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dilchh's review
2.0
Let’s get real here, this was a historical fiction about one of the most talked about Roman Emperor, Nero. Bloody hell, a software was even named after him because the software is used to burn data onto a cd, and Nero allegedly was sitting and playing a musical instrument as Rome was burning. Why did I say allegedly, because apparently there have been some findings that may have contested that notion, there was even an article on National Geographic History about it. So, the fact that the author wrote this book in a way to redeem Nero triggers my curiosity. So I had high hopes for this book.
And it wasn’t disappointing, at all. And I’m not even being sarcastic about it. It was such an amazing thing to me that the author manage to write and speak in the voice of Nero and to grew up together with him. The first part of the book, we are introduced to young Nero (incredibly young Nero, like he was 3 or 4 or something), and you can read in the way Nero spoke that he did sound like a youngster, and as he grew up well into his teens and adulthood, so does the tone of his storytelling changed. And speaking of that, here’s my first problem with the book; there were moments when Nero was describing himself what with him being taller than most people in his households, making me think he is well into his teens, and then, BAM, he mentioned he just turned 10? What? It is confusing af.
And then it got even more confusing because in the middle of reading about teenage Nero and a thought struck me, “wait, did my brain just think that Nero is hot?” Because it’s obvious the author managed to humanise him in a way that previous writings about Nero would never have done. She made Nero out to be this very sensitive and caring boy, who’s into sports and arts and poetry and performing; simply put, Nero in this book is not like your everyday Emperor before him. He’s sporty but he also has this sweet side of him who is into arts and everything Greek.
But then I made a rookie mistake of googling Nero’s bust (because that is the only way I could get an idea what he might have looked like in real life), and oh boy was that a huge mistake on my part or what? He is ugly! Ugly I tell you! He’s facial hair? Horrendous! Afterwards I just couldn’t enjoy Nero like I had enjoyed him the first time around. Hmm, maybe that’s how I ended up being pessimistic towards his character?
And now, this is where it gets boring for yours truly. I get that the author wanted to redeem Nero as an Emperor through this book, and you’re getting the gist of it even from the very beginning, and I genuinely think the author did a fine job in humanising Nero, but after several pages of Nero seems too normal and too down to earth to be an Emperor, I kinda feel like the author is forcing me to swallow these supposedly good sides of Nero. Lady, you are trying too hard to make me like Nero. Stop it, okay? Reign it down a bit.
Just like how you should reign down on your overly detailed descriptions of things that have no use in the story? I do not need to know Nero and Poppaea’s discussion about what colour they should paint their villa. Who gives a damn? Paint whatever colour you want, and it’s not like these colours had any significance to the story or anything. Spoiler alert: it has no relevance whatsoever.
And get this, as I am drowning in the stream of words that I just skim through, I kept on thinking where is this story going to go, because I feel like we’ve covered all the basis that we need to cover. Nero killed Britannicus, and then kill her Mother, and then the first wife is dead, and then he marry Poppaea. What is there left to be told? Oh right! The burning of Rome. The epitome of what is there to talk about when you talk about Emperor Nero. But, hot damn, when will that happened? Surely sometime about now?
Nope! Not a fat chance in hell. After the death of Nero’s daughter (who am I kidding? Actually after Agrippina was dead was when it all started downhill for me), the story took a dark turn. It went absolutely slow. Slow. Slow, I freaking tell you. You can just tell the author was stalling so as to give enough room for the big bang, the burning of Rome, and end the first book to give a segue to the second book that I will not be reading because if the first book was any indication, I’ll probably die out of boredom.
Honestly, I’m just glad I manage to finish this book. There were moments when I thought maybe I should just gave up on this book. It was just boring. Okay, maybe calling it boring is too harsh, because there are moments where this book was interesting, and it got me hook line and sinker reading it. But after 100 or so pages of “where-is-this-going?”, enough is enough and so I rest my case by saying I am bored by this book, but whether or not this book was boring is up for a debate, because I see that there are a lot of good reviews pertaining this book.
And it wasn’t disappointing, at all. And I’m not even being sarcastic about it. It was such an amazing thing to me that the author manage to write and speak in the voice of Nero and to grew up together with him. The first part of the book, we are introduced to young Nero (incredibly young Nero, like he was 3 or 4 or something), and you can read in the way Nero spoke that he did sound like a youngster, and as he grew up well into his teens and adulthood, so does the tone of his storytelling changed. And speaking of that, here’s my first problem with the book; there were moments when Nero was describing himself what with him being taller than most people in his households, making me think he is well into his teens, and then, BAM, he mentioned he just turned 10? What? It is confusing af.
And then it got even more confusing because in the middle of reading about teenage Nero and a thought struck me, “wait, did my brain just think that Nero is hot?” Because it’s obvious the author managed to humanise him in a way that previous writings about Nero would never have done. She made Nero out to be this very sensitive and caring boy, who’s into sports and arts and poetry and performing; simply put, Nero in this book is not like your everyday Emperor before him. He’s sporty but he also has this sweet side of him who is into arts and everything Greek.
But then I made a rookie mistake of googling Nero’s bust (because that is the only way I could get an idea what he might have looked like in real life), and oh boy was that a huge mistake on my part or what? He is ugly! Ugly I tell you! He’s facial hair? Horrendous! Afterwards I just couldn’t enjoy Nero like I had enjoyed him the first time around. Hmm, maybe that’s how I ended up being pessimistic towards his character?
And now, this is where it gets boring for yours truly. I get that the author wanted to redeem Nero as an Emperor through this book, and you’re getting the gist of it even from the very beginning, and I genuinely think the author did a fine job in humanising Nero, but after several pages of Nero seems too normal and too down to earth to be an Emperor, I kinda feel like the author is forcing me to swallow these supposedly good sides of Nero. Lady, you are trying too hard to make me like Nero. Stop it, okay? Reign it down a bit.
Just like how you should reign down on your overly detailed descriptions of things that have no use in the story? I do not need to know Nero and Poppaea’s discussion about what colour they should paint their villa. Who gives a damn? Paint whatever colour you want, and it’s not like these colours had any significance to the story or anything. Spoiler alert: it has no relevance whatsoever.
And get this, as I am drowning in the stream of words that I just skim through, I kept on thinking where is this story going to go, because I feel like we’ve covered all the basis that we need to cover. Nero killed Britannicus, and then kill her Mother, and then the first wife is dead, and then he marry Poppaea. What is there left to be told? Oh right! The burning of Rome. The epitome of what is there to talk about when you talk about Emperor Nero. But, hot damn, when will that happened? Surely sometime about now?
Nope! Not a fat chance in hell. After the death of Nero’s daughter (who am I kidding? Actually after Agrippina was dead was when it all started downhill for me), the story took a dark turn. It went absolutely slow. Slow. Slow, I freaking tell you. You can just tell the author was stalling so as to give enough room for the big bang, the burning of Rome, and end the first book to give a segue to the second book that I will not be reading because if the first book was any indication, I’ll probably die out of boredom.
Honestly, I’m just glad I manage to finish this book. There were moments when I thought maybe I should just gave up on this book. It was just boring. Okay, maybe calling it boring is too harsh, because there are moments where this book was interesting, and it got me hook line and sinker reading it. But after 100 or so pages of “where-is-this-going?”, enough is enough and so I rest my case by saying I am bored by this book, but whether or not this book was boring is up for a debate, because I see that there are a lot of good reviews pertaining this book.
mjporterauthor's review
3.0
I received a free E-Arc from Netgalley.
The Confessions of Young Nero is the third book I've read in the last three weeks about Rome and her Empire. I was most intrigued to find out more about a time period that I've little studied and which previously, I've had little interest in, but did find it quite annoying that there are no years given throughout the text - I wanted to know where Nero's story fit with the other books I've read.
To begin with, The Confessions of Young Nero is a very good introduction to the life of corrupt Rome. The story starts when Nero can be no more than a three year old, and, being told in his voice, progresses well as he grows and develops while all around him the ambitions of his family, and then his mother in particular, guide his path. There are murders and plots and deaths and a wonderful collection of debauched characters, as there should be in any story of Rome, and all in all, the story begins to build to something that promises to be truly intriguing.
Sadly, this doesn't happen. No sooner has Nero become Emperor than the focus of the book shifts and suddenly all the drama and intrigue happens only in Nero's fantasies as he strives to be an artist as opposed to an Emperor. This would not have spoilt the story if the focus had been a little less on building works and reciting poetry, and playing musical instruments and more on how he actually governed, as there is very little of this, other than the occasional long list of people he has in positions of power who are fulfilling certain roles for him.
I understand from reading the comments by the author that this is very much a revisionist approach to Nero, and I have no problem with that at all. For too long the stereotypes of historical figures have masked any efforts to find out the truth beneath all the lies and mishaps of the survival of historical documents, and yet, in this case, the story that emerges isn't one that holds the readers attention as well as it should have done.
There were brief glimpses that the story would become somewhat more interested in the way that Nero actually ruled, but these are never fully realised, and the reader is left thinking that being the Emperor was easy-peasy provided you could stay alive to do so. This is a shame. I would have liked to know more about events in Britain and more about events concerning the followers of Christ, but these details are only given in short bursts, two tantalizing to offer any real insight.
The author presents an incredibly detailed view of Rome and its surrounding cities - how realistic this is, or isn't, I can't say, but there are points when it does feel as though you might be strolling around Rome or Pompeii, and that is an enjoyable aspect of the novel.
I would say it started as a good 4/5 star novel, but withered away at the end when I was only reading because I knew I'd nearly finished it.
The Confessions of Young Nero is the third book I've read in the last three weeks about Rome and her Empire. I was most intrigued to find out more about a time period that I've little studied and which previously, I've had little interest in, but did find it quite annoying that there are no years given throughout the text - I wanted to know where Nero's story fit with the other books I've read.
To begin with, The Confessions of Young Nero is a very good introduction to the life of corrupt Rome. The story starts when Nero can be no more than a three year old, and, being told in his voice, progresses well as he grows and develops while all around him the ambitions of his family, and then his mother in particular, guide his path. There are murders and plots and deaths and a wonderful collection of debauched characters, as there should be in any story of Rome, and all in all, the story begins to build to something that promises to be truly intriguing.
Sadly, this doesn't happen. No sooner has Nero become Emperor than the focus of the book shifts and suddenly all the drama and intrigue happens only in Nero's fantasies as he strives to be an artist as opposed to an Emperor. This would not have spoilt the story if the focus had been a little less on building works and reciting poetry, and playing musical instruments and more on how he actually governed, as there is very little of this, other than the occasional long list of people he has in positions of power who are fulfilling certain roles for him.
I understand from reading the comments by the author that this is very much a revisionist approach to Nero, and I have no problem with that at all. For too long the stereotypes of historical figures have masked any efforts to find out the truth beneath all the lies and mishaps of the survival of historical documents, and yet, in this case, the story that emerges isn't one that holds the readers attention as well as it should have done.
There were brief glimpses that the story would become somewhat more interested in the way that Nero actually ruled, but these are never fully realised, and the reader is left thinking that being the Emperor was easy-peasy provided you could stay alive to do so. This is a shame. I would have liked to know more about events in Britain and more about events concerning the followers of Christ, but these details are only given in short bursts, two tantalizing to offer any real insight.
The author presents an incredibly detailed view of Rome and its surrounding cities - how realistic this is, or isn't, I can't say, but there are points when it does feel as though you might be strolling around Rome or Pompeii, and that is an enjoyable aspect of the novel.
I would say it started as a good 4/5 star novel, but withered away at the end when I was only reading because I knew I'd nearly finished it.
kh2912's review
4.0
3.5 stars
I found this enjoyable, although it didn't quite hold my attention as much as previous Margaret George offerings. Despite the narrative being mostly from a first person perspective I still found Nero somewhat difficult to empathise with. However, the story is well written, entertaining and moves at a decent pace (somewhat assisted by the short chapter lengths).
I found this enjoyable, although it didn't quite hold my attention as much as previous Margaret George offerings. Despite the narrative being mostly from a first person perspective I still found Nero somewhat difficult to empathise with. However, the story is well written, entertaining and moves at a decent pace (somewhat assisted by the short chapter lengths).
sonjamchen's review
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
joecaratenuto's review
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
applescruff1981's review
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual assault, Rape, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Slavery
suzemo's review
3.0
Margaret George's latest(er?) books tend to be a miss for me, and this one was better. Not amazing, but a lot better. I felt like it moved a little too slowly, and I would have far preferred a giant door-stop of a single book than the two smaller halves, but author's gotta eat, I suppose.
In the plus column:
George's writing itself is pretty easy to read and snack on, and her writing continues to be accessible and enjoyable.
I majored in classical civ for a while, and it's nice to see Nero not treated as an amazing monster (which I don't think he was), even though he could have been. It's definitely a historical [i]fiction[/i], but I don't think George is getting to crazy with it, and it's a nice take on a usually salaciously over-done personality
Additional viewpoints other than Nero's, though really, I want a crazy historical fiction book about Locusta now.
Negatives?
I mentioned it was slow, it is.
I don't like the use of the first person with Nero as much, at least not for the early part of his life. I just can't be bothered to get invested in brilliant little prodigy minds
The additional viewpoints that pop up at random and do not add much to the story, I want to like them, and they're a good idea, just not well executed.
That said, this book is far, far better (imo) than Helen or Mary of Magdelene, which I did not like. The audio narrator was really good, which helped a lot (except for the obnoxious pronunciation of Augusta/Augustus, anyway).
In the plus column:
George's writing itself is pretty easy to read and snack on, and her writing continues to be accessible and enjoyable.
I majored in classical civ for a while, and it's nice to see Nero not treated as an amazing monster (which I don't think he was), even though he could have been. It's definitely a historical [i]fiction[/i], but I don't think George is getting to crazy with it, and it's a nice take on a usually salaciously over-done personality
Additional viewpoints other than Nero's, though really, I want a crazy historical fiction book about Locusta now.
Negatives?
I mentioned it was slow, it is.
I don't like the use of the first person with Nero as much, at least not for the early part of his life. I just can't be bothered to get invested in brilliant little prodigy minds
The additional viewpoints that pop up at random and do not add much to the story, I want to like them, and they're a good idea, just not well executed.
That said, this book is far, far better (imo) than Helen or Mary of Magdelene, which I did not like. The audio narrator was really good, which helped a lot (except for the obnoxious pronunciation of Augusta/Augustus, anyway).
venpyre's review
4.0
I can't speak for the historical accuracy of this book, but I thoroughly enjoyed the prose. May pick up the sequel someday.
dlrcope's review
4.0
Impeccably well researched and well written. Deserves five stars, except the characters are so dark! I couldn’t love them and was not drawn to read more, which I think is an essential requirement for that fifth star. Despite the quality of the work, finishing the book required some effort.