Master of Rome (Masters of the Sea)

The powerful third novel in the series is full of dramatic battles by land and sea, led by tremendous characters on both sides The young Greek captain Atticus is now a commander of the growing Roman navy, blockading a port near Tunis, when the Roman legions suffer terrible defeat by the the triumphant Carthaginian army, spearheaded by the elephant charges. When he and his ships escape together with the main body of the Roman fleet, they are first outmaneuvered by the Carthaginians, then are caught and almost completely annihilated by a terrible storm. Atticus and his crew are among the handful of survivors, and being the messenger of this news to the Senta in Rome brings Atticus into political troubles, almost as stormy as the sea. He begins to feel not only that a Greek will never be accepted by the Romans but also that the behavior of many, both politicians and soldiers, is such that he is not sure that he wants to be a Roman.