Dynasty: The Rise and Fall of the House of Caesar

Well written and researched. Deadly and dangerous times for those aspiring for power. Portrays Tiberius’ early years somewhat sympathetically. Caligula removed the mask Octavian had placed over the power he had accumulated and revealed to the Romans what they had become and the type of rule they lived under. Portrayed as a shrewd monster, Great read.

This is interesting and certainly well-written. The author has a terrific command of English and has a florid manner of writing, which means it's not a quick read but certainly an entertaining one. He narrates the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero. They are presented such that it's pretty much a steady and sometimes astonishing decline from Tiberius onward. He relies on original sources, which is great, but there are drawbacks, i.e. they all had their own reasons for writing (reflections of the time in which they lived), axes to grind, or emperors to pander to as the case may be. Seutonius, for example, is famous for being a gossip and the author appears to take whatever spurious rumors, substantiated or not, at face value even though he reminds us now and then that such reports are to be taken with a grain of salt.

Tom Holland continues where he left off in RUBICON with this insightful, well-sourced, and addictive read about the five emperors from Augustus to Nero. It is in much the same vein as its predecessor, but is much longer and therefore contains more of the "juicy" stuff. Of course, he doesn't always take the primary sources at their word (as many of the notes attest), but he is also keen enough to understand that people don't usually make stuff up out of whole cloth. There were so many different interesting episodes, it was hard to keep track. It was also hard while reading this book to not think in some way of contemporary politics. In a way, ancient Roman history has become newly relevant. Not because we're necessarily headed down an identical path, but recognizing the personalities involved here can inform one of the possibilities inherent in human nature. Regardless of whether or not you see value in this personally, though, doesn't matter. Modern applicability or not, this was a great book: a real page-turner from start to finish.

Tom Holland has a true gift for taking certain periods of history and crafting a meaningful, coherent narrative from the names, times, places, and events. As such, he is a wonderful popularizer whose non-fiction books read with all of the pacing of a well-written novel. “Dynasty” follows the bloodline of the house of Caesar to its ultimate end, concluding with the death of Nero. Along the way there is triumph, tragedy, blood, death, sex, torture, drama and intrigue that is all the more compelling because it happens to be true. The book moves along at a breakneck pace but never lacks for detail. Holland knows just where to focus the reader’s attention, and like “Rubicon” which came before it, “Dynasty” is a must-read for those who are fascinated with the history of ancient Rome.

Holland's style has energy and sweep and the "story" is compelling. On that basis, I thought this an enjoyable run through of fascinating but mostly familiar tales. It is very difficult to prove much that is asserted about the characters and behaviors of the Julian emperors. Could Caligula really have been so horrific? Could Nero have been so crazy? Are the sexual excesses attributed to Tiberius' during his reign verifiable? Could Livia, Augustus' wife and Tiberius' mother, have been an early version of Murder Incorporated or was it mostly luck that favored the rise of her gifted but unbeguiling son against more popular rivals? "History" of the time and somewhat later was written by those with axes to grind who made little distinction between outrageous gossip, outlandish rumor, and outright lies if they served to show these men and their allies (many of whom met bad ends) to be utterly monstrous, rather than powerful thus extremely self-indulgent, sufferers from paranoia (an understandable reaction to a world filled with complex and murderous intrigues) or disordered in flamboyant but finally standard ways. Holland doesn't always succeed in keeping the complicated kinship relationships between characters clear, and sometimes writes as though treading water to the next outrageous anecdote. There is something infectious in the glee with which he writes about Nero, always fun to read about, if again one suspects these are tall tales spun by enemies of a ruler who wooed the plebs, snubbed those in power and certainly had a sense of perverse fun. Not a bad introduction in a general way to the death of the Republic and the rise of absolute rulers in Rome but less focused, absorbing and more credulous than one might have hoped.

Excelente visão do mundo Romano, leitura um pouco difícil mas cativante

Fabulous history. Informative and entertaining. A fabulous read.

Tom Holland is a gifted writer. It was pure pleasure reading this book. It isn't an easy read but that wasn't why I bought it, I wanted to learn about this era in Roman history. It was extremely fascinating and informative. When a book is this good, I read it rapidly which is somewhat sad because before I knew it, it was over. I will read it again at some point, it is that good. I highly recommend Dynasty: The Rise and Fall of the House of Caesar to anyone who can't get enough of Ancient Roman history.

Great narrative, equal to Rubicon. There is detail and context, with verve and rythm, good complementary account of the Julians.

Truly one of the best books I have ever read on Rome or perhaps even history in general. Factual information seamlessly weaved into an incredible story. Tom Holland makes you feel as though you are really there. The research that went into the book must have been immense. After reading this, I have already bought and will continue to buy many more Holland books. Thankyou! (Caesar Augustus is the GOAT)