Give Me Back My Legions!

Give Me Back My Legions! is a 2009 historical novel by Harry Turtledove. While Turtledove is mainly known for alternate history novels, this novel is a historical novel, in which the real-life events leading up to the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, as well as the battle itself, are re-created.

Explanation of the title

The title refers to Emperor Augustus' alleged words in the aftermath of the battle, in which he was so devastated by the annihilation of three Roman legions that he spent the next several weeks in a stupor, repeating the phrase "Give me back my legions!" (some translators replace "legions" with "Eagles").

Plot

Publius Quinctilius Varus, formerly the governor of Syria, is appointed to the governorship of Germany, a hold-out full of what the Romans thought of as barbarians. During a brief assignment to the Legions in Dalmatia, Varus befriends the Germani auxiliary commander Arminius, unaware that the latter has plans of his own for the Romans occupying Germany.

Style

As with many of Turtledove's novels, we see several viewpoint characters, including Arminius, Varus, Segestes and others.