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| The October Horse : A Novel of Caesar and Cleopatra | 
 enlarge | Author: Colleen Mccullough
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Category: Book
List Price: $28.00
Buy Used: $17.88
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Avg. Customer Rating:  60 reviews
Sales Rank: 768874
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 800
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.4
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.7
ASIN: B0001H0A0M
Publication Date: November 26, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Caesar is in the prime of his life and the height of his powers as the novel opens. A man of contradictions, Caesar is happily married yet at the same time the lover of the enigmatic and subtle Egyptian ruler, Cleopatra. He is at once a great general who commands the instinctive loyalty of Rome's legions, and a man who wishes to bring to an end Rome's endless civil and external wars, a man not only conscious of his own power, and contemptuous of lesser men, but respectful of the republic, and determined not to be worshipped as a living god or crowned as an emperor, a man whose very greatness attracts envy and jealousy to a dangerous degree. With her extraordinary knowledge of Roman history, Colleen McCullough brings Caesar to life as nobody has ever done before, and surrounds him with an enormous and vivid cast of historical characters, portrayed here not as literary figures, but as real, living people, trying to control and master enormous political events and survive.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 55 more reviews...
A long case of closure August 18, 2008
I've read the previous books in the series, loved some, enjoyed all. It had been a couple years since I picked up Colleen McCullough, but found it easy to get back into her rhythm and storytelling. More than ever, Caesar becomes the main protagonist, becoming more drawn out and strung out by his life. I liked the earlier books that spread the focus around and drew upon multiple characters to carry the plot. In the end, only Caesar is interesting enough to cheer for.
The book hits the climatic point a bit over 2/3 of the way, and while the remainder is interesting in setting forth the true end of the Republic and rise of Empire, I spent most of the pages racing to finish to the heavily built up finale.
All in all, a original, unique, detailed portrayal of the volatile times and the meta-effects of earlier government carrying down the proverbial slippery slope.
 Treats a difficult period in a most readable way July 26, 2008
At the time I bought this it was thought it would be the last of the Masters of Rome series. After some initial skepticism (how could the follow-up to the stupendous Caesar measure up?) I stepped through and re-read the entire series and continued on to this one. To be greatly and pleasantly surprised. Once Caesar departs the mortal coil (in an unforgettable murder scene), October Horse necessarily loses some narrative momentum; given the historical context (the effective death of the Roman Republic and the schisms among the Roman nobleman class). It's hard to imagine any fiction writer making that particular period memorable and linear in narrative. Nevertheless, it's abundantly obvious that Mark Antony was really the first De Facto Roman emperor - at least in terms of being a true despot foreshadowing the utter decadence of Tiberius, Caligula and Nero. By the time Antony assumed the consulship, the Republic was thoroughly dead. It took merely a competent tyrant like Octavian to maneuver Antony into his inevitable destruction. And a mere 19-year-old as senior consul (as Octavian was)? Clearly, the Republic was no more.
This book has many tremendous passages. Marcus Cato comes into his own here, as McCullogh invests some space in developing his character and quite plausibly illustrates why Cato wound up having a strong following. Cato's own departure from Macedonia after Pharsalus and his March of the Ten Thousand is probably the best passage in this very strong book. McCullough has a stunning gift for dialogue which keeps things moving even in the sections where "armies are moving all over the place," as it were. Her dialogue is compulsively readable and continuously reinforces the qualities of her characters.
But the character of Caesar remains transcendent. If he was even half of what McCullough conjectures in the Masters of Rome series, which he dominates throughout most of the six books and over 5000 pages, then he must really have been something. She makes his presence on every page of compelling interest, and his murder scene is a real burner. A great character to build a series around, and after he's gone, it's hard not to see anything further as an anticlimax. The character of Octavian is rather sweet and sympathetic at first, especially in his idolization of Caesar, but makes a rather rapid transformation to a budding tyrant with a gift for both propaganda and for compiling enemies' lists.
All in all, this is a strikingly strong book given that it's the sixth of a very strong series. After starting with the fabulous First Man in Rome many years ago, it is a delight for me to say that you won't be disappointed with this one. Maybe not on the level of the Patrick O'Brian Aubrey-Maturin series, but not far short and the whole Masters of Rome series is a real treat if you're desperate for some reading matter.
 October Horse April 14, 2008
I pride myself on always finishing the books I start. I could not make myself finish this book. It is saturated with boring details - but no plot. None of the characters were likable, and I really did not care what happened to them. This book was a huge disappointment.
A excellent capstone to the Masters of Rome series December 12, 2007
McCulloch delivers in this final entry into her epic series the Masters of Rome. All the threads begin to coalesce she has been spinning since First Man in Rome (Masters of Rome). Caesar begins to consolidate his control over Rome by hunting down the last few remnants of the Republicans. After crushing resistance he sets about reforming the creaky wheels of government. In the process he makes enemies who see him as the man who would be king. The only way they see to stop him is murder, but by murdering Caesar they don't stop him or his heir Octavian, they just make them stronger.
I have to say that this book and the series itself really opened my eyes about the culture of Rome and how things actually worked. I got so much more from this series than any history class I could imagine. McCullough immerses you in the life of Rome itself, giving you a glimpse into this familiar, yet alien world. Although like all writers and historians you have to make guesses and fill in gaps where information is missing, but she weaves a seamless tapestry that truly ensnares you. Through the series you follow the first families of Rome for four generations, seeing their triumphs and tragedies play out, as they scramble to define what Rome will be.
To be honest it is a formidable task to start this series, and the books really don't stand alone. First Man in Rome (Masters of Rome), The Grass Crown (Masters of Rome),Fortune's Favorites, Caesar's Women (Masters of Rome Series), Caesar: A Novel (Masters of Rome Series) are great reading, but they are also a huge committment. If you love a sweeping historical drama you can really believe in and have an awful lot of time to sit down and read, I highly reccommend this series.
Interesting and Absorbing July 22, 2007
The October Horse is an interesting and absorbing book. I found myself engrossed in this well-crafted story. My only complaint is I expected to find a bit more of Cleopatra in the book. This novel made me even more curious about ancient Rome and get my hands on as many books related to the subject as possible.
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