Third printing. Quarter bound in publisher's red cloth over beige boards, gilt lettering on spine. Maps on endpapers. 8vo. 896 pp. Includes extensive Glossary and a Pronunciation Guide. Illustrated with maps and B&W drawings by the author. The First Man in Rome is McCullough's first book in her brilliant series on the life of Julius Caesar, The Masters of Rome. This book focuses on the rise of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, who threatened to end the career, and life, of the young Caesar and Gaius Marius, the victorious general who drove back the invading Gauls and Caesar's uncle by marriage. The First Man in Rome sweeps the reader into an irresistibly vivid world of political intrigue, danger, wars, assassinations, devastating upheaval, intricately passionate family alliances and rivalries, and undeniable reality. The richness and accuracy of her historical detail provides a fitting background for the characters, who are themselves historic. McCullough's series of books are perhaps the finest historical novels based on Roman history that have ever been produced, and provide the reader with unequalled absorption into Roman life, suspense, excitement and minutely accurate Roman history. McCullough's books in her Masters of Rome series include The First Man in Rome (1990) ; The Grass Crown (1991) ; Fortune's Favorites (1993) ; Caesar's Women (1996) ; Caesar (1997), The October Horse (2002), and Antony and Cleopatra (2007). . This is a once-read copy with a former owner's embossed stamp on the half-title, otherwise in virtually perfect condition. NEAR FINE/FINE.. Masters of Rome Series. Vol. 1. B&W Illustrations. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. 896 pp