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Augustus by John Edward Williams

Augustus: A Novel - John Edward Williams

bookshelves: fraudio, epistolatory-diary-blog, roman-civilisation, tbr-busting-2014, historical-fiction, published-1972

Read from January 05 to October 02, 2014

 



Description: A brilliant and beautifully written novel in the tradition of Robert Graves’ I, Claudius, Augustus is a sweeping narrative that brings vividly to life a compelling cast of historical figures through their letters, dispatches, and memoirs.

A mere eighteen years of age when his uncle, Julius Caesar, is murdered, Octavius Caesar prematurely inherits rule of the Roman Republic. Surrounded by men who are jockeying for power–Cicero, Brutus, Cassius, and Mark Antony–young Octavius must work against the powerful Roman political machinations to claim his destiny as first Roman emperor. Sprung from meticulous research and the pen of a true poet, Augustus tells the story of one man’s dream to liberate a corrupt Rome from the fancy of the capriciously crooked and the wildly wealthy.




Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (c. 23 October or November 64/63 BC – 12 BC) was a Roman statesman and general. He was a close friend, son-in-law, and lieutenant to Augustus and was responsible for his most important military victories, most notably at the Battle of Actium against the forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. As a result of these victories Octavian became the first Roman Emperor, adopting the name of Augustus. Agrippa was also father-in-law of the second Emperor Tiberius, maternal grandfather to Caligula, and maternal great-grandfather of the Emperor Nero.[*1]

In the manner of Thornton Wilder's 1948 novel 'The Ides of March', mix in some fab Graves's I Claudius-esque narration and you have 'Augustus'.

All wiki-sourced:
*1