title: The Warrior
author: Andrews, Paul
description: An action-packed swashbuckling epic adventure with romance and eyewitness accounts of the heroic battles of Thermopylae and Salamis, featuring Artemisia, princess, warlord and naval commander, and the sinister presence of Mardonius, a Darth Vader-like character, whose menacing shadow darkens two continents with the relentless pursuit of his own personal ambition. The Persian emperor invades Greece to punish the cities which have defied him.. All that stands between the Empire and world domination is a proud, independent and free people led by a bullying Spartan king and a bent small-city boss. Bran is the son of a Celtic chief. He is cursed to be a slave for the rest of his life. Corina is the daughter of a rich and important city official. Can their love survive the onslaught of imperial troops and overcome the social barriers between Citizen and Slave and Greek and Barbarian?