Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome [Paperback]

Robert Harris (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 7, 2007

In his "most accomplished work to date" (Los Angeles Times), master of historical fiction Robert Harris lures readers back in time to the compelling life of Roman Senator Marcus Cicero. The re-creation of a vanished biography written by his household slave and right-hand man, Tiro, Imperium follows Cicero's extraordinary struggle to attain supreme power in Rome.

On a cold November morning, Tiro opens the door to find a terrified, bedraggled stranger begging for help. Once a Sicilian aristocrat, the man was robbed by the corrupt Roman governor, Verres, who is now trying to convict him under false pretenses and sentence him to a violent death. The man claims that only the great senator Marcus Cicero, one of Rome's most ambitious lawyers and spellbinding orators, can bring him justice in a crooked society manipulated by the villainous governor. But for Cicero, it is a chance to prove himself worthy of absolute power. What follows is one of the most gripping courtroom dramas in history, and the beginning of a quest for political glory by a man who fought his way to the top using only his voice -- defeating the most daunting figures in Roman history.

Product Details

• Paperback: 305 pages
• Publisher: Gallery Books; Reprint edition (August 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743498666
• ISBN-13: 978-0743498661
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (167 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,906 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bestselling British author Harris (Pompeii; Enigma) returns to ancient Rome for this entertaining and enlightening novel of Marcus Cicero's rise to power. Narrated by a household slave named Tiro, who actually served as Cicero's "confidential secretary" for 36 years, this fictional biography follows the statesman and orator from his early career as an outsider—a "new man" from the provinces—to his election to the consulship, Rome's highest office, in 64 B.C. Loathed by the aristocrats, Cicero lived by his wits in a tireless quest for imperium—the ultimate power of life and death—and achieves "his life's ambition" after uncovering a plot by Marcus Crassus and Julius Caesar to rig the elections and seize control of the government. Harris's description of Rome's labyrinthine, and sometimes deadly, political scene is fascinating and instructive. The action is relentless, and readers will be disappointed when Harris leaves Cicero at the moment of his greatest triumph. Given Cicero's stormy consulship, his continuing opposition to Julius Caesar and his own assassination, readers can only hope a sequel is in the works. Until then, this serves as a superb first act. 350,000 announced first priting; 10-city author tour. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–The tumultuous history of Rome from 79 to 64 B.C. comes alive in this fictional biography of Marcus Tullius Cicero, the politician and superb orator who rose to the empire's highest office after starting as an outsider from the provinces. His first legal case drew him into a long battle with powerful Gaius Verres, the dangerously corrupt governor of Sicily. Cicero displayed his wit and talent for oration and strategy to triumph over Verres and other opponents in high-profile cases. Harris has written a fast-paced tale, the first part of a trilogy. He examines the full spectrum of Roman society, including its dark side of corruption, class divisions, betrayal, and cruelty. Cicero, who sought imperium, or ultimate power of the state, is portrayed as a sympathetic figure whose allegiance was to the idea of Republic. The author paints a vivid picture of everyday life, and the courtroom dramas are, at times, riveting. Readers will recognize other famous Romans who pop up in the story, including Julius Caesar and Pompey. They may also recognize the timelessness of the pursuit of power.–Susanne Bardelson, Kitsap Regional Library, WA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 305 pages
• Publisher: Gallery Books; Reprint edition (August 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743498666
• ISBN-13: 978-0743498661
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (167 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,906 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Harris is the author of Pompeii, Enigma, and Fatherland. He has been a television correspondent with the BBC and a newspaper columnist for the London Sunday Times and The Daily Telegraph. His novels have sold more than ten million copies and been translated into thirty languages. He lives in Berkshire, England, with his wife and four children.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

233 of 240 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Novel about Republican Rome September 27, 2006

By Suzanne Cross

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I give this novel my highest personal rating: it performs the extremely difficult task of making Cicero, a rather stuffy icon for 2 millennia, as accessible and as politically understandable as the national news in your local paper and to paint his turbulent times in a way anyone can identify with and understand. It is simply the best novel I've ever read, in terms of historical accuracy and intelligent reading of complex personalities, about the failing Roman Republic.

I have always had problems with Cicero. You have the "lawyer's briefs," his speeches and trials; you have the wonderful intimate, flawed, and somehow endearing correspondence in which Cicero proves he was far from able to navigate the complex political currents of his remarkable day; then you have his alliance with the Optimates, the rich nobles whose refusal to reform the Roman Republic made it, in part, possible for military strong-men like Pompey and Caesar to threaten and finally help destroy it.

Harris is simply superb. He uses Cicero's actual slave, Tiro (famous as his closest assistant) as the narrator of the remarkable and tragic events of those final years. I've read enough of Cicero to feel that Harris has somehow internalized and channeled both his speeches and correspondence; the context is effortlessly painted. Harris' comprehensive knowledge of Rome in the period roughly 70 BC is so meticulous that he makes it seem as easy to paint as an artist in a modern Chinatown. I've read enough of Harris' earlier novels to know that he's a fine plotter and draws clear characters. But I did not expect how he would recreate living men and women in a vanished time with such comfort and authenticity....

One of the great early trials that "made" Cicero's name was his prosecution of the politically-connected noble, Verres, who had pillaged his Sicilian province. In reading of the preparation for and prosecution of this trial (which took real political courage, in view of the vested interests ranged against conviction), I can honestly say it reads like a thriller and its culmination is extraordinarily moving - all while following history meticulously. But Harris isn't out to make Cicero a saint - we see (perhaps all too clearly, as parallels with modern politics spring easily to mind) just what it takes to claw your way up the Roman political tree, the kinds of compromises it requires, the kind of damage it can do to the man.

First in, I understand, a remarkable trilogy in which Cicero's career is impacted by other giants - Pompey, Caesar, Crassus, Clodius, all unforgettably drawn - this book is unput-downable, remarkably effective in conveying us to an ancient world, thrillingly able to make the connections between ancient and modern times through the medium of a remarkable politician who would be equally at home, now, in Washington or Baghdad. You will not feel the same about Cicero, or ancient Rome, again. Read more ›

73 of 75 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Friends, Romans and Amazon shoppers, lend me your ears! November 4, 2006

By Colin P. Lindsey VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

What a treat this book is and what an extraordinary author is Robert Harris. His scholarship is impeccable, his story-telling is mesmerizing, and his writing is a pure treat. This novel, depicting the early career of Marcus Tullius Cicero, is presented as the recollections of Tiro, Cicero's personal secretary and assistant throughout his life. There was an actual publication by Tiro on the life of Cicero which was lost forever during the tumult during the 6th century and the fall of empire. Harris writes a plausible, and thoroughly enjoyable, recreation of that lost tract. If you enjoy Roman history you will be entranced with this novel. In my opinion it is better even than his popular "Pompeii" which was a smashingly good book.

The novel covers the first twenty years of Cicero's career from when Tiro was first given to Cicero in their early twenties, their travels through Greece to learn philosophy and their sojourn on the island of Rhodes to learn public speaking from Molon, the brilliant legal career of the young Cicero on his return to Rome including his infamous prosecution of Gaius Verres, the wicked governor of Sicily, and his rise to the seat of Consul during the years of strife between Crassus and Pompey.

As the book itself points out, Cicero was never an able, dashing general, nor an aristocrat; he was an upstart young attorney from the country, a "new man" with no friends or fortune. So how, in the face of adversity, and the enmity of the ruling class, did he climb the cursus honorum to become Consul of Rome? Why, when he controlled no armies, conquered no territory, amassed no fortune, is the name of Cicero still remembered and revered today along with the likes of Crassus, Julius Caesar, and Pompey?... This book does an admirable job of showing how Cicero used his mind, his indomitable will, and his razor sharp wit to carve himself a place in history. For those unfamiliar with Cicero, I can't imagine a more entertinaing or enjoyable introduction to this complex and fascinating figure.

I have long been a fan of Colleen McCullough's Rome series, perhaps my favorite work of literature ever, but I have to admit that Imperium is so good it compares favorably with her works. If I have any true quibbles with this book it is only that it ends on the day he becomes Consul of Rome at age 42. The story of Cicero has so much more to it yet! Where is the story of his persecution of Catilina, his antagonism to Caesar even while his beloved brother Quintus served as one of his legates in Gaul, and his role in the Civil war between Pompey and Caesar? Harris tells only the first half of the story; I am hoping that there will be a sequel soon to complete this fabulous and wonderfully entertaining treatment of the brilliant Cicero. Read more ›

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Power politics in ancient Rome, told with verve and style January 20, 2007

By Rebecca Huston

Format:Hardcover

Ancient Rome has the power to still enthrall us, even after fifteen hundred years after it fell as a political power. And the modern world has used the symbols of ancient Rome in architecture, politics and language, giving a haunting familiarity to it as well.

Author Robert Harris, a longtime journalist, returns to the Romans again for the setting of his new novel, Imperium . Set in the tumultuous times just before the collapse of the Roman Republic, it's a story of one man, and his family, as remembered by a remarkable slave, Tiro, who tells the story in a series of memoirs.

Marcus Tullius Cicero is a rising young star in the legal system, known for skill in defending various petty criminals. He's married into money, but his proud wife, Terentia , is too smart to let him use it. Cicero has managed to amass a credible client base, a move that may bring him success in the future, but only if he's very lucky. Outside the walls of his modest home, there are massive political forces at work -- and Cicero is about to find himself caught between two of the most powerful men in Rome.

Crassus is returning to Rome after crushing Spartacus' rebellion, and crucifying more than six thousand slaves on the Appian way as an object lesson to the servile classes. It's sight that horrifies both Cicero and his secretary, Tiro, a slave that grew up beside Cicero, and has become his confidant. Crassus is more than willing to help Cicero climb up the political ladder, but despite his hunger to become famous, Cicero is smart enough to be wary of the offer.

But luck is about to provide an unexpected turn. A bedraggled man arrives at Cicero's door, pleading for the advocate to take on a corruption case that involves the former governor of Sicily.... Verres has murdered, enslaved, looted the island's farms and temples, and made the lives of the inhabitants a living misery. Will Cicero take on the case? The lawyer isn't so sure, after all, there's little evidence beyond hearsay, and Verres has the backing of powerful men. But the Sicilian begs him to think of the justice involved, that at the heart of things, Verres has done wrong, and Cicero takes it on.

Unhappily, one of Verres friends is the very successful general, Pompey, who is vain, very fond of the grand gesture, and has a tendency to force his own way in things. Needless to say, he and Crassus are deadly enemies to each other.

The first half of the novel is taken up with the prosecution of Verres, and Cicero and Tiro gathering up evidence. Through their eyes we witness the plight of the lowest, greed of the highest, and Cicero's own rise to power. For Cicero is one of the greatest orators of all time, able to turn a scathing comment at a second's notice, and not even his wife is immune to his barbed attacks. Terentia -- who is one of the more surprising characters in the story -- gives back as good as she gets.

When the surprising outcome happens, Cicero sees an even greater prize on the horizon -- a chance to make his name shine forever in Rome by being elected consul, one of the two leaders of the Senate, and the gateway to more power. But will he and his family survive the stresses of seeking high office?

I would have thought that a story about political mudslinging, backroom deals, and generally very unpleasant people would be dull as dishwater. Politics usually leaves me with a strong desire to take a very long, very hot shower to get the muck off, but I found myself fascinated by this story that gently untangles one of the more interesting people to inhabit Republican Rome, and make sense of the story. One of reasons why this works so well is Harris' attention to detail, and his use of Cicero's own speeches and letters, many of which were transcribed by Tiro, who had invented a means of shorthand to take it all down.

And Cicero's own words are amazing in and of themselves. It's stark, damning prose when he's chasing down corruption, or when he is trying to charm someone with the trick of sweetness. While the story does stop abruptly, it does have a completed feel to it, and I suspect that Harris has a sequel or two in mind. His other novel set in Ancient Rome is about a massive earthquake that devastated the city of Pompeii about ten years before the eruption of Vesuvius, and is as much a mystery novel as one about adventure, entitled simply Pompeii.

Fans of Colleen McCullough's massive series about the fall of the Roman Republic will probably enjoy this one. Many of the characters that appeared in those books are here as well, but in rather different guises. Harris' depiction of Pompey, Julius Caesar, Crassus and Cicero are not as detailed, perhaps, but just as compelling.

And that's what it all really comes down to. It's cracking good story that had me up for most of the night reading, and I happily recommend it to any one. Read more ›