Julian

A beautifully persuasive historical tale, a poignant portrait of the Emperor Julian * Harold Bloom *High entertainment * New York Times Book Review *Simply great… A truly monumental novel * Associated Press *Historical fiction in the true, honorable sense… Full of vivid, richly wrought fictional detail * Wall Street Journal *Impressive… . To the formidable task which Vidal sets himself, he brings an easy and fluent gift for narrative; a theatrical sense of scene and dramatic occasion; and a revealing eye and ear for character delineation-to say nothing of wide reading * Newsweek *A real hero… An excellent book * Chicago Daily News *Gore Vidal has the sharpest sense of what political power consists of, how it is achieved and what it does to a man. And at the same time he is funny, roaringly funny… . Julian is a brilliant beacon of light in the dim grey landscape of the historical novel * Louis Auchincloss *A brilliant study of Julian’s era… . That rare historical novel which enjoys all the virtues of good history and good fiction * Washington Star *No odder figure ever guided the destinies of the Roman Empire than the Emperor Julian Augustus. Here was a recluse and a scholar who became a great military leader, an ascetic who preached the life of the senses, a fatalist who believed he would remake the world… . He is endlessly fascinating * Time *

Gore Vidal was at the centre of literary and intellectual life for half a century and wrote ‘The Narratives of a Golden Age’ series as well as countless bestsellers. He died on 31st July 2012.