Imperium

A Novel of Ancient Rome

By: Robert Harris

Narrated by: Simon Jones

When Tiro, the confidential secretary (and slave) of a Roman senator, opens the door to a terrified stranger on a cold November morning, he sets in motion a chain of events that will eventually propel his master into one of the most suspenseful courtroom dramas in history. The stranger is a Sicilian, a victim of the island's corrupt Roman governor, Verres. The senator is Marcus Cicero, an ambitious young lawyer and spellbinding orator, who at the age of 27 is determined to attain imperium, supreme power in the state.

Of all the great figures of the Roman world, none was more fascinating or charismatic than Cicero. And Tiro, the inventor of shorthand and author of numerous books, including a celebrated biography of his master (which was lost in the Dark Ages), was always by his side.

Compellingly written in Tiro's voice, Imperium is the re-creation of his vanished masterpiece, recounting in vivid detail the story of Cicero's quest for glory, as he competed with some of the most powerful and intimidating figures of his or any other age: Pompey, Caesar, Crassus, and the many other powerful Romans who changed history.

Robert Harris, the master of innovative historical fiction, lures us into a violent, treacherous world of Roman politics at once exotically different from and yet startlingly similar to our own.

©2006 Robert Harris (P)2006 Simon and Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Entertaining and enlightening." (Publishers Weekly)

At home and at the office...

except in this story the office is the Roman Senate. I enjoyed I, Claudis but feel this is a better listen. It takes the listener not just into the politics and work of the ancient lawyers but into the home and lifestyle. Not just of the wealthy but what we call the middle class. I will listen to this Audible again and will continue with the series.

Bringing History to Life

Really good historical fiction is a rarity. Most books calling themselves historical fiction are simply modern murder mysteries or romance novels with a bit of period detail thrown in. But now and then a marvelous book comes along that takes you into the past in with an honesty and intimacy in a way a pure history book never could. Think of Wolf Hall, I Claudius, or The Red Badge of Courage. Imperium is definitely in that category.

This compelling story, beautifully narrated by Simon Jones, brings Cicero and his world alive. You can practically smell the decaying odors of Rome in the final days of the Republic. You are gripped by his scheming, even as you know the ultimate outcome. It takes a great writer to urge you along even when there is no mystery. I highly recommend this audio book to anyone who loves history, politics, biography, or just a plain good story.

10/10

This was simply an amazing book on an amazing event in history. One of my favorites.

fabulous. entertaining.

you look back at the Nyics of 2000 years ago Nd compare them to the anti s of today and realize that absolutely nothing has changed. it is all about power in government and secret deals to maintain. power.

Strong narrative and wonderful job researching. Historinerd elixir

100% worth reading the series if you're a fan of history or (historical) fiction. Narrator is not one of the most chameleon-like but does a great job bringing the story to life, most notably with Cicero, and other male characters, such as Marcus Crassus. I will admit there is obviously a lot of speculation involved, when endeavoring to construct a piece of literature based on events over 2000 years ago- but Harris exceeds expectations in doing so. I found myself wanting more meat and bones and (admittedly) enjoyed the Roma series a bit more because of the thicker plot points. Either way, this series would probably be an incredible film or Netflix adaptation with the right cast and vision. Throw in a Director like Ridley Scott or someone more ambitious like Frank Miller-and you might have one of the best historical adaptations of all time.

excellent

I have the book and am a huge fan. the audiobook was read so well and so clearly, such a delightful audiobook with an amazing story about a great man who lived during a great time surrounded by many great and not so great men.

The Gold Standard for Historical Fiction

Harris does an amazing job bringing the world of the Ciceronian republic to life. The characters are richly drawn and the narrator, the brilliant slave Tiro, gives us an empathetic window into the life of the powerless among the 1% in Rome with power lusting for Imperium.
Perhaps my conscience is a bit sensitive, but the level of entrenched corruption and the powerlessness of the citizens to do anything about it left me a bit depressed listening to this audiobook during the horrific human rights abuses of ‘21-‘22 in Russia/Ukraine, Ethiopia, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Myanmar, China, and Afghanistan. (not to speak of all the rogue nations like N Korea, Libya, Eritrea, and Venezuela)

Great story

Within a couple of chapters I had the story in my head. Even when I had to leave it for a few weeks it was easy to fall right back into. I am looking forward to the second one in this series.

Excellent Courtroom and Political Thriller

You know how some Roman names, despite 2000+ years of history sound familiar? After this book you will understand why the name Cicero still resonates.

I always give 5 stars to "must reads".

Now Cicero is not just some famous Roman somebody but becomes an endearing person to any astute reader. (Yes, even if you're not big on lawyers. - the poor souls get a bad rap) Perry Mason can't hold a flame to Cicero!

If you like great courtroom dramas, Cicero, a lawyer, has his share of excellent courtroom battles and will cross the sword of his cleverness and wit against some of the nastiest characters I've ever heard of in a book. Real drama.

An awesome production, from the excellent narration & editing (i.e. no distracting sounds) you come to feel you know the man and admire a true genius at work. His slave (It is from his point of view the story is told.) is remarkable as well as indeed he invented one of the early forms of shorthand. (fact checked)

Unexpected gem!

While historical fiction is my favortie genre, I am not a particular fan of stories set in ancient Rome. However, I was intrigued by the idea of the story being told from the point of view of Cicero's slave, and decided to order it. To my amazement, this turned out to be one of the best hitorical fiction novels I have ever read. I would highly recommend it.