More Old Line Science Fiction Authors, L. Sprague de Camp

de Camp was a pretty good writer.  All his stuff is worth reading.  My favorite is Lest Darkness Fall. It's old, copyright 1939. but it still reads well.  Thru methods not well explained, a modern archeologist, Martin Padway gets miraculously transported from our modern time back to Ancient Rome of the 500s.  Despite being written about 70 years ago Padway comes off as a perfectly reasonable modern American in his dealing with the inhabitants of Ancient Rome.   Fortunately Padway knows Latin and Italian well enough to get along in Ancient Rome.  He manages to make a living by borrowing money from a local Rome banker and setting up to distill and sell brandy.  The time is just a few weeks before Justinian, the Eastern Rome Emperor will make his attempt to reconquer Italy for the Empire.  Padway decides to oppose Justinian and Justinian's general Belisaurius.  Thru good luck, and employment of some 20th century military ideas, the Goths in Italy, with Padway leading them, manage to defeat the Imperial invasion.   Padway meets a number of pretty and cool chicks, does not marry any of them.  All in all a good read.  You will enjoy it.