W. has established himself as one of the leading scholars on Classical and Hellenistic Macedonia, having authored numerous books that cover both the last Argead and the Antigonid kings. His latest work on the twilight of Macedonia offers the first full-scale treatment of Philip V, Perseus and Andriscus in English in several decades. Rather than accept the all-too-common scholarly brush-off of these historical figures, he has constructed a nuanced critical narrative of their time, policies, military campaigns and struggles with their neighbours and, above all Rome, that is based on a careful discussion of the primary and the secondary sources. W.'s book is a welcome addition to recent work on the Antigonids, including M. D'Agostini's The Rise of Philip V: Kingship and Rule in the Hellenistic World (2019); K. Panagopoulou's The Early Antigonids: Coinage, Money, and the Economy (2020); R. Waterfield's The Making of a King. Antigonus Gonatas of Macedon and the Greeks (2021); and E. Nicholson's Philip V of Macedon in Polybius’ Histories: Politics, History, and Fiction (2023).

The introduction offers an important historiographical essay, while an exemplary primary source review is pushed to the end of the book as an appendix. The first chapter, ‘The Kingdom of Macedonia’, is an overview of the history and geography of Macedonia, especially under Philip II, who turned it into a hegemony. W. dwells on the political and military organisation of the kingdom as well as on the ideology of Macedonian kingship. The next chapter, ‘Introducing Philip V’, offers an overview of the Antigonid dynasty and focuses on Philip V, whose goals during his 42-year reign had been to reassert Macedonia's standing in Greece and Illyria and to keep Rome at arm's length. Moreover, upon his death, and despite continuous wars, he left behind a prosperous kingdom. Chapter 3, ‘The Social War’, gives an overview of the entrance of Rome in the East as well as of the policies of the Achaean and Aetolian Leagues, and of the thorn in Philip V's eye that was Illyria. As Philip V succeeded the throne, and despite being very young, he hit the ground running, scoring some serious military victories. The new king is portrayed as a ruthless and quick-to-respond ruler, who established himself amidst conflict and who quickly emancipated himself from the entourage of his predecessor, Antigonus Doson.

Philip V's first clash with Rome and its allies in Greece culminated in the First Macedonian War (214–205 bce), which broke out at a time when the Romans were engaged in the Second Punic War (218–201 bce). The Macedonian king, who had been fighting the clear and present danger coming from the Illyrians to the west, like most of his predecessors for centuries, besides dealing with the occasional northern threat of the Dardanians and Attalus I of Pergamon in Thrace, took a calculated gamble by allying himself with Hannibal at a time when the Carthaginian general had recently massacred the Roman army at Cannae and looked increasingly unbeatable. The war was formally ended with the Peace of Phoenice, in whose aftermath Philip V maintained his uneasy coexistence with the Illyrians and the Roman presence there, continued the war with Pergamon over Thrace and Rhodes over the northern Aegean, and made an alliance with Antiochus III of Syria.

Soon enough, the Second Macedonian War (200–197 bce) broke out. Philip V's prior alliance with Hannibal had not endeared him to the Romans, who were additionally concerned about a potential Macedonian alliance with the Gauls. Stretching Philip V thin on many fronts therefore became Roman strategy. The war ended after the Battle at Cynoscephalae (197 bce), after which Macedonia lost much of its territory, leading the victor, Titus Quinctius Flamininus, to declare himself deceptively as the liberator of the Greeks from Macedonia if not from the Romans. However, peace was not meant to last, as arguments among the Greeks continued, not to mention that Rome drove a divide between Philip V's sons, favouring the youngest, Demetrius, over Perseus, the heir apparent. Philip V's decision to settle his succession by having Demetrius assassinated may have led him to an untimely death at age 58. In the section entitled ‘Excellent and Loyal Conduct’, which is part of Chapter 8, W. offers an excellent profile of the king, describing him as a competent man of his time, a good general, who acted in the best interests of his kingdom and was successful some of the time, a remarkable feat given the contemporary rise of Rome. Furthermore, he is described as a man who lived hard and played hard, and whose reign has often been unfairly considered to have been a postscript to his predecessors, as his kingdom headed steadily towards its demise.

Chapters 9 and 10 deal with the reign of Perseus, another king who presumably suffered from bad press in the hands of ancient authors whom W. considers as suspect. Initially, Perseus sought to continue his father's treaties and amicitia with Rome, already predisposed to suspicion of Macedonia, while he also tended to the internal affairs of the state. Through diplomacy, he endeavoured to mend relations with Greece and to increase his influence through benefactions as well as dynastic alliances with Bithynia and Seleucid Syria. His relationship with Rome soon deteriorated not least because of the active animosity of Aetolia and Pergamon, which eventually succeeded in rallying the Romans for the Third Macedonian War (171–168 bce). In Chapter 11, ‘Dismembering Macedonia’, W. discusses Perseus’ defeat at Pydna and its aftermath, culminating in the division of Macedonia into four republics, thereby destroying the state's former unity. In his assessment of Perseus in Chapter 12, ‘Andriscus aka Philip VI and the Fourth Macedonian War’, W. refrains from considering the last Antigonid king a failure, taking note of the circumstances in which he reigned and the formidable enemies his father had made. A more nuanced picture of a good administrator thus emerges, who successfully tended to the economy of his state, built up his resources and showed good will to both friends and foes. Nevertheless, while being a good strategist and leader, Perseus was not successful in becoming more of a match for Rome.

The last part of the book involves an updated and especially timely discussion of the struggle of Andriscus, a presumed illegitimate son of Perseus, who reclaimed the throne of Macedonia after gaining local support, and whose actions led to the Fourth Macedonian War, his defeat and execution, and the creation of the Province of Macedonia. W. ends with an overall assessment of the last three kings, whose posthumous reputation, he stresses, was much tainted by Polybius’ bias and Roman propaganda. He makes a convincing case for looking at the last Antigonids as strong, resilient, brave and cunning kings, excellent diplomats who strove to protect their kingdom from external enemies, but who never stood a chance against Rome, considering their reigns as important, rather than a postscript to the glory of Philip II and Alexander the Great's classical Macedonia that is usually overlooked. After all, they gave their enemies, especially Rome, a hard time before they were decisively defeated, even though they did not have the military and technological advantage that led to their predecessors’ successes.

W.'s book is a valuable and indispensable narrative of the last Antigonids that offers a lens through which we are better able to understand that turbulent period of the Hellenistic era. It also sheds light on some of the political dynamics that shaped Rome's fateful entrance and continuing presence in Greek affairs, by delving into all the subtleties and intricacies of the conflicts involving the last eight decades or so of the Macedonian kingdom.