Robert Harris's Agrippa: Rome's Rivalry, Read in Translation

Robert Harris's latest novel, Agrippa, a fictional memoir by Octavius's right-hand man, has drawn praise from the Guardian for its "persuasive portrait of rivalry in ancient Rome." The review, published this week, highlights the book's depiction of bloodshed, betrayal, and "hectic jockeying for power" in the years of Rome's transition from republic to empire.

For Italian readers, the novel lands in a familiar cultural landscape. The Guardian's reviewer notes that Harris "has you covered" if you think about the Roman empire several times a week, a sentiment that carries particular weight in a country where the empire's ruins, monuments, and legal legacy remain a daily presence.

The book follows Harris's trilogy on Cicero and his one-off on the empire's founding, cementing his place as a leading British interpreter of Roman history for a global audience.