16 h 58 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Beneath Vesuvius, a city feasts, lovers dream, and a priest plots—unaware of what waits above them.
In Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s The Last Days of Pompeii, Glaucus, a wealthy young Athenian, falls in love with Ione, an orphan who longs to love freely. But her guardian, the Egyptian priest Arbaces, wants her for himself. His power and hidden schemes threaten their hope of a life together.
Around them, Pompeii fills with merchants, gladiators, slaves and pleasure seekers. Nydia, a blind flower seller trapped under a cruel master, loves Glaucus in secret. As private desires clash, the novel leads you through houses, baths, theaters and arenas, bringing a whole town into view beneath the shadow of Vesuvius.
What you’ll discover
- A city before disaster Walk through busy streets where feasts and daily pleasures leave little room for thoughts of danger.
- Love under threat Follow Glaucus and Ione as their shared love faces a powerful guardian’s desire for control.
- Nydia’s hidden longing Meet a flower seller whose secret love stands beside the cruelty of her life in slavery.
- Faith against pleasure Explore questions of conscience through Apaecides, a priest drawn toward the Christian faith.
- A guide to Rome Let the narrator lead you through Roman customs, richly described homes, and places of public entertainment.
Who will love it
For readers who love Victorian storytelling, ancient Rome and romance with a strong sense of place, and for anyone curious about Pompeii and the people who lived there.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A lively city beneath a sleeping mountain
- Glaucus and Ione fall in love
- Arbaces, the priest with a hidden purpose
- Nydia, the blind girl who loves in silence
- Apaecides and the first Christians
- A love potion goes wrong
- Pleasure, power and faith in conflict
- Love, sacrifice and the weight of fate
- How the story is told
Who’s who
- GlaucusA rich, charming young Athenian living in Pompeii who loves beauty and poetry, and who wins the heart of Ione.
- IoneAn orphaned Athenian woman of grace and intelligence who wishes to love freely and live in peace.
- ArbacesA wealthy Egyptian priest and guardian of Ione who wants to possess her and will scheme to remove any rival.
- NydiaA blind slave flower girl from Thessaly who loves Glaucus in secret and will do almost anything for him.
- ApaecidesIone's brother, a young priest of Isis who grows doubtful of the temple and seeks a truer faith.
- OlinthusA sincere and zealous Christian who preaches against idols and draws Apaecides toward the new belief.
- JuliaThe vain daughter of the merchant Diomed, who wants Glaucus and turns to magic to win him.
- BurboA coarse tavern keeper and former fighter who owns Nydia and treats her with cruelty.
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- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 16 h 58 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Die letzten Tage von Pompeji
by Edward Bulwer-Lytton · 1834
Glaucus and Ione fall in love in Pompeii, where a priest plots to keep her and Vesuvius waits above the town.
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In short
Imagine a whole town living its last ordinary summer. The Last Days of Pompeii, published in 1834 by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, imagines the Roman town buried by Vesuvius in AD 79.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A lively city beneath a sleeping mountain
The story opens in Pompeii in the summer of AD 79. Bulwer-Lytton walks the reader through the forum, the temples and the shops with their painted signs.
Young men of fashion meet at the baths and then at dinner, where wine and dice go round. Vesuvius sits green with vines behind them. The people treat it as a pretty hill, and the reader knows better, which gives the cheerful scenes a faint chill.
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What is The Last Days of Pompeii about?
It tells of a group of people in Pompeii in AD 79, including the Athenian Glaucus, his beloved Ione, a scheming Egyptian priest and a blind slave girl, as their lives move toward the eruption of Vesuvius.
Is The Last Days of Pompeii a true story?
The eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 and the destruction of Pompeii are real history. The main characters and their plots are invented by Bulwer-Lytton, who published the novel in 1834 after seeing the ruins.
Who is Nydia in The Last Days of Pompeii?
Nydia is a blind flower girl from Thessaly who is a slave in the household of a cruel tavern keeper. She comes to love Glaucus in secret, and her choices shape the story.
The author
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
1803–1873 · English novelist and politician
Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803–1873) was a British novelist, playwright and politician. He was born in London and lived at Knebworth House in Hertfordshire. His novels include Paul Clifford (1830), The Last Days of Pompeii (1834), Zanoni (1842) and The Coming Race (1871). He served in Parliament and died in Torquay.
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