A riveting account of Justinian’s reign that challenges traditional consensus.
An author and podcaster revisits the era of Emperor Justinian in the fourth book of a multivolume history of the fall of the Roman Empire.
“Justinian’s reign,” writes author Holmes regarding the sixth-century Roman leader, “sits uncomfortably in the annals of history.” Scholars since Edward Gibbon have presented a linear story of Rome’s deterioration—this book argues that Justinian’s tenure “contradicts” this narrative, as his reign represented “a Roman Empire that is not declining or falling.” Indeed, as the book details in its absorbing prose, Justinian oversaw the reconquest of lost Roman territories throughout North Africa and Italy. His empire was also characterized by its lasting cultural imprint, Holmes asserts, as it played a central role in creating some of the greatest architectural wonders in world history, including the Hagia Sophia and Basilica Cistern, and the drafting of the Corpus Juris Civilis legal code, which Holmes argues “was vital to developing modern law across the world.” Nuanced in its analysis, the book also notes how “underneath the glorious veneer” of these advances, Justinian’s failure to maintain his army and adequately defend his newly expanded borders paved the way for Rome’s downfall over the next century and a half. Although this history doesn’t discount the emperor’s devotion to Christianity, the book is also skeptical of previous scholars, including Gibbon, who focused their critiques on Justinian’s religious zeal. Holmes is the host of the podcast The Fall of the Roman Empire and the author of multiple books on the topic, and in this volume, he blends solid research, backed by more than 200 endnotes, with a keen eye toward engaging storytelling. This is aided by the fact that Justinian’s era—including the rags-to-riches story of the emperor himself—is rife with drama, and stocked with heroes, villains, and crooks. The book’s emphasis on bridging the divide between scholarly and more accessible histories is enhanced by an abundance of maps, photographs, paintings, and historic ephemera. Appendices include timelines and a bibliographic essay for further reading.
A riveting account of Justinian’s reign that challenges traditional consensus.Pub Date: Nov. 25, 2024
ISBN: 9781739786564
Page Count: 440
Publisher: Puttenham Press Ltd
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.
Greed, depravity, and serial murder in 1920s Oklahoma.
During that time, enrolled members of the Osage Indian nation were among the wealthiest people per capita in the world. The rich oil fields beneath their reservation brought millions of dollars into the tribe annually, distributed to tribal members holding "headrights" that could not be bought or sold but only inherited. This vast wealth attracted the attention of unscrupulous whites who found ways to divert it to themselves by marrying Osage women or by having Osage declared legally incompetent so the whites could fleece them through the administration of their estates. For some, however, these deceptive tactics were not enough, and a plague of violent death—by shooting, poison, orchestrated automobile accident, and bombing—began to decimate the Osage in what they came to call the "Reign of Terror." Corrupt and incompetent law enforcement and judicial systems ensured that the perpetrators were never found or punished until the young J. Edgar Hoover saw cracking these cases as a means of burnishing the reputation of the newly professionalized FBI. Bestselling New Yorkerstaff writer Grann (The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, 2010, etc.) follows Special Agent Tom White and his assistants as they track the killers of one extended Osage family through a closed local culture of greed, bigotry, and lies in pursuit of protection for the survivors and justice for the dead. But he doesn't stop there; relying almost entirely on primary and unpublished sources, the author goes on to expose a web of conspiracy and corruption that extended far wider than even the FBI ever suspected. This page-turner surges forward with the pacing of a true-crime thriller, elevated by Grann's crisp and evocative prose and enhanced by dozens of period photographs.
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.Pub Date: April 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-385-53424-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Not so deep, but a delightful tip of the hat to the pleasures—and power—of glamour.
A coffee-table book celebrates Michelle Obama’s sense of fashion.
Illustrated with hundreds of full-color photographs, Obama’s chatty latest book begins with some school portraits from the author’s childhood in Chicago and fond memories of back-to-school shopping at Sears, then jumps into the intricacies of clothing oneself as the spouse of a presidential candidate and as the first lady. “People looked forward to the outfits, and once I got their attention, they listened to what I had to say. This is the soft power of fashion,” she says. Obama is grateful and frank about all the help she got along the way, and the volume includes a long section written by her primary wardrobe stylist, Koop—28 years old when she first took the job—and shorter sections by makeup artists and several hair stylists, who worked with wigs and hair extensions as Obama transitioned back to her natural hair, and grew out her bangs, at the end of her husband’s second term. Many of the designers of the author’s gowns, notably Jason Wu, who designed several of her more striking outfits, also contribute appreciative memories. Besides candid and more formal photographs, the volume features many sketches of her gowns by their designers, closeups on details of those gowns, and magazine covers from Better Homes & Gardens to Vogue. The author writes that as a Black woman, “I was under a particularly white-hot glare, constantly appraised for whether my outfits were ‘acceptable’ and ‘appropriate,’ the color of my skin somehow inviting even more judgment than the color of my dresses.” Overall, though, this is generally a canny, upbeat volume, with little in the way of surprising revelations.
Not so deep, but a delightful tip of the hat to the pleasures—and power—of glamour.Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780593800706
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
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