About this title: Marius marries Julius Ceasar's aunt, Julia, thereby gaining an entry for himself into the world of nobility. The North African war of this time establishes Marius' military reputation and that of his rival, Sulla, and also implants in both men the dream of becoming the first man in Rome.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Avon Books, New York
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: not a pretty book, covers are very worn & creased, spine creased & cocked, pages yellowing due to age, some staining & dogearing throughout copy, good reading copy. Mass Market (Rack) PB, glued binding, 1076 pp, contains Maps & Illustrations read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 1104 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Excellent condition. Very light edge and cover wear. No marks. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 1104 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. "One of the Ten Best Books of the Year! "--People Magazine read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Light edge, corner and seam wear. Light cover creases. No marks. Tight, square book. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 1104 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Very light edge and corner wear. No marks. Tight binding. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 1104 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon Books
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780380710812ISBN:0380710811
Description: Fair. No dust jacket as issued. Some edge and corner wear. No marks. Tight binding. Corner creases on cover. Cracking inside. Tanning pages. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 1104 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
"Very slow start to the book -- I understand that McCullough is being academic and thorough in providing great detail about Rome that I'm sure is very historically accurate. However, as a casual reader, the details about what plaza gets crossed in order to get to what meeting place is lost on me. Perhaps if I lived in Rome or wanted to retrace the ancients' steps . . . .
That being said, the novel eventually starts to move along. The main characters are quite well drawn and interesting; many of the secondary characters are more like character types. We know exactly how they'll be spouting off in the Senate, how they'll have it in for Marcus, etc.
Closing in on the end of the book at this point and I do want to finish it, but I will admit to having sneaked in more than a few book while the bookmark sat in this one."
"I understand that Colleen McCullough earned herself an honorary PhD for her Rome serious, but I couldn't make it through this first book. Heavy on the historical detail and light on character development, it would seem that McCullough is unable to entwine historical fact with fiction. The facts are to prominent ( I learned a great deal about how to arrange one's toga), and overtake the story. It reads like a textbook and I don't want a PhD in Roman History."
"The Thorn Birds meets the Roman Republic. A very interesting historical period, but the characters are generally simplistic historic cardboard cutouts and much of the dialogue is superficial and implausible. There are five sequels to this book, which starts in 110 B.C.E. following the lives of Gaius Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla. The final book goes up to the end of the Republic with the ascension of Octavius to the imperium, but I don't think I'll read any of them beyond this one."
"The best thing that can be said is this is a very LONG book - usually a good thing. Although it has been a long time, reflecting on a few past novels, this is pretty classic McCullough style. On the plus side, you can learn a fair amount about the Roman system of government. It takes some work but in order to follow this tale of political intrigue, you must acquire a basic understanding of the system. Fortunately, it is outlined in the glossary (page 1044 is a particularly useful illustration of the structure.)"
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