A review by leialocks
The Beacon at Alexandria by Gillian Bradshaw

4.0

In a film class in college, the professor stated that films about the Roman Empire tell us more about the time in which they were made than the actual time period. I feel that is especially true with this book. It's a charming story and held my attention more than I expected. However, it seems much too modern to be authentic for me. Charis, a noblewoman who feels trapped in the society she is born to, runs away after an awful marriage arrangement to become a doctor. Her first stop is Alexandria for training, disguised as a eunuch. The book chronicles her journey through her studies and the empire where she ends up on the frontier fighting the Goths. This was a different time period than I usually read, so it was refreshing to be in the thick of the Roman Empire. The author does a fairly decent job with the intrigues and problems of the time. As I said, the story is charming. Charis just feels too modern in how she interacts throughout the story.