Roma: The Novel of Ancient Rome - by Steven Saylor

I love this book! Anytime I can read history in novel form, I do. This book begins in the time of Romulus and Remus and traces the history of Rome through two founding families: the Pinarius and the Potitius. The story traces the ownership of a talisman as old as the city itself, which is passed from father to son. Since these families always play a key role in the politics of the day, the reader gets a great picture of what life was like in ancient Rome, what the emperors were like, and what the political climate was at the time. This book concentrates on the beginning of Rome through the assassination of Julius Caesar. A real saga.