Sheldon Collins’s THE LEGEND OF VALENTINE: AN ANCIENT HISTORICAL LOVE STORY is a historical epic about Saint Valentine, whose steadfast devotion and acts of compassion would make him an enduring symbol of love for centuries to come. Set against the backdrop of a crumbling Roman empire in the third century A.D., the novel follows the life of Valentine Romanus, a soldier whose journey of spiritual awakening and redemption transforms him from valiant centurion to Christian martyr and patron of lovers everywhere.
Opening with a tender prologue depicting the childhood bond between Valentine and his first love, Rose, Collins establishes the novel’s core romantic thread before propelling readers into the politically charged atmosphere of Emperor Gallienus’s Rome. As Valentine rises through military ranks, his path intersects with Rose—now called Agatha—once more, rekindling their connection even as forces conspire to keep them apart. Their romance serves as a lens through which Collins examines broader themes of religious persecution and personal transformation.
From the chaos of the battlefield to the hushed sanctity of a candlelit chapel, Collins brings the ancient world to life with richly evocative prose. Especially effective are his depictions of battle sequences, which render brutal scenes of combat with visceral intensity: “One arrow struck him with devastating force, piercing his chest near his heart. Grasping the shaft, he felt an unbearable pain surge through him, while blood oozed from his armor-less body…as he gazed skyward, the image of arrows blurred, transforming into iron petals showering over him as his mind slipped away into unconsciousness.”
It is the unbreakable bond between Valentine and Agatha, two lost souls who find in each other the strength to defy an empire, that forms the transcendent heart of the novel. Agatha—who was blinded in an accident years before their reunion—possesses a beauty and spirited intelligence that captivates Valentine, reigniting feelings long buried. “I see a courageous and beautiful maiden before me—one who has never turned her back on adversity,” Valentine tells her. Collins captures the tenderness and passion of Valentine and Agatha’s love with the same care that he brings to the novel’s historical milieu.
In refashioning Saint Valentine’s mythic origins into a grandly entertaining yet profoundly humane page-turner, Sheldon Collins demonstrates the timeless power of a well-spun yarn to enlighten and transform.
Sheldon Collins’s THE LEGEND OF VALENTINE delivers an arresting fusion of meticulously researched historical fiction, star-crossed romance, and spiritual rebirth.
~Edward Sung for IndieReader