Las mujeres de César
Colleen McCullough
Publicado: 1996 | 832 páginas
Novela Histórico
Serie: Roma #4

Las mujeres de César es el retrato de la ascensión de Cayo Julio César hasta los lugares más prominentes de su mundo, y comienza con su regreso a Roma en el año 68 a. JC. Durante los diez años que se verá confinado en Roma, César, además de dominar el foro, conquista a las mujeres más nobles de Roma. Pero utiliza el amor como otra arma más de las que dispone en su arsenal político para alcanzar su última y única meta: ser el más grande de todos los primeros hombres de Roma. ¿Héroe o canalla? Éste es un dilema que incluso hoy sigue siendo tema de debate, prueba de que la figura de César ha fascinado a generación tras generación.

En Las mujeres de César Colleen McCullough descubre al hombre que se esconde tras la leyenda, y nos ofrece con gran maestría todos los datos y pormenores para que el lector decida por sí mismo.

This installment in the series follows Caesar after his return from the provinces to take up a political life. Almost immediately upon his return he is seduced by Servilia, a woman of advanced status and strategic cunning. The two agree to betroth their children, Brutus and Julia. Although Julia is still very young, Caesar needs the money and clout that this union will give him.

The majority of this book is taken up in the drama of the Senate, conspiracies, scandals, and intrigues upon intrigues. Through it all, Caesar proves himself an accomplished political power. At the close of the book, Caesar forms a triumvirate with Pompey and Crassus. These three men have many differences, but their alliance cannot be combated by any other political forces in Rome. To solidify this alliance, Caesar breaks his daughter's engagement and weds her quickly to Pompey. This binds the warlord even closer to him and puts him under the influence of Julia's charms.

The book ends with Caesar leaving Rome again with grand military intentions. Behind him, the women in his life gather to discuss the future as they await his return. ( )

CC makes Roman history come alive. ( )

This was really a good book ... I wish I'd read it in the right order ... now I feel like I need to go back and re-read Caesar. Oh well. I like the domestic side and the political intrigues better than I like the battle stuff so this one was for me. I just wish they were shorter!!! ( )

Book four of the "Masters of Rome" series covers a ten year span, 68 BC through 58 BC. During this decade the whole world revolves around Rome... and all of Rome revolves around Julius Caesar. At this point in the series, you know all the important people intimately: Julius Caesar, his family, friends, enemies, and lovers. Politically speaking - very few people took a neutral position when it came to Caesar - most either loved or hated him.

This is the first volume of the series that does not involve extensive war scenes. Rather, it develops and expands on the domestic and cultural sides of Roman life. Having covered a total of 50 years since the series began, there are subtle signs of social change. Women are gaining more freedom and men of less aristocratic background are gaining entrance to the political scene.

You make the acquaintance of the Vestal Virgins - a select group of young girls who dedicate their youth to serving the Gods. And the author provides lots of scenes depicting religious rituals.

Episodes of the very first Italian Mafia running a “protection ploy” - actually offering protection from themselves “they sell protection from robbery and assault to shopkeepers and manufacturers. Fail to pay up, your goods are stolen... you’re beaten up... your machinery is destroyed.” (Pg. 619) And they are used by politicians to sway senate votes. It was common to have barbaric brawls break out during the voting process which occasionally resulted in the death of a senator.

No different today... the young adults rebel. You will read about the Clodius Club, the younger generation of aristocrats. They scandalously allowed women to join. “The only aim of the Clodius Club is to shock the world. That’s how they entertain themselves. They’re all bored, idle, averse to work, and possessed far too much money. Drinking and wenching and gambling are tame. Shocks and scandals are the Club’s sole purpose.” (Pg. 216) This creates quite a stir when they get involved in the political scene.

Masters of Rome is based on real historical events with authentic detail of life of that period, however, I don’t know how accurate Colleen McCullough is in depicting the attitudes and feelings of the characters. If she is totally accurate - poor, poor Cicero. He is not quite the person I had always envisioned. And could Julius Caesar really have been that handsome, smart, and gloriously perfect?

Once again, McCullough did an outstanding job of presentation. Her only weakness may be in sharing too many details which can be tiresome especially when attempting to read the entire series straight through, non-stop.

One word of warning. There are so many important characters who play a major role in history, I found it difficult to keep track of who was who, and how that related to Julius... friend? enemy? traitor? relative? With each book I started keeping a list with a line down the middle separating friends from enemies. As the plot unwinds this comes in handy especially since the entire series covers over 100 years and several generations.

"Masters of Rome" is a time consuming reading project not to be taken lightly. It is truly educational, entertaining, and thought provoking. ( )