I listened to this book through Audible.

This book thoughtfully examines how women wielded power in imperial Rome. The author also does a fairly good job distinguishing each of these women from each other and the powerful men in their lives. It was an exceptional feat when many of these women had similar names, changed names, or were named for one another or a male family member (e.g., Livia became Julia Augusta, and her husband was Augustus).

This book begins by examining Julius Caesar's downfall and the rise of Octavian (the aggressor of Cleopatra and Marc Anthony) to the role of emperor. The women who are the primary focus of this period are Octavian's three wives: Fulvia (Marc Anthony's stepdaughter), Scribonia, and Livia. The author does an excellent job of detailing what is known of these women's backgrounds and how their marriages were politically advantageous to Octavian.

Interestingly Octavian only had one surviving child from these marriages, Julia the Elder from whom the mantle of Emporer descended. Octavian wished her to continue the male dynastic line by first marrying her cousin Marcus Claudius Marcellus who died within two years of marrying. With the death of Marcus Claudius, Julia the Elder and her female cousins, sought to gain political power through advantageous marriages all of which impacted the imperial succession. This was the most confusing part of the book to follow. Not due to the writing but because all of the main players at this time had very similar names and sometimes married the same people or people with similar names. I think that might be the biggest disadvantage of the audiobook because I could not refer to a family try at any point. It also didn't help that there was so much intermarriage within the noble houses of Rome. I mean Julia the Elder, daughter of Octavian and Scribonia, married Emperor Tiberius, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia (i.e., third wife of Octavian). So my best advice is to read this book with the family tree near.

My favourite part of the book was the section surrounding Emperor Nero. Not being well versed in Roman history all I knew of this time was the saying "Nero fiddled while Rome burned". Honestly, that is a relatively nice account of a narcissistic lunatic. As with all of the women discussed in this book, the lives of Nero's four wives: Claudia Octavia, Poppaea Sabina, Statilia Messalina, and Sporus were full of intrigue and heartbreak. 

I'm not entirely sure how de la Bédoyère packed so much history into this book and made it so enthralling to read. His writing drew me into these women's lives and times and whenever possible used the first-hand accounts of their lives. I did appreciate how de la Bédoyère also provided context as many of the Roman sources are misogynistic, inflammatory, pieces of patriarchal propaganda pieces. His ability to use the sources and say what is and is not supported by all the known evidence was refreshing     

I recommend this book if you want to learn more about Roman history, particularly history centred on the women of the period. 

If nothing else, read the book for the phrase 'Rome's former action man [Tiberius] had turned into an ageing, filthy-minded and malevolent sloth lurking around on Capri like a vindictive cave troll.' 

Also, have a sip of water every time a variant of the word 'acquiesce' is used. It's not excessive, but enough that I played a little game with myself the whole time I was reading.