Commodus: (The Damned Emperors)

From the author of CALIGULA (an engrossing new spin on a well-known tale - The Times) comes a new standalone novel in the Damned Emperors series: COMMODUS. 162AD. Rome is enjoying a period of stability and prosperity. The Empire's bounds are increasing, and two sons are born into the imperial succession for the first time in nearly a century. But all is not as it appears - cracks are beginning to show. The wars have rumbled on too long, and there are whispers of a sickness in the East. Just thirty years later, the Empire will be caught up in civil war, the imperial dynasty ended, and Rome burned. One man tried to hold the fracturing state together. To Rome, he was their Emperor, their Hercules, their golden gladiator fighting off all foes, their Commodus. One woman tried to hold him together. To Commodus, she was, simply, Marcia.

About the Author :
A born and bred Yorkshireman with a love of country, history and architecture, Simon spends most of his rare free time travelling around ancient sites, writing, researching the ancient world and reading voraciously. Following an arcane and eclectic career path that wound through everything from sheep to Microsoft networks and from paint to car sales, Simon wrote Marius' Mules. Now, with in excess of twenty novels under his belt, Simon writes full time. He lives with his wife and children and a menagerie of animals in rural North Yorkshire.

Review :
Caligula is a monster we all know and love to hate. Simon Turney's novel challenges our prejudice and sketches a more understanding view of the Roman emperor . . . Turney's version is an entirely plausible take on the sources. We pity the boy, even as we deplore the insane violence of the man. Caligula is an engrossing new spin on a well-known tale - The Times on Caligula In Caligula Simon Turney uses fiction to challenge some of [the] lies that masquerade under the name of "history" . . . [His narrator, Livilla] provides an energetic and intelligent eyewitness view of the imperial court and of the gradual decline of Caligula's rule . . . A satisfyingly alternative look at Caligula, something perhaps done better in fiction than in academic history . . . Great and enjoyable - TLS on Caligula Simon Turney's Commodus combines thrilling Roman spectacle, star-crossed young lovers, and poisonous palace intrigue into a compulsively readable drama. A tense, taut, thrilling character study of one of Rome's most maligned rulers, transformed here into tragic hero Commodus, son of Marcus Aurelius: mad, bad and dangerous to stand too close to according to history. Simon Turney, however, does here what he did in Caligula - puts some humanity back in the beast of Rome. Warm and well-written