![]() This is one of those novels that transcends genre, that is thoroughly enjoyable to read but also impossible to stop thinking about. Charis’ story certainly has some over-the-top qualities to it (and even a little bit of humor), but it never veers into melodrama, and while her disregard for danger leaves her friends throwing up their hands in despair, the author has her face very real and complex situations, without any glib solutions. In some ways she reminds me of Amelia Peabody, another favorite heroine of mine, but minus the tongue-in-cheek humor and over-the-top adventure. ![]() Despite sounding like a modern heroine, she feels totally authentic, as do all the characters. Charis is one of those characters that I can’t help loving and rooting for, and her journey during the declining years of the Roman empire is both vivid, uplifting, and sad. I can’t explain exactly why it is a favorite sure, it has the bold and brave girl-who-disguises-herself-as-a-boy in order to do what she loves, but it’s so much more than that. ![]() It’s been almost ten years since I read this book for the first time, and it still has a powerful hold on me. *Do NOT read the synopsis on the back of the book/goodreads-gives away the entire story. ![]()
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