Nero
Matricide, Music, and Murder in Imperial Rome
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Narrated by:
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Greg Patmore
About this listen
A striking, nuanced biography of Nero—the controversial populist ruler and last of the Caesars—and a vivid portrait of ancient Rome
“Exciting and provocative . . . Nero is a pleasure to read.”—Barry Strauss, author of The War That Made the Roman Empire: Antony, Cleopatra, and Octavian at Actium
The Roman emperor Nero’s name has long been a byword for cruelty, decadence, and despotism. As the stories go, he set fire to Rome and thrummed his lyre as it burned. He then cleared the charred ruins and built a vast palace. He committed incest with his mother, who had schemed and killed to place him on the throne, and later murdered her.
But these stories, left behind by contemporary historians who hated him, are hardly the full picture, and in this nuanced biography, celebrated historian Anthony Everitt and investigative journalist Roddy Ashworth reveal the contradictions inherent in Nero and offer a reappraisal of his life. Contrary to popular memory, the empire was well managed during his reign. He presided over diplomatic triumphs, and his legions overcame the fiery British queen Boudica who led one of the greatest revolts Rome had ever had to face. He loved art, culture, and music, and he won the loyalty of the lower classes with fantastic spectacles. He did not set fire to Rome.
In Nero, ancient Rome comes to life: the fire-prone streets, the deadly political intrigues, and the ongoing architectural projects. In this teeming, politically unstable world, Nero was vulnerable to fierce reproach from the nobility and relatives who would gladly usurp him, and he was often too ready to murder rivals. He had a vision for Rome, but, racked by insecurity, he perhaps lacked the stomach to govern it.
This is the bloodstained story of one of Rome’s most notorious emperors: but in Everitt and Ashworth’s hands, Nero’s life is also a complicated, cautionary tale about the mettle required to rule.
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The Rise of Athens
- The Story of the World's Greatest Civilization
- By: Anthony Everitt
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 16 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Filled with tales of adventure and astounding reversals of fortune, The Rise of Athens celebrates the city-state that transformed the world - from the democratic revolution that marked its beginning through the city's political and cultural golden age to its decline into the ancient equivalent of a modern-day university town. Anthony Everitt constructs his history with unforgettable portraits of the talented, tricky, ambitious, and unscrupulous Athenians who fueled the city's rise.
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Good but not great. With some disturbing opinions.
- By Anthony on 06-25-19
By: Anthony Everitt
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Cicero: The Life and Times of Rome's Greatest Politician
- By: Anthony Everitt
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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In this dynamic and engaging biography, Anthony Everitt plunges us into the fascinating, scandal-ridden world of ancient Rome in its most glorious heyday. Accessible to us through his legendary speeches but also through an unrivaled collection of unguarded letters to his close friend Atticus, Cicero comes to life here as a witty and cunning political operator.
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An eloquent man, and a patriot
- By Darwin8u on 01-19-15
By: Anthony Everitt
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The Twelve Caesars
- By: Suetonius
- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 14 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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The Twelve Caesars was written based on the information of eyewitnesses and public records. It conveys a very accurate picture of court life in Rome and contains some of the raciest and most salacious material to be found in all of ancient literature. The writing is clear, simple and easy to understand, and the numerous anecdotes of juicy scandal, bitter court intrigue, and murderous brigandage easily hold their own against the most spirited content of today's tabloids.
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A pleasure to read...
- By Robyn C. Blaber on 03-13-10
By: Suetonius
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Hannibal
- By: Patrick N. Hunt
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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One of the greatest commanders of the ancient world brought vividly to life: Hannibal, the brilliant general who successfully crossed the Alps with his war elephants and brought Rome to its knees. Hannibal Barca of Carthage, born 247 BC, was one of the great generals of the ancient world. Historian Patrick N. Hunt has led archaeological expeditions in the Alps and elsewhere to study Hannibal's achievements. Now he brings Hannibal's incredible story to life in this riveting and dramatic audiobook.
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A monotone mundane narration
- By Jeff Lacy on 05-22-20
By: Patrick N. Hunt
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Twelve Caesars
- Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern (Bollingen Series)
- By: Mary Beard
- Narrated by: Mary Beard
- Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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What does the face of power look like? Who gets commemorated in art and why? And how do we react to statues of politicians we deplore? In this book - against a background of today’s “sculpture wars” - Mary Beard tells the story of how for more than two millennia portraits of the rich, powerful, and famous in the Western world have been shaped by the image of Roman emperors, especially the “Twelve Caesars”, from the ruthless Julius Caesar to the fly-torturing Domitian.
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This foray into art history is a disappointment.
- By Stephen J Chiulli on 11-10-21
By: Mary Beard
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Greece Against Rome
- The Fall of the Hellenistic Kingdoms 250-31 BC
- By: Philip Matyszak
- Narrated by: Gareth Richards
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Towards the middle of the third century BC, the Hellenistic kingdoms were near their peak. In terms of population, economy, and military power, each was vastly superior to Rome, not to mention in fields such as medicine, architecture, science, philosophy, and literature. But over the next two and a half centuries, Rome would eventually conquer these kingdoms while adopting so much of Hellenistic culture that the resultant hybrid is known as "Graeco-Roman." In Greece Against Rome, Philip Matyszak relates this epic tale from the Hellenistic perspective.
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Really enjoyed the book and snark
- By Chris Smith on 05-27-23
By: Philip Matyszak
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Dying Every Day
- Seneca at the Court of Nero
- By: James S. Romm
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.
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Outstanding
- By michael bobadilla on 05-04-23
By: James S. Romm
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Dynasty
- The Rise and Fall of the House of Caesar
- By: Tom Holland
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 16 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Author and historian Tom Holland returns to his roots in Roman history and the audience he cultivated with Rubicon—his masterful, witty, brilliantly researched popular history of the fall of the Roman republic—with Dynasty, a luridly fascinating history of the reign of the first five Roman emperors. Dynasty continues Rubicon's story, opening where that book ended: with the murder of Julius Caesar. This is the period of the first and perhaps greatest Roman emperors. It's a colorful story of rule and ruination, from the rise of Augustus to the death of Nero.
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Accessible, enjoyable history
- By Mary on 01-28-16
By: Tom Holland
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Ten Caesars
- Roman Emperors from Augustus to Constantine
- By: Barry Strauss
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Best-selling classical historian Barry Strauss tells the story of three-and-a-half centuries of the Roman Empire through the lives of 10 of the most important emperors, from Augustus to Constantine.
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Good for beginners
- By Richferguson1 on 03-01-20
By: Barry Strauss
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Rome's Last Citizen
- The Life and Legacy of Cato, Mortal Enemy of Caesar
- By: Rob Goodman, Jimmy Soni
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Marcus Porcius Cato: aristocrat who walked barefoot and slept on the ground with his troops, political heavyweight who cultivated the image of a Stoic philosopher, a hardnosed defender of tradition who presented himself as a man out of the sacred Roman past-and the last man standing when Rome's Republic fell to tyranny. His blood feud with Caesar began in the chamber of the Senate, played out on the battlefields of a world war, and ended when he took his own life rather than live under a dictator.
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Unfortunate
- By Olivia N. on 11-06-20
By: Rob Goodman, and others
What listeners say about Nero
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Donald
- 11-24-22
The narrator kinda sounds like Emperor Palpatine, but after a bit I fully enjoyed his voice. Another great book by AE !
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- George Bettasso
- 10-02-24
Nero
Reading biography of new Era in the history of this ruling was very interesting. Well informed about this Roman Emperor. The book does explain that there’s biased against him but explains did good things and bad things that were questionable crimes.
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- Cooper A Day
- 01-01-23
An amazing 360 degree portrait
Really enjoyed this well-researched and in-depth review of one of history’s most notorious figures. As a Christian I was familiar with his blaming of my co-religionist predecessors for the great fire of Rome in 64AD and his declining to grant pardons to the Apostles Peter & Paul but wow, what a life in a short 14 year-reign. The authors make a convincing case that he’s much more than the cruel monster that history often makes him out to be. Highly recommended for history lovers and for this interested in Ancient Rome in particular.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Ahmir Khan
- 06-30-23
Nero - Sociopath or Spoiled Brat? How about both?
Fascinating look into one of Rome's most infamous emperors. A well researched book that uses the contemporary sources, but also attempts to see through those sources own biases to paint an accurate picture of the Princeps. Nero strikes you not necessarily as the wrong guy for the job, but someone who just didn't have an interest in the job, and only did it because it afforded him the opportunity to do everything that he actually wanted to do, like sing and play music! He's not dissimilar to many other children of great men or families, who are handed the keys to a family business, only to squander it. But there is also a ruthlessness in society at the time, which helps you understand just how cutthroat you had to be just to survive. This helps us understand his character and his actions, and outside of that context it would be difficult to understand his actions. In general, I also did like how the author ties in the general history of what was occurring in and around Rome, with segments on Britain, Seneca and Parthia, for example, that really give a complete picture of the empire and it's relation to Nero
I know some people did not like the narrator, but I thought he was brilliant. He uses different voices for different people, including this lazy, bored, disinterested voice for Nero. I really enjoyed it, and found my self laughing out loud several times when he would use the different voices.
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1 person found this helpful
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- david malaguti
- 06-21-24
Another great anthony everitt book
As usual, History told with Insight into personality which makes it memorable. Michael caine does a splendid job narrating.
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- Mark Tosi
- 08-05-24
Nero revealed.
I enjoyed this version of Nero. I think to the historical writings, the modern version we have of Nero is extremely prejudiced. The people writing had a vested interest in Nero looking like a crazy SOB. Granted, he probably wasn’t the nicest person to be around, but I’m sure he did a lot of good that was recorded. It seems another person given all this power who probably just wanted to be left alone and do his own thing. Overall. A good read. I recommend it as there’s a whole bunch of material which trashes Nero.
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- Bo Miller
- 08-29-24
Nero
A great job of detailing an in depth story about Nero and his empire of Rome.
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- M. Martin
- 01-11-23
Well written, poorly read.
Anthony Everitt is a brilliant biographical writer. The person reading this volume did, at times, make it difficult to listen to. Terrible reading. He mispronounces the multiple names, multiple times, multiple ways, throughout the book. It was a bit maddening. I’m actually looking forward to finding it in print, so I can read it for myself.
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