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BOOK REVIEW: The Love God

January 26, 2015

The Love God

The Love God by Martin Campbell (£11.99).

Brighton-based author Martin Campbell must have spent the last ten years researching his new book as the level of detail and accurate historical, geographical and political detail is impressive.  This just gives a firm thick and dense foundation to telling the extraordinary story one of the ancient worlds greatest love stories, more passionate that Antony and Cleopatra and much more world changing, and just as tragic. Campbell brings us his version of the love between Antinous and Hadrian, the roman emperor of Wall fame.

Narrated by the boy loved and then made a God by Hadrian.  Although many of us are familiar with Alexander the Great and Hephaestions powerful relationship, fewer of us know Hadrian’s all consuming love for this simple low born but stunning man.  The Love God brings us this story in full technicolor delight, the book delves into historical and passionate territory that allows the narrative to grip and thrust and plough itself onwards with an urgent power not bad for a book this thick. Campbell writes with a subtle grace, giving us just enough information to really understand the context of this powerful erotic love story and also why it caused so many ripples to the Emperor, his family and the empire.

On occasion the detail can detract from the pleasure of the telling of the men and their developing adoration and worship of each other, but perhaps without such in depth background it would be more fantasy and less history.  I get the impression this is historical fiction with an emphasis on the historical.

0024MAN-AntinousWhile reviewing this book I visited the Prada art galley, they have a carved marble bust of Antinous there, it is breathtakingly beautiful, pure lustful male perfection, seduction rendered in marble. I felt myself Hadrian for a moment and wanted to kiss it.  This book lets us feel the passion of the Emperor for this forbidden, worshiped man who became a Love God.

Out now from the publishers website here.

£11.99

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