Hannibal

Name: Hannibal
Rating: 4.2 (199 reviews)

by David Anthony Durham

First published 2005

Amazon

4.1(199)

Hannibal Barca leads the armies of Carthage from Iberia into Italy at the opening of the Second Punic War. Durham follows the campaign from Saguntum through the crossing of the Pyrenees, the Rhône and the Alps, then into the battles that repeatedly place the Roman Republic in danger. Hannibal’s victories at Lake Trasimene and Cannae reveal the scale of his tactical achievement, while Roman commanders search for a strategy capable of surviving him.

The novel moves among generals, soldiers, family members and camp followers on both sides of the war. Hannibal’s brothers Hasdrubal and Mago, Roman leaders including Fabius Maximus and Scipio Africanus, and the wider political demands of Carthage and Rome give the story a broad perspective on a conflict fought across the western Mediterranean. The campaign ultimately returns to Africa, where Scipio’s victory at Zama ends Carthage’s attempt to defeat Rome.

Historical Periods

Second Punic War218–201 BCE Carthage814–146 BCE

Genres

Biographical Fiction Court & Political Fiction Historical Sagas War Fiction

Historical people

Hannibal247–c. 183 BCE Scipio Africanusc. 236–c. 183 BCE Hasdrubal Barcac. 245–207 BCE Magoc. 243–203/202 BCE Gaius Terentius Varrodied c. 3rd century BCE Lucius Aemilius Paullusdied 217 BCE Fabius Maximus