*Starred Review* You had the courage to be openly yourself . . . to be an artist in spite of ridicule and opposition, says one woman to Emperor Nero, simultaneously describing his charismatic appeal and tragic flaw. Covering his tumultuous last four years, George's invigorating sequel to The Confessions of Young Nero (2017) opens in AD 64 with Rome's Great Fire. Although he wasn't there when it started, and assists refugees afterward, rumors imply otherwise. His architectural designs for rebuilding the city are dazzling but drain the treasury. Despite his political naïveté and other faults, Nero's narrative voice never fails to captivate because of his full-throated appreciation for art and life in general. He cherishes his inner circle, including his beloved wife, Poppaea, while others betray him. He achieves his dream of competitive chariot racing, and Greece's scenic wonders are gloriously brought into view as he brings a large entourage there for an extended tour of the sacred games, to the Senate's dismay. Although Nero acknowledges the competing aspects of his complicated nature, he fails to balance them. George's nuanced, well-researched character study depicts his candid inner self and how the performance of his short life played out on the Roman Empire's vast stage. It succeeds admirably in persuading readers to reconsider their impressions of the infamous Nero.--Sarah Johnson Copyright 2018 Booklist

This unwieldy tome follows The Confessions of Young Nero to revisit the last years of the emperor's life. Opening with Rome's destruction in the great fire of 64 CE, the author remakes Nero (37-68 CE), the last of Julius Caesar's dynasty, as a circumspect ruler in love with his second wife, Poppaea, but still enamored with his first love, the freed slave Acte, now a successful businesswoman. Nero here is a sensitive musician who agonizes over difficult decisions and longs for his better self, and George uses the events during this part of his reign-the slaughter of Christians, the plot to assassinate him, philosopher Seneca's subsequent forced suicide, his extravagant bank-busting rebuild of Rome-as a way to suggest he was in fact an introspective leader who did not take lightly the decisions he felt forced to make for the good of Rome. Wordy, often contemporary prose-Nero goes on a diet, has a cocktail to relax, contemplates his "getaway plans"-is employed to portray the ruler sympathetically, and to cast his retreat and death by suicide as a loss for Rome. The author's distinctive version of ancient history, a far cry from Tacitus, will either amuse or infuriate aficionados of the period. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

The second book in George's duology about the Roman emperor Nero (after The Confessions of Young Nero) draws from contemporary research as it chronicles the last four years of his life. George begins with the best-known event of Nero's reign, the devastating fire that destroyed much of Rome, but her Nero is hardly fiddling, he's helping the fire brigades. Nero thrives in the aftermath of the fire, punishing Christians as the perpetrators and then redesigning the city, with changes intended both to prevent future disasters as well as enhance and beautify the city's public spaces. Thus begins the golden era of his reign, where rebellions are minor and easily squelched, his marriage to the lovely Poppaea is harmonious, and he is adored by his subjects. But ancient Rome is a difficult place for emperors, and disloyalty and unrest always lurk in the background, eventually leading to Nero's downfall. George's Nero is larger than life, an aesthete and an engineer whose admiration of the arts and culture of the ancient Greeks transformed the Roman empire. This reimagining of the life of one of ancient Rome's most maligned and misunderstood leaders is dramatic, vivid, and epic, a must for readers of historical sagas. [See Prepub Alert, 5/21/18.]-Nanette Donohue, Champaign P.L., IL © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.