There is always something new happening in the world of Pompeii, and the team at Vesuvius Challenge have hit a major milestone: a carbonised scroll from Herculaneum has been digitally unravelled and read for the first time!
Vesuvius Challenge is a machine learning and computer vision competition, offering prizes to anyone who can contribute towards digitally unwrapping scrolls from the carbonised library of Herculaneum. PHerc. 1667, also known as Scroll 4, is now readable. It is a Stoic work from the 2nd century BC.
This is an incredible milestone for Vesuvius Challenge, and paves the way for reading further scrolls in the future. You can read more about this discovery, and follow their progress, at the link below:
As a Pompeii enthusiast, this book has been on my to-read list for a little while. I haven’t seen too many heroines in Pompeii-themed literature (but then I have mostly been reading novels from the 1830s!) and I was excited to see a bold-looking woman on the cover with the tagline fortune favours her. On the book’s Goodreads page is a quote from The Guardian describing it as a “bold, bloody, riotous sapphic romantasy” and I couldn’t have put it better myself.
The protagonist of this story is Gia, a young woman who has lost most of her family and now lives with her mother and works in their struggling taberna. She once dreamt of being a gladiator, and when the chance is given to her she is soon the talk of the town – for better or worse. Before long she catches the eye of Claudia, the daughter of the Emperor, who has designs on being an empress. At sparse intervals we also see a group of Roman goddesses who are hoping to change the course of history…
In my experience, Pompeii literature tends to fall into the genres of pure historical or time-travel. Fantasy is uncommon, and this is the first work I’ve seen to utilise the gods as actual characters. We are no longer constrained by history, and so we have Pompeii’s (fictional) first female gladiator to give us room for a feminist story. Emperor Tiberius is also an invention; Vespasian was emperor in 79 AD (though an Emperor Tiberius did reign from 14 – 37 AD). Claudia’s name may be in reference to Claudia Octavia, who was empress from around 40 – 62 AD). The dates don’t match up, but this is not a strictly historical story and so the author has left plenty of breathing room for the plot and characters to carve a new path – the story is about finding a new destiny, after all.
I started reading this book on the plane home from my first trip to Pompeii (IT WAS AMAZING). This no doubt helped me to visualise the scenes, especially those in the Amphitheatre, but I could also tell that much work had gone into describing the space and breathing life into the ruins. I enjoyed the detail of Vesuvius being shrouded in clouds one day, as that was exactly what I saw myself from the forum! The story may deviate from established history but the setting is firmly grounded in Pompeii, which is extra fun if you know a bit about the place before reading.
I admit that the cover did mislead me into thinking this was a YA story, but it is definitely adult and there are obvious sexual themes as Gia slowly realises that she is attracted to women. Her relationship with Claudia is a sort of one-sided enemies-to-lovers affair and it’s done really well; I like how they come from different spheres of society but both are struggling to survive in a male-dominated world.
This was a great read. It seemed that every character had a secret to hide, and there were plenty of twists and turns along the way. The eruption of Vesuvius was done well, and I enjoyed the scene of the amphitheatre flooding – which also happened to great dramatic effect in the 2014 Pompeii movie. The sequel takes place in an alternate Ancient Rome, and I will be sad to leave this vividly-drawn Pompeii and its characters, but I look forward to wherever the story takes us next. The POV character switches to Claudia for the other half of this duology, which is a great way to keep things interesting.
There are not many Pompeii novels with LGBTQ+ characters aside from a few erotic novellas, but there has been a welcome trend of romances in recent years. Vesuvius by Cass Biehn is the story of two boys, a thief and a temple attendant (and may also contain fantasy elements, though I haven’t read it yet). Promises in Pompeii by Violet Morley follows two women and their love story over twenty years (partly also taking place in Ancient Roman – another book on my to-read list). You can find my Goodreads bookshelf collecting LGBTQ+ Pompeii fiction here.
Pompeii enthuasiasts have plenty to look forward to this year! We continue to learn more about the victims – and survivors – and tell stories of them. Below is a list of every Pompeii-themed work that I could find releasing in 2026. I will update this post as new titles are announced.
The History Hunters: The Last Day of Pompeii (3rd February)
A bite-sized children’s read, The Last Day of Pompeii is the fourth History Hunters adventure, in which three boys have time-travelled to ancient Pompeii and have six hours to save a family. Available in ebook or paperback.
Villa of Mysteries (9th February)
Lorraine Blundell has written numerous standalone Pompeii novels – looking at her Goodreads, this is her sixth! There appears to be a focus on real artworks and frescoes as the centrepoint of the story. Available in ebook and paperback.
Pompei: Below The Clouds (6th March)
Pompeii on the big screen! Pompei: Below the Clouds comes from filmmaker Gianfranco Rosi and is “a portrait at once local and universal: a reflection on humanity’s capacity to live, love, and rebuild in the shadow of the unimaginable.” The film is in Italian but the trailer has English subtitles. It looks to be a modern-day exploration of Italy rather than a thriller-style depiction. (It appears to have previously released under the title Sotto le nuvole.)
Escape from Pompeii (12th March)
Escape from Pompeii: The Great Eruption of Mount Vesuvius and Its Survivors is a non-fiction book about Pompeii with a twist: it focuses on the survivors of Vesuvius rather than the victims. Steven L. Tuck traces family names through time and points out the fatalistic depictions of the event in media such as Doctor Who and Loki when actually there were many survivors. The book is already available on Kindle, and releases in hardback in March.
Puzzle in Pompeii (12th March)
This may be the first Pompeii-themed choose-your-own-adventure novel! Time-travelling due Romy and Remus zip back to Pompeii and must save Catticus, who isn’t supposed to be there. Written by Tim Collins and the first of a new series of Time Twisters novels, this looks to be a lighthearted read. Available in paperback on 12th March. I was delighted to spot this book being sold in the gift shop when I visited Pompeii in June!
Back to Pompeii (15th April)
In this romance novel, Fiona the archaeologist is thrown back in time to ancient Pompeii, where she meets Marcus, a Pompeiian citizen. Part of ID Johnson’s Love Throughout Time series depicting reluctant time travelling heroines in unexpectedly romantic situations. Available from 15th April.
The Lost Voices of Pompeii (23rd April)
Another interesting non-fiction book: The Lost Voices of Pompeii: The Final Day in Seven Lives is the debut book of Dr Jess Venner. It follows seven Pompeiians in the 24 hours leading up to the eruption, focusing on how they lived as well as perhaps how they died. Ebook and hardback formats both release on 23rd April.
Romance in Pompeii (25th April)
Sam P. Jorel’s novel Romance in Pompeii promises a “young adult lesbian romance mystery” and an “archaeological thriller”. Emma is visiting Italy for a cultural exchange, and does not get along with Andrea, her Italian host. But when Andrea’s archaeologist sister goes missing, the two must join forces. Releases 25th April.
Niccolini. Houses and Monuments of Pompeii. 45th Ed (7th May)
During excavations of Pompeii in the 19th century, Niccolini brothers Fausto and Felice meticulously documented findings as colour images, which were then issued in instalments. This volume collects selected images, and also includes two new essays by Sebastian Schütze and Valentin Kockel. At a hefty 512 pages, this book releases in hardback on 17th May.
Pompeii: Out of Time (22nd July)
Tom Hiddleston presents a 3-part docudrama mini series exploring the final hours of Pompeii, from National Geographic. Pompeii briefly featured in Loki, so it seems fitting for Hiddleston to turn “time detective”. Premiering on National Geographic 22nd July, then on Disney+ 23rd July.
Murder in Pompeii (4th August)
Murder in Pompeii is the 16th book in T.A. Williams’ Armstrong and Oscar Cosy Mystery series. The blurb and cover are not yet released, but the series follows Dan Armstrong and his dog Oscar on various murder cases across modern-day Italy. Available 4th August.
Poisoned in Pompeii (8th September)
Poisoned in Pompeii is the fourth book in Zara Keane’s Travel P.I. series, and it does what it says on the tin! A pair of sleuths are investigating threats against a movie director when a man winds up dead in Pompeii. The two must solve the mystery amongst the intimidating world of Hollywood. Available 8th September.
Pompeii (Reprint 14th September)
This hefty 400-page volume provides a comprehensive overview of Pompeii, including photographs and contributions from specialists, painting a picture of life in Pompeii alongside its architecture. Pompeii: The History, Life, and Art of the Buried City by Marisa Ranieri Panetta was originally published in 2004 but preowned copies are now difficult to find! This reprint releases in hardback on 14th September.
Our Lady of Pompeii (7th November)
Our Lady of Pompeii: Ruins, Religion, and Memory by Jessica Hughes is a non-fiction work focusing on the Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei, a cathedral built overlooking the city, and the dwellings that built up around it during the 1870s onwards. Interestingly, it also claims to explore “the shrine’s relationship to the neighbouring archaeological site, and what this can tell us about the Catholic church’s view of classical antiquity more broadly”.
