When Tiro, the confidential secretary of a Roman senator, opens the door to a terrified stranger on a cold November morning, he sets in motion a chain of events which will eventually propel his master into one of the most famous courtroom dramas in history. The stranger is a Sicilian, a victim of the island's corrupt Roman governor, Verres. The senator is Cicero, a brilliant young lawyer and spellbinding orator, determined to attain imperium - supreme power in the state. This is the starting-point of Robert Harris' most accomplished novel to date. Compellingly written in Tiro's voice, it takes us inside the violent, treacherous world of Roman politics, to describe how one man - clever, compassionate, devious, vulnerable - fought to reach the top. 'Sometimes it is foolish to articulate an ambition too early - exposing it prematurely to the laughter and scepticism of the world can destroy it before it is even properly born. But sometimes the opposite occurs, and the very act of mentioning a thing makes it suddenly seem possible, even plausible. That was how it was that night. When Cicero pronounced the word "consul" he planted it in the ground like a standard for us all to admire. And for a moment we glimpsed the brilliant, starry future through his eyes, and saw that he was right: that if he took down Verres, he had a chance; that he might - just - with luck - go all the way to the summit...' Robert Harris states: 'This novel grows out of a thirty-five year obsession with politics, by which I mean politics as a contact sport. I can enjoy a good election anywhere and I think that what makes this book unusual is not that it draws the parallel (a cliche now) between the US and Rome, but that it goes back to the beginnings of everything which makes politics so fascinating - oratory, strategising, electioneering, manipulation of public opinion, the sheer addictive exhilaration of politics. I have always followed politics as others might follow football, and Cicero is fascinating to me because he's the ultimate professional in the ultimate sport. It's this universality which is important'.
Imperium
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From Publishers Weekly
Bestselling British author Harris (Pompeii; Enigma) returns to ancient Rome for this entertaining and enlightening novel of Marcus Cicero's rise to power. Narrated by a household slave named Tiro, who actually served as Cicero's "confidential secretary" for 36 years, this fictional biography follows the statesman and orator from his early career as an outsider—a "new man" from the provinces—to his election to the consulship, Rome's highest office, in 64 B.C. Loathed by the aristocrats, Cicero lived by his wits in a tireless quest for imperium—the ultimate power of life and death—and achieves "his life's ambition" after uncovering a plot by Marcus Crassus and Julius Caesar to rig the elections and seize control of the government. Harris's description of Rome's labyrinthine, and sometimes deadly, political scene is fascinating and instructive. The action is relentless, and readers will be disappointed when Harris leaves Cicero at the moment of his greatest triumph. Given Cicero's stormy consulship, his continuing opposition to Julius Caesar and his own assassination, readers can only hope a sequel is in the works. Until then, this serves as a superb first act. 350,000 announced first priting; 10-city author tour. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Adult/High School–The tumultuous history of Rome from 79 to 64 B.C. comes alive in this fictional biography of Marcus Tullius Cicero, the politician and superb orator who rose to the empire's highest office after starting as an outsider from the provinces. His first legal case drew him into a long battle with powerful Gaius Verres, the dangerously corrupt governor of Sicily. Cicero displayed his wit and talent for oration and strategy to triumph over Verres and other opponents in high-profile cases. Harris has written a fast-paced tale, the first part of a trilogy. He examines the full spectrum of Roman society, including its dark side of corruption, class divisions, betrayal, and cruelty. Cicero, who sought imperium, or ultimate power of the state, is portrayed as a sympathetic figure whose allegiance was to the idea of Republic. The author paints a vivid picture of everyday life, and the courtroom dramas are, at times, riveting. Readers will recognize other famous Romans who pop up in the story, including Julius Caesar and Pompey. They may also recognize the timelessness of the pursuit of power.–Susanne Bardelson, Kitsap Regional Library, WA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By J Scott
Format:Hardcover
Harris' fictionalised account of Cicero's life as told by his faithful scribe Tiro is a well-written account of a fascinating character set in a compelling historical period. Be warned, however, that it tells just part of the story - Cicero's astonishing rise as a self-made (well, almost) man through the ranks and his quest for the ultimate power in Rome, Imperium - and none of the rest of his life (though an aged Tiro certainly alludes to Cicero's ultimate destiny). Cicero is suitably heroic (though not physically so, if you're expecting someone in the vein of Harris' energetic protagonist from Pompeii), honorable, crowd-pleasing and verbally adroit. Tiro's slave is self-effacing but highly likable and noble in his own way. So - greatly likeable characters, some superb lawyerly monologuing - what's missing? Well, funnily enough Harris is shackled by history somewhat here - by stopping the story where he does I don't think you get the full force of the malevolence or diabolical scheming levelled against Cicero, and he seems a little bit bullet-proof. I rather hope Harris finishes the whole story in a sequel... but I suspect not. If nothing else, the Imperium will send you to your history books to find out just how the story DID end...
By Jason
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
“Doesn't anyone in this city do anything except watch men and animals kill one another?”
This is an interesting book. Most Roman sword and sandals involve either legions, gladiators or Caesar's death. While I'm certain this trilogy will involve the life and death of Caesar, this book only features Caesar as a somewhat minor character, with no bloody coliseum battles of graphic descriptions of Roman military tactics in Gaul or Germania.
However, despite that, I found the book actually very good. After a brief introduction of Tiro and a skimming of Cicero's beginnings and his marriage to Torrentia, it launches into the Gaius Verres case, which I found both highly educational and highly entertaining. I like a good courtroom drama, and here, Harris manages to create one despite the differences between ancient Roman and modern legal systems. On top of that, he is laying down the seeds of political corruption with everyone from Pompey to Crassus to a young Caesar and showing the age old animosity between the aristocrats and the plebs.
When the Verres case concludes, he doesn't launch into the next great legal case in the same detail, but instead shows Cicero's growing hostility to Crassus, his allegiance with Pompey, the collecting of military power by Pompey, and sets the stage for Cicero's ultimate consulship election.
The political corruption is beautifully sewn in alongside the battle between aristocracy and populism. Harris even includes a rather unnecessary cameo for Cato, just to show the one man in Rome immune to corruption.
The book was also just short enough not to become tedious and to adequately begin the series
This is an interesting book. Most Roman sword and sandals involve either legions, gladiators or Caesar's death. While I'm certain this trilogy will involve the life and death of Caesar, this book only features Caesar as a somewhat minor character, with no bloody coliseum battles of graphic descriptions of Roman military tactics in Gaul or Germania.
However, despite that, I found the book actually very good. After a brief introduction of Tiro and a skimming of Cicero's beginnings and his marriage to Torrentia, it launches into the Gaius Verres case, which I found both highly educational and highly entertaining. I like a good courtroom drama, and here, Harris manages to create one despite the differences between ancient Roman and modern legal systems. On top of that, he is laying down the seeds of political corruption with everyone from Pompey to Crassus to a young Caesar and showing the age old animosity between the aristocrats and the plebs.
When the Verres case concludes, he doesn't launch into the next great legal case in the same detail, but instead shows Cicero's growing hostility to Crassus, his allegiance with Pompey, the collecting of military power by Pompey, and sets the stage for Cicero's ultimate consulship election.
The political corruption is beautifully sewn in alongside the battle between aristocracy and populism. Harris even includes a rather unnecessary cameo for Cato, just to show the one man in Rome immune to corruption.
The book was also just short enough not to become tedious and to adequately begin the series
1 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Prairie Pal
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Marcus Tullius Cicero was one of the leading figures of the last days of the Roman Republic and "Imperium" is a fictionalized account of Cicero's early career. For those readers interested in the mechanics of Roman politics -- the "cursus honorum", the tribal voting, the role of the factions -- this book will provide sufficient material. If you're looking for compelling characters, suspenseful conflict, in fact almost any kind of story-line, you're out of luck here. Harris concentrates on a few of Cicero's first legal successes and brings him by the novel's end into the orbit of Pompey and his ambitions. All of this may be more profitably gleaned by spending five minutes on Wikipedia and your time is probably better spent on Harris's more contemporary works such as "Fatherland" or "Archangel".
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