The bloodstained life of Nero

The Roman emperor Nero has long been the very image of a bad ruler—cruel, vain, and incompetent. He committed incest with his mother and later murdered her. He supposedly set fire to Rome and thrummed his lyre as it burned. Afterward, he cleared the charred ruins of the city center and, in their place, built a vast palace. Historians of his day despised him, and it's their recollections that have been passed down through the ages.

But, in all of the horror, there is a mystery. For a long time after his deposition and suicide, anonymous hands laid flowers on his grave. The monster was loved. In this nuanced biography, Anthony Everitt reveals the contradictions inherent in the reign of Nero and offers a reappraisal of his life.

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