The October Horse by Colleen McCullough (2002, Abridged, Compact Disc)

I listened to the audiobook version of this book, which is unfortunately only available as abridged. Maybe the unabridged book is different, but the abridged audiobook is definiely NOT "A Novel of Caesar and Cleopatra". It is a novel of the assassination of Julius Caesar and the immediate aftermath. In the audiobook, Cleopatra is a minor character, and her son Caesarion is given more mentions on the back of the audiocassette case than he is in the entire audiobook.

That being said, this book is simply outstanding. There are fresh takes on almost every character, so even though you know what's going to happen, you have no idea what's going to happen.

For instance, Anthony is a lazy, drunken spendthrift who despises Julius Caesar and is complicit in his assassination. Anthony expects that when Caesar is killed, he will inherit a vast fortune, so that he can pay his debts and continue his life of debauchery. There's a highly amusing scene after the death of Caesar where Anthony is ransacking Julius Caesar's property, looking for money.

Brutus is a figurehead of the conspiracy, brought on board at the last minute to give it some legitimacy. This requires considerable arm twisting from the "Kill Caesar Club", and from Brutus' wife, Portia.

The expectation of all parties is that once Julius Caesar is killed, Rome can go back to the way it was. Anthony intends to grant clemency to the assassins and continue with his consulship.

The fly in the ointment is Julius Caesar's little-noticed, 18 year old grand-nephew, Octavian. Immediately after Octavian hears that he was made Caesar's heir and adopted in Caesar's will, he secretly secures Julius Caesar's war chest, containing all the money that was intended to pay for the Julius Caesar's Parthian campaign. Octavian also does everything he can to "become" Caesar - imitating his dress, speech, and mannerisms. Octavian insists on being called "Gaius Julius Caesar", and further insists that "his father" was a God - Divus Julius. This galls Anthony and others, but the common people and more importantly, Divus Julius' veteran soldiers, eat it up.

A great many plays, books and movies have been devoted to the love affair between Caesar and Cleopatra, but very few delve into the fascinating story of how the future emperor Augustus transformed from a sickly, bookish teenager into Master of The World.

The October Horse is a great book, but the audio version is severely mis-marketed. In the audiobook, one of Octavian's mistresses is given almost as much attention as Cleopatra. Anyone expecting to experience some deeply moving love story between Caesar and Cleopatra will be severely disappointed, but anyone who wants to experience a magnificent epic about the assassination of Caesar and the birth of the 2nd Triumvirate will be richly rewarded.