The good, the bad, and the ugly: Last of the Amazons by Steven Pressfield

Homer's style has gone out of fashion. The good The title - who wouldn't want to read Last of the Amazons? It's about the Attic War, a lesser known Greek myth that's very similar to the Trojan War. We know that the Amazons can't win against the Athenians, but it's still...

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The good, the bad, and the ugly: Gladiatrix (Gladiatrix #1) by Russell Whitfield

Genderbent Spartacus with lesbians. The good It's about female gladiators! Hell to the yeah! Scheming Romans  The book assumes the reader knows stuff about ancient Rome, because you'd hardly read it if you didn't (thank you, author, for treating us as the knowledgeable people we are) LGBTQ...

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The good, the annoying, and the ugly: For The Most Beautiful by Emily Hauser

Insta love, Stockholm Syndrome, and sex = love in Troy. I'm going to pick apart this novel, so beware of spoilers for both the book and the Trojan War (which is a millenia-old myth, but hey, not everyone knows it). The good Gorgeous cover! Retelling of the Trojan War that focuses...

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The good, the bad, and the ugly: New Pompeii (New Pompeii #1) by Daniel Godfrey

Capitalising on time travel never ends well. The good Time travel (they transport people from the past into the present, but it's actually quite complicated and gets confusing later) Romans (always a plus) But no romance! (even better) Mother of all plot twists (I did not see that coming!) Nice...

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Review: Pompeii by Robert Harris

The punny quotes on the outside and inside covers killed me. Summary A sweltering week in late August. Where better to enjoy the last days of summer than on the beautiful Bay of Naples? But even as Rome's richest citizens relax in their villas around Pompeii and Herculaneum, there are ominous...

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Mini review: Love in the Land of Midas by Kapka Kassabova

Clickbait summary: Not as corny or romantic as the blurb makes it appear. Actual summary A love story that crosses generations and continents, from post-war Europe to the present day. The legends of the Greek myths are diffused with the complicated history of the Balkans in a story...

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The good, the bad, and the ugly: Bring Down the Sun by Judith Tarr

Clickbait summary: Horny priestess marries King of Macedonia, has magic. The good About a historically intriguing woman, Olympias (Alexander the Great's mother)  The setting! (Ancient Greece, 4th Century BCE) Main character has a clear goal she is determined to reach (but she reaches...

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Top Ten Reasons I Love Xena: Warrior Princess

Top Ten Tuesday is an awesome meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's theme is Ten Reasons I Love X. I thought and thought about what I was going to do, and finally decided on one of my two favourite TV programmes, the 90s cult classic Xena: Warrior Princess.   For those...

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Curses & Smoke: A Novel of Pompeii by Vicky Alvear Shecter

Finished reading on: 16 February 2016 I'm experimenting with review styles, so let's see how this goes. Tell me what you think of this format. The good Gorgeous cover Great for young Classics nerds and fans of Spartacus (and therefore me) – Gladiators! Roman women! Pompeii! Satisfied my...

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The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

  Date finished: 11 March 2015 I'd been meaning to read this book for about a year, ever since I did a Classics internal on The Iliad vs Troy (2004) in Year 12, and I'm very glad I finally read it. Doing this study meant that I knew the story - and loved it - so I hoped...

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