Mistress of Rome (Empress of Rome, #1)

by Kate Quinn

Passion. Treachery. Murder...A heart-stopping epic about a Jewish slave girl and Rome's greatest gladiator, who become involved in a plot to assassinate an emperor Orphaned by Rome's savage legions, Thea, a slave girl from Judaea, has learned what it takes to survive. She knows only violence until a chance meeting with gladiator Arius offers a shred of tenderness. But their bond is severed when Thea is sold again, condemned to rot in squalor. Years later, a singer known as Athena betrays no hint of her troubled past. Catching the eye of the Emperor himself, she is swept into a world of decadence and depravity. But although Domitian fears betrayal from every side, he is unaware that the greatest threat lies next to him -- a slave girl who has come to be called the Mistress of Rome...

• ISBN10: 1101186631
• ISBN13: 9781101186633
• Publish Date: 1 April 2010 (first published 4 March 2010)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Berkley Books
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 480
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

Romance, betrayal, games (physical and emotional), war, deceit, just about a little of everything! Mistress of Rome follows the overlapping lives of several characters. Thea is a slave in love with a gladiator, Aruis. Lepida is her mistress who's determined to reach the top of Roman society. Paulinus is the senator's son, Lepida's stepson, and Thea's former lover. Julia, the emperor's ill niece. All of their lives entwine into one exciting story.

Oddly, my favorite character was Lady Lepida. She is nasty and selfish, and I loved to hate her. She manipulated everyone around her to get what she wanted, and even though I didn't want her to succeed, I couldn't wait to see what she would do next. Most readers will probably be cheering for Thea and Arius, and I was, but Lepida was just so intriguing.

Mistress of Rome covers several years in the lives of its characters, and at times it seemed to drone on. But then suddenly something would happen and grab my attention again. Eventually all of the seemingly unimportant events and details came together and formed an amazing story.