Customer Reviews

Roma: The Novel of Ancient Rome

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

The thing that shocks most modern tourists visiting the site of Pompeii is the ubiquitous winged phallus that adorns almost everything in the city. To the modern sensibility this is something obscene, but to the Romans it was a holy icon representing the generative quality of life itself. This winged phallus plays a central role in Steven Saylor's fabulous new novel, ROMA. This image in the form of a gold amulet passed from generation to generation is the thread that unites the many episodes of this book. (The conclusion that Saylor draws about this icon at the end of the novel is provocative indeed!) ROMA traces the history of Rome from its beginnings as a trading post on the prehistoric salt trail to its peak as the undisputed master of the world during the reign of the emperor Augustus. Although Saylor is one of today's most prominent historians, ROMA is certainly no dry historical treatise. It's a rip-roaring adventure story with lots of suspense and sex and violence. Some of the episodes are horror stories and others are incredibly moving love stories of different kinds of forbidden love.

In his afterword, Saylor states that his major inspiration was the work of the Roman historian known as Livy. Livy also inspired Shakespeare, who took the stories of CORIOLANUS and THE RAPE OF LUCRECE from his histories. The stories of Coriolanus and Lucretia are also included in ROMA. I tried reading Livy about 25 years ago and found it rough going, but after reading ROMA, I'd like to give it another try. In fact, I wish this book had been around before I read Shakespeare's JULIUS CAESAR and CORIOLANUS. This book adds so much depth of understanding to both those works. For instance, the opening scene of JULIUS CAESAR takes place at the Roman festival of the Lupercalia, in which naked athletes compete in a race through Rome. ROMA explains the origins of the Lupercalia (it started with Romulus and Remus), so that the modern reader can understand why it's important that Caesar's wife gets touched by the runners. ROMA also clarifies the relationships between all the other characters in JULIUS CAESAR. (Cassius and Brutus were brothers-in-law!) Even though there's a LOT of sex in the book (none of it very graphic), I'm giving it to my teenage nephew so that he can read it before his class studies JULIUS CAESAR.

As with all of Saylor's work that takes place in Ancient Rome, ROMA is alive with the details of daily life in Rome that give the book a depth and texture that few authors writing today can rival. One of the more interesting aspects of the book for me is the thread that traces the development of the Roman religion. The religion is officially founded when cousins Potitius and Pinarius (friends of Romulus and Remus) erect the first altar to Hercules (in gratitude for killing the cannibal giant Cacus who menaced their hillside hamlet). They learn to read omens and begin a long line of priests who can predict the outcome of an enterprise by examining the entrails of a sacrificial animal. Later the sect of the Vestal Virgins with their sacred laws given by the Sibyl becomes part of Roman life and still later other foreign deities and their rites are imported from conquered territories. These foreign deities include the "Great Mother" Cybele with her eunuch priests and Bacchus, whose rites are celebrated with drunken orgies.

ROMA is a thrilling emotional roller coaster ride that also offers intellectual and philosophical depth. I loved this extremely textured work and feel privileged to have been among the first people to read a book that I believe will be beloved by millions. Five stars.

Some of you might have noticed by now that I am fairly well addicted to history, whether it be in the form of fiction or fact. And I've got a very soft spot for ancient Rome. Maybe it's the sheer spectacle of it, or that I can see so much of our modern world echoed in those long ago times.

Author Steven Saylor takes a step away from his long running series, Roma Sub Rosa, about Gordianus the Finder, and tells the story of Rome itself, or as it was known to those who live there, Roma. Saylor uses the device of an item being passed down through the many generations of a family, and their adventures, both good and bad.

Starting nearly a thousand years before the time of Augustus, there is a spot where the salt traders from the coast cross a river at a shallow ford, using a nearby island for a place to camp. One such group has the tribe's most knowledgable leader, Larth, his daughter Lara, and a young man, Po. They're bringing a load of salt to trade in the mountains for tools made of iron, a very valuable commodity. On this trip, they encounter a young ironworker, and this leads to a murder and atonement, but also a child. To this child, Lara gives an amulet, shaped like a winged phallus, derived from a vision that she saw in a fire.

Generations pass, and now the nameless ford on the river has a settlement. After all, it's easier to go partway to trade, and the tribe has figured out that providing a place to sleep and eat is good as well. But all of this is about to end when a monster, Cacus, comes to inhabit the cave in the cliffs, and brings ghastly death with him. Lara's descendant, and holder of the amulet, Potitia, has a startling encounter with what could be a god, and a legend is created...

Another hundred or so years passes, and now there are two families that hold the priesthood to honor the god Hercules, Pinarius and Potitius. The river now has a name, the Tiber, and the hillsides have more people living there. Two homeless, orphaned twins, Romulus and Remus, are half-wild youths, full of violence and a fierce devotion and rivalry between them. So too does Pinarius and Potitius, and it all comes to a terrifying day of murder...

The ford has a name, Ruma, or Roma. There have been Kings in Roma since, and the latest one, Tarquinius the Proud, is making the population a bit upset, especially when one of his sons rapes a married woman of high standing, who commits suicide in despair. Out go the kings, and now Roma has a new form of government, by a group of men instead of just one. But it isn't all easy, as we see through the eyes of Titus Potitius, and his friend, Gnaeus, who has even grander schemes in mind...

Now time is moving more quickly, with breaks becoming shorter, and the characters not quite so involved. Roma struggles with new ideas, and an evolving nature as the amount of land that they control grows ever wider. One of the more interesting stories is that of Pinaria the Vestal, and the invasion of the Gauls, and why the geese of Juno got such an unusual festival of their own.

After this story, the tales become short and not nearly as personal. The names of the important players become more recognizable as Scipio, Hannibal, Sulla the Dictator and Julius Caesar along with Antony and Cleopatra, take the stage. To be honest, I didn't find the last third of the book that interesting, but that's not to knock the book.

And oddly, it works. I usually stay away from multigenerational sagas that take place in a single book -- they're much too choppy and shallow for me in depth and content. But here, while the stories are rather episodic, there is enough there to follow and belive the stories. Yes, Saylor uses the high points of Roman legend and lore, and the players are not much more than observers at times, but it was such an enthralling read that I found myself nearly gulping down the stories whole.

Saylor's writing style is rather succinct and he doesn't give much time over to theory or rhapsodizing. People laugh, cry, plot, make love and war, and for much of the book, survive. I found this to be intriguing book, and enjoyed how the author managed to form some of the myths and legends that still linger to this day. The Lupercalia, a fertility festival that occurs in February, was one that made me laugh, especially when you start thinking about another festival in February.

Saylor has included maps at the start of each chapter that show the evolution of Rome, and an afterword that talks about how he came about to write this, and his sources, especially Livy. Those who are interested in learning more will have a new list to try, and some new authors to seek out.

Fans of Saylor's previous work, the Gordianus novels, will enjoy with one, along with those who have read Colleen McCullough's work, The Masters of Rome series. If your only knowledge of Rome comes from the HBO series or I, Claudius go on ahead and give this one a read, you won't be disappointed. It's also a good introduction to the heady, complex world of ancient Rome, and I can happily recommend this one.

Four and a half stars, rounded up to five.

Steven Saylor's fascination with Ancient Rome began in childhood. A history graduate and former newspaper and magazine editor, he lives in Berkeley, California and has a huge number of fans of the Sub Rosa series he has written featuring Gordianus the Finder.

For avid readers of Saylor's books, this one will be well worth waiting for, although those who are expecting it to be another Gordianus the Finder mystery novel may be a little disappointed as the author has discarded with the Finder's services for this volume.

In Steven`s own words he says "This book marks a departure from my Roma Sub Rosa series. I wanted to try my hand at a truly epic novel, and to explore the remarkable ten centuries that came before the time of Gladiator, HBO's Rome, and my own books. This is the story of how the Romans created the greatest city on earth -- the story of how Rome became Rome.

The book takes in a thousand years, and follows the changes in fortune of two families through the ages. This is a beautifully written book about the city of Rome and its people. It reminds me very much of Sarum by Edward Rutherford, one of my all time favourite novels. Roma brings to life the first thousand years of a city that is arguably the most famous in all of history. From its founding by the twins Romulus and Remus through to the city becoming the focal point of the most powerful empire of all time. Everything is there, the book recounts the capture of the city by the Gauls, the invasion of Hannibal. Bitter struggles between patricians and plebeians. The strength and weaknesses of the senate and the ultimate demise of Rome's republic with the assassination of Julius Caesar.

This book was an okay read, but is by no means a great work of historical fiction. The biggest problem is that the novel is meant to cover a thousand years of history in six hundred pages, and fails miserably. I myself am quite familiar with the history it covers, but I think that if I were not so conversant with Rome of the BCs I would find this book's way of telling it not only dull (as I did find it) but confusing. The fact is, people in real life do not just happen to review the past fifty years of history with each other every so often, and yet this is what happens again ... and again ... and again. I'd say that there is five times as much historical exposition in dialogue as there is in the narration itself, and it really cries out to be the other way round. Ugh. But the real problem here is that a novel of this length is biting off more than it can chew if it tries to cover a time period of this length and complexity. Saylor would have done better to write three six-hundred-page novels to cover Rome's first thousand years. Compare this with Colleen McCullough's superb Masters of Rome series, for example, each of which in eight hundred pages covers about twenty years of the late Republic, and conveys a real sense of the changes the society of Rome and the lives of the Romans change in that period. That's another thing completely lacking from 'Roma', by the way: Saylor tackles very little of the governmental, societal, and moralistic upheavals that shape the Republic's history, and when he does talk about them it's by and large in those unbearable, droning, boring, lacklustre expositional dialogues.

The frequent faux pas in grammar, spelling, style, etc., do not help either. Read something good instead.

I love ancient history and read hundreds of books on this topic. Steven Saylor's book is attempting a huge task of encompassing 1000 years in making history of ancient Rome. The events are viewed through eyes of couple of noble and ancient families and there is a continuous link between chapters covering different but important parts of the history of Rome. Unfortunately, the story is slow and development of the characters under par. Also, due to richness of the real history Mr. Saylor fails to capture the true fabric of Roman social changes. The book drags by the end and doesn't achieve the anticipated effect. Also, do not expect any description of major battles and wars. Everything is hidden in the background of passing time of events and names. Not enough to create an exciting book.

'Roma', Saylor's first major effort beyond the popular and enjoyable Gordianus the Finder series, fell short for this fan. Saylor aims for epic sweep, but gives himself too little space for his topic, which is literally the history of Rome through Augustus.

I generally am impatient with writers who can't say what they have to say in 300 or 400 pages, but this book suffers from its relative brevity (some 550 pages). Saylor needed another 400 pages or so to flesh out the story (or maybe it was his publisher holding him back). It may seem odd to suggest that a book 550 pages in length is cramped, but the epic tale of Roma requires a a book of epic scale. Too many of the great stories are skimmed over. Too often the reader is cheated of the details; at its worst, it's like reading Cliff Notes.

'Roma' is rarely as much fun as Saylor's detective stories. Still, others enjoyed the book more than I did and I would never tell a Saylor fan not to read this book. If you have not read Saylor's other work, I doubt this one will turn you into a fan and that's a shame. I was pleased to see him branching out beyond the Roma Sub Rosa series and hope he makes another go with more success.

- This review first appeared in the August 2007 issue of the Historical Novels Review (http://www.historicalnovelsociety.org)-

Steven Saylor, the award-winning mystery writer of the Roma Sub Rosa series, undertakes the multigenerational historical saga in his latest novel ROMA. Pioneered by the late James Michener and current purview of novelist Edward Rutherford, Saylor's entry into the genre is a noteworthy one. With his meticulous knowledge of ancient Rome, the subject matter seems a perfect match for someone of his impressive talent---a centuries-long journey from the founding of Rome to the rise and fall of the Republic and the assassination of Julius Caesar.

Saylor frames his compelling, fast-moving narrative in elegant prose, using the device of a fictional family whose fates are closely interwoven with the vicissitudes and fortunes of the city. The cast is large and varied, beginning with a salt trader's daughter in 1000 BC who receives a mysterious gold talisman that will become a family heirloom. Through the eyes of her descendants, the Potitius family, we witness the city's founding by Romulus and Remus, the struggles and intrigues of plebeians and patricians, Hannibal's invasion, a mass murderer's scheme to wipe out a competing dynasty, a vestal virgin's sacrifice, and the tragic attempt of two sibling politicians to revolutionize Roman society. Throughout we are regaled with the aspirations, delusions, brutal expediencies and hunger for immortality that permeated the struggle to build what arguably became history's most powerful empire.

Readers seeking a central character to identify with may be thwarted by the swift passage of years and events; those who persist will find themselves in awe of Saylor's command of his sprawling storyline, his penchant for detail, as well as his evident passion for what is truly his book's only central character--Rome herself, a city whose complex grandeur and enigmatic allure continue to entice our collective imagination.

Clearly not his best effort, and the format - a series of linked short stories/novellas ala Edward Rutherfurd (e.g., "Sarum") - is not Saylor's forte.

It's readable, of course, and there's a fair number of juicy historical tidbits. But the sense of time and place, which comes across so clearly in the Gordianus/Roma Sub Rosa novels, is largely absent here. The plot is predictable, the characters are cardboard, and the dialog is at times embarrassing. For the first time ever, I had to force myself to read the ending of a Saylor book, rather than sit up all night eagerly awaiting the denoument.

I hear he's working on a new (possibly the last?) Gordianus, and I can't wait.

I found this book very true to the spirit of Livy's history, and filled with fascinating details about early Rome. As a classics teacher, I would like to recommend this book very highly to my students. I only hesistate because of the (very small) amount of explicit sex included, which precludes recommendation to students under 16. I would welcome a "junior" edition, as the style is very suitable for younger readers.

I read this last year from the "new" shelf at my local library, so I didn't waste any money on it. I wish my time were refundable.
Saylor's "Roma sub Rosa" is brilliant and compelling, and I want to see where he takes it next, what Gordianus and his family do in the upcoming civil war. So, to be honest, I resent that Saylor is writing this trashy, shallow, cheesy, mindless novel. I suppose he has to pay the bills.
I just don't care about these people. Of course, since it is a series of short stories about Rome from before Romulus and Remus until the beginning of the Christian Era, none of them are with you for very long. Some bits were interesting; I'd certainly like to know a bit more about the local folklore, Calcus's cave especially. But the fact that there are interesting gleanings just makes the bulk of it that much more boring and pedestrian by contrast.
And the end of the last story takes a turn so cheap, so ridiculous, so in tune with the assinine theory that somehow history is pre-ordained and that we are the apex of it, that it might as well have been some 1950s or earlier biblical epic.
I hate to see a good writer stumble this badly. If you are a fan of "Roma sub Rosa" steer clear.