The Golden Age Books in Order

The Golden Age series picks up where the Athenian books leave off, following Athens into the age of Pericles and the beginnings of the long rivalry with Sparta. Rather than treating the “golden age” as a simple time of art and philosophy, Conn Iggulden shows how culture, war and politics are tightly knotted together.

In The Lion, Pericles begins as the son of a celebrated general, keenly aware that he lives in another man’s shadow. The novel charts his rise through the rough-and-tumble of Athenian democracy: public prosecutions, hostile playwrights, fickle voters and hard-headed allies. At the same time, Persia still looms in the background, and Athenian hoplites and rowers must prove themselves on campaign if the city is to keep its newfound prestige.

Empire finds Pericles at the height of his influence, guiding a city that now leads a powerful maritime alliance. A devastating setback for Sparta tempts him to tighten Athens’s grip, turning allies into subjects and tribute into the fuel for grand building projects. The book explores how a politician who genuinely believes in democracy can still make decisions that push his world toward a much larger and bloodier war.

Across both novels, familiar historical names—Pericles, Cimon, the Spartan kings—share the stage with sailors, craftsmen and women whose fortunes rise and fall with the city. You see assemblies on the Pnyx, crowded docks, plague-ridden streets and glittering festivals, all threaded through with the knowledge that no empire lasts forever.

For readers who met Athens in the Athenian duology, the Golden Age books feel like the next act: the same city, a generation later, wrestling with success as much as with enemies. They offer a rich mix of naval battles, political manoeuvring and domestic drama set against one of history’s most influential periods.