Avis Aurea - The Golden Bird (Omnia Vincit Amor Book II): 2 Paperback – 2 May 2022

The second book in Maxime Jaz’s Roman trilogy is another triumph! It moves flawlessly through the thoughts and hearts of the protagonists, even giving glimpses into the thinking of antagonists such as Gaius and Antonius. I love the way it plunges straight in, with a major shock for Marius!There are incredibly moving flashbacks too, giving glimpses of Kyle’s terrible suffering and of all Marius endured as a child at his father’s hands. Such moments of recall build up a really complete picture of what has gone into making the two as they are.Adding to the two main actors in the drama comes a new wife, Claudia. The relationship which develops between the three of them is very convincingly told. Claudia could have been a cypher, but she definitely isn’t. While her temper doesn’t match the ferocity of Marius’s, she is portrayed as brave and fierce herself. The most realistic part of the threesome is the way none of them are perfect (though Kyle comes closest), and each strand of their complex relationship has its own ups and downs.Despite the outside threats and inside tensions, there are deft light touches, such as the episode with Marius, Claudia and the sacrificial piglet. Scenes with the children are also delightful and touching (whilst not papering over the challenges a determined young child can pose to their family.) Again, Kyle is the rock around which the family copes. Though the fragility of that rock is also highlighted in a heart-breaking way with terrible moments to be endured.I very much like the way the plot moves in two, frequently interwoven strands, the balance between external events over which the family has no control and internal family relationships (which are never static—just as relationships in real life never are). There is thehorror of all which centres around Marius’s father and the emperor and the private currents of misunderstandings, anger, love, forgiveness all understandable within the context of the day, their relative positions and their differing temperaments.The prose, throughout, creates such vivid scenes. I could find endless examples, so many in the love moments, but this one, which is not a love moment, struck me forcibly: the description of the soldiers riding through the rain makes one feel part of the scene and The time passing and his experiences as a soldier of Rome is brilliantly encapsulated in a short paragraph.Perhaps the best way of summing up what I love about the book is this: amid the heart-ache, the cruelty, the horror, the moments of anger and misunderstanding there is at its core the warmth, positivity and endurance of love in all its aspects.Love the book, love the story, love the writing.

Yes, love and hate. And drama – so much of it. Get a box of Kleenex, because you're gonna cry!So beautiful and heartbreaking.Our Kyle keeps standing tall despite being a slave. He's the pillar of Marius' family.Even though sometimes I can't stand her, Claudia is a nice twist to the story. I hope she'll stay and get better with expressing her feelings.Same for Marius, he still has a lot to work on, but I see him under all that pain wanting to be a better man. That's the difference between toxic people and people who make mistakes.Can't wait to see what's next! 😭🤧

Marius has returned to Rome with Kyle, more determined than ever to keep the slave by his side. Of course, there are pressures from all quarters for him to conform to the demands of his high position as the commander of the military and nephew of the emperor. Ultimately he gives in to demands for him to take another wife, but he does so on his own terms. Claudia proves to be more than just a beard, and the three form an odd sort of family. The machinations of Marius’ father and his uncle, the emperor as well as others seeking power continue around the new family, seeking to drive a wedge between them.This second book of the Omnia Vincit Amor trilogy takes a somewhat surprising turn with the addition of a new wife for Marius. It goes even further by bringing Claudia into the relationship that Marius has with Kyle. I suspect that some readers won’t like it, those who forget what the ‘B’ in LGBTQ stands for. Still, even though the author is at pains to point out this is not intended to be a true historical novel, the twist does make the book ring a bit more true to what we imagine Ancient Rome might be like.In this middle book, we also get to know about the events in Kyle and Marius’ background that shaped the men they are today. Kyle encounters people from his past that trigger unpleasant memories and nightmares, as well as the possibility that his true origin might be exposed. Likewise, Marius experiences his own flashbacks to pivotal events from his childhood. It gives us great insight into what shaped both men, making the relationship they develop all the more compelling.In my review of the first book, I called it the start of an epic love story. This second book definitely lives up to that promise, with surprising twists and turns. Although this series is not a meticulously researched historical novel, it still reminds me of Mary Renault’s The Persian Boy in scale. At this point, it’s hard to even guess at where things will end, so I’ll just have to read the third book to find out.