In which connections are discussed between the history of ancient Rome and the multiple different fantasy and sci-fi books it has had an influence upon. This deep dive episode blends some history about the Roman Republic and Roman Empire with a bit of discussion about the Red Rising series by Pierce Brown, The Will of the Many by James Islington, In the Shadow of Lightning by Brian McClellan, and the Rise and Fall series by Michael J. Sullivan. Warning: this episode contains minor spoilers about some of the worldbuilding from these books as well as major spoilers about historical events from 2,000 years ago.