Rating: 
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: Obstensibly a tale about Greek Warrior legend Xenophon's rise to glory during his Persian campaigns this historical adventure/drama has subplots as well.
And it is partially due to one subplot that led to my mixed feelings about this novel. It is well writtem, and I have to give Ford dues for evidence that he did some research preparing to write this novel.
One of the subplots is Xenophon's freedman (aide de camp is I guess apt title for him) and his romance with Asteria a mysterious women they meet in Prince Cyprus's harem.
Personally although I have nothing against romance in fiction I felt in this particular novel as opposed to touching this reader I felt it took away from the plot. Kudos for Ford letting someone besides his "hero" Xenophon getting the lady, but it was distracting a novel about a war and a warrior should focus on such things. Maybe I am nitpicking but I bring it up as one of the flaws I found in the novel to prevent me as humble Amazon reviewer from giving it more stars.
The only other negative point is related tangentally. I felt that although I could see why Ford chose the first person narrative, at times instead of feeling immediacy with characters, and events I wondered if the "Ten Thousand" may not as been as fun a read if written in the third person.
Both these points are mainly cosmetic as I maintain the "Ten Thousand" is a solid novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Well Written, and Definitely Worth a Read
Review: This is a very well written book, containing a lot of information on the March of the Ten Thousand. The author's background information on this epic, yet failed march is shown clearly throughout the book. The book really help's to bring to life what pains and trials Xenophon's Army was going through during its massive retreat back from Persia.
Anyone who has read Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire (and later books) might well find this book interesting and entertaining. The author's impressive description of the battles and sufferings of this legendary army are highly detailed and well written. One of the moments I most remember from his book are when Xenophon's Army stumble upon bee hives, and then procede to indulge on huge amounts of honey. This is after days of starvation. The consequences of this leave many dead from the shock of eating such rich, sweet food after so long on starvation rations. I particularly enjoy the way that the writer allows the characters to wonder whether this is a cruel trick of the gods, and I feel that this cruel and twisted Irony of soldiers dying from over-indulgence, after long periods of starvation, instead of dying in battle, is an interesting twist at the end.
This is definitely a book worth getting if you enjoy these sort of Historical Fiction books, or, like me, enjoyed Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield.
Even though this book cannot quite reach the truly excellent standard of Gates of Fire, it comes very close, but unfortunately (in my opinion) a lack of character detail, and a slightly rushed ending to the storyline, holds it back a little too much.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful novel from this first time author!
Review: The story depicted in The Ten Thousand, the first book from Michael Curtis Ford, is one that I had heard about and been anxious and curious to learn more about. The romantic notion of a stranded and outnumbered army traveling through unknown and dangerous lands to get home is one that appeals to me greatly. Though I wanted more in the way of battle scenes, the ones depicted are well written and exciting. ( The battle that opens the book is very well written and engrossing. It propels you into the action and gets your juices flowing big time! ) I was reminded of the disastrous Napoleonic withdrawal from Russia in this book, especially during the harsh winter scenes. Mr Ford had me shivering and flexing my fingers and toes to keep warm and ward off frostbite. Though I couldn't find ten thousand reasons to recommend this book, there are certainly a sufficient number to warrant placing this book on your reading list. Like me, I'm sure that you'll want more from this promising new author.
Rating: 
Summary: One word - Monotonous
Review: I bought this book because someone compared it to the absolutely outstanding "Gates of Fire" by Stephen Pressfield. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. Although the book is fairly well written, the story itself drags on and on with seemingly little purpose. Xenophon and his troops encounter one obstacle after another on their trek home, but each obstacle is exactly the same as the previous one; only the locations and opponents have changed. Needless to say, this gets old rather quickly. The "surprise" ending is both anticlimactic and irrelevant, leading one to wonder whether it was employed simply because the writer knew the story was about to fizzle out and needed to try to salvage it somehow. I could not put down "Gates of Fire." To the contrary, I could not pick up "The Ten Thousand."
Rating:
Summary: Falls short of promise
Review: The first third is captivating and well-written, the middle third begins to lag, and the final third is a bit tiresome. The ending really let me down.
Rating: 
Summary: Shallow Characters, Predictable Plot, and Themeless
Review: Fictional narrative of Themostigenes (Theo) who joins his master Xenophon on his Persian expedition with Cyrus to take the throne of Persia from his nemesis. Overall, the plot is poorly constructed, the characters are shallow, and the story conveys absolutely no theme.First, the plot lept across locations and time frames without explanation, and this is made evident by the first chapter in the book. Beginning the story in one of Xenophon's earlier athenian campaigns had no purpose in either setting the mood or direction of the story. In terms of characters, there doesn't seem to be much character development in Xenophon: he seems to be mostly just dangling in the background and never really comes alive. Theo seems to be a bumbling imbecil throughout the story; learning absolutely nothing from his ordeal and achieving nothing other than preoccupying himself about his vapid romance. Ford's rendition of Socrates doesn't reflect the historical figure either: he comes out as a comical caricature at best. Although Socrates was Xenophon's teacher, the story doesn't really delve into Socrate's dialectic and how that affected either Xenophon or Theo. The narrative focuses too much on the character of Theo and leads the reader into a rather unbelievable romantic sub-plot that takes away from the main story. The campaign seems more like the back drop for a bad romantic novela. Apart from being a poor choice as a sub-plot, the reason for Asteria's affection for Theo is never really explained; why would a Persian woman of the court want to risk life and limb to follow a Greek slave with a cardboard personality? It seems that she wanted to escape her important father but the story also doesn't make it clear as to why. The inclusion of this sub-plot also takes away from the legitimacy of the narrative because no Greek narrative would have focused on such a stupid romantic plot unless it was specifically a romantic novel; the style of which, apart from being drastically different than Ford's crude rendition, actually became common more than 2 centuries later during the Hellenic period. I was not impressed by this book at all and, quite frankly, Ford's second novel "Gods and Legions" isn't much better. Two's enough for me at this point; seeing how he wrote his first two novels, I'm not about to read his third. There are simply better writers of this genre out there to bother wasting your money on this one.
Rating:
Summary: Thrilling
Review: Michael Curtis Ford had great skill in bringing to life the ancient world of Greece and Persia. You can almost smell the blood, dirt, and sweat of the battlefield. The story focuses on the great Greek warrior, Xenophon, as told by his servant Theo. Xenophon joins an army raised by Cyrus, a man who wants to rule Persia. In this army there is a large division of Greek soldiers. Through battle after battle, the Greeks more than prove their worth, however, luck is not on their side. After the campaign, they must undergo many perils on their way home. This is a real history lover's novel. Check it out.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: I love Mary Renault, and would suggest if you want a better flavor for the ancient world, she is a better direction to go than this book.
Xenophan falls flat as he leaves for the march, and the learning at Socrates knee would be more excited to read than the endless pages of gore.
Too cheap a shot to parlay the pages of descriptive death into a novel. I mean really, pick up the Iliad, Stanley Lombardo's excellent translation and you will feel what is meant by "rage"
This book is soap opera. Theo is not half the narrator Bagoas is, and I find little empathy for a fantastically dense fellow who can't cop a clue when the woman just about shouts out loud that she is the daughter of the enemy.
Never mind that hardened warriers are croaking by the mile and here is the nymphet in tow. Zero muscle mass, and apparently even less body fat.
Now then, I did feel that there was enough emotion to shed a tear as Theo fantasizes about a happy future. Too little bloom on this charactor, too late. worse the male/female dialogue is sooooo romance novel! Quarrelling and miscommunication, I mean, when you are freezing and starving, who has time for egos!
But Xenophon, lost in the hub bub, lost as a charactor, and quite forgettable.
What is ultimately ironic, that the intelligence and depth is apparent in his writings and so why did this author miss it?
Never mind that he is legend as a horsemaster, yet, somehow, lost on the miles of carnage.
Perhaps cinematic audiences need to be bludgeoned over the head with graphic depictions, but read Homer, and in all the miles of writings, it's not as densely packed with viscera on the dirt as this book.
Yes, cultural divide be darned. Inured to violence to heck with that. Lots of great charactors marched through these pages, and to be sure, they don't have half the impact that the death of some lowly Greek has in the Iliad.
Run your search engine over to Ms Renault or Mr Lombardo...you will be much more sated when you are done reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent book
Review: Almost as good as Gates of Fire by Pressman. I am rereading it now.
Rating:
Summary: In ten thousand words or less
Review: I am conflicted regarding Mike Ford's "Ten Thousand". Overall I liked the book. It tries hard to be "Gates of Fire" but never quite reaches that level of quality. The first part of the book is the best, describing the march into Persia, the Battle of Cunaxa, the death of Cyrus and the election of Xenophon as general. In addition, you get a real feel of the extent of the hardships and deprivation the army was forced to endure in their truely epic march to safety. Where I feel the book falls short is its portrait of Xenophon himself. He doesn't come across as a character of the strength and depth necessary to lead an army in such dire circumstances. Also, the love story between Theo and Asteria I found extremely dull. And Theo himself comes in a poor second to "Gates" Xeo. Overall, however, if you love historical ficition as I do you will enjoy reading "The Ten Thousand".
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