I would like suggestions on books dealing with the roman empire.

I read The Grass Crown by Colleen McCollough and gave away the next one that came my way because of the Marcus Arelious Ceasar marries  the daughter of Arelious Ceasar Marcus who is the cousing of Caesar Arelious Ceasar thing that went on through the entire book.

 The name combinations drove me crazy.

I'm fascinated by the Roman's work in England. Is there a book out there that looks at the time period while they were there?

The Skystone by Jack Whyte is the first in an Arthurian series, but it's a terrific stand-alone book that deals with the Roman Empire's collapse in Britain. I honestly could not put it down--Whyte describes very clearly what the Romans brought to Britain and the chaos that would ensue when they left.

There is a great list of just this type book at HistoricalNovels.info.com.  

Here are a few that I have either read or are by authors that I have enjoyed -

Pauline Gedge, The Eagle and the Raven, about Caradoc and Boudicca, leaders of the British resistance to Roman rule.

Valerio Massimo Manfredi, The Last Legion, about a small band of soldiers from Britain who travel to the City of Rome in the year 470, as the empire is crumbling, in order to rescue the son of the last emperor and raise him to power.

Gillian Bradshaw, Dark North, about an African scout in a Roman cavalry unit sent to Britain to conquer the north in A.D. 208.

Gillian Bradshaw, Island of Ghosts, about Roman Britain during the time of Emperor Marcus Aurelius in the latter part of the second century.

William Dietrich, Hadrian's Wall, about a Roman soldier posted on the northern border of Roman Britain during the late fourth century.

Alfred Duggan, The Little Emperors, about a treasury official in fifth century Roman Britain during the crisis that leads to Rome's withdrawal.

Anya Seton, The Mistletoe and the Sword (1955), historical romance/adventure about a young standard-bearer for Rome's Ninth Legion and a foster daughter of Boudica.

Manda Scott, Dreaming the Eagle, about the childhood of Boudica, who would become queen of the Iceni tribe (or Eceni as Scott spells it) and lead a rebellion against Rome; #1 in the Boudica series. The 2nd book is titled "Dreaming the Bull", 3rd book is "Dreaming the Hound", and the fourth book is "Dreaming the Serpent Spear".

Jules Watson, The White Mare, is a historical fantasy novel set in ancient Scotland (then known as Alba) during the period when Rome was attempting to expand its conquest of Britain northward; the main character is a priestess; #1 in the Dalriada Trilogy

There are plenty more listed here - http://www.historicalnovels.info/Ancient.html#RomBrit - When the page loads, click on "Roman Britain".

Thank you so much for posting all of those. I hadn't been to that website. Sounds like a great resource.

I am reading Roman Blood by Steven Saylor for our challenge. It is from the Novels of Ancient  Rome series.

I just finished The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke. It deals with the Romans in Judea during the time of Christ.

The Dream of Scipio by Iain Pears http://www.paperbackswap.com/book/details/9781573222020-The+Dream+of+Scipio is slow to start but quite a good book once you get into it.