Roman Historical Fiction

[Primus Pilus]

I still haven't read the 'Last King' mainly because it hasn't received alot of great reviews, so I can't really comment. Still I can't imagine it would be that bad.

[paolo]

I just started it, he has me hooked.

[dianamt54]

It has been a while since I read the book so I admit I may be a little off here.

 

As I recall, Caesar's father was referred to as Julius. That's just wrong, he would've been known as Gaius or Caesar, the Roman's did not refer to eachother by their nomen or middle name. The only exceptions were with people who had no cognomen or third name (ie. Gaius Marius).

 

The book has Caesar growing up in the Italian countryside. Its quite well documented that Caesar spent most of his youth within the 'slums' or subura of Rome in an ancient apartment like complex. (Insula)

 

In the book, he arrived in Rome seemingly and completely unaware of Roman political traditions and customs. The man is a patrician of the highest order, and yet he seemed to not only not know who his clients may have been, but even what a client was.

 

He loves a slave girl. Caesar's own well documented behavior regarding his own dignity makes this completely out of the realm of possibility. The historical Caesar may have pursued her for sexual satisfaction, but never would've allowed it to occupy his thoughts. He was a notorious philanderer, and it seems doubtful that any one women ever could've done this to him, except for perhaps his first wife, Cornelia. He refused Sulla's command to divorce her to prove his loyalty (she was the daughter of Sulla's enemy Cinna).

 

There was something about the friendship with Marcus that also bothered me. Didn't Marcus turn out to be someone important? Like Brutus or Antonius? I can't quite remember. Either way, something still doesn't seem right, but it was almost two years ago that I read it.

 

There is more, but I was terribly frustrated, and didn't retain much of the book. Wasn't there like a gladiator trainer or something? Caesar would've been trained and schooled in Rome, very likely on the Campus Martius like other patricians. Did Iggulden kill off his mother? In reality his mother lived until Caesar was in the middle of his Gallic campaign as a middle aged man....

 

I had a problem with this book. I could not get use to Caesar being called Julius. Caesar had two sisters, he was not an only child. If there were no sisters, there was no Atia, and then there would be no Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. I know this is an old thread . Just had too!