Premise- (5/5) I have loved Cleopatra ever since I read the Royal Diaries book about her. Something about great, tragic women of power has always seemed to draw me in...At any rate, I was excited to read this book which was not only about Cleopatra, but also very Rome-focused (it's impossible to write about Cleopatra and not be Rome-focused) and I love ancient Rome as well.
Characters- (5/5) I loved the characters in this book. I loved the way the author filled in the blanks, I loved the mystery of the characters (especially Cleopatra herself). I also loved the characters for their diverese, colorful, bold personalities. Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, Cleopatra VII, and Octavian are all simply too incredible to be boring in any way, shape, or form. History gave the author a lot to work with, and she did a great job.
Plot- (4/5) My only real issue with the plot was that there was some jumping around. Not everything was chronologically ordered, and at times I had to stop and think for a minute about what was going on and when and where. Other than that I felt it was quite well done. The 'plot' so to speak can be difficult to work with in a historical or historical fiction novel of a well-known historic figure, particularly in a book like this when it is less of a story and more a rendition of facts and speculations. I liked it well enough though.
Writing- (3/5) Very wordy. I sometimes felt the author was trying a bit too hard to be clever and was trying to jam too much into one sentence. In typical Alexandrian style, the author's writing was overflowing with elaborations and lengthy descriptions.
Overall- (4/5) I liked nearly everything about this book, though the writing style was a bit difficult to wade through sometimes. However, the colorful cast of characters and interesting historical information (or lack thereof) made for a great read.