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adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The use of Ancient Rome setting and characters with dragons mixed into Roman mythology and a Shakespearean spin plus a romance story make this a great blend for me. Many readers have cited it as a huge miss due to the master/slave relationship, however, the situation is much more complex than that basic label. Julian claims Malina as his slave to save her life and never interacts with her in any kind of intimate way without her consent. They development a friendship prior to any romance, which I did not expect. Romance almost takes a backseat to the coup plot, except Julian's feelings for her propel events to move more quickly than the conspirators intend. The last quarter jumped quickly between action with a faster pace that does not match the rest of the book, and I do wish that more transition occurred between the battle scenes and the final sweet moments of solace.
Generally, I am not a huge romantasy or romance reader. I read many subgenres of fantasy and even other genres scattered throughout my reading, and some romantasy and romance works for me. The historical ties and dragon lore with Roman mythology roots drew me most to the book, and I stayed fully invested from start to finish. The epic ending has me yearning for book two.
As a final note, disgusted claims of colonization being a theme or the premise of the book seem unfounded or distorted to me. Ancient Rome and the Romans' conquests of a larger empire were a form of colonization, but that is merely part of the book's setting in time and place. Reading the whole book and understanding the nature of Julian shows that the author attempts to convey colonization and conquering people of other lands or cultures is wrong through his motivations.
Generally, I am not a huge romantasy or romance reader. I read many subgenres of fantasy and even other genres scattered throughout my reading, and some romantasy and romance works for me. The historical ties and dragon lore with Roman mythology roots drew me most to the book, and I stayed fully invested from start to finish. The epic ending has me yearning for book two.
As a final note, disgusted claims of colonization being a theme or the premise of the book seem unfounded or distorted to me. Ancient Rome and the Romans' conquests of a larger empire were a form of colonization, but that is merely part of the book's setting in time and place. Reading the whole book and understanding the nature of Julian shows that the author attempts to convey colonization and conquering people of other lands or cultures is wrong through his motivations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Genocide, Vomit, Colonisation
Minor: Death of parent
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This isn’t my usual genre… but Juliette completely converted me!
This mystical retelling of the fall of Julius Caesar is nothing short of epic. Before I begin, please note I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review—and honestly, I was blown away.
Going in, I was hesitant. This isn’t typically what I reach for, and the first chapter starts off slow, taking its time to build the world. But stick with it—the payoff is worth it. The author gradually immerses you in a reimagined Rome, one pulled into an alternate dimension where dragon shifters rule and live among the gods. I know, I know—it sounds wild. I was skeptical too. But hear me out…
Let me set the stage: enter Julianus Drakkus, our magnetic MMC. Once he appeared (end of ch. 1, I was hooked. The chemistry between him and the FMC is electric, the tension deliciously drawn out. And the slow-burn romance? Absolutely worth the wait. The spice was seamlessly woven into the story— tasteful, intentional, and oh-so-satisfying. I’m giving it a solid 🌶️🌶️🌶️.75
The pacing of the book was masterfully done, with plot twists perfectly placed to keep you on edge. And Caesar? He was written as the kind of villain you LOVE to hate. I especially appreciated the depth and complexity of the characters, it’s clear the author poured care into each one.
As for the narration, it was strong overall. The dual narration mostly worked well, though I’ll admit a couple of mismatched voice moments had me giggling. Still, the story was compelling enough that those moments were easy to overlook. In terms of tone and performance, the narrators nailed it.
Bottom line? I’d absolutely recommend this audiobook to anyone open to a genre-bending, mythology-infused, slow-burn fantasy romance. And I can’t wait for the next book in the series.
This mystical retelling of the fall of Julius Caesar is nothing short of epic. Before I begin, please note I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review—and honestly, I was blown away.
Going in, I was hesitant. This isn’t typically what I reach for, and the first chapter starts off slow, taking its time to build the world. But stick with it—the payoff is worth it. The author gradually immerses you in a reimagined Rome, one pulled into an alternate dimension where dragon shifters rule and live among the gods. I know, I know—it sounds wild. I was skeptical too. But hear me out…
Let me set the stage: enter Julianus Drakkus, our magnetic MMC. Once he appeared (end of ch. 1, I was hooked. The chemistry between him and the FMC is electric, the tension deliciously drawn out. And the slow-burn romance? Absolutely worth the wait. The spice was seamlessly woven into the story— tasteful, intentional, and oh-so-satisfying. I’m giving it a solid 🌶️🌶️🌶️.75
The pacing of the book was masterfully done, with plot twists perfectly placed to keep you on edge. And Caesar? He was written as the kind of villain you LOVE to hate. I especially appreciated the depth and complexity of the characters, it’s clear the author poured care into each one.
As for the narration, it was strong overall. The dual narration mostly worked well, though I’ll admit a couple of mismatched voice moments had me giggling. Still, the story was compelling enough that those moments were easy to overlook. In terms of tone and performance, the narrators nailed it.
Bottom line? I’d absolutely recommend this audiobook to anyone open to a genre-bending, mythology-infused, slow-burn fantasy romance. And I can’t wait for the next book in the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Sexual violence, Torture
Minor: Domestic abuse, Gore, Incest, Rape, Alcohol
This isn’t my usual genre… but Juliette completely converted me!
This mystical retelling of the fall of Julius Caesar is nothing short of epic. Before I begin, please note I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review—and honestly, I was blown away.
Going in, I was hesitant. This isn’t typically what I reach for, and the first chapter starts off slow, taking its time to build the world. But stick with it—the payoff is worth it. The author gradually immerses you in a reimagined Rome, one pulled into an alternate dimension where dragon shifters rule and live among the gods. I know, I know—it sounds wild. I was skeptical too. But hear me out…
Let me set the stage: enter Julianus Drakkus, our magnetic MMC. Once he appeared (end of ch. 1, I was hooked. The chemistry between him and the FMC is electric, the tension deliciously drawn out. And the slow-burn romance? Absolutely worth the wait. The spice was seamlessly woven into the story— tasteful, intentional, and oh-so-satisfying. I’m giving it a solid 🌶️🌶️🌶️.75
The pacing of the book was masterfully done, with plot twists perfectly placed to keep you on edge. And Caesar? He was written as the kind of villain you LOVE to hate. I especially appreciated the depth and complexity of the characters, it’s clear the author poured care into each one.
As for the narration, it was strong overall. The dual narration mostly worked well, though I’ll admit a couple of mismatched voice moments had me giggling. Still, the story was compelling enough that those moments were easy to overlook. In terms of tone and performance, the narrators nailed it.
Bottom line? I’d absolutely recommend this audiobook to anyone open to a genre-bending, mythology-infused, slow-burn fantasy romance. And I can’t wait for the next book in the series.
dark
emotional
reflective
Tropes: Dragon shifters, Empathic powered FMC, Touch Her and Die, Fated Mates, Alternative ancient history timeline
Malina has endured trauma after trauma at the hands of the Roman Empire. She lost her family, then her adopted Celtic clan. But when she is saved by the one person she has ever felt a connection to - she grasps onto that little light of hope.
Julianus may be the feared conqueror but he is nothing like his image. He's strong, determined and a feared warrior. But he takes no enjoyment from his job, he does not enjoy killing or seizing lands from the so-called enemies of her uncle, the Emperor. He is well aware of the evil his uncle is spreading and is determined to somehow rid the empire of him. He is slowly amassing allies but his plans almost unravel when he comes upon Malina fighting off the advances of some of his men. Men who he had directly ordered NOT to injure, assault or otherwise harm the survivors.
His dragon sends a clear message and whisks Malina off to safety.
There is no glossing over of the politics in this book, it paints the Roman Empire, even one with dragons, as the corrupt society it was. That even those who tried to do good were also guilty of some other "sin" themselves.
This is not your average Romantasy. It is darker in tone and even though it has a power imbalance between the two MC's (something I usually loathe) due to the setting of the storyline, there could really only ever be an imbalance unless it was two MC's from the same strata of society. But there is no time when Julianus uses his "superiority" as a weapon against Malina, in fact he only uses his elevated status as a way to save people. Does he work within a corrupt and evil-tainted system, yes. Does he have to do bad things to protect his proto-rebellion? Also yes. But as an actual ancient historian, I can vouch for the fact that as with any "empire" through history, just because you work within the system, does not mean you blindly obey the system. For a modern illustration - look no further than the current politics of the world!
So even though there are some elements of the book that might make you squirm or feel uncomfortable, they are there for that very reason. To make sure you know how privileged you are to be able to dissent, pick at, and hold accountable those very systems. There are many scenes, especially with the Emperor and Cipranis, that are uncomfortable and downright hard to read, especially as a SA survivor myself. But they are also cathartic as I raged, swore and plotted their ends in my head.
I'm now awaiting book 2 to see how Trajan furthers their rebellion.
Malina has endured trauma after trauma at the hands of the Roman Empire. She lost her family, then her adopted Celtic clan. But when she is saved by the one person she has ever felt a connection to - she grasps onto that little light of hope.
Julianus may be the feared conqueror but he is nothing like his image. He's strong, determined and a feared warrior. But he takes no enjoyment from his job, he does not enjoy killing or seizing lands from the so-called enemies of her uncle, the Emperor. He is well aware of the evil his uncle is spreading and is determined to somehow rid the empire of him. He is slowly amassing allies but his plans almost unravel when he comes upon Malina fighting off the advances of some of his men. Men who he had directly ordered NOT to injure, assault or otherwise harm the survivors.
His dragon sends a clear message and whisks Malina off to safety.
There is no glossing over of the politics in this book, it paints the Roman Empire, even one with dragons, as the corrupt society it was. That even those who tried to do good were also guilty of some other "sin" themselves.
This is not your average Romantasy. It is darker in tone and even though it has a power imbalance between the two MC's (something I usually loathe) due to the setting of the storyline, there could really only ever be an imbalance unless it was two MC's from the same strata of society. But there is no time when Julianus uses his "superiority" as a weapon against Malina, in fact he only uses his elevated status as a way to save people. Does he work within a corrupt and evil-tainted system, yes. Does he have to do bad things to protect his proto-rebellion? Also yes. But as an actual ancient historian, I can vouch for the fact that as with any "empire" through history, just because you work within the system, does not mean you blindly obey the system. For a modern illustration - look no further than the current politics of the world!
So even though there are some elements of the book that might make you squirm or feel uncomfortable, they are there for that very reason. To make sure you know how privileged you are to be able to dissent, pick at, and hold accountable those very systems. There are many scenes, especially with the Emperor and Cipranis, that are uncomfortable and downright hard to read, especially as a SA survivor myself. But they are also cathartic as I raged, swore and plotted their ends in my head.
I'm now awaiting book 2 to see how Trajan furthers their rebellion.
Content Warnings
Minor: Confinement, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Death of parent, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism