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Savage City (Romanitas #3)

4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 · rating details · 35 ratings · 4 reviews

Imagine a world in which Rome never fell. Now the Empire stretches across the Atlantic, slaves are constructing a giant bridge over the Persian Gulf, and magnetic railways span the globe. But tensions within and without are about to change the face of the earth. Marcus Novius is caught in a massive explosion at the Coliseum which kills his uncle the emperor . . . making Ma...more

Paperback, 532 pages

Published March 1st 2012 by Gollancz (first published May 1st 2011)

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May 10, 2013 William rated it 4 of 5 stars

The second Romanitas book, “Rome Burning”, ended on a huge cliffhanger so I was keen to see how it was resolved at the beginning of the concluding book in the trilogy. The resolution of the cliffhanger didn’t turn out exactly as I expected it to and the first chapter dealing with this is one of the best and most powerful in the trilogy. The rest of the book follows the aftermath of those events and it does cover a lot of different plotlines ranging in scope from two characters trying desperately...more The second Romanitas book, “Rome Burning”, ended on a huge cliffhanger so I was keen to see how it was resolved at the beginning of the concluding book in the trilogy. The resolution of the cliffhanger didn’t turn out exactly as I expected it to and the first chapter dealing with this is one of the best and most powerful in the trilogy. The rest of the book follows the aftermath of those events and it does cover a lot of different plotlines ranging in scope from two characters trying desperately to hide from the authorities while travelling across a continent (a plotline MacDougall likes so much that she seems to use it at least twice in every novel) to a World War between the two empires of Rome and Nionia (Japan) while ever-present in the background is Una, Varius and Sulien’s determination to abolish slavery in the Roman Empire.

There are a lot of potentially interesting plotlines in the book, but some of them are more successful. The series has tended to be at its best when it focuses tightly on a small number of characters and this is true again here with the scenes of characters in captivity or on the run among the most effective in the book, particularly in the mid-novel scenes where there are attempts to save a character from being executed in the Coliseum. The Coliseum scene and the trial preceding it is perhaps the highlight of the book. The book isn’t quite as assured when it comes to the storylines involving the war. It struggles to really convey what is happening in the war as a whole and what we see of the overall strategy is sometimes unconvincing while the ordinary legionaries conscripts that play an important role in the second half of the book seem a bit shallow compared to some of the other characters. The war storyline is at its best when showing the claustrophobia of living in a city under aerial bombardment, probably because it allows MacDougall to focus on the pressure it puts on the characters. The world-building continues to be a bit vague, although there are some nice touches such as the Pharos Lighthouse and Great Library still standing in Alexandria and various characters’ confusion at encountering an obscure religion in Ethiopia which uses a cross as its symbol.

The ending of the series is satisfying, although some elements of it do seem a bit rushed and slightly too easy. The bittersweet epilogue is also good at showing that even in victory the impact of the war doesn’t go away.

The characterisation has generally been the strongest part of the series and I’d say that largely continues here despite some occasional issues – Sulien can be a frustrating character to read about and even he seems puzzled by some of the things he does while Drusus continues to feel a bit of a cliché of a self-centred despot. The novel does suffer a bit from the lack of Dama, who was probably the most intriguing character in the first two novels but Una and Varius continue to be interesting characters.

Overall, this is an entertaining conclusion to a series that has always been a bit uneven but has enough good points to be worth reading. (less)

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Jul 15, 2011 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sffantasy

No one's rated this yet? Really? I can't say much about this book without getting epically spoilery, but this series is awesome, the best modern Roman Empire I've seen. (I have seen more than one. It's an interest of mine.)

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Mar 18, 2012 Cara Murphy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: alternative-history, science-fiction

I read a library copy but want the paperback edition to match the previous 2 books in the trilogy.

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Jan 06, 2013 Jaine Fenn added it · review of another edition

(Please see my review for Romanitas)

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May 20, 2013 W marked it as to-read · review of another edition

May 16, 2013 Anna Luscombe rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Shelves: o, fa, uk

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Apr 01, 2013 Katie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Feb 27, 2013 J.C. rated it 3 of 5 stars

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Feb 13, 2013 Angela Salwasser rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Shelves: romanitas

Feb 03, 2013 Sian rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Shelves: default

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Jan 13, 2013 Fletcher Davis rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

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Dec 28, 2012 Victor Sago is currently reading it · review of another edition

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About Sophia McDougall

Sophia McDougall (born 1979) is a British novelist, playwright, and poet, who studied at Oxford University in England.

She is best known as the author of the series of books: Romanitas in which she creates an alternative history, one where the Roman Empire still exists in contemporary times.

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