Babylonia

From the author of the bestselling Clytemnestra comes another intoxicating excursion into ancient history, as Casati reimagines the rise to power of the Assyrian empire's only female ruler, Semiramis

Nothing about Semiramis's upbringing could have foretold her legacy or the power she would come to wield. A female ruler, once an orphan raised on the outskirts of an empire – certainly no one in Ancient Assyria would bend to her command willingly. Semiramis was a woman who knew if she wanted power, she would have to claim it.

There are whispers of her fame in Mesopotamian myth – Semiramis was a queen, an ambitious warrior, a commander whose reputation reaches the majestic proportions of Alexander the Great. Historical record, on the other hand, falls eerily quiet.

In her second novel, Costanza Casati brilliantly weaves myth and ancient history together to give Semiramis a voice, charting her captivating ascent to a throne no one promised her. The world Casati expertly builds is rich with dazzling detail and will transport her readers to the heat of the Assyrian Empire and a world long gone.

About the Author

Costanza Casati was born in Texas in 1995 and grew up in a village in Northern Italy, where she studied Ancient Greek, and Ancient Greek literature, under one of the country’s most rigorous academic programmes. She is a graduate of the prestigious Warwick Writing MA in the UK, and worked as a screenwriter and journalist. Clytemnestra is her debut novel. It has sold into 18 territories worldwide, is a Saturday Times bestseller, and was shortlisted for the HWA Debut Crown Award.

Reviews

"Costanza Casati has taken the fragments of stories about this extraordinary woman and recreated her world with a vivid panache" ―The Times

"A wonderfully sweeping epic, Babylonia not only recreates the ancient world with an extraordinarily tactile vividness, but gives us a portrait of a remarkable woman. Semiramis may be ruthless in her pursuit of power but her courage and passion, rendered in Casati’s supremely confident and fluent style, make her a compelling heroine for our times. I was utterly captivated." ―Elizabeth Fremantle, author of Disobedient

"Babylonia is an astounding achievement, one of the most vivid, powerful works of historical fiction I have ever read. Semiramis herself is an extraordinary creation – a woman whose rise makes for a thrilling, epic journey, while she also remains deeply human. I was utterly swept up in the world of this novel, in the passions and power struggles of its fascinating protagonists, all of whom completely captured my heart" ―Elodie Harper, author of The Wolf Den

"A stirring, addictive and intoxicating tale with a deft weaving of myth and history. Emotionally rich and lyrically genius, Casati’s Babylonia has cemented her as one of the most skilled and exciting writers of historical fiction, bringing an incomparable vibrance to the genre" ―Bea Fitzgerald, author of Girl, Goddess, Queen

Dimensions: 15.3 x 3.3 x 23.4 cm