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Monday, June 13, 2016

Roman Mask by Thomas M. D. Brooke


   
 

Review of Roman Mask by Thomas M. D. Brooke
 
From goodreads.com:

It is Rome AD 9 and Augustus Caesar rules Imperial Rome at the height of its power, as the Roman Empire stretches across the known world. Cassius, son of one of her most powerful families, is the personification of Rome's imperial strength: wealthy, popular, a war hero with a decorated military career - none of Rome's fashionable parties are complete without him - except, he hides a secret. After his nerve is broken in Germany, the thought of genuine armed combat is enough to send him into a cold sweat of fear and shame. But this doesn't dissuade him from living off a false reputation so he can continue a life of casual affairs, wine, and parties, as he is seduced by the many vices of Rome. However his scandalous life is soon upset by a summons from the Emperor's wife. It ends his happy decadent life and returns him to Germany to assist the Roman legions in their greatest ever trial, and the events that will resound down in history, in the dark forests of the Teutoburg.

Leona's Review:

A book about Cassius Aprilis, a son of a wealthy and powerful family. He is considered a war hero with a military career but he holds a secret that bothers him. His life has been one of leisure but it changes when he is summoned by Livia, wife of Princeps Augustus to go back to Germany to assist the Roman legions.

I found this book somewhat slow at the beginning but stayed with it.  A lot of Latin words, names of the characters, battle names and names of places. As a reader, I found myself taking notes and searched for more information.

Roman Mask begins in Rome AD 9 and Augustus Caesar is the emperor at this time. The author also had historical names such as Julius Arminius, Someone who was a German Prince who lived in Rome and was a friend of Cassius, Angrivaril tribesmen who were Germanic of the early Roman Empire, Quintus Varus who was the governor of the new Roman province of Germany and the Teutoburg Forest which was the place of the battle.

There is a historical note at the end of the book. There is a map in the front of the book which is always helpful. I do wish there had been a list of characters in the book.
Thomas M. D. Brooke may be reached at www.thomasmdbrooke.com. There is an interview with him about the book, Roman Mask for one.


For those interested in Roman history or historical places, this is a good read. I won a copy of Roman Mask by Thomas M. D. Brooke from goodreads. The opinions are my own.

I give this book a 5 star rating because of the research and I learned some historical facts.
I also found some good information on  www.historyworld.net:

1 comment:

Sharon Wilfong said...

Interesting book. I haven't read anything by this author but I will look him up.