Delacorte
January 2003
The great stories are some of the greatest challenges to write about. While Hollywood may truly get excited about its latest "reinvention," it is important to keep in mind that this thinking often results in products like Charlie's Angels and not the second volume of The Godfather.
So, how then, can British schoolteacher Conn Iggulden approach the story of Julius Caesar, the greatest Roman leader of them all? After all, this is a story about the human condition that is so primal that even William Shakespeare had his illustrious shot at it already. In the first volume of a planned series of Emperor novels, the author makes a hell of an argument for the retelling of tales. The Gates of Rome is a stunning combination of bloody action, heroic bravery, and a brilliant story brought to life for a modern readership.
Iggulden follows the best of rules and begins his story at the beginning as two young boys make their way through the trials of growing up in the shadow of Rome. Marcus and Gaius are blood brothers, fighting together to earn the respect of Gaius' father. Under the bloody tutelage of Renius, a legendary former gladiator, the boys grow up as fast as horses and strong as steel.
January 2003
The great stories are some of the greatest challenges to write about. While Hollywood may truly get excited about its latest "reinvention," it is important to keep in mind that this thinking often results in products like Charlie's Angels and not the second volume of The Godfather.
So, how then, can British schoolteacher Conn Iggulden approach the story of Julius Caesar, the greatest Roman leader of them all? After all, this is a story about the human condition that is so primal that even William Shakespeare had his illustrious shot at it already. In the first volume of a planned series of Emperor novels, the author makes a hell of an argument for the retelling of tales. The Gates of Rome is a stunning combination of bloody action, heroic bravery, and a brilliant story brought to life for a modern readership.
Iggulden follows the best of rules and begins his story at the beginning as two young boys make their way through the trials of growing up in the shadow of Rome. Marcus and Gaius are blood brothers, fighting together to earn the respect of Gaius' father. Under the bloody tutelage of Renius, a legendary former gladiator, the boys grow up as fast as horses and strong as steel.
The violent death of the master of the house thrusts Gaius and Marcus into using the skills taught them by Renius. Writes Iggulden of one defender, "He slipped in blood and went down badly, the air rushing out of him. A dagger punched into his side and a dirty bare foot tried to crush his face, pressing his head down. Gingerly, he felt his side and winced at the trickle of blood, watching it for air bubbles. He could still breathe, though the air tasted like hot tin and blood."
Passages like these ring with a satisfying violence that bring the weight of serious threat to its dramatic plot. It would have been easier to write Emperor as Shakespeare did, a drama of court intrigue and betrayal. Instead, Iggulden has turned the story of Julius Caesar into a tale of high adventure, a blood-soaked, sword-swinging epic that brings a number of vivid characters to life. In addition to Renius, The Gates of Rome is populated by fascinating studies of soldiers, senators, lovers and spies.
Among those characters are Renius, a fascinating portrait of a terrifying old man. At one point, Marcus watches in awe as the gladiator's arm is sawed off and the reader can almost taste the blood in the air.
Renius' influence is balanced by Tubruk, a slave who becomes a most trusted advisor. In Rome, the city is divided by the power struggle between Marius and Sulla, two generals who are determined to rule the empire or see it destroyed between them.
While Iggulden admits that much of Emperor has been dramatized, the essential facts remain. As there is, as he notes, very little history of Caesar's early life, it is fascinating to read his ideas of what the life of a Roman boy might have been like. Moreover, Iggulden has brought the Roman king out of the pages of dry historical tomes to make him sweat and bleed, no longer a character in a drama but a flesh-and-blood leader on the road to his own doom.
Despite the predetermined ending, too, the book has enough mystery in it to draw in even the most casual reader. One young man is forced by circumstance to assume the mantle of Senator, thrust into an enormous and deadly power struggle that will shake the very walls of civilization. The other will fight on the front lines of Rome's battles, in a vibrant and frightening path to becoming a hero. As they become the men that history remembers, they will take on the names that have been recorded so long ago.
While Iggulden admits that much of Emperor has been dramatized, the essential facts remain. As there is, as he notes, very little history of Caesar's early life, it is fascinating to read his ideas of what the life of a Roman boy might have been like. Moreover, Iggulden has brought the Roman king out of the pages of dry historical tomes to make him sweat and bleed, no longer a character in a drama but a flesh-and-blood leader on the road to his own doom.
Despite the predetermined ending, too, the book has enough mystery in it to draw in even the most casual reader. One young man is forced by circumstance to assume the mantle of Senator, thrust into an enormous and deadly power struggle that will shake the very walls of civilization. The other will fight on the front lines of Rome's battles, in a vibrant and frightening path to becoming a hero. As they become the men that history remembers, they will take on the names that have been recorded so long ago.
One of these young men is bound to be Caesar. The other, in the very last drops of ink on the page, becomes Marcus Brutus.
Like Gladiator, to which it has been compared, Emperor: The Gates of Rome is brutal, epic and above all, bloody brilliant. The fall of Rome has never been such an exciting ride.
Like Gladiator, to which it has been compared, Emperor: The Gates of Rome is brutal, epic and above all, bloody brilliant. The fall of Rome has never been such an exciting ride.
