as strong, its mysteries are just as alluring, and its inner sense of moral integrity cannot be argued with. I’m super excited to continue this series.