Rating: 
Summary: Greatest piece of historical fiction ever written
Review: Gates of Fire is captivating from its first page. Pressfield captures perfectly the sentiment of the time and weaves it seamlessly into the fabric of the story, so that his words are all the more powerful. Add this to one of the greatest battles in history and the greatest piece of historical fiction ever written is born.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Book Ever
Review: My teacher told me to read the Iliad over the winter vacation. I thought it was kind of neat, and it was sure better than Paradise Lost. But Gates of Fire is the greatest book ever written by a human being.
Rating: 
Summary: A problematic mix
Review: Zero stars for the first half, four for the second half. An average of two stars in total.Short advice: Skip the first half if you want to get right to the battle. Longer review: I purchased this book eagerly, hoping for an epic account of the Thermopylae battle. Unfortunately it wasn't quite what I was looking for. To begin with, it's inexplicable that Pressfield devoted fully half his book to a completely irrelevant backstory about his narrator, an outsider who exists primarily on the periphery of events. Not only that, this narrator has little human insight to offer about those around him. It gets worse when most of his heroic characters, or should I say caricatures, lapse into long-winded philosophical musings which simply fall flat. At other times they just make loud proclamations rather than talk the way real people do. Leonidas and Dienekes, for example, feel more like stone monuments than human beings. I couldn't care less whether they lived or died. In short, the characterisation was passionless. The style of writing is jarring, with modern slang interspersed with more "classical" lines of dialogue. In addition, Pressfield throw names and locations about without providing much identity. The multi-layered narration failed to a large extent due to the above problems. The premise of a survivor recounting the 'inside story' to an enemy scribe feels contrived at best. The last 20 pages descend into sheer absurdity, just for the sake of tying up loose ends. A straightforward third-person account with more consistent dialogue, focusing primarily on the battle and the people involved would have been infinitely better. As a reader, wouldn't you have loved to get inside the minds of Leonidas and Dienekes? Instead we get the lowly Xeo, a second-stringer at best. On the plus side, Pressfield clearly excels in the description of combat. Yet even here I felt shortchanged. Only the very first individual confrontation is detailed in full; the rest are truncated, frequently with results telegraphed well in advance, not to mention irritating asides into insignificant past events or plain boring musings. This blunts any subsequent impact to a large degree. A good example would be the clandestine attack on Xerxes. Surely it wasn't necessary to give away so much so far in advance? This book could have been better. Much better. As a reader spoiled by the likes of Sharon K Penman's Welsh trilogy and similarly-styled works, with rewarding characters and history weaved as rich tapestries, Gates Of Fire comes as a grave disappointment indeed.
Rating:
Summary: One of the great classics of our time
Review: Few authors have attempted, much less succeeded, in writing a tale that captures the rich flavor and sheer drama of ancient warfare like Steven Pressfield had in "Gates of Fire," his novel of the famous Battle at Thermopylae. Poignant and descriptive, this novel delved deeply into the true meaning of being a warrior, the warrior ethos in the brotherhood of arms, and that elevated state of mind when the fear, or phobos, of death has lost its grip on an individual. Bar none, this is among the best books I have ever read. Although it does bear comparison to other contemporary war classics such as "The Killer Angels," "Gates of Fire" really stands on its own as a remarkable novel. Pressfield's prose alternates between the narrative and the poetic, and he never fails to hold the reader in thrall with his storytelling power. To simply call "Gates of Fire" a good book, however, is like calling the Mona Lisa simply a good painting. To read this book is to experience it and be moved by it; it invariably leaves an indelible mark on our psyche.
Rating:
Summary: What a gut churner!
Review: Gates of Fire is one of the more powerful books I have ever read. I was in awe of these characters. After reading this book, bravery has a new meaning. Pressfield winds a great story, crafting characters that are deep and meaningful. These are great characters that you feel for and like tremendously. I found myself feeling their pain in the battle scenes, which are brutal and awe inspiring. What was also very interesting was the description of Spartan society, and how it fit into broader Greece. It made you sincerely appreciate the men that throughout time sacraficed their lives to protect their families and country. Better them than me, because being in a battle like that would have been like being in hell. As an aside, this book blows away Tides of War. Tides of War was a sleeper compared to this. If you were dissapointed in Tides of War, as was I, do not miss Gates of Fire. It is a totally different read!
Rating:
Summary: READ IT!
Review: If you enjoyed the movies Gladiator and Braveheart - this is a great book! I was entranced by the honor and chivalry exemplified by this book. This book takes you to another world and is a must read. I am going to Marine boot camp soon and when people ask me why I want to be a Marine I tell them to read this book. Pressfield helps us journey to another place in time and relate to people with a different way of thinking. READ IT!!
Rating:
Summary: An Epic Literary Accomplishment
Review: If there were a rating beyond 5 stars, this book would surely qualify. Mr. Pressfield has done a truly remarkable job of recreating a world obscured by the mists of history. The typical picture of ancient Greece presented in school today focuses almost exclusively on the Athenians and if Sparta is mentioned at all, it is usually as an antagonist to the "good guys." I found this account of the Spartan culture and lifestyle fascinating. But beyond a work of historical fiction, this book is both an excellent military novel and an account of bravery and feats of arms so amazing that you might not believe it.... except that it really happened. Even the narrative device used to tell the story (an interesting problem when you think about trying to tell a story where none of the protagonists survived) is masterfully created. In all, simply one of the best novels of the past decade.
Rating:
Summary: Gates of Fire
Review: Quite simply the best novel I've read in a long, long time. Vivid battle set-pieces are the highlight, but the story moves on at a great pace -- I couldn't recommend this highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: A real feel for battle
Review: Steven Pressfield gives the reader a true feel for the Spartan hoplite phalanx--and for war as a whole. Using the backdrop of the battle of Thermopylae where 300 Spartan elite troops, along with allies and auxiliaries, held off two million (according to legend) Persians and their allies for days, Pressfield describes both the details of Spartan tactics, and the philosophy of fear. Although the battle of Thermopylae is inherently interesting, it is Pressfield's analysis of man that makes GATES OF FIRE especially powerful. The different characters in this novel portray varying aspects of the ideal. Polynikes, for example, is heroic almost to a comic-hero level. Dienekes, in contrast, is philosophical--heroic because it is the right thing to do rather than to search after glory. This novel is an exceptional effort by a talented author.
Rating:
Summary: Great premise, but too long, too many characters
Review: Have no doubt about it, Presser is a talented storyteller, but there are just so many characters that any reader can keep track of, and feel empathy with, in a single novel. I was trudging through at the end, sort of like a Spartan grinding my sheild against the pages before me, a reference you'll understand if you read this book.
| 
