@Duchess64
Totally missing the point as ever - it's not an academic or historical text to be marked by teachers. It's the novelisation of a 7 part drama series! It's popular entertainment - stop feeling threatened by it, obviously this really has nothing to do with you or your world of academia, so why are you wasting so much of your time fretting over it?!
The post that was quoted here has been removedhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47803769-severus
Some of the reviews by people who read for entertainment not as an intellectual exercise in sneering superiority...
"Severus is an epic page turner worthy of 5 stars. It recounts an incredible period in the history of the Roman Empire; the year of the five Caesars, a gripping grab for power that rivals the claim to the Iron Throne!"
"What a read! I was curious from the title of the Black Caesar, I don't have a passion for history but this is an epic story. Telling of the life of Septimius Severus, I was complete emmersed in Roman times, living every battle, seeing every garrison and feeling the passion to be a strong selfless leader. This is artistically written to provide an experience with precision and clarity of the time, his life, choices, bravery and rationale. This should be on the big screen!"
"An excellent insight into the first black emporer. I enjoyed this particular story of a determined leader who came to Britain and left his mark."
"As an avid historical novel fan, although not particularly knowledgeable with this period, the epic story of Severus’ rise to Emperor of Rome kept me totally engaged and wanting more. Having read this on my kindle I also bought the paperback for my husband. Definitely worth of 5 stars."
"A great read that had me gripped from the first page right till the last! This story would make for an incredible TV show!"
"Great read. Well developed plot line and very well fleshed out characters. Looking forward to additional offerings from this author"
I was encouraged and excited to see that notable historian Patrick Vernon included the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus on his list of 100 Great Black Britons and that he ended up ranking as highly as 25 in the final list.
Severus died in York in 211 BC and was arguably the first black man to set foot on British soil, but he came not as a slave, but as Emperor. Behind this still little-known fact there is the incredible tale of someone who grew from rebellious youth to the most powerful man in the ancient world.
Septimius Severus, the Black Caesar, came from humble beginnings in occupied North Africa, born in the Mediterranean city of Lepcis Magna. He would end his days fighting in Northern Scotland, having expanded the Roman Empire further than any of his illustrious predecessors, from Julius Caesar to his mentor, Marcus Aurelius.
As a boy, Severus hated the Romans. He was involved with local freedom fighters, taking part in daring raids of sabotage against the Empire. But frustrated by this small-time rebellion and its petty violence, the keen-witted Severus embarked on a journey to Rome, taking him to the heart of the power that he despised.
Once there, however, the picture changes. Little by little, his exposure to Rome begins to change him and soon he finds himself in an ironic position: sent as a soldier from Rome to fight his fellow Africans, as they cross the Mediterranean and into Spain. His accidental military career gains him a reputation, and powerful friends.
When the much-loved Emperor Marcus Aurelius dies and his depraved son Commodus becomes the new ruler, Rome becomes an increasingly dangerous place. After Commodus is assassinated, the veteran Roman general Pertinax is hailed as Emperor. However, Pertinax manages to hold on to his throne and his head for a mere sixty-eight days, and his murder plunges Rome into bloody civil war.
Severus now commands one of the largest Roman legions in the Empire and finds himself drawn into a conflict from which he will emerge, ultimately, as Emperor.
The peace that Severus’s victory brings is short-lived. Rome’s dominions never stay subdued for long. Treachery both from his advisers, and from within his own family, keep the new Emperor watching his back. His unfaithful wife Julia is plotting his death, and his son is emerging as a vicious and disturbed young Emperor-in-waiting.
SEVERUS: The Black Caesar which is available on Amazon in Kindle and paperback format charts his incredible life in full and is being developed into a TV drama series for HBO/SKY Atlantic starring the actor and music artist, Marlowe Simms (aka Septimius the Great).
