Kate Quinn is a fantastic author. Her characters are always compelling, even when I don't like them, which is what I look for in a book. Give me somebody I know nothing about and make me care about them. I was definitely questioning my reasons for why I did and didn't like certain characters. After I finished, I still feel like it's with me, and that's an awesome feat for the author.

Admittedly, this book dragged more than the other Empress of Rome books. I kept looking ahead to see when it would get interesting. Sometimes, that was my only motivator for reading. As a result, this killed the suspense for me. While that's technically my fault because I looked ahead, I only did so because the book was so repetitive. Vix and Hadrian hate each other. They continue to talk about how much they hate each other. Vix and Sabina love each other but continually get pulled apart. Vix and Mirah fight and make up. Over and over and over again. That's pretty much the whole book.

Part of the reason for this is because Quinn tries to cover the entirety of Hadrian's reign. Naturally, some parts are going to be slow. I'd read something where she said she struggled to write this book. I can tell as I struggled to read it.

Other than that, it was great to return to Quinn's Ancient Rome, which is vibrant in both setting and character development. I laughed and cried with this book, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves reading about Ancient Rome. ( )

Very well written and interesting takes on both Emperor Hadian and his wife, Vibia Sabina. I was aware of his visionary mindset but not of his dark side, which his infatuation with Antinous, the son of the [fictional] Vix calmed. It was difficult not to keep reading the whole novel all at once, despite its 500+ pages, and I felt not a word was superfluous. ( )

In this final book in Kate Quinn's Empress of Rome series, Vibia Sabina is now Empress. With subtle guidance she leads her husband, the emperor Hadrian, who is by nature somewhat inclined to ruthlessness, to reign with greater grace and with vices hidden. Despite her elevated status in Rome she cannot entirely forget her first love, the barbarian-born Vix, who is now a high-status warrior in Rome's own army. Completing this odd yet captivating "love rectangle" is Hadrian's developing interest in Vix's foster son, Antinous. Though the premise may sound bizarre when boiled down to its essence like this with no nuance provided, most of the main characters in the book are in fact based on real individuals. This is both a really lovely story and a satisfying end to a series I began upon receiving the first book from my 2-year-old daughter, who had indiscriminately plucked it off the shelf in a checkout line at our local grocery! ( )

A great end to an epic tale of Ancient Rome. I definitely learned a lot reading these novels, even if the history wasn't entirely accurate (Quinn freely admits where she took liberties). The way all the characters grew in this final novel impressed me, and I loved the way Quinn wove together fact with fiction. I am kind of glad I was mostly ignorant of the details regarding certain events in this book, although I admit that I got curious and wandered off to Wikipedia to look up Hadrian. That spoiled a few events for me, but again, the story around the history that Quinn conjures up made knowing how things turn out (somewhat) not a detriment at all. ( )

What will it mean for Vix and his family and friends now that his mortal enemy Hadrian is emperor?

Each book in this series was better than the one before, starting off with a very high standard indeed. I do wonder how they would strike somebody who wasn't familiar with the history and so maybe doesn't get all the 'OMG, disaster ahead' moments. I must admit I shed a tear or two at the end. ( )