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Buy it now from tlavideo.com or from our Amazon.com store - Blinded by Paradise: The Rise and Fall of Hadrian  

I’ve loved historical fiction ever since I picked up Robert Graves’ I, Claudius, so I was excited to put Christopher Rimare’s Blinded by Paradise: The Rise and Fall of Hadrian on top of my “to-read” stack. I wasn’t disappointed. Rimare’s account of the Roman emperor, his accomplishments and his lover Antinous is compelling and vivid reading.

Beginning with the (forged) letter which names Hadrian as Emperor Trajan’s successor and ending with his death from suspected lead poisoning, Rimare takes us through Hadrian’s successes in government and architecture as well as exploring in depth the emperor’s endless road trips. He meets and falls in love with the stableboy Antinous, elevating him into the Imperial household where they are constant companions up until Antinous’ mysterious drowning in the Nile River on one of their excursions.

Rimare expertly balances his research with good old fashioned storytelling skills, creating characters memorable for their depth as well as their contributions to the story. Hadrian’s publicly cuckolded wife, Sabina, is by turns sympathetic and simply pathetic and Plotina, Trajan’s wife, is wonderfully manipulative. Hadrian himself is both ambitious and introspective, longing for a stable male/male match until he finally finds his mate. As a character, Antinous is less well-drawn but their relationship is so firmly grounded that it affects Hadrian’s rule even after Antinous’ death.  

One of my favorite parts of this book was an exploration—and explanation—of the ritual Mysteries of Elusis at Athens. This week long celebration of the goddess Demeter was fascinating in both its approach and its philosophy, and Rimare does a wonderful job of using these devotional exercises to give Hadrian dimension as well as direction. Similarly, his creation of the architectural masterpiece, The Pantheon, becomes as exciting for the reader as it probably was for the man.

If there is a flaw here, it would be that the book becomes a bit flat and oddly distanced immediately after Antinous drowns. Hadrian’s grief is not well shown. By the time his lover’s body is mummified and carted back to Rome, however, Hadrian’s remorse is sharp enough to turn the rest of the book on and remains keen until his death. And that death scene is as dramatic and involving as any I’ve read.

Even if you don’t like history and are put off by the Roman place name chart in the front of the book, stick with this papyrus and you’ll be rewarded with an intriguing, well-told story full of excitement, intrigue and multi-faceted characters.

Or my name isn’t Jerrus. 

Reviewed by Jerry Wheeler