It's a quick read. It only took a few hours to read. The author provides really good details about Roman life. I liked the character of Selene who had to make very hard decisions and who stayed strong throughout the book.
Now as for Juba, it's hard not to compare slightly this book to Michelle Morans book Cleopatra's Daughter. In Michelle's book Juba was hard and rarely expressed emotion. In Stephanie Dray's book Juba was more friendly towards Selene and made clear his feelings but by the end of the book some might feel betrayed by him. It will be interesting to see how he develops in the next book as he and Selene will be off on there own.
Another good character is Octavian. He is cold and calculating and obsessed with the dead queen of Egypt. He is very preachy on the evils of women which make me want to hit him but he's also a contradiction who hides his perversions well.
Overall I recommended this book and i'm excited for the sequels!