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2.5 for this one. While I did somewhat enjoyed this story, I have to admit the main character, Miranda, was just so bloody lucky, she was always knew what to say, when to say, Always was at the right place with the right people with her. And with the Latin, why was she so good at reading and speaking it? We have not idea how it sounded and she knew from day one what everyone was saying. I had a problem with the Love part to, the master/slave thing was just wrong and it was almost like she was br...
Very enjoyable take on the day to day life of a family in ancient Pompeii
I read this book because I like time-shift stories where the character travels to another time and lives the life of someone either in the past or the future. The idea for this story was very good, Miranda is part of an experiment to send a person back and forth in time using a wristband which is a kind of teleporter. Miranda ends up in 62 AD in the house of Marcus a wealthy man who is married with a family. All was good so far, the author was good and giving information about Pompeii but it did...
The setting attracted me to this book but I was immediately sceptical with the time travel theme, although wanting to know if and how Miranda got back kept me going.I enjoyed the setting and the events, particularly meeting Petronius. I was disappointed that Miranda did not save Marcus’s son because of her initial ignorance of the remedy. Maybe the author thought to uphold the myth Miranda surrounded herself with, infuriate the mistress or use it to blossom the romance between Miranda and Marcus...
I finished Rebecca East’s novel “A.D. 62: Pompeii” and I, too, have added Marcus Tullius to my pantheon of Roman heroes. Since he did actually exist, I can hope that he was as noble, sensitive, astute, and talented as Rebecca’s portrayal. Since most of the novel occurred in the Tullius villa and focused on the daily lives of its residents, the novel provided a revealing window on the world of a Roman equestrian family - the operation of their household, their family, their social lives, and the
I was so excited to finally get this book on PBS, but have been disappointed with it ever since. The premise is SO good, but the writing really falls short. There is no doubt the author did an amazing job researching, but at many times in the book I felt lectured at on ancient Pompeii, instead of these bits of information seamlessly integrated into the story. What I found most annoying was the fact that she would repeat herself over and over again on small historical details, often using the sam...
3.5 ratingThis story was actually pretty cute. It's about a woman named Miranda who gets to go back in time to 20 years before the volcano Vesuvius erupts in Pompeii. It didn't expand much on the technology of "how" she got back, which I think would of been good to add in, but it focused more on her story there. She becomes a slave to Marcus Tullius, and later they fall in love. It was a pretty cute love story. It was a unique time travel story!
The historical information that is conveyed in this book is excellent, if a little dry. Essentially, it is a monograph on Pompeii masquerading as a very poorly plotted novel. Still, the historical detail is very interesting, and it is fun to visit the author's website afterwards to see pictures of the artwork and artifacts that appear in the book.
I've always been fascinated with Mt Vesuvius and it's turbulent history of erruptions. Read lots of stuff on Pompeii and Herculaenum and the current excavations. Hope to visit there next year while we're in Europe and culminate a childhood dream. Can't wait to see all the mosaics. Roman, Italian, geology.
My favorite genre is Historical Fiction, particularly historical fiction involving time-travel. Copious repetition and some typographical errors notwithstanding, I found the storyline very absorbing. If you can get over the former (which I made myself do), it's an enjoyable read.
Very well doneI never buy e-books I always buy an actual book. I'm very glad I bought this as an e-book. I hope the author writes more books like this is very well done and very well edited. It's nice to read a book without a bunch of grammatical and spelling errors.
Historical value only. Story is unconceivably dull, repetitive dialogue and narrative, simple. Almost stopped. Should have.
History and a good novel all in one.
Totally totally got engrossed in this book and didnt want it to end.
I really enjoyed this unique "back-in-time" novel is written by an expert in Roman archaeology and an accomplished story teller as well. Under the pen name of Rebecca East, the author tells a fascinating story that kept me in suspense wondering what comes next. The heroine, Miranda, hears that a group of researchers have invented a procedure that can transport someone back in time. Miranda is an archaeologist specializing in ancient Rome and the ruins of Pompeii. She speaks Latin fluently and be...
Considering I adore anything about Ancient Rome and have read several factual books about this time period, I was super excited to read this time travelling novel. We follow Miranda who decides to travel into the past for an experiment but it doesn’t go to plan, she ends up sold into slavery. She ends up a house slave in a big villa with a family which is much more than she could have hoped for, being as she will experience ancient Roman life for herself. This novel is beautifully detailed and I...
As I started the book,, I was not so sure that time travel aspect worked for me. But the more I read, the better I liked it. It provided a vehicle for an outsider within examination of the culture. The Story was engaging. The characters were relatable. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down...
This story is about a historian who travels back in time to ancient Pompeii, where she is immediately captured and sold into slavery. Because she can read and write, she becomes valuable to her household. Though she possesses the means to return to her own time, she lingers because she falls in love with her master.While this was an enjoyable story, I have to admit the main character, Miranda, read like a Mary Sue. That is, she seemed to possess superhuman abilities at times ~ indefatigable, per...
Reviewed by Natalie Tsang for TeensReadToo.comImagine getting stranded in Ancient Rome! That's what happens to Miranda in Rebecca East's A. D. 62: POMPEII. Miranda has never felt that she belonged in the 21st century, and when a group of researchers approach her about a short trip to the past, she agrees. Of course, things don't go as planned. First, she is sold to a wealthy family as a house slave and then her time travel device malfunctions. At first, she is resigned to a life of menial labor,...
Generally, I don't read a lot of books from this genre. Is A.D. 62: Pompeii by Rebecca East a Science Fiction story because of the time travel? A little. More than likely, it is more a story about a young woman thrust into a world she thought she knew, only to find out it wasn't exactly as she expected...or hoped for. Let me say right off that I quite enjoyed the story. Rebecca was a likable character, as were most of the supporting characters in the story. I would have liked a little less descr...
Good premise, but that is all. The beginning- because it's very rushed- is surreal and Miranda's weakness doesn't help me liking the story. I find her too settled in her new life as a slave and her relationship with Marcus reminds me for a saying we have in my country relating to those women who are victims of domestic violence but are unable to leave their husbands because they love them, "The more you beat me, the more I love you".As for the narrative, it is extremely repetitive. for instance
I thought the premise of this novel was fun and very promising: Miranda, a modern Classics scholar is transported back in time to the year A.D. 62 and must soon adapt to a new life once she realizes that returning home will not be as easy as planned. Unfortunately, it was not carried out as well as it could have been. Numerous times, Miranda the narrator repeats herself with information already given in previous chapters. I also felt that the book needed more dialogue; there were sections where
Pro: 1) The story gave a somewhat in-depth look at life in ancient Rome, although it was probably much too positive with regard to the life of a slave. 2) I thought the story would end differently, even up until the very last pages, so it was an interesting surprise. 3) I enjoyed the premise of how the main character ended up back in time—it was simple (no real details), but satisfactory. 4) The story kept my interest the entire way through.Con: 1) Better editing would have helped. For example,
This book could be so good! It was good enough that I did finish it, but really had to force myself a couple times.As others have stated, the author repeats herself. I wondered a couple times if I had lost my place and was rereading a passage. At times the story dragged along slowly but then towards the end seemed rushed and like the author just wanted to finish the book. The last quarter of the book lacked the interesting details found in the first sections.If the writing could be tightened up
I wanted to read about Pompeii, and this book was fairly inexpensive. It is a time-travel genre, but thought I would try it anyway. It is very detailed about the area, and is immensely prominent on the architected description of Pompeii. The story has good premise, and I enjoyed most of it. The repetitiveness in the book is a little tiresome. I enjoyed her story telling immensely, but the author does like to prattle on and on, and so I skipped over the repeated parts. She is also a little stiff
I wanted to read the book since I read everything I can get my hands on that has to do with Pompeii. I enjoyed her storytelling a lot and found that she did a lot of research to make the read true to fact. However, I was bothered by the repeating of information. It was almost like the author had forgotten that she had already told us this certain thing or maybe didn't read her manuscript over before continuing on with the story. I found myself wondering how this could happen. Overall, it was a n...
The book was interesting. I'm glad I read it, but at times it seemed to be lacking. Maybe not exciting enough. The main character, Miranda, sent back into A.D. 62 gave a vivid detail of what it was like there at that time. I commend the writer for so much research.Even at the end of the book there is a special section telling where she did her research, titiled, "Brief Historical Notes for A.D.62:Pompeii". the author then tells what & who was true in this book which I found very refreshing.
This book has an interesting premise - - time travelling modern person goes back to A.D. 62 Pompeii. Anybody interested in the ancient times, or Pompeiian history would like that. And the story itself is okay, but the book suffers greatly due to poor editing. Heck, I could have edited this book better. Entire sentences are repeated throughout, incorrect words, grammatical mistakes.
This was a rather silly book about time travel and Pompeii. It talks about the earthquake of AD 62--not the eruption in AD79, so I appreciated them mixing it up a bit. A good read on the plane or by the beach.
not bad... very soft science fiction time travel plot, but the research into Roman life was through enough to make that part enjoyable. Fun way to learn some history. Also try the Roma sub Rosa series featuring a detective in Rome around the time of Cicero.