The second volume in Robert Harris' proposed trilogy about the life and death of the late Republic, Lustrum, has been released and I managed to get my hands on a copy - not sure yet if it's released in the US. It continues (after Imperium) to be a fascinating look at the late-Republican death throes through the eyes of Marcus Tullius Cicero. As such, I'm enjoying it even more than Imperium - what's not to like about the almost unbelievable events in Rome of 63 BC? - but he's perfecting his picture of Caesar.

I guess it makes sense that, being a book seen through Cicero's eyes, Caesar has got to be a baddy, but WHAT a baddy! Charming, ruthless, utterly self-obsessed but able to hide it, Harris takes some peculiar sources in the late '60's - remember one of the sources claims that Caesar plotted with Crassus to take over Egypt, and elsewhere, to "overthrow the Republic" in the mid 60's?? - and blows that up into a major plot strand. As I get older, the ruthless side of Caesar becomes more visible to me, but I still think Cicero's a little harsh on Gaius Julius - even after 2,000 years! But for its marvelous portrayals of Pompey, Caesar, Cicero, Tiro, Clodius, Catalina, Clodia, and so many more (not to mention Crassus who scares me to DEATH), it's highly recommended! This carries the story down to 58 BC. There's much to cover in the final book of the trilogy, due on 2011!

How utterly ironic that both Cicero AND Caesar won the immortality they craved!