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Cicero's Tongue: The Life of Rome's Greatest Orator and the End of the Republic
Not yet published
Expected 15 Sep 26A new biography of Cicero, one of the most influential and fascinating figures in classical history.
When the great Roman orator Cicero was murdered in the Autumn of 43 BCE, his tongue was seen as such a powerful weapon against his enemies that Fulvia, the wife of Marc Antony, had it cut out of his severed head and pierced with pins. Marcus Tuillius Cicero, however, was more than a brilliant orator. His was born on January 3 106 BCE and was assassinated on December 7, 43 BCE. The arc of his life almost perfectly mirrors the decline and fall of the Roman Republic. His actions and reactions to the rising tyranny of the world around him continue to fascinate and inspire today. The story of Cicero’s life is full of peaks and troughs, uncertainty and scandal.
In this gripping new biography, Catharine Edwards breathes new life into one the ancient world's most notable figures and offers a fresh take on the end of the Roman Republic. Edwards examines Cicero's life for what it can tell us about a turbulent society in which longstanding tensions and inequalities were exacerbated by the wealth of empire, and ambitious generals battled to seize control and remake Rome. As democratic institutions are radically subverted by strongmen and their lackeys in our own world, Catherine Edwards’ Cicero’s Tongue is a thrilling mirror reflecting both the distant past and the tumult of history playing out again all around us.
When the great Roman orator Cicero was murdered in the Autumn of 43 BCE, his tongue was seen as such a powerful weapon against his enemies that Fulvia, the wife of Marc Antony, had it cut out of his severed head and pierced with pins. Marcus Tuillius Cicero, however, was more than a brilliant orator. His was born on January 3 106 BCE and was assassinated on December 7, 43 BCE. The arc of his life almost perfectly mirrors the decline and fall of the Roman Republic. His actions and reactions to the rising tyranny of the world around him continue to fascinate and inspire today. The story of Cicero’s life is full of peaks and troughs, uncertainty and scandal.
In this gripping new biography, Catharine Edwards breathes new life into one the ancient world's most notable figures and offers a fresh take on the end of the Roman Republic. Edwards examines Cicero's life for what it can tell us about a turbulent society in which longstanding tensions and inequalities were exacerbated by the wealth of empire, and ambitious generals battled to seize control and remake Rome. As democratic institutions are radically subverted by strongmen and their lackeys in our own world, Catherine Edwards’ Cicero’s Tongue is a thrilling mirror reflecting both the distant past and the tumult of history playing out again all around us.
464 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication September 15, 2026
About the author
Catharine Edwards
10 books33 followersCatharine Edwards is professor of classics and ancient history at Birkbeck College, University of London. She is the author of The Politics of Immorality in Ancient Rome and Writing Rome: Textual Approaches to the City.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I remember sophomore year in high school studying some of Cicero’s Catiline speeches and hoping I’d survive them. At that time I knew nothing about the man himself or the context around which some of his speeches were made - that would come much later when I read Robert Harris’s magnificent trilogy on him - but I do remember that the Latin words and phrasings were beautiful - words fascinate me.
In this new biography of Cicero who lived around the time of Julius Caesar, Pompey, Mark Antony, Cato and Sulla - names which have been etched in Roman history - he comes to life for his oratory as well as political influence on Rome. There is no doubt that Cicero’s oratory on politics, philosophy and morality had a profound influence on his times which saw the end of the Republic - a deep concern that led to his eventual death (by then he had amassed many enemies too). But Cicero’s classical education, especially studying the Greeks - whom the Romans admired - proved to be his greatest asset as Rome’s greatest orator.
We don’t value classical education or oratory today - social media has done a lot to devalue words themselves (as well as tiny pedagogues for whom speech is nothing more than a chance to say vile things and lies). But for previous generations Cicero was the man whom “political operators from Machiavelli to the Founding Fathers” learned from. Cicero wrote two books on oratory that these men studied v
Cicero’s life and times are a mirror of ours. He lived during the decline of the Republic and the rise of the strongmen. His complex relationships with these strong men, Pompey and Caesar, showed his ability to straddle a divide that would eventually lead to end but which he felt was important - preserving the old ways, the norms of civility in turbulent times. Once he was exiled his life turned insular but he never forgot his love of Rome. He faced his executioners bravely - should never have pissed off Antony over his stepfather - and when his severed head was brought to Rome, a Roman historian wrote that the voice of the Roman people were silenced!
Cicero was no perfect man but his legacy for honor and justice still resonates and because his speeches survive we can appreciate the importance of leaving something worthwhile behind - not just cheap gold stuff superglued to walls.
I gave this book five stars for its topic - Cicero is a great figure in history and oratory; for its research and writing - this is not a stuffy history book; it’s easy to read; and for the importance of preserving accurate history in our times when so many want to re-write it to soothe their weak hearts.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for granting me access to this ARC.
In this new biography of Cicero who lived around the time of Julius Caesar, Pompey, Mark Antony, Cato and Sulla - names which have been etched in Roman history - he comes to life for his oratory as well as political influence on Rome. There is no doubt that Cicero’s oratory on politics, philosophy and morality had a profound influence on his times which saw the end of the Republic - a deep concern that led to his eventual death (by then he had amassed many enemies too). But Cicero’s classical education, especially studying the Greeks - whom the Romans admired - proved to be his greatest asset as Rome’s greatest orator.
We don’t value classical education or oratory today - social media has done a lot to devalue words themselves (as well as tiny pedagogues for whom speech is nothing more than a chance to say vile things and lies). But for previous generations Cicero was the man whom “political operators from Machiavelli to the Founding Fathers” learned from. Cicero wrote two books on oratory that these men studied v
Cicero’s life and times are a mirror of ours. He lived during the decline of the Republic and the rise of the strongmen. His complex relationships with these strong men, Pompey and Caesar, showed his ability to straddle a divide that would eventually lead to end but which he felt was important - preserving the old ways, the norms of civility in turbulent times. Once he was exiled his life turned insular but he never forgot his love of Rome. He faced his executioners bravely - should never have pissed off Antony over his stepfather - and when his severed head was brought to Rome, a Roman historian wrote that the voice of the Roman people were silenced!
Cicero was no perfect man but his legacy for honor and justice still resonates and because his speeches survive we can appreciate the importance of leaving something worthwhile behind - not just cheap gold stuff superglued to walls.
I gave this book five stars for its topic - Cicero is a great figure in history and oratory; for its research and writing - this is not a stuffy history book; it’s easy to read; and for the importance of preserving accurate history in our times when so many want to re-write it to soothe their weak hearts.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for granting me access to this ARC.
August 2, 2026
Huge thank you to the publisher for an advanced copy!
This book is, to me, the perfect example of a historical biography. It is as much about the decline of the Roman Republic as it is of the subject, Marcus Tullius Cicero. His writings and letters have been copied, studied, celebrated, and criticized, over the last two thousand years, making him the Roman we know the most about. Readers may both root for Cicero and for his downfall, as his strengths and weaknesses are presented equally.
As a “new man”, Cicero was incredibly proud of his achievements, being elected consul at the youngest age possible and being named “Father of the Fatherland” for his efforts in toppling the Catalan Conspiracy. Cicero achieved greatness not through strategic skill on the battlefield like many in the Roman world, but through his oratory skills in the courts, a unique feat, even in the Republican Era.
As a major political player in the times of Pompy the Great, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and Octavian (laterAugustus), he bore witness to the events that shaped the fall of the republic and the rise of the Empire. Among these great names and powerful autocrats, Cicero wavered between his commitment to his land and his station as a leading statesman.
He waffles between Pompy and Caesar during their civil war, he then celebrates Ceasar’s assassins before throwing in with Octavian against Mark Antony. This decision ultimately cost him his life, as he was killed in a brutal round of proscriptions.
This book is a breath of fresh air, avoiding undue praise for a deeply ambitious and flawed individual. Cicero is not idealized in this book, the fall of the republic is not romanticized. Instead we are given a vivid and alarming look at life in the first century BCE from Cicero’s perspective.
This book is such a fun read that I hated to put down. I could have devoured another 500 pages!
I absolutely loved this book and I hope you do too!
This book is, to me, the perfect example of a historical biography. It is as much about the decline of the Roman Republic as it is of the subject, Marcus Tullius Cicero. His writings and letters have been copied, studied, celebrated, and criticized, over the last two thousand years, making him the Roman we know the most about. Readers may both root for Cicero and for his downfall, as his strengths and weaknesses are presented equally.
As a “new man”, Cicero was incredibly proud of his achievements, being elected consul at the youngest age possible and being named “Father of the Fatherland” for his efforts in toppling the Catalan Conspiracy. Cicero achieved greatness not through strategic skill on the battlefield like many in the Roman world, but through his oratory skills in the courts, a unique feat, even in the Republican Era.
As a major political player in the times of Pompy the Great, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and Octavian (laterAugustus), he bore witness to the events that shaped the fall of the republic and the rise of the Empire. Among these great names and powerful autocrats, Cicero wavered between his commitment to his land and his station as a leading statesman.
He waffles between Pompy and Caesar during their civil war, he then celebrates Ceasar’s assassins before throwing in with Octavian against Mark Antony. This decision ultimately cost him his life, as he was killed in a brutal round of proscriptions.
This book is a breath of fresh air, avoiding undue praise for a deeply ambitious and flawed individual. Cicero is not idealized in this book, the fall of the republic is not romanticized. Instead we are given a vivid and alarming look at life in the first century BCE from Cicero’s perspective.
This book is such a fun read that I hated to put down. I could have devoured another 500 pages!
I absolutely loved this book and I hope you do too!
August 8, 2026
It's hard to assess synthetic studies of the end of the Roman republic, where every stone has already been turned and one fears that an offstage chorus of schoolchildren stands ready to correct everything from syntax to minutiae of daily life. The author makes no claim to original research and for many this will be a tale already told several times too often. On the positive side though it must be said that there are now probably many who don't know how Cato died or what Sulla thought about Marius and this volume adds just enough of that background to tell its story.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews