The second volume of a trilogy, but the first that I have read, this book gripped me from page 1. Narrated by Tiro, Cicero's slave and secretary, this book embroils us in the life, and specifically the politics of ancient Rome at the time of Cicero, Caesar, Pompey and all those other characters about whom we perhaps know only a few dry facts from our history books. Roman political life at the time is depicted as brutal, corrupt, and with a set of rules that can change from day to day, dependsnt on whose political star is in the ascendent. The politicians at the time seem to have been guided by naked ambition, face-saving, a desire to gain popularity either with their peers or the people: there are no lasting victories.

Life and times in Rome are vividly described, and Tiro is a sympathetic, lively and painstaking story teller. His portrayal of the main characters in the novel is rounded, perhaps slightly less so in the case of the women, but he shows each of them off with all their human strengths and frailties.

I'm not a political animal, but I made time for this book until I got to the last page. The pace of the narration, and the unremitting nastiness of the events depicted means I'm in no mood to go to either one of the other books in the trilogy just for now. But this is a fascinating account of extraordinary times, so I will eventually do so, I'm certain of that. ( )

Një orator, një sociopat, një oligark, një pasunar i pacipë që merr përsipër të flasë për drejtësi shoqërore, ndihmë për të varfrit dhe bukë falas në një qytet që po transformohet brenda natës nga pasuritë e pabesueshme të akumuluara në grabitjen e vendeve të tjera.

Shkrimtari britanik Robert Harris na sjell një thriller makiavelian nga Roma e lashtë, parë nga sytë e një skllavi. Banda kriminale të punësuar nga pasunarë të rënë nga vakti që përzjehen me delikatesën e argumentimeve ligjore dhe besëtytënitë fetare, shoqëruar me aventura. Pasuria sjell babëzi, babëzia sjell epsh, epshi sjell gjithëfarëlloj krimesh.Romani i Harrisit lexohet njëkohësisht si një histori plot humor dhe një udhërrëfyes se si funksionon politika, ajo e Romës së lashtë, por më së shumti, kjo e kohës sonë.

Ndërsa trilogjia mbi jetën e Ciceronit, Imperium, Lustrim dhe Diktatori përkthehej në shqip, një prej lexuesve vriste mendjen nëse përkthimi i këtyre librave do të ishte një gjë e mirë apo një gjë e keqe për vendin. E keqe, në kuptimin që çdo politikan mund të mësojë hiletë e politikës më të pacipë dhe çdo idealist mund të zhgënjehet me fatin që patën të gjithë idealistët e asaj përplasjeje të pamëshirshme që ndodhi dy mijë vjet më parë mes politikës së fjalës dhe politikës së dhunës.

Brilliantly imagined, fantastically realised. ( )

A word of warning to start with, this book is known as Conspirata in some countries and this has caught some people out. Harris has intended for there to be a trilogy in this series of books. The first one is 'Imperium' and this (Lustrum/Conspirata) is the second. The third is on the way, I wish he would hurry up but I understand that Harris' research takes a long time and he has just finished 'The Fear Index'. I would recommend reading 'Imperium' first although it is not required, in fact there has been a considerable time between my reading 'Imperium' and 'Lustrum'.

So onto the book, it continues the tale of Cicero a Roman politician and his struggle for power in a very unstable time in Roman history. Cicero is an instantly likeable character in no small part to the fact that the story is told by his secretary and chief note-taker Tiro. The use of Tiro to tell the story is a very good move in my opinion because he is a humble narrator with little in the way of an agenda. One of the other instantly likeable aspects of the story is that unlike the first book, Cicero makes mistakes and is prone to mental meltdown and mood swings. He also gets carried away with his own power, in some respects turning into what he dislikes most about Roman society. To me this indicates the severity of the struggle he faces in comparison to the first book.

I am not expert on Roman history but by using real people like Caesar it helps cut down the time and pages spent going over a back story. Even with this fact a knowledge of Roman times and customs is not required as everything just seems to fit and makes sense. Due to the deviousness of his enemies there is always something going on in the background. As the story went on I found myself wondering who was responsible for what and what plans were being thought of next. I read through the 450 pages of this book in 2 days, something I very rarely manage to do and I simply couldn't really put it down. Plot twists come thick and fast and there is always something going on. This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. I can't wait for the last one to come along. ( )

Great book, puts you right in the forum! ( )