Tribune of Rome

Name: Tribune of Rome
Rating: 4.3 (2898 reviews)

by Robert Fabbri Book 1 in the Vespasian series.

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4.3(2,898)

Sixteen-year-old Vespasian leaves his family estate for Rome, hoping to find patronage and begin the public career expected of a young Roman noble. Instead he enters a capital dominated by Tiberius’s absence and Sejanus’s control of the Praetorian Guard. When conspiracy and danger force him away from Rome, Vespasian takes up a military posting on the Balkan frontier, where political intrigue follows him into his first experience of command and combat.

Vespasian’s early career demonstrates how advancement under the principate depends on patronage and political judgement as much as military ability. Sejanus’s dominance makes association itself dangerous, while service on the frontier gives a young senator the reputation required for later office. The novel uses these first experiences to establish the skills that will eventually help Vespasian survive successive emperors.