Three thousand years before the birth of Christ. An epic conflict is about to begin. The price of victory? Civilization. The price of defeat, a return to the dark ages.

The hopes of civilization rest on one man's shoulders: Eskkar, once a barbarian, nowa warrior in charge of defending a small town which lies in the path of a vastbarbarian war party. The last time the invaders came to Orak, they spared no one and the tiny candle of trade and agriculture that had begun there, the first in all of human history, was extinguished.

But Eskkar and Trella, the beautiful slave girl he has been given by the grateful townsfolk, and the raggle-taggle army he has inherited are not going to flee. They will fight against the overwhelming odds with foolhardy bravery, subtle ingenuity and the last drop of their blood. On this tiny band the lathe of history will turn: victory or darkness?

A swift pace and heaps of colourful action turn this into a page-turner of the first quality. This great debut novel is bound to win Sam Barone a large following * Historical Novels Review *
A lusty debut. The imminent raid by the barbarians creates an inherent, delicious sense of tension throughout, until the final unleashing of pure, bloody slaughter * Kirkus *
Dawn of Empire reminds me a lot of Wilbur Smith at his best. Beautifully imagined and researched adventure, with terrific action! * Diana Gabaldon *
What a cracking story. I've lost two days of writing time because of it and I don't regret it at all. This is a brilliant, fast-paced epic, bringing an ancient people back to roaring life. Superb -- Conn Iggulden

Born and raised in New York, Sam Barone attended Manhattan College, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965, with a major in Psychology. After a hitch in the Marine Corps, he became a software developer and manager. After spending nearly 30 years in the software development game, he retired in 1999 to start working on his second career: writing. Dawn of Empire is his first novel. The sequel, Empire Rising is published in 2008.