Customer Reviews

The Ides of March

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The most powerful man in the world may be powerless to the fates. "The Ides of March" is a novel of famed ruler of the known world, Julius Caesar and the overwhelming challenges that lied before him. The corruption of the court wains his power, and it seems by the day, he grows weaker, unable to stop his ultimate fate as it was prophecy by a soothsayer. "The Ides of March" is a riveting novel of Roman politics and intrigue, highly recommended.

Not even if that man is Julius Caesar.

It seems to me that there are two main hurdles a writer must overcome if one is going to write a piece of fiction on the assassination of Julius Caesar. First, he or she must create a plot that is sufficiently interesting that the reader will stay absorbed in the story even though they know the ending. Second, the characters, both real and fictional, must be drawn well and with historical accuracy.

Valerio Massimo Manfredi's "The Ides of March" succeeds as far as plotting concerns. The story focuses mainly on Caesar's attempts to confirm that there is, in fact, a plot to take his life and creates a parallel story line that tracks the actions of those loyal to Caesar and those of the conspirators. The plot works well and actually maintained my interest all the way through. It was a well-thought out plot and it develops nicely.

Where "The Ides of March" fails, and fails badly in my opinion is in it character development. Although the characters (both real and fictional) seem to be drawn with great accuracy in a historical sense they virtually all come across as wooden. It is no small feat to make Julius Caesar and the likes of Marcus Junius Brutus or Marcus Antonius seem stilted and one-dimensional but, perhaps because something is lost in the translation, they lack the sort of spark that would make you feel vested in the characters.

Recommendation: I'd say this book is worth taking a look at if you have a plane ride or need some light beach reading. The plot is interesting enough to keep you reading through to the end and Manfredi has clearly taken the time to create what appears to be an accurate picture of life in the time of the Caesar. It isn't great literature but you probably won't toss it away before you finish it. Basically, about 3 stars for the plot and 2 stars for the characters.

The Ides of March This book is much better than the two, 2 star reviews that were currently available at the time that I made this review. While the characters are not incredibly deep--as other reviewers have stated correctly--the story flows well, especially in the beginning. It does drag a bit in the middle, and I would offer a suggestion; read the book in a very short period of time. Why? Well, because due to the author's use of many fictional characters and very short mini-chapters in which he moves back and forth from Caesar to this character, then another, then another 2!, etc, it becomes very convoluted if you've put the book down for a few days and then jump back into it. I should have read it in only one day and not attempted to read it at night while I was also focused on reading Caesar by Adrian Goldsworthy. At times I had to go to the back of the book and look up the characters, which the author has wisely identified with short synopsises on each. But overall, I enjoyed the book and find it a worthwhile read.

Any reasonably educated person will already be familiar with the events that occurred on the fateful day from which this novel derives its title. For those who wish to learn more beyond what is contained in the Shakespeare play however, I would recommend...something other than this. Granted, it is a novel and not a history. Yet the characters are rather two dimensional and not very sympathetic, hardly the qualities of an engaging novel. Much of it reads like a juvenile adventure story focusing on a couple characters outside of Rome who learn of the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar and attempt to reach the city in time to prevent it, but --spoiler alert!-- they fail. There are also a lot of verbal clichés used in both the dialogue and the narration. There are a few interesting notes at the end, and the beautiful cover makes the book a very aesthetically pleasing object, but the main content leaves quite a bit to be desired.