Is anyone's interest in ancient coins paired with an interest in fiction set in the ancient world?

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by DonnaML, Feb 8, 2020.

  1. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    I know this isn't exactly about numismatics, but I thought that if it was OK to have a thread about the Ottomans TV series, perhaps this might be OK too. Because I'm really quite addicted to novels set in the world of ancient Rome and, to a lesser extent, Greece. Not necessarily the "serious fiction" kind: I did really like Augustus by John Williams, Julian by Gore Vidal, and Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar [who was one of my mother's professors at Sarah Lawrence; my mother stayed in touch with her for a number of years], but I couldn't get into the one Colleen McCullough novel I tried. It was just too gigantic!

    I'm more enamored of the popular fiction category, including mysteries -- I've read all the Steven Saylor books about Gordianus, many of Lindsey Davis's books, and all of the John Maddox Roberts SPQR series until he seemingly dropped off the face of the earth a few years ago -- and military-oriented fiction. The latter would include the novels of Simon Scarrow, Douglas Jackson, Ben Kane, Adrian Goldsworthy, a book called Eagle in the Snow by Wallace Breem published back in 1970, and (my current favorites), all the fiction about ancient Rome written by the historian Harry Sidebottom. It was probably reading dozens of books like this that helped rekindle my interest in collecting ancient Roman coins a few years ago.

    I haven't read much that takes place in the Grecian world, except for two wonderful books by Mary Renault (The King Must Die and The Bull from the Sea), and a few books by Steven Pressfield.

    Is there anyone out there with similar reading interests, who might have any other authors to recommend?

    My apologies if this wasn't an appropriate subject to raise.
     
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  3. thejewk

    thejewk Well-Known Member

    It's not a genre that particularly appeals to me, but my wife really enjoys Margaret George's novels and recently read her first book about Nero and Claudius.
     
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  4. svessien

    svessien Senior Member

    Yes, I’ve had periods where books like that have interested me.
    I liked «Imperium» by Robert Harris a lot. It gives insight in the personal and political life of Cicero. I also read two books by Paul Maier: «The flames of Rome», about Nero and the early christians in Rome. «Pontius Pilate» by Maier was also good.
     
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  5. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    The Robert Harris trilogy about Cicero was excellent. I forgot to mention it. His novel about Pompeii was pretty good too.
     
  6. shanxi

    shanxi Well-Known Member

    Last edited: Feb 8, 2020
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  7. David Atherton

    David Atherton Flavian Fanatic

    Caroline Lawrence's The Roman Mysteries series of children's books set during the reign of Titus are a blast to read. Despite being aimed at a YA audience they are quite thoroughly researched and don't skimp on the unsavory details of what life was like in the late First Century. As a matter of fact, the best fictional account I've ever read about the opening games of the Colosseum are in Book 7 The Gladiators from Capua.
     
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  8. Bing

    Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

    It seems we have similar reading interest @DonnaML. There is a good series of books about Vespasian by Robert Fabri I really enjoyed. Other authors I've enjoyed are Adrian Goldsworthy, S.J.A. Turney, Griff Hosker, R.W. Peake, Simon Scarrow Hector Miller, and more. I'm an avid reader, so there are too many books/authors to mention them all. Currently, my reading interest have turned to the Viking age and medieval Britain.

    I haven't counted them up lately, but I suspect I have read 150 to 200 books per year for the past few years. I would much rather let my imagination make up the movie rather than Hollywood. My oldest son might cringe when I say ebooks have made it easy to read more (he likes the feel of a real book in hand), but I don't have to go to a brick and mortar store to search for my next read.
     
  9. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    I enjoy reading history more than I do historical fiction. However, @Bing has recommended several books that I have enjoyed. Me, I enjoy reading facts over reading a story. Yeah, kinda weird.

    I read perhaps 3-5 books simultaneously. One that has been pretty good is “Humans who Went Extinct”, by Clive Finlayson. Spent the first half of the book focusing on the last 8 million years how climate, ocean levels, and continental changes influenced Human development, and the 2nd half of the book focuses on Human development in the last 50,000 years. Really cool.
     
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2020
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  10. Parthicus Maximus

    Parthicus Maximus Well-Known Member

    I don't read much about this area. But I was a enthousiast reader of the eagle series (Macro and Cato) by Simon Scarrow. However, I stopped at part eight. But maybe I should start again. By the way, it is funny to see that in the series Vitellius and Vespasian are constantly in conflict with each other. Although it is not very realistic it is a nice aspect of the book.
     
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  11. Fugio1

    Fugio1 Well-Known Member

    I'm actively reading about 4 books right now and one of them is "First Man In Rome", a novel about the rise of Marius and Sulla by Colleen McCullough. I'm on page 491 of this ~1100 page book which was daunting at first, but it's very readable with compact sections of 2-6 pages throughout so I can sit down for a few minutes at a time and read a small bit without getting lost.
     
  12. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    @Bing, you're the second person who's mentioned the Vespasian books by Robert Fabbri, so I may have to give them a try -- even though it's apparently a 9-book commitment, and it takes that long for him to become the Emperor!

    If you haven't read Harry Sidebottom's books, I do highly recommend them. They take place during the 3rd century AD, from the beginning of the reign of Maximinus Thrax up to Gallienus (so far), an era which is extremely unusual for novels about ancient Rome to cover.

    Much like you, I probably read 150 or so books a year. mostly fiction, and rarely go to movies anymore. I used to be very much anti-ebook myself, but ordered a couple when I was ill and bored about a year ago, and haven't stopped. The potential for immediate gratification is just too great! Plus, I seem to read novels faster that way. I still generally prefer actual hard-copy books for non-fiction, though, especially anything where the illustrations are important (like books about history or art or archaeology).

    In terms of the Viking age, I've read and liked the books on that era by Gilles Kristian and Robert Low -- the latter of whom has recently turned to writing books about ancient Rome himself, it seems. Of course, the best novel about Vikings ever is The Long Ships, by Frans G. Bengtsson. (The old movie with Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier doesn't even begin to compare!)
     
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2020
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  13. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    I think it's up to about book 20 by now! They do tend to blend together a bit. . . .
     
  14. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    That happens to be the very same one I tried. I only got about 25 pages into it, and wasn't fascinated (to say the least), so I just gave up, realizing how incredibly long it was. But I still have it, so I can always try again!
     
  15. Parthicus

    Parthicus Well-Known Member

    Here's a few classical-era-set historical novels I enjoyed that haven't been mentioned yet:

    -Robert Graves' novels on Claudius ("I, Claudius" and "Claudius the God") stick pretty closely to the original source material, and are well worth reading.

    -Mary Renault's trilogy on Alexander the Great ("Fire from Heaven", "The Persian Boy", and "Funeral Games"). Follows from the rise of Alexander, his incredible conquests, and finally the power struggle after his death.

    Ruth Downie has written a series of Roman mysteries (the "Medicus" series) set during the reign of Hadrian, which I quite enjoy. Be aware that the books have different titles in the UK and the US for some reason, so make sure you don't accidentally purchase the same book twice under different covers.
     
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  16. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    Thats a good one.
     
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  17. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    Thanks for the recommendations! I read I, Claudius and Claudius the God when I was in high school -- probably around the time I saw the original TV series -- and loved them. I should really read them again. Graves also wrote a novel about Count Belisarius that I've thought about reading.

    I haven't read Renault's Alexander trilogy, but they're definitely on my list!

    I did read the Ruth Downie "Medicus" books as they came out for quite a while, but stopped a couple of years ago when I got a little bored with them. Perhaps I'll pick up with them again at some point.
     
  18. zumbly

    zumbly Ha'ina 'ia mai ana ka puana

    I don't read as much historical fiction as I'd like to. I did read Colleen McCullough's First Man in Rome and Antony and Cleopatra some years ago and enjoyed them both. I like the style of Mary Renault's writing in Last of the Wine, but otherwise find it a bit plodding... I think I only made it through one-fifth of the novel before giving up. There seem to be some great recommendations here that I intend to look up soon. Thanks for starting the thread, @DonnaML. :)
     
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  19. Severus Alexander

    Severus Alexander find me at NumisForums

    One of my favourite topics. I love Renault, the McCullough series (I highly recommend giving this another try... after 100 pages it will become a real page-turner, I'm sure), Breem's The Eagle in the Snow (definitely belongs in the "serious" category IMO), Harry Sidebottom, The Long Ships, and many others mentioned above.

    A few I'd recommend that haven't come up:
    Pride of Carthage by David Anthony Durham (excellent, the 2nd Punic War from the Carthaginean perspective)
    The Gladiators by Arthur Koestler (about Spartacus; a bit of political allegory going on here, but very good & attentive to the history if with some license)
    • The Year of the Four Emperors series by L. J. Trafford, starting with Palatine (very funny, historically accurate, great characters, easy read - not widely known but highly recommended! Anyone who likes Lindsay Davis's Falco will like these.)
    • The Eagle of the Ninth series by Rosemary Sutcliff (aimed at young adults, but I found them pretty sophisticated and enjoyable. It's "young adult" only in steering away from much in the way of sex & graphic violence. Her King Arthur book, Sword at Sunset, is written for adults and is excellent.)
    • Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Chronicles, beginning with The Last Kingdom (also a Netflix series, the books are great fun)
    • The Crusades Trilogy by Jan Guillou (also great fun)
     
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  20. Dafydd

    Dafydd Supporter! Supporter

    I can certainly endorse the Robert Fabbri books and it's fascinating how Fabbri interweaves the well reported characteristics of each of the main characters, for example Vespasian's parsimony. I've read all of these authors as I am a prolific reader and prefer books to TV. I enjoyed all of the Simon Scarrow novels except I find them a little formulaic, I reckon Scarrow watched Batman as a child, Cato finds himself in an impossible dilemma but Macro rescues him and vice versa. I wouldn't want it any other way however.
    Having read a novel by Christian Cameron last year in which an Owl is used and is mentioned several times, gave me an interest in acquiring an Athenian Tetradrachm although right outside of my scope of interest. I'm waiting for prices to fall given the purported massive hoards found but that doesn't seem to be happening and is a subject for another thread.
    I've just read a fantasy novel by Sophia McDougall called Romanitas in which there was no decline of the Roman Empire and it is portrayed in modern times including modern day slavery. I'm only mentioning this as I found it the worst waste of my reading time so far this year and I wouldn't recommend it. I think she must have been influenced by Harry Turtledove but doesn't quite attain his fiction.
    You've started a great thread DonnML - thank you.
     
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  21. Carterofmars

    Carterofmars Member

    Last edited: Feb 9, 2020
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