Emperor: The Gods of War (Emperor Series #4) » (Reprint)

Conn Iggulden is the author of Genghis: Birth of an Empire, the first novel in the series, as well as the Emperor novels, which chronicle the life of Julius Caesar: Emperor: The Gates of Rome, Emperor: The Death of Kings, Emperor: The Field of Swords, and Emperor: The Gods of War, all of which are available in paperback from Dell. He is also the co-author of the bestselling nonfiction work The Dangerous Book for Boys. He lives with his wife and three children in Hertfordshire, England.

The year is 53 B.C. Fresh from victory in Gaul, Julius Caesar leads battle-hardened legions across the Rubicon river–threatening Rome herself. Even the master strategist Pompey is caught unprepared by the strike, and forced to abandon his city. The armies of Rome will face each other at last in civil war, led by the two greatest generals ever to walk the seven hills. Thus begins Conn Iggulden’s towering saga of Julius Caesar as he approaches his final destiny—a destiny that will be decided not by legions but by his friend Brutus and an Egyptian queen named Cleopatra, who will bear his only son....

For Caesar, the campaign against Pompey will test his military genius and his appetite for glory to their limits, as the greatest fighting machine the world has ever seen divides against itself in a bloody conflict that will set brother against brother until victory or death. But for Caesar, another kingdom beckons—a world of ancient mysteries and languid sensuality, where a beautiful, bewitching woman waits to snare his heart.

The Gods of War follows Julius Caesar through politics and passion, ruthless ambition and private grief, and into the corruption of power itself. Those he has loved will play a part in his triumphs—as will the jealousy and hatred of his enemies.

From the spectacles of the arena to the whispered lies of conspirators, Conn Iggulden brings to life a world of monumental drama. And at its heart is one extraordinary friendship—marked by fierce loyalty and bitter betrayal, with dark events shrouded in noble ideals.

Library Journal

This is the fourth and possibly last installment in Iggulden's epic series (see also Emperor: The Field of Swords) chronicling the intertwined lives of Julius Caesar and Marcus Brutus (the author leaves open the possibility of future books involving ancient Rome). Caesar has taken control of Rome, his rivals have been defeated or killed, and he has the Egyptian queen Cleopatra as his mistress. But now new enemies are gathering, especially the estranged Brutus, one of several men who fears that Caesar will declare himself king. This volume features some gripping moments but suffers from poorly defined motivation (e.g., Brutus appears petty) and strained dialog (e.g., "Did Caesar's friends really call him `Julius' when his first name was `Gaius'?"). Also, because it tries to say so much, it lacks the richness of Colleen McCullough's novels on Caesar and, although a different medium, the grit of HBO's addictive series Rome. Still, Gods of War is an entertaining and fairly compelling historical novel, an impressive feat considering everyone already knows the ending. For larger collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 12/05.]-Robert Conroy, Warren, MI Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.