Caesars' Wives

Merecal

Caesars'Wives by Annelise Freisenbruch is an excellent read. It is full of rich historical detail. The author is able to recreate the stories of the women behind the imperial throne despite the fact that there is very little information available and the reconstruction of these women's lives requires a lot of reading between the lines. Freisenbruch's account is neither stuffy or boring, but most importantly it tries to clear up a lot of historical misconceptions. She relates the myths told about Roman's numerous empresses, but also expertly discusses which ones have some credibility. Finally, this is an overall historical account covering not only the lives of Caesars' wives, but also the art and conditions of their respective time periods.