Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    To Abandon Rome, AD 593
    To Abandon Rome, AD 593
    To Abandon Rome, AD 593
    Ebook348 pages5 hours

    To Abandon Rome, AD 593

    By Vann Turner

    3/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    AD 593. Amid the crumbling grandeur of Christian Rome a good man opposes both Archdeacon and Pope. He stands against them as a bulwark for the common people.
    ~
    Titus, banished by the new Lombard King, finds himself reduced to baking bricks in Rome. Political machinations are afoot and the factions have contrary schemes for him. One faction lifts him from the brick factory to a minor office. Neither faction is ready for what a Roman of the old cloth would do.
    ~
    While this historical novel is true to the times, conflicts and characters, it is breath-catchingly dramatic:
    + Watch Titus as he delivers a live-birth from a whore who has died in childbirth.
    + Watch his rage when, to demonstrate the torments of Hell, a monk casts a puppy onto burning embers.
    + Watch when he burns the Archdeacon's Tribunal of the Holy Life and arrests him.
    + And hold your breath when he faces, in single combat, naked, the man who raped his wife. Watching it, watching in dread, watching in disguise as a man, is Adria, strong Adria, the woman who loves him.
    ~
    In the late 6th Century, a Consul with Plenary Powers wore the mantle for a bit. A true Roman. He stood up. But then he faced Papal ire and the threat of the heretic's stake.
    ~
    Read *To Abandon Rome* to get swept up in the turmoil of Titus’s public life, set against the tenderness of his private life.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherVann Turner
    Release dateFeb 11, 2018
    ISBN9780999858370
    To Abandon Rome, AD 593
    Author

    Vann Turner

    Although author Vann Turner was born in West Palm Beach, FL, he cannot call that home. He attended thirteen different schools, in thirteen different locales, before he graduated from Pensacola High School in 1966. His parents thought the best graduation present would be a suitcase. Vann took the hint and left. By tending bar and cooking he earned his BA in English (Latin minor).He went on to teach high school one year, became an avid backpacker, did a stint in the Army, was domestic chef to British nobility in Greenwich, CT, became an amateur bodybuilder, used his medic training to work in hospitals, then went on to transcribe medical dictation using WordPerfect 5.1. During this time he wrote three gay short stories. The first magazines he sent them to bought them. Maybe he could tell a story and had something to say besides.He then began working on his first novel, completing it in 1992. That novel came close to acceptance by a major publisher, but in the end it was no cigar. He told himself he needed to write full time, but he needed an income so he could quit his job and write. If he had something to sell on that new fangled thing, the World Wide Web, that'd provide the income he needed.So he learned coding. He wrote and sold medical transcription software, MedPen, on the internet. But that decision did not pan out as he had hoped. It sapped all his time and creativity and he wrote not a word of fiction until he sold the business in September, 2009.The next day his long-time partner (and future husband when it became legal in 2014) asked him what he was going to do with his time. He said he was going to write. Bob nodded and asked him to dust off that 1992 novel. Vann responded that he had other stories to tell as well and he was going to write a novel set after the fall of Rome but before the solid onset of the Dark Ages, a time ripe with conflicts, Roman tradition versus Germanic custom, Christianity versus the old gods, the human heart struggling against itself and external constraints.Vann has always been a shy person and now is something of a recluse in his mountain home with his dogs. (His husband passed in May of 2017.) He is not on Facebook or Twitter. You see, the mindless and anonymous blather there gives him the heebie-jeebies. But he loves interacting with people one on one. So if you’d like to send him an email, he will answer you.vann@vannturner.com

    Read more from Vann Turner

    Related to To Abandon Rome, AD 593

    Related ebooks

    Historical Romance For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Jan Morris

      Jun 15, 2018

      I have always rather envied the poet Ovid, who was banished from Rome by the emperor Augustus, you may remember, to a remote place called Tomis on the shores of the Black Sea. There he died, ten years later, and his exile has gone into legend and int

      17 min read

    • Article

      A tender THREAD

      Dec 22, 2021

      A tender THREAD
      9 min read

    • Article

      Stop Hating on Adjectives!

      Jun 12, 2019

      A common admonition in creative writing pedagogy is, “Cut as many adjectives as possible.” I propose that this rule springs from mere prejudice. The post Stop Hating on Adjectives! appeared first on The Millions.

      7 min read

    • Article

      The Book of Loki

      Mar 12, 2018

      The Book of Loki
      20 min read

    • Article

      Commonplace Book

      Sep 1, 2021

      If any question why we died, Tell them, because our fathers lied. —Rudyard Kipling, “Epitaphs of the War,” The Years Between, 1919 She consulted me, a glance, and said: “I think not anything off the wagon. It arrives too quickly. Let’s have somethi

      4 min read

    • Article

      Unreality Television

      May 27, 2020

      Unreality Television
      4 min read

    • Article

      Tessa Castro

      Feb 9, 2022

      IN COMPETITION No 276, you were invited to write a poem called The Carpet. Dan Rubinstein told of a rock band’s drummer stopping on a tour to buy some carpet to stop his bass drum wandering. Dorothy Pope’s poem was about being ‘coventrated’, carpet-b

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Man Behind Edna

      May 17, 2023

      The Man Behind Edna
      7 min read

    • Article

      Meet Your New Favorite Poet

      Feb 20, 2019

      Meet Your New Favorite Poet
      6 min read

    • Article

      HERNAN BAS New and Recent Work

      Dec 15, 2018

      HERNAN BAS New and Recent Work
      6 min read

    • Article

      Competition

      Feb 8, 2023

      IN COMPETITION No 289 you were invited to write a poem called The Hobby-Horse. I was surprised by how many of you took for a subject the folklore creature, often represented in mumming performances by a horse’s skull. The children’s stick-horse and t

      2 min read

    • Article

      DULCE DOMUM From The Wind In The Willows

      Nov 1, 2022

      DULCE DOMUM From The Wind In The Willows
      11 min read

    • Article

      Scoundrel’s Lair

      Jul 9, 2023

      Scoundrel’s Lair
      5 min read

    • Article

      Perfect Prose II

      May 15, 2020

      Perfect Prose II
      4 min read

    • Article

      Make A Spectacle Of Oneself

      Oct 27, 2022

      AWARE THAT QUEEN Elizabeth I said to Robert Cecil, a much greater man than I, “Little man, little man: must is not a word to be used to princes,” I am hesitant to address my new Sovereign Lord with the word “must”. But the Coronation must not be a se

      3 min read

    • Article

      Hook, Line And Sinker

      Oct 18, 2018

      Hook, Line And Sinker
      4 min read

    • Article

      A Refusal To Mourn The Deaths, By Gunfire, Of Three Men In Brooklyn

      Jan 1, 2019

      And at times, didn’t the whole countrytry to break his skin?—Tim Seibles You strike your one good match to watch its bloomand jook, a swan song just before a nightwind comes to snuff it. That’s the kind of dayit’s been. Your Black & Mild, now, useles

      7 min read

    • Article

      Roger’s PROFANISAURUS

      Aug 5, 2021

      profanisaurus@viz.co.uk aroma diffuser 1. n. A scientific device that breaks “essential oils” down into smaller molecules, dispersing them into the air for a pleasant or calming effect on the gullible. 2. n. The arsehole. Barbie’s minge sim. Somethin

      8 min read

    • Article

      Letter From Cincinnati

      Sep 19, 2022

      Letter From Cincinnati
      5 min read

    • Article

      Laura Kelly Is A Demon

      Jul 17, 2023

      It’s a damp November night, and in the bowels of an abandoned industrial building somewhere outside Shotts something strange is happening. The gates of hell have opened and demons are stalking Scotland. Clad mostly in black, they’re a ragtag bunch of

      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for To Abandon Rome, AD 593

    3/5

    2 ratings1 review

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      6th century Rome. Interesting and original continuation of the story of the Roman Titus Tribonius, who, after his exile from his hometown, Verona, has settled in Rome. He has been forced to leave because of mostly trumped-up charges. He is an aristocrat but lives among plebs and becomes friends with them. They would do anything for him. He is a visionary and wants to raise the status of the common people and to break the stranglehold the very often corrupt and venal Church has on their lives--all this under the yoke of their Lombard overlords. He dreams of the two nationalities living in peace and conceives of a codified law system, the same for both Lombard and Roman. Although he has met a woman, Adria, with whom he is soulmate, he is still faithful to his wife; she still lives back in Verona and runs his estate. Somehow he is finally raised to Consul with Plenary Powers and seeks to avoid war with the Lombard king, Agilulf. He desires to take revenge on the Lombard, Ratolf [that was an inspired name; this man was certainly a Rat!], who has violated his wife. The ending of the novel shows a gleam of optimism for the future. It took me a bit to get used to the author's style and to become involved in the story. I felt the writing in the last few chapters were better than that earlier. I felt the political promotions a bit unbelievable although I could see the author's purpose: giving Titus more power to act. I felt the Church was presented as an evil force: the churchmen, the weak pope and the Savonarola-like Archdeacon. The Celtic monk, Aoidán was the only admirable ecclesiastic. I did not like Boastful because of what I felt was his impudence, but perhaps Titus's trust and giving him responsibility into the novel made him mature some. I felt the author used several words wrong. Where he used Larvae for spirits of the dead I felt it should have been Lemures; also instead of aquifer--aqueduct. Also, the monks swung censers, not incensers. I didn't like the use of modernisms, such as the oft-repeated okay. I did like how he worked in the Cafavy poem and how he harked back to the title through Titus's discouragement; should he abandon Rome? I chuckled at mention of all the cooking, recipes and cooking tips. The author sounds like quite the amateur chef and put some of himself into the book!

    Book preview

    To Abandon Rome, AD 593 - Vann Turner

    ]ocbook_preview_excerpt.html}͚F嫠.ff1d[%z$\W= `~9D$;Dd8~M40.\}o7Ư>0*߇g;vX|檋>yl]-ϼ71)uR漫N%6 r> 7?[Ku)<Ūig14\KOxS3_=: Cz S Sy.cOt}_svunWyڇ&ka]N[|K;]pߪkqu/S:Gwzu2%r0c܍1N%~$9kuns'=RT8;O.R@\qHa'ާ"Bۺt ] sz8-hJA`o!"e- c1}:B:*\B ]~yXOmZ}v`TݏZo)Uv˱Nxn>;s!J]qlZlFQO!O#JJTx S+@)ȸ̗rh/ uc&xΌk%K&CV*Fp0a G5|N3h iZܷ]uW,0B莠+\8_Dy1Uz5?F!5TtZmCEm=8^?#5풰}:5\NQ:0jXu_}W!@AV&Mx 3YHϼ༻󷑓~?7ae8S{}6>߿yS難wWdէݧXnt;|I(WHM<1uHP| Wl7qqľf{h>NC3A /kjT3]@4e'>F:Z-OM'I¢kFwQ~4 cm]3<ӄ3MgF둖]i:gYI5'x#]AC\H" Br_}eK sV}oq'||J-vD9C[W17CO]ƽn۾ 0ֻMBχ>+*6E@ m(>4MM=6چ8?@UO#xY<| | x|Oظv{k7Aj~;HbYو!>3 nfhl>Q9Nbvk'H(`͸%e_5 WϑcܱKprNIюc)@#.{bN.1U枿.Zx=S+ћVpcsaZxLS|f"p7f=-[[ R0< gAjI6` 2 j%jϗ7 A~XK3`hBԆȰ7UH0eF/a4g. %up)t5ss6k _DqKm8p.]=s]&:*@x۹S*m^P,B LDrB~]3`b|>ӟc.aOC&xoa.|g%nTt(cM h6 I[~|7OP!qH+F} 7Zv-P7(byԻ2C3|]~{ѡ=R>hmNp.%D_2cȟw2nډajT܍ѡ>*^h2:::S.( ) DL>g.{(RHͩwt^l Z,C+3k流]_AS*8q\\(PjE Q sp)] jg_5YBgD<@Ly 3HL`z94 ޡ,}n W׎WÁF8oƾm ti"e.r|47a%qE> $a/hƮ)n@h tn?<蟛LDMMȌ {EīFTaz'Snn6 J;x2N!kFX(0TEA p4&:x VCWGB[s X|5pFU e. ]?+|kOn x&3OJ/J yOLG+wY>eW\U 2D26I޲JC%!\2 GO)w@>˸:`GNjGȥUͷwIKrvhq'v9.EܷwV,Kv`m+J_}ͽ Xk_)fC⛉_CB[hQ f.sd<%Ӕ\JŁ0sACBÑT9ٟaW(/))%Ysa(e!{1J)ȃp&*nW(㻧/O/{V5<|z6GF»wrT^p@XKK-CRU5ϐqw]/k/ԎZbj`-30kFC37q`%u{œr_,U+Tv9] Sf}u l``1f Х}̾z[D% ǭ^VqIn>[zM2\hadBgV[GbJ%$KJy̛uy̋'$,0A}a`CIYD S[8( /hxI.5,{FFyAw@oHYOJFx6ܣl C#3SȉYF_x9SB*v p@TL;{HyyOc|\j|4vO| *8} bBXyR' McsxܩoZqYgNDݝE6M͝g^;'rc|̄J]ܥNP%]s  «\Jz_ű;۫ bwHP?"o`Bf#Y;aB۰Liti8~[//OLTOTH.8٨o+s܄`W֛*}Gv[kbL=m*[d#Q]YB~@P%n!ZVMbwcegZp0)r1pR6ϡ?3S4ʼYC`0#^ŒӰѩbY*.(ܲlb;σTR`ۡdOs(NtUJyn<_ װa&wE#c dJ)=W;3B ?yUǥ=Sk;+3ej C !83R^²j).b؁4++X t!$L:^+ܑXNM|RLM [|bGF@g<ϝd*ZC7g¸aqNhl*5 oUlp 3ma[ͅfXgԫ41[8ucKBo{^FO>%f{bTq NqӝY2F+bHCh=N_Y s*zʳ.s ñe9dG'~ZTA1CȮ^scײdxgcGhc.U~WK>xZ`fj`2@cQEc;_#ζ{qs<,y׌E2,@TâݤE4Oxtޒ׷RJ#T{Ex=ni~?Yե=ZT]"Dh 6)(8}F=*1T^T%{bQ)zo☳TBSnP\HQ$'I$؆~K7o\.j]HXT[z' KD#yaKFWR^Ǚ:0 9zۼ7\Cs1*xDz+K 8or`f 9(/8,Oy8.3{Ćs8hDlL[EO yvC4$a)Xw>cuahgvW ғiYRs_1nIvhmSmT8`Lw SWg `؊c Tdz!1ۤȑx?%hC%yt?MEf𳏸 i,iki8T^M#.+d%mٳ.6MJ;dS}Nd8ajtTZэ`qghEpEzcW戅`@7Q:ƥ{lViYPC tjW:zV80VaSq Lu4W-靳kp/yoŬ1>6;sI~[tMj0lyS2r8vyi`qjTo?| &KghnG<oИ}n</7l2& P\@m[AS֘Dc, V]% Q gh4dkY*9?|ns|lU1icG4"RUN<:6ɭ;N\?syȲ<'1mK9AXHK)v̩ #'AeYҖ/${~x#ԵFl)(Lb@+OA(e'^C264n)-&Qf"WnV [y%;kyXҡ2:}(ҩuA*dZ蚑 $c/Ճ,=Ns!"TB!'[Ֆ:ۘ =Ep@ۺ=E/ĤuiE&3_d{{O)5_Z=-ݺDկxVmGZ0U1ZyϳTlebVBK b᩹C2T""S{OPT,Ώ~,oL6jSmaAabGK1L|5t #ajzs~ixu15q;ʨ ]nw]>j :{+*)N6wnڬ&-Mz m& ȷ-Qs Y7GxJ|5bc˥fn%jd'pd0:vxB߸6L(*X5>C85ؓajBﵒ&ox.k< L9|o-:NrlC|XH3- uY,wGߢN@vBwHE4]x8]򺯟\olr kg ~\ /]<;ƃ:\=X\si$rf-wk/lB%ؙm8SJ5Z;br_:$ita^E ~a ^Z6Ub*EY )7%p4UVQD}OTKql:5/F2E[+HykCuyxzK eRbr;2B!K\: pNK X6rae]{+e-#-Y~H [RFc B ѻ|kA·殪]p;y ُZ&BEZj/sca-G?8s?Cx$W8~udL>q3"OM8Fo&'%ozO'ba.TVf8(DY%zj3jY$RMX@:G`l޻]܍/T^(3&78}G&yUs4Jdb$Zw-V7~D) ٦͵ Y50|ǥ! sg8DʅW/o[v}36CbevУZxD8y6:\}Ggz IOEZ3iX ڙ5knZ3Ck-qXLz߬87Vz"]i5֮dk( i\ {R 5jF2,#ֶÎZ]̎Wk\[N+~V]GΔ[X\%թ[WEF}vshVx?Yx}&sYB oZI$uK$NC"Xs+V+xyf o$7| 2YH]>vZ9( Oil?w-ZȂJZ^N-G<r\\ssCףJtCw=Y^Tƣ}9F'yM%3w]{s"qE 5br@9ҊE݂"^Ah;?wcm / dAyhx[EP\Az!+0#FB&cvu8Y̟B7)LLvv^btmVfW.Pz\= $X鈋zri!&oChh9o`F۱4kxG#DBLf֩৕v)Ho_(YjvvVf Q.!'`X/,K4O`*>i/dh⮲Oq_ oqC- dK9Kɑ|d'wKBu8ǠhJ?|`ԣ$vIƧyCkG-brKr6fD^`?p~1ͅwfX{25nKº.z/QK.!bS~Χiȫ1VFU'gچ-؍SfTHR1eqhcm z])&[ bHe3کx5evզ]MEix|IFAYi=<Ɓ}Zn :aJZ5٘#wv&M?a;?iz#%{ZudP[.a6ÏP`vɵU`wQ9?*g(Rthil XQPGy.SR8@`f86 +d4s#N u+!CIL4Z.v3\nP{R[fq934ͬY%,5@x7)[B<0VҳNJ w('nSIڼ <-eUUJ N|vw&ރcx8wRJvZ.Ҽ뺹(Znx!HhpFN؊8Z6NxS2Bgppm683"d-хJ@fg#.-O-u94V-q@ކF=  "p鬑uR/I2fLMbtGa@-,/X2[ NN%Ɗ|ŵ豕'Y} !*<4Tn28}\{[fSel'cvuݘSÎe"ǧflp`:bi _/тHvMd-+c;K1q(O b-ȧv1r&屇I-Gi#Fvv,&6zMq9YL0Í'Ε *BTz䭽Ԕy]sxm/`̅e+mfD;I4]XǸ+Z2hjgh.|u#bDQiA{9)뚧e
    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1