Theophano

By Spyros Theocharis, Chrysa Sakel (illustrator), Justina Theochari (translator)

Book cover of Theophano: A Byzantine Tale

Book description

A fairytale marriage that goes terribly wrong, a ruling dynasty struggling to keep everything together by having overly ambitious palace officials do the dirty work, and prominent Roman generals who dream of taking the throne for themselves.


This explosive mixture of occurrences takes place in the 10th century Byzantine Empire.…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Theophano as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I had never looked at or had an interest in graphic novels until I saw this graphic novel about the mother of one of the Byzantine Empire’s most important rulers, Basil II. But if there was ever going to be one I would read, it had to be a Byzantine one! I loved it! The vivid artwork in this book is superb and tells of Theophano’s life from innkeeper’s daughter to wife of not one, but two emperors. If you want to ease into Byzantine historical fiction, this graphic novel is a great places to start. 

From Eileen's list on to explore the Byzantine world.

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