First published 2012
Alexios I Komnenos, emperor of the Christian Byzantine Empire, is on the brink of collapse. As the Turks encroach, he begs the pope for military aid. What follows is a world-changing series of events that cement papal power and consign Alexios and Byzantium to the margins of history. Frankopan's revelatory account upends nearly a millennium of scholarship on the First Crusade.
Genres: history, historical-fiction, military-history, ancient-history, academic
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: epic, historical-events
Setting: Byzantine Empire
Period: First, 1096-1099, Alexius I Comnenus, 1081-1118
296 pages · Paperback · Belknap Press: An Imprint of Harvard University Press