Amara, like nearly every other character we meet who has been sold into slavery, is forced to accept life as a slave in order to survive and have the faintest hope of achieving freedom one day, as unlikely as it may be. The main character we follow in The Wolf Den is Amara, a woman who began life as a doctor's daughter in the town of Aphidnai in ancient Attica before tragedy struck and she was eventually sold into slavery and eventually forced to work in Pompeii's notable brothel.

Also, just as a word of caution, this book handles topics such as sexual assault, slavery, general abuse (physical and mental), and suicide. I was incredibly impressed and pleased by what I found, and it is so evident that Harper performed an abundant amount of research in order to capture this setting in the most authentic way possible. I spent a lot of time studying ancient Rome in my time as an undergrad and grad student, especially topics such as prostitution and slavery, so The Wolf Den's setting and premise was something that I was both excited for and a little nervous to see its execution. This is a historical fiction set in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii in the year 74 CE featuring Amara, a slave working as a prostitute in Pompeii's Lupanar, or brothel.

The Wolf Den was such a pleasant surprise and has quickly become one of my favorite reads this year so far. Set in Pompeii's lupanar, The Wolf Den reimagines the lives of women who have long been overlooked.

The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper