Roma Eterna

Plot introduction

The point of divergence is the failure of the Israelite Exodus from Egypt. Moses and many of the Israelites drowned, and the remnant—led by Aaron—were fetched back to slavery in Egypt, a traumatic event recorded for posterity in the Book of Aaron, an alternate version of the Bible. Later on, the Hebrews were freed from bondage, and remained a distinct religious-ethnic minority in Egypt, practicing a monotheistic religion, up to the equivalent of our 20th Century (27th Century of the Roman Calendar).

Still, affairs of the larger world, the rise and fall of empires and cultures, remained roughly the same as in our history up to division of the Roman Empire (here, never Christianised). At this point, mutual assistance between the Western and Eastern Roman Empires against barbarian invasions preserved both from falling and kept Roman rule intact throughout the imperial dominions.

Despite the absence of Christianity, which in our history considerably influenced early Islam, Muhammad did start his prophetic career—but was assassinated by a perceptive Roman agent, nipping Islam in the bud and thus precluding the spread of any Monotheistic religion through the Roman Empire. Monotheism remained limited to the specific Hebrew sect in Egypt.

Properly, the novel is considered a fixup, as each of the ten chapters was first published as a short story, six of them in Asimov's Science Fiction, between 1989 and 2003.

Plot summary

The novel is presented as a series of vignettes over a period of about 1500 years, from 1282 ab urbe condita (AD 529) to 2723 AUC (AD 1970). Most of the story-chapters involve Roman politics, either the competition between the Western and Eastern Empires to dominate the other or the violent creation of the Second Roman Republic in about 2603 AUC (AD 1850). Others describe the first Roman circumnavigation of the world and unsuccessful attempts to conquer Nova Roma (Central America).

Many features of our own history are repeated in this history, though under changed circumstances: the equivalent of the 16th and 17th centuries have bold navigators and adventurers, romanticised by later generations but unpleasantly brutal and ruthless when looked at closely; in the late 18th to mid-19th centuries, a decadent old order is overthrown by revolution followed by a reign of terror and the reemergence of Republicanism; though Italy remains a central part of the Roman Empire, the Latin dialect spoken there develops into a kind of Italian, and the name "Marcus" changes into "Marco"; though Vienna is a provincial capital which never had an Emperor of its own, its population dances the Waltz; by the 20th century, people travel by cars rather than carriages and by the second half of the century, space flight is achieved.

It concludes with the first story to be written, when a group of Hebrew citizens in Alexandria prepare to depart Earth in a rocket which explodes shortly after takeoff. But they will try again, still believing God chose them to inherit the Promised Land, just not on Rome-dominated Earth.

Chapters

The book consists of a prologue and ten chapters (Gregorian calendar year):

Literary significance and reception

The book received a share of negative criticism. It was accused of concentrating too much on the upper class and not drawing a detailed picture of Roman life and its change through the ages. The only story in the book to receive true praise from reviewer Alma A. Hromic is the last chapter, To the Promised Land, which incidentally, does not deal with Romans or the upper class of the Empire.

As short stories

Original short stories first publication.

As a single book

Hardback

Paperback