Steven Saylor
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of historical novel
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
s. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
, where he studied history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
.
Although he also has written novels about Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
history, Saylor's best-known work is his Roma Sub Rosa
Roma Sub Rosa
Roma Sub Rosa is the title of the series of mystery novels by Steven Saylor set in, and populated by, noteworthy denizens of ancient Rome. The series is noted for its historical authenticity. The phrase "Roma Sub Rosa" means, in Latin, "Rome under the rose"...
series, set in ancient Rome. The novels' hero is a detective named Gordianus the Finder
Gordianus the Finder
Gordianus the Finder is the fictional protagonist of Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series of mystery novels set in Republican Rome. He lives by his wits, investigating crimes and other cases for Roman advocates such as Marcus Tullius Cicero...
, active during the time of Sulla
Lucius Cornelius Sulla
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix , known commonly as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He had the rare distinction of holding the office of consul twice, as well as that of dictator...
, Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
, Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
, and Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII of Egypt
Cleopatra VII Philopator was the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt.She was a member of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a family of Greek origin that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great's death during the Hellenistic period...
.
Prior to his novel-writing career, he published gay erotic fiction under the pen name Aaron Travis. Saylor has lived with his partner Richard Solomon since 1976 and they officially registered as domestic partners
Domestic partnership
A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by marriage nor a civil union...
in San Francisco in 1991. The couple split their time between properties in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
, and Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
.
Roma Sub Rosa
- Roman Blood (1991), in which Gordianus is hired by the great orator and advocate CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
in 80 BC. This novel is based on Cicero's speech In Defence of Sextus Roscius of Ameria (Pro Sexto Roscio Amerino), which is published in the Penguin Classics edition of Cicero's Murder Trials. - The House of the Vestals (1997) (a collection of short stories which appeared later, but which take place between the first book and the second).
- Arms of Nemesis (1992), featuring Crassus during the slave revolt of SpartacusSpartacusSpartacus was a famous leader of the slaves in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Little is known about Spartacus beyond the events of the war, and surviving historical accounts are sometimes contradictory and may not always be reliable...
in 72 BC. - A Gladiator Dies Only Once (2005) (another collection of short stories which appeared later, but which take place between the second book and the third)
- Catilina's Riddle (1993), featuring CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
and the title character, CatilinaCatilineLucius Sergius Catilina , known in English as Catiline, was a Roman politician of the 1st century BC who is best known for the Catiline conspiracy, an attempt to overthrow the Roman Republic, and in particular the power of the aristocratic Senate.-Family background:Catiline was born in 108 BC to...
, during his rebellion in 63 BC. - The Venus Throw (1995), featuring the poet CatullusCatullusGaius Valerius Catullus was a Latin poet of the Republican period. His surviving works are still read widely, and continue to influence poetry and other forms of art.-Biography:...
, set during the trial of Marcus Caelius in 56 BC for the reputed murder of Dio of AlexandriaDio of AlexandriaDio of Alexandria was an Academic philosopher and a friend of Antiochus of Ascalon who lived in the 1st century BC. He was sent by his fellow-citizens as ambassador to Rome, to complain about the conduct of their king, Ptolemy XII Auletes. On his arrival at Rome he was poisoned by the king's...
. - A Murder on the Appian Way (1996), set just before the civil warCivil warA civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
between Caesar and PompeyPompeyGnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey or Pompey the Great , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
, focused on the murder of the rabble rouse Publius Clodius PulcherPublius Clodius PulcherPublius Clodius Pulcher was a Roman politician known for his popularist tactics...
on the Appian WayAppian WayThe Appian Way was one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, Apulia, in southeast Italy...
outside Rome. - Rubicon (1999), after Caesar crosses the RubiconRubiconThe Rubicon is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, about 80 kilometres long, running from the Apennine Mountains to the Adriatic Sea through the southern Emilia-Romagna region, between the towns of Rimini and Cesena. The Latin word rubico comes from the adjective "rubeus", meaning "red"...
and the members of the Senate flee Rome, dragging the Roman world into civil war. - Last Seen in Massilia (2000), taking place in Massilia (now MarseilleMarseilleMarseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
) during the siege of the city by Caesar's men. - A Mist of Prophecies (2002), set during the Roman civil war in the city of Rome, divided between hopes and fears.
- The Judgment of Caesar (2004), taking place in Egypt, when Caesar met queen Cleopatra in 48 BC.
- The Triumph of Caesar (2008), set in Rome during Caesar's triumphal celebrations in 46 BC.
Roma
- Roma: The Novel of Ancient RomeRoma (2008 book)Roma is a historical novel by American author Steven Saylor, published by St. Martin's Griffin in 2008. The story follows two ancient Roman families, the Potitii and Pinarii, as members of their generations experience some of Rome's greatest historical events. The epic style is similar to James...
(2007), 1000-year novel of the rise of ancient Rome from its first settlement to the assassination of Julius Caesar. - Empire: The Novel of Imperial RomeEmpire (2010 book)Empire is a historical novel by American author Steven Saylor, published by Corsair in 2010. It is the sequel to Roma, and follows the lives of five generations of the Pinarius family from the reign of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, to the height of Rome's empire under Hadrian....
(2010), begins with the end of the reign of Augustus in 14 A.D. through the reign of Hadrian in 141.
Other books
Published under the pen name Aaron Travis (erotic fiction):- All-Stud (1979)
- Slaves of the Empire (1985)
- The Flesh Fables (1990)
- Beast of Burden (1993)
- Exposed (1993)
- Big Shots (1993)
- In the Blood (1995)
- Tag Team Studs: Wrestling Tales (1997) with Clay Caldwell
- Jock Studs (1998) with Clay Caldwell
Published under his own name:
- A Twist at the End (2000)
- Honour the Dead (2000)
- Have You Seen Dawn? (2003)