Tagged: masters of rome
The Grass Crown by Colleen McCullough
(Cover picture courtesy of The Incurable Bluestocking.)
Throughout the Western world, great kingdoms have fallen and despots lay crushed beneath the heels of Rome’s advancing legions. But now internal rebellion threatens the stability of the mighty Republic. An aging, ailing Gaius Marius, heralded conqueror of Germany and Numidia, longs for that which was prophesied many years before: an unprecedented seventh consulship of Rome. It is a prize to be won only through treachery and with blood, pitting Marius against a new generation of assassins, power-seekers and Senate intriguers—and setting him at odds with the ambitious, tormented Lucius Cornelius Sulla, once Marius’s most trusted right-hand man, now his most dangerous rival.
It goes without saying that we get to see things from the POVs of our old favourite characters Marius and Sulla but I for one welcomed the introduction of other characters. Livia Drusa was a fantastic female character and her situation really gave me more insight into the plight of aristocratic women in Rome. And of course who can forget the precocious young Gaius Julius Caesar, who is feared by Marius because of old Martha’s prophecy that he would surpass his uncle? As with how it actually happened, Marius’s declining health and mental state led to Sulla’s meteoric rise up the ranks of the Roman hierarchy. The way Colleen McCullough chose to tell the story was very telling: Marius, whose star is fading, receives very little page time while Sulla takes the main stage.
While I can see where this new expanded set of characters might confuse some readers, if you’ve read The First Man in Rome you’ll have no trouble following the many intrigues of The Grass Crown. The Social War is sort of the main war in this book and it’s certainly not simplistic. What fascinated me the most was the different approaches the many Senators took to the war and how they proposed to stop the Italian rebellion and discourage future rebellions. Pompey Strabo Carnifex, true to his name (‘Pompey Cross-Eyed Butcher’ in English) was a truly horrible character that demonstrated the worst the patrician class had to offer. There are just so many different, complex characters that if I start on them now this review will turn into an essay.
In essence the characters drive the story, whether they’re Roman or not since we get to see things from all points of view. The plot is not fast-paced by any stretch of the imagination and yet Colleen McCullough’s writing is just too good to put down. She truly cares about historical accuracy and her writing immerses you in the cutthroat world of ancient Rome. From the halls of the Senate to the blood-soaked streets of Rome all the way to the far east of the empire, you’ll feel like you’re really there with the characters watching the events play out. And that, my friends, is a special talent very few writers possess.
With the end being such a cliffhanger I had no choice but to dive straight into the next book, Fortune’s Favorites. Truly, Colleen McCullough has an addictive writing style.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The First Man in Rome by Colleen McCullough
(Cover picture courtesy of Avon Romance.)
When the world cowered before the legions of Rome, two extraordinary men dreamed of personal glory: the military genius and wealthy rural “upstart” Marius, and Sulla, penniless and debauched but of aristocratic birth. Men of exceptional vision, courage, cunning, and ruthless ambition, separately they faced the insurmountable opposition of powerful, vindictive foes. Yet allied they could answer the treachery of rivals, lovers, enemy generals, and senatorial vipers with intricate and merciless machinations of their own—to achieve in the end a bloody and splendid foretold destiny…and win the most coveted honor the Republic could bestow.
After reading so many Young Adult books of late, reading something as heavy as The First Man in Rome was a refreshing challenge. Trust me, even if you know your Roman history well, this is a book that you should not read when you’re tired. You will forget all of the plot points.
I first fell in love with Colleen McCullough’s writing after reading The Song of Troy because her portrayals of historical characters were amazing. She made it feel that not only was I alongside these famous people, but that I truly understood them. Well, she does the exact same thing in The First Man in Rome. From Marius’ brilliant leadership in the battlefield to his dismal political career, I really feel like I know the legend as a man. We see the soft side of him when it comes to Julia, his more ruthless streak at the end of the novel and his never-ending ambition to become the First Man in Republican Rome. He’s a larger-than-life character and yet he seems extremely accessible. Contrast that to the brilliant, but debauched young patrician Sulla who develops the ruthless streak he was known for later in life. These two have an unlikely friendship, but it’s one that I absolutely love because it shows that not everything is in black and white.
If you don’t know much about Roman history, I can see where you would get confused by The First Man in Rome. Thankfully, Colleen McCullough includes a well over 200 page index that tells you everything from the English translations of Latin curses (very creative!) to the history behind many of the events characters refer to. But if you’re like me and have someone like Mike Duncan to thank for your knowledge of ancient Rome, you’ll just breeze through The First Man in Rome. In terms of historical accuracy, I can’t pick away at it. Everything is well researched and McCullough does an excellent job of defending her hypotheses in places where there are gaps in the historical record.
I wouldn’t call this a fast-paced book, but it’s not meant to be either. It’s meant to be a sprawling novel in order to draw you in to the cutthroat world of Roman politics and to explore the lives of the main players. The strange thing about Colleen McCullough’s books is that they have this sort of grand, epic feel to them that I can’t quite explain. It’s like you know they’re on par with classic novels, but there’s no sense that McCullough was trying really hard for that ‘classic novel’ status. Her books feel like epic novels in an effortless sort of way and that’s really part of the attraction of her writing: it’s larger-than-life, yet accessible to most readers. That’s why, despite the intimidating length and amount of time I need to spend on them, I’ll certainly be continuing her Masters of Rome series.
I give this book 5/5 stars.