A truly addictive read that is a strong follow-up to The Wolf Den. I wasn't expecting the story to continue, so it was great to enter Harper's vivid, well-written world again!

The lives of all the characters are so rich and deep, making the tragic events within them all the more painful to read. Most of them are fundamentally sympathetic, and the difficult decisions they make are ones that stay with you long after reading. I'm glad the story focused on Amara again, and the whole novel I struggled to put it down. I'll definitely read anything else that Harper publishes!

This is the second book in what is to be a trilogy, following the lives of a group of prostitutes and slaves in Pompeii. As withe the first book, the setting is incredibly atmospheric and the characters all feel so real, even the bad guys. I eagerly await the final instalment of this wonderful story.

wow wow wow!!!
elodie harper has once again woven the most incredible tale about women, sisterhood and the strength that they have and do endure.

this was one of those books that was just as good, if not better than the first one. we got to see the extent of amara’s determination and her desire to survive in such an oppressive patriarchy that is stacked against her so we grow to learn more about her in a completely different environment, that tests her in new ways.

elodie harper puts so much nuance and detail into characters that depicts the realness of this story and the characters 100% elevate the tale. every single character has had such back story and time invested into them thist evoked such emotion and hope from me when reading. this again makes the book so heart wrenching to read but also that much more meaningful. like the wolf den i struggled to put it down although it was better paced than the first one which did mean it was near impossible to go to bed and stop reading.

i loved seeing her relationship with britannica grow and her love she has for the other wolves who were with her at the wolf den, although this does grow more complex over time. I also really missed the presence of dido, mainly for amaras sake, but it definitely elevated the plot and played a central bridge for many of amaras relationship that i could see it was necessary for her development.

this series, nor elodie harper is raved about enough, especially if you like greek or roman mythology, historical fiction and books with strong female relationships. read this book for so many reasons, not least because it is done so beautifully.

a for sure 5/5 read <33333

I liked this so much, the writing, story and characters are all getting better as the series goes on. I read The Wolf Den not long ago and couldn't wait to get into the this to see where Amara was and how the story was moving on now that she's no longer in the brothel. I preferred this to The wold Den and am excited to see how her story finishes in the final instalment!

This book is one that is unapologetic in letting its characters be human, ugly flaws and all. It was more than one time you began to love a character just to have them do something that tempted you to bash your head into a wall (cough, cough, secondary character that shall not be named marrying a certain brothel owner). But somehow these "character flaws" just made the book even more real and even more enjoyable. Elodie Harper is fast becoming a favorite author, especially with mythology-inspired works. Right up there with Madeline Miller. Which, if you know me, is very very high praise.

I was so happy to have been approved to read this on NetGalley, I dove straight in after finishing The Wolf Den.

It was so captivating; Amara is free from the brothel, but she still feels as though she needs to put on a performance for her patron. The person who can put her back into the brothel if she crosses a line. She’s aware that her role as concubine is time limited as looks fade and her patron can drop her whenever he wants.

I did prefer the first book, but this was still captivating with unexpected twists and turns and you feel pulled along on this journey alongside Amara which is absolutely amazing!

I can’t wait for the final book in this trilogy! The end of this book has me on edge! Definitely a series to add to your TBR!

I had such high expectations for this second instalment in the “Wolf Den” trilogy, and I was not disappointed! We meet Amara shortly after the events of the first book have concluded… she is now living away from Felix and the brothel, as a freedwoman with Rufus as her patron. She still feels guilt over the tragic events of the end of the last book, so determines to find a way to free some of the women who were enslaved alongside her, despite this meaning renewed contact with the brutal, and now even angrier, Felix.

The relationships between these characters is as charged and riveting as before, and I loved revisiting them and their evolving stories. We also meet other characters from the previous book, such as Drusilla, Philos, and Pliny, and their interactions with Amara again feel incredibly real, giving real depth to Amara’s story. The historical details are as vibrant as before, and the story is beautifully written. I cannot wait for the third part of this trilogy, and would heartily recommend the first two parts to any reader interested in ancient history or historical fiction.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc ebook. I started this as a buddy read but ended up not being able to put it down, whoops!
Amara, now a freedwoman under patronage, is finding her way in her new world but my goodness did she annoy me! She came across so selfish and ungrateful in the beginning, then made stupid decisions one after the other, all the while I’m screaming at her ‘why?!?!?!’ But I think it was all off this that made it a compelling read, I just needed to know the consequences of her actions! The author set the scene beautifully and made me feel like I was right there with Amara, the characters felt deep and well developed and the storyline kept me hooked! I cannot wait to read the next book, I need to know the conclusion!!!

🏛Book Review 🏛
The House With the Golden Door by Elodie Harper

Amara is a free woman, or is she?

In this haunting, mesmerising, beauty of a book, Harper explores the precarious world of Roman freedwomen and their patrons in a fascinating tale of power, exploitation, love, loyalty and betrayal set in ancient Roman times.

We first met Amara in The Wolf Den, a feisty young slave girl her mother had Sold after a family tragedy. Subsequently sold to Felix, she was put to work in Pompeii's infamous brothel - the Lupanar. Determined to survive, Amara has learned that everything in this city has its price, Including her freedom.

In The House With the Golden Door, Amara has escaped her life as a brothel slave. She now has a house, fine clothes, servants – but these are gifts from her patron, hers for only as long as she keeps her place in his affections.

As she adjusts to this new life, Amara is still haunted by her past. At night she dreams of the Wolf Den and the women she left behind. By day, she is pursued by her former slavemaster. In order to be truly free, she will need to be as ruthless as he is.

Amara knows she can draw strength from Venus, the goddess of love. Yet falling in love may be the downfall of this fierce and strong but vulnerable and empathetic young woman.

Harper brings Pompeii alive on the pages; I love that the chapters are headed with an excerpt from a letter or graffiti from Ancient Pompeii or Rome. The characters are flawlessly and authentically multifaceted, helping to root you in the period.

I am so excited for part 3 of Elodie Harper's celebrated Wolf Den Trilogy, which reimagines the lives of women who have long been overlooked in this historical period. If you have an interest in historical fiction, read these books, like right now.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you, NetGalley and House of Zeus.

Reading this book was like catching up with old friends. The story picks up pretty much where The Wolf Den left off and is more of the same beautiful, engrossing writing ( I was nearly late for work on a couple of occasions as I could not put it down). Utterly brilliant.

I loved this sequel and was pleased to find the characters I loved from the first outing. Twists and turns and we’ll written.

Amara is a free woman…… or is she, really? In the second book of her trilogy, Harper explores the precarious world of Roman freed women and their patrons in an engrossing tale of power, exploitation and some sisterly solidarity set in Pompeii. The central character is a survivor - a Greek doctor’s daughter sold as a slave to a ruthless small town thug and pimp, schooled by his own brutal and abused childhood. The book begins with her having been freed by a famous Admiral of the Fleet to ‘help’ a young male relative. But life as a mistress is a short career and no bed of roses, even if she is prone to a quixotic mixture of impetuous generosity and studious attention to money making. There is a wealth of well researched detail in the households, streets, bars, festivals and ceremonies along the way in this gripping saga. The poetry and graffiti quoted to illustrate the start of each chapter are a great touch. A well written historical fiction to engage readers with the ancient world is very welcome too.

I am hooked enough to want to know what happens in the next book. Do I want a break before then, though? Yes. The constant attention to sex and sexual exploitation is perhaps inevitable, given the characters in focus, and it may of course be that ancient people viewed the world of individual personal relations the way we do in the west now, but I am not so sure. I am not too convinced either by the fictitious involvement of well known historical characters in a modern story about an ancient place.

That said, this book is definitely worth reading after Wolf Den, which I also recommend.

I've had such a miserable few days being ill but then this morning I got an email from @netgalley saying I'd been approved for an eARC of The House with the Golden Door. It was like a gift from Asclepius.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

I'm really wary of giving any spoilers but everyone needs to read this book. It would be so easy for a book about Roman courtesans to be gratuitous and sensationalist but it is so far from that. The House with the Golden Door is visceral and brutal but it's also so beautiful and human.

Every character in this book is so multifaceted, even the ones that I hate (and I really, really hate them) still have layers and I find myself grudgingly understanding some of their behaviour. Amara herself is wonderful, she is so fierce and strong but vulnerable and empathetic, I think she might be my favourite heroine of the year so far. She has to adapt to her change in position but I feel she still stays true to herself.

Elodie Harper really brings Pompeii alive, I love that the chapters are headed with an excerpt from a letter or graffiti from Ancient Pompeii or Rome, it really grounds you in the time period. I don't know if I'm being very coherent which I'll blame on the cold but this book made me feel all of the emotions and had me at the edge of my seat. I would recommend it to anyone who likes strong, believable female characters and historical fiction.

Thank you NetGalley and House of Zeus.

#TheHousewiththeGoldenDoor #TheWolfDen #Lupanar #Pompeii #Roman #NetGalley #bookstagramuk

I could not wait to dive back into the life of Amara in Pompeii once I was given the opportunity to read the second part of the trilogy following the wonderful Wolf Den.

Amara has now gained her freedom- but is it all she believed it to be. She is still dependant on the favour of her patron and could lose everything if she displeases him. She also is still to escape from the vengeance of Felix , the owner of the Wolf Den.

The world that the author creates in Pompeii pulls you into the glittering lives of those who have so much to the precarious nature of life for those who have so little and the choices they must make to survive.

A book of love, loneliness, friendship, fear and betrayal.I raced through it and can only hope that I don’t have to wait too long for the next book.

The House with the golden door

The sequel to my favourite book of 2021, can you imagine my excitement?!

I loved being back in the world of ancient Pompeii and to get to spend some more time with Amara and her friends (and enemies).

I loved that we got to see more of some characters that we had only started to get to know in the first book, and that we got to meet even more interesting characters. This world that Eloise Harper has created is so alive and feels so modern( but at the same time accurate to the time). It shows that some themes are timeless and that we have a lot in common with the people of the ancient world.

I did feel that this sequel didn’t pack quite the same emotional punch as the first book, at least for me. I did find that I would have liked the story to play out a bit differently. There was a lot of focus on a specific aspect of this story that I unfortunately didn’t really care for. I’m trying to avoid spoilers but it involved a new character that I just didn’t find that interesting. I had also hoped to see a bit more of a change in Amaras *situation*.

This was still a very good read for me though and I’m so curious and excited about the third book in the series!

This book was amazing! I loved it so much and I cannot wait for the third instalment in the series! I will 100% be buying this in paperback as well once it is released.

I actually loved this book more than The Wolf’s Den which is unusual for a sequel book. This book was so well paced and the character developments were amazing, I loved see Amara’s transition from prostitute to concubine and I adored the relationships that were built upon in this book. The characters were beautiful and I loved how Briticanna was developed into a fully dimensional character and her fierce loyalty towards Amara was so pure and I loved their friendship.

This book was amazing. I loved the authenticity of the setting however I do feel that sometimes the excessive sweating took you out of the book as I wonder how accurate it is that they use such language and I did sometimes get a bit confused regarding how old some of the characters are in particular Philos. Aside from this I loved the book and the narrative and everything about it!

The kind of historical fiction publishing today often feels quite one-note – there's a mystery, it's a bit gothic, a bit witchy – and when I read The Wolf Den last year, it felt so refreshing to return to my fave kind of historical fiction, the kind that showcases a slice of life from a bygone period. This book continues with Amara's story and although I don't think I enjoyed it *quite* as much as The Wolf Den, I still really liked it! It's less atmospheric than the first book, with less scene-setting and fewer insights into Pompeii life, but what this book lacks in scenery, it more than makes up for in readability: I could not put The House with the Golden Door down. Ok, it's a bit melodramatic at points and there's a few subplots that – as much as I liked them – felt like they came out of nowhere (I ❤️ Philos but where was the set-up from the first book?). None of that matters, though, because I was immersed and invested, and I can't recommend this trilogy enough if you're interested in slice-of-life historical fiction/the ancient Roman empire/anything old. I'm absolutely dying to visit Pompeii now and I can't wait for the last book in the trilogy. Elodie Harper does a fantastic job of describing slaves' and ex-slaves' lives, and the precarity and brutality of existence in the ancient world. I strongly hope it's all going to work out for Amara and Philos and Britannica, but judging by the year the book ends, I am not too confident about that point lol. In summary: I recommend, and get me to Italy asap.

What a treat to get a preview copy of the 2nd book in the Elodie Harper’s Wolf Den series. Amara has been freed from the Wolf Den and is technically no longer a slave. Though as a courtesan to a wealthy sponsor, she still isn’t totally free, being subject to his whims and continued patronage. There’s no denying life is better though. We meet some new characters and Amara continues to fight for a freer life. This book is driven by her standing by old friends from the brothel, learning her new place in society, and finding love in unexpected places. Felix, the evil owner of the Wolf Den, continues to put Amara’s world in jeopardy. I hope that volume 3 holds a shred of a happy ending for some of the characters before Vesuvius destroys their world.

Harper’s writing and her detailed research bring Pompeii to life. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this preview copy.

After finishing The Wolf Den, I couldn't wait to find out what life has in store next for Amara. Having become a freed woman, she has left the brothel and Felix's ownership to finally lead her own life.

I found this slightly slower than The Wolf Den, but the last 70% or so had me completely captivated.

Amara's struggle to find herself in her new life made me feel so incredibly sad for her, with things going not quite as expected or hoped.

This was a truly beautiful tale of love, friendship, betrayal, uncertainty, heartbreak. The way men underestimate women and feel entitled to own them. Women having to sacrifice a lot simply to survive.

The ending is much more sad than the first book, but also hopeful - I am excited to read about Amara's next adventures as she only grows stronger.

I absolutely LOVED The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper. The Pompeii setting, the friendships and hardship these wolves endured kept me on the edge of my seat and made that I read the first book in one day! I think especially our main character Amara's stubborness and friendship with Dido made me love it so much.

In the second book the setting is different as our main character is now a free women. But it turns out she is not as free as we think. And her man is horrible. I hated her living situation. I hated that Dido wasnt there anymore and most of all I hated every single decision Amara made.
How she got tangled up in debt with her old owner Felix. How she gets into a secret relationship that can ruin her freedom. And in the end how she gives up that one relationship to be someone else's again bugged me a lot.

I still love the author's writing style and very much enjoy the setting. I really hope the final book will be a five star again!