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Steven Pressfield

(b.1943)

Steven Pressfield is an American novelist and author of screenplays, principally of military historical fiction set in classical antiquity. His historical fiction is well-researched, but for the sake of dramatic flow, Pressfield may alter some details, like the sequence of events, or make use of jarring contemporary terms and place names, his stated aim being an attempt to capture the spirit of the times.

Genres: Historical, Mystery, General Fiction, Thriller

New and upcoming books

May 2026

The Arcadian

Novels

   The Legend of Bagger Vance (1995)
   Gates of Fire (1998)
   Tides of War (2000)
   Last of the Amazons (2002)
   The Virtues of War (2004)
   The Afghan Campaign (2006)
   Killing Rommel (2008)
   The Profession (2011)
   The Knowledge (2016)
   36 Righteous Men (2019)
   A Man at Arms (2021)
   The Arcadian (2026)

Non fiction show

Steven Pressfield recommends

All Carry (2026)
Gene Wojciechowski
"Once again the venerable adage 'The smaller the ball, the better the literature' proves true. Wojciechowski's All Carry is beyond a gem. It's a true sporting masterpiece. The great written stuff on the game - from Golf in the Kingdom to Caddyshack to Dead Solid Perfect - always seems to smack of a tall tale. The writers of such yarns, like Mr. Wojo, are so steeped in the lore that they make the implausible seem truer-than-true. Wojciechowski is a multiple-Emmy-winning golf writer, and his on-tour, inside-the-ropes experience, particularly at the Masters, makes this long-ball tale come to vivid, magical life. If you love the game, you will savor every page. All Carry is an instant classic!"

The Last of the Seven (2022)
Steven Hartov
"A classic WWII raid story in the behind-the-lines tradition of The Guns of Navarone, Steven Hartov's The Last of the Seven ticks like a detonator and explodes like a bomb. I read it [in] one rush and the book didn't lose momentum the whole way. Hartov himself is the real deal, a veteran of IDF Intelligence and a paratrooper (currently a reserve major in the US Army). He delivers his tale with such vivid and authentic detail that you come away believing you too can speak Hochdeutsch, Yiddish, and Hebrew as you take on Hitler's atomic labs deep in the heart of the Third Reich."

Searchers in Winter (2021)
Owen Pataki
"Owen Pataki’s second novel emerges from the rubble of the French Revolution into the legendary conquests of Napoleon. Readers will love the richly drawn characters and evocative settings in this story that pits the values of humanity against those lusting after power and greed."

The Last Platoon (2020)
Bing West
"Among the many virtues Bing West brings to any military/political enterprise is that he knows his shit from the level of the grunt in the foxhole to the SecDef in the Situation Room. He has been there. He has done that. Every page of The Last Platoon radiates authenticity, whether it's the chaos and carnage of a firefight in Afghanistan or the kitchen-table back-and-forth between a Marine husband and wife on the eve of a deployment. And the man can write! If you've only read Bing West's nonfiction (which is universally five-star), you will sit back with satisfaction seeing that he doesn't drop a step shifting into the realm of the novel. The Last Platoon reads like a cinematic thriller with nonstop action and conflict, but it is also informed on every page by the maturity and depth of understanding of a Marine combat officer, a war journalist, and a former assistant Secretary of Defense, who has been in the tall grass for decades and has seen and done it all. The Last Platoon is dark because its subject matter--the folly and arrogance of those at the strategic level and the price in blood that young men and women have to pay at the tactical--is grim and permanent. I read it in one sitting, and I will read it again."

Once We Were Here (2020)
Christopher Cosmos
"Winston Churchill said that Greeks don't fight like heroes, but heroes fight like Greeks, and this story proves it; a stunning literary debut about legacy and history, war and peace, fate and destiny, the power of family and stories, and how young love can still shine and endure, even in the face of the greatest evils, and long after we're gone."

Cold Barrel Zero (2016)
(John Hayes, book 1)
Matthew Quirk
"What separates Matt Quirk from other military thriller writers is his insider chops as a journalist who has covered the real-world versions of the stories he tells. Cold Barrel Zero is gripping and utterly convincing. It's the tale real agents and operators would tell if they had Matt Quirk's storytelling genius."

God of Vengeance (2014)
(Rise of Sigurd, book 1)
Giles Kristian
"This is the best kind of storytelling - a saga full of blood and thunder that grabs you and doesn't let go until long after the final page is turned."

The Child of Vengeance (2013)
(Samurai, book 1)
David Kirk
"I've been fascinated by Musashi Miyamoto since I first read 'The Book of Five Rings' in college. David Kirk's 'Child of Vengeance' restores my faith in historical fiction to bring lost worlds to life. Bravo! The keenest and most vivid evocation of the inner life of the East since James Clavell's 'Shogun.'"

The Gladiator (2012)
(Spartacus , book 1)
Ben Kane
"Gritty, passionate and violent, this thrilling book is a real page-turner and a damn good read. It brings Spartacus - and ancient Rome - to vivid, colorful life."

Mother of the Believers (2009)
Kamran Pasha
"Superbly written, brilliantly realized."

The Crusader (2001)
Michael Alexander Eisner
"The thinking man's swashbuckler, a ripping yarn that packs a cerebral wallop."

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