First of all, this is a beautiful book, full of high quality illustrations embedded within the narrative for ease of reference. The book gives a short sequential pen picture of the life and times of every emperor and several empresses of Byzantium over a 1100 year period from Constantine in 306, the first Roman Emperor to covert to Christianity and the man who founded his new capital of Constantinople. to Constantine the XI who was the last emperor at the time of the fall of Constantinople to Mehmet II, ushering in the Ottoman age in 1453. An ancient prophecy had said the first and last emperor would have the same name - and so it proved.
Each pen portrait is short - it's a book of around 320 pages, many of which are illustrations, so not a lot of space for detail. That said, the key facts are there, delivered in an informative and entertaining manner, often enlivened by some clear opinions presented by the author - from writers of the time, and in his own view. The totality gives a good overall picture of the Byzantine Empire as it waxed and waned, in all its ridiculous (to our eyes) disputes over arcade details of religious doctrine, its plots, counterplots, cruelties and beauty. I read it cover to cover and greatly enjoyed doing so, but the book would also make for a useful work of reference to dip into, and I suspect I will revise it as such in the future.
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