Rating: 
Summary: Reads like a Wilbur Smith
Review: I can't believe I've found another writer like Wilbur. Fast and furious plot - at sea, fighting savages, in the senate, gladiators, boys growing into men - great stuff! I loved the bit about the raven and holding the earth in his hands with Tubruk. Highly recommended. If you liked Wilbur's Courtney stories (Is there anyone who doesn't?) you'll like this.
Rating:
Summary: fantastic storytelling from a first-rate new writer
Review: Several of the reviews above focus on EMPEROR's historical accuracy (or lack of) and judge its success on that alone but I believe these reactions miss the point of this splendid work of fiction. Iggulden's genius lies in his ability to take the facts and use them freely, with great panache, as components in the construction of a dramatically satisfying story. This process is hardly new to the literary world, after all - surely no-one objects to Shakespeare's mangling of Henry IV's biography, let alone Caesar's own? It seems strange that anyone should read EMPEROR expecting a literal rewriting of what they already knew about Caesar and Brutus' lives. For me, one of the novel's greatest pleasures was noting Iggulden's departures from the classical history I learned as a schoolboy. I found myself marvelling at his skill as he wove the past into a new and thrilling shape. Bring on volume two as soon as possible please. Captivating, energetic, swashbuckling: EMPEROR does what it says on the cover. Bravo!
Rating: 
Summary: Okay
Review: What is wrong with you people can't you let any one elaborate at all can you? Who cares about Brutus and them it was a superbly written book and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Rating: 
Summary: Deeply Disappointing
Review: I share Conn Iggulden's marvel at the life and accomplishments of Julius Caesar. For this reason I was frustrated and disappointed with this book. As Iggulden makes clear in his note at the end of the book, his motivation was to explore the constant question about Caesar, "How did he do that." Unfortunately, by distorting the history of Caesar's life, Iggulden has done himself, his readers, and his subject a great disservice. By taking considerable (and inexplicable) liberties with the history of Caesar's life, Iggulden has made it impossible to understand how or why Caesar did anything. For me, historical fiction should be about shedding light on the motivations and interactions of historical characters, but this requires the author to remain true to the history. If you change the history, how can you possibly know what motivated the characters? Iggulden writes well, especially for a first novel, and he has an eye for excitement and for conjuring interesting fictional events. However, his character development leaves much to be desired. In truth, I never felt a real "person" behind his main character. Only one or two of the fictional supporting characters ever felt real enough to me that I felt I understood their motivations. Caesar himself remains an opaque mystery--as do many of the other major historical figures. In particular, I thought Iggulden's treatment of Lucius Cornelius Sulla left a great deal to be desired. Sulla is one of the most fascinating figures in the history of the Roman Republic, probably second only to Caesar himself, yet in Iggulden's work it is impossible to understand what motivates this complex character. Like Caesar, Iggulden fails to draw a common set of threads among Sulla's actions leaving the reader without any clear sense of a personality. We know so little about Caesar's life that there is plenty of room to invent plausible scenarios to explain the gaps. There is no need to change the few facts we know. All this does is detract from our ability to use historical fiction to understand the past. If Iggulden wanted to write a fun, period novel set in the Roman Republic he could have done so. If he wanted to write historical fiction about Julius Caesar, as he asserts, he should have done so. I for one wish he had done the latter. My strongest recommendation is to instead read Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series, which demonstrates how interesting and absorbing good historical fiction can be--as well as how useful in helping to understand great figures from the past.
Rating:
Summary: Poor Writing - Worse History
Review: How this book got through a professional editor and reputable publisher illustrates the depths into which the "literary" world has plunged. If someone were truly interested in Rome prior to the Principate and felt more comfortable in the historical fiction arena then the only authentic, thoroughly well researched and equally well written series by Colleen McCullough is the only modern alternative. Her series, begining with the First Man in Rome and ending with the October Horse, traces the decline of the republic through the inter-related families of Gauis Marcus, Cornelius Sulla, Pompey Magnus, and the Julians ending with the defeat of Antony by Octavius. McCulough is well worth a read .... indeed at the issuance of each new volume over the past ten years, I have reread the entire series. Sad to note that October Horse is her final volume as she firmly believes that Octavius' story, particularly after the defeat of Antony is the story of the Principate and not the Republic. Would that she would have a change of mind and heart!
Rating:
Summary: Horrible History
Review: Other than the fact that Marcus Brutus was a generation younger, rumored to be Caesar's son and came from a family of wealth and mobility, him being Caesar's boyhood friend made absolutely no sense whatsoever. I was going to suggest that my 15 year old read this as an historical novel but forget it. Even children's books on this subject matter reveal these gross errors in history. Where will Caesar's nephew Octavius come from when Caesar has no sibling? Another stupid error.
Rating:
Summary: Horrible History
Review: Marcus Brutus was a generation younger, rumored to be Caesar's son and came from a family of wealth and nobility. Him being Caesar's boyhood friend made absolutely no sense whatsoever. I was going to suggest that my 15 year old read this as an historical novel but forget it. Even children's books on this subject matter reveal these gross errors in history.
Rating:
Summary: Great fun - great historical fiction
Review: I really have to take exception with the history professor who so roundly condemns a novel written to entertain. THE GATES OF ROME is everything that good historical fiction should be; a rattling good yarn that draws on the broad-brush aspects of history, not the minutiae. Iggulden writes with panache and obvious great pleasure in his subject, bringing to life the story of two boys growing up in the world of ancient Rome. Superb narrative drive whisks the reader through the epic power struggles, bloody battles, Senatorial in-fighting, and through the formative years of two boys who will form a relationship that endures through years of war and peace, yet will end ultimately in murder and betrayal. Read it for the fun and pleasure of a great story brilliantly told.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining Roman Adventure Leaves Something to be Desired
Review: My husband and I are both rabid historical fiction fans, particularly books that take place in Ancient Rome, so it was with high hopes that we both tore through Conn Iggulden's THE GATES OF ROME. While much of it is entertaining, Iggulden dumbs the historical facts down to a degree that borders on insulting. The high-born young Gaius (a.k.a. Julius) Caesar, and his childhood friend Marcus (later known as Brutus), share some amazing childhood adventures a la "Rich Man, Poor Man", which include being trained for battle by star gladiator and curmudgeon Rennius, fighting blue-faced savages, and saving the family farm. There is much worth reading in the book, but Iggulden should do his readers a favor and tell history like it was if he is going to write about recognizable characters. The brilliance of Steven Saylor's "Roma Sub Rosa" series, and John Maddox Roberts' "SPQR" novels is that both authors accurately portray known history and historical figures, and then invent like hell around them to create whopping great stories. Iggulden could certainly learn a thing or two from them. I look forward to seeing where the next installment will lead us, and can only hope Iggulden learns to trust his readers with the facts.
Rating:
Summary: Historical Fiction of the Worst Kind
Review: The author has fictionalized the life of Julius Caesar until it is unrecognizable slop. Although sources for Julius Caesar's early life are thin, it is no reason to alter family relationships (Aurelia, Caesar's mother, was not a lunatic, nor a plebian, nor was she Gaius Marius' sister) without any understanding of the naming system used by Patrician families or the relationships amongst them. Gaius Marius married Julius Caesar's aunt, Julia, a connection which brought the family into the center of late republican political storms (and Caesar's funeral oration for Julia remains one of his most moving pieces of oratory). Marcus Junius Brutus was hardly the son of a "party girl", and was the heir to a huge Roman fortune. He was also of a generation younger than Caesar, since Caesar's enemies often hissed rumors that Brutus was Caesar's illigitmate child. Is Octavian (Augustus) going to appear out of thin air, since Caesar is an only child and does not possess the sister Julia who will be Octavian's grandmother? I cannot believe that this got published, and as a history professor, it makes my skin crawl to think that someone might read this and extract some history from it. I love historical fiction, and am willing to suspend belief for some license, but this is sloppy, careless and mauls what we DO know about the families of Caesar, Gaius Marius and Sulla (not to mention Suetonius).
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