Emperor: The Gates of Rome: Volume 1 in the Emperor Series

Overview

Rarely, if ever, does a new writer dazzle us with such a vivid imagination and storytelling, flawlessly capturing the essence of a land, a people, a legend. Conn Iggulden is just such a writer, bringing to vivid life one of the most fascinating eras in human history. In a true masterpiece of historical fiction, Iggulden takes us on a breathtaking journey through ancient Rome, sweeping us into a realm of tyrants and slaves, of dark intrigues and seething passions. What emerges is both a grand romantic tale of coming-of-age in the Roman Empire and a vibrant portrait of the early years of a man who would become the most powerful ruler on earth: Julius Caesar.

Editorial Reviews

Right now, ancient Rome is all the craze, and this book should fit in well. The son of a senator and his bastard brother are raised together but find themselves increasingly at odds as the empire spirals toward civil war. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information. -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY.

Author Information

Bio of Conn Iggulden

I was born in the normal way in 1971, and vaguely remember half-pennies and sixpences. I have written for as long as I can remember: poetry, short stories and novels. It's what I always wanted to do and read English at London university with writing in mind. I taught English for seven years and was Head of English at St. Gregory's RC High school in London by the end of that period. I have enormous respect for those who still labour at the chalk-face. In truth, I can't find it in me to miss the grind of paperwork and initiatives. I do miss the camaraderie of the smoker's room, as well as the lessons where their faces lit up as they understood what I was wittering on about. My mother is Irish and from an early age, she told me history as an exciting series of stories - with dates. My great-grandfather was a Seannachie , so I suppose story-telling is in the genes somewhere. My father flew in Bomber Command in WWII, then taught maths and science. Perhaps crucially, he also loved poetry and cracking good tales. Though it seems a dated idea now, I began teaching when boys were told only girls were good at English, despite the great names that must spring to mind after that statement. My father loved working with wood and equations, but he also recited 'Vitai Lampada' with a gleam in his eye and that matters, frankly. I've always loved historical fiction as a genre and cut my teeth on Hornblower and Tai-Pan, Flashman, Sharpe and Jack Aubrey. I still remember the sheer joy at reading my first Patrick O'Brian book and discovering there were nineteen more in the series. I love just about anything by David Gemmell, or Peter F. Hamilton or Wilbur Smith. I suppose the one thing that links all those is the love of a good tale. That's about it for the moment. I wanted to write the html for this myself, so it takes longer than using a professional programme. I have plans to include a section on my favourite poems, and possibly short stories as they occur to me. There is a contact link off the main page if you'd like to write to me, or perhaps leave a comment in the forum. I'll leave it there for the moment. If you've read my books, you know an awful lot about the way I think already. There's no point overdoing it.

Customer Reviews

• Emperor is a history lesson with all the gore still intacted

  Posted June 23, 2009 by APJ, El Paso

  Emperor, a book that follows the life the Gaius Julius Caesar is what i would like to call a perfect picture of Rome that shows every bit of the violence, misery, and love that even the average roman citizen goes through and even adore. Violence because of the very nature of a roman, misery when the hero finally rides in to same them, and love because, like any other person love is the one thing that can keep someone going through any storm. The story is one of the politics that took place during Caesar's childhood, pointing at every flaw the republic system, some so major, some senators even think that there is a where to legally have rome bow to them.
  One of the things that i appreciate the most about this book is that at the end of the book Conn Iggulden points out everything that was a fib or distortion of facts and corrects them, even giving suggested readings for people who would like to know more about Caesar. When it comes to historical fiction no matter what Iggulden writes about, even though you do not know me you may in fact see me at the stores the very day it comes out
  
  A.P.J.
  The Sun City

Additional Info

Imprint

Delacorte Press

Filesize

839.83 KB

Number of Pages

386

eBook ISBN

9780440334217