"B. has been successful in writing a narrative history with the emphasis on Julio- Claudian emperors being sought through the female line owing to the failure of the male line and, with reference to its title, these women certainly shaped the early imperial period."--Trudie E. Fraser, Gnomon "An illuminating and highly readable narrative about the role of women at the centre of imperial Rome - fascinating and important."--Lesley Adkins, author of Handbook to Life In Ancient Rome "In contrast to most histories of Rome which focus almost entirely on the exploits of its male emperors, Domina examines the women who partnered them in power, from the perfect Roman wives Livia and Octavia to Cleopatra, Agrippina the Younger and the trio of Severan Julias who all stepped far beyond tradition to dominate the Roman world."--Joann Fletcher, The Story of Egypt "Enjoyable, fluently written and well-balanced in approach. De la Bédoyère leaves no stone unturned by way of evidence, which he carefully evaluates with regard to its context and reliability."--Pat Southern, author of The Roman Army "A vital contribution to our knowledge and understanding of the lives of imperial women.

Domina presents a nuanced assessment of the various forms of power and agency which women could wield and the ways in which Roman historians drew on gender ideologies both to praise and censure them. Fascinating."--Katherine J. Lewis, author of Kingship and Masculinity in Late Medieval England.