My new book, Themistocles: The Rise and Fall of Athens’s Naval Mastermind (hardback available for pre-order) - will be published on 3rd February 2026
“Like all Michael Scott's books, this life of Themistocles- Athenian statesman and military risk taker- is erudite and thoughtful, filled with detailed analysis but never less than stylishly written. A fascinating and necessary biography.”
- Natalie Haynes author of No Friend to This House
“Scott has pulled off a remarkable feat- a fabulously written book that combines the page-turning excitement of a novel with the painstaking erudition of academic research.”
- Naoise Mac Sweeney author of Troy: Myth, City, Icon
“Having swapped acclaim for shame, Themistocles seemingly embodies the Hollywood adage that you either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become a villain. This hugely enjoyable biography zips through his rise and fall with scintillating pace and clear prose.”
- Greg Jenner presenter of You're Dead to Me podcast
Themistocles (524-459 BCE) came of age just as a newly democratic and empowered Athens was emerging. He would become an instrumental political and military figure, fighting in the Battle of Marathon; persuading Athenians to expand their fleet; and engineering the Athenians’ defeat of the Persians at the battle of Salamis. However, as Michael Scott demonstrates in this biography, Themistocles failed as much as he succeeded.
Scott offers a fully human picture of Themistocles, a man who could be both decisive and heroic as well as uncertain and unprepared. He was loved and hated in Athens, his plans and ideas ignored as often as they were respected. Eventually he was exiled as a traitor, ultimately settling in Persia as an adviser to Artaxerxes, the son of Xerxes, his foe at Salamis. And yet, in the aftermath of his death, he emerged as one of Greece’s historical heroes.
In this portrait of a man, Thucydides, deemed one of the most illustrious Greeks of his time, Scott reveals one man struggled to navigate the turbulent world of Athenian politics, and the crucial role of historians and biographers in shaping, and distorting, the image of Themistocles that has come down to us through the centuries.
Audio book rights bought by Tantor Audio
Italian translation rights bought by LEG srl
Greek translation rights bought by Pedio Publishing
All other language rights available.
