It is 54 BC. Gaius Julius Caesar is sweeping through Gaul. While his victories in the name of Rome are epic, the conservative leaders of the Republic are not pleased—they are terrified. Where will the boundless ambition of Rome's most brilliant soldier stop? He must be destroyed before he can overthrow the government and install himself as dictator.
When Cato and the Senate betray him, Caesar resolves to turn his genius against his ungrateful country. Backed by a loyal and skilled army, he marches on Rome. But before reaching his goal, he must contend with Pompey the Great, a formidable adversary who underestimates the renegade Caesar.
These are tumultuous times—for Caesar, who endures personal tragedies even as he wages war; for Pompey, who must wrestle with his fear that his greatness is at an end; for Cicero, whose luminous rhetoric is shattered by threat of violence; and for the citizens of Rome, whose destiny lies in Caesar's hands.
The fifth novel in Colleen McCullough's unforgettable Masters of Rome series, Caesar brings to life the passion and genius of an incomparable man.
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"The fourth book of McCullough's First Man in Rome series takes place entirely within Rome and follows Caesar's ten years leading up to his consulship in 59 BC. It tracks the events of Caesar's tryst with Servilia, betrothing his daughter Julia to Brutus, the Catiline Conspiracy and the formation of the First Triumvirate. In particular, the depictions of Pompey and Crassus are exquisite, as is the rendering of why Caesar became such an autocrat and his constant head-butting with the boni. McCullough spends a lot more time on the women, as the amount of evidence for this period is greater by far than for any of the previous generations she covers in the books. I'm really looking forward to the 5th book as McCullough really is in a class of her own when it comes to historical fiction."
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Reid (5 out of 5 stars)