Goodson offers a vivid impression of Rome in the early Middle Ages, drawing on thorough research and intimate acquaintance with the archaeological, architectural and archival evidence as well as the literature in her field. Her thesis is that, through careful attention to topography, architecture and the selection of relics, Pope Paschal i's (812–24) programme of building and rebuilding churches developed papal authority and responded to the complex politics of his day. Each element of Goodson's argument is carefully developed and set into the context of the wider history and historiography of the subject, introduced in chapter i. All aspects of building in Rome are addressed in chapter ii, from papal finances to the development of the topography and architecture of Rome. Here the mid-ninth century emerges as the final breaking point from the usages of space inherited from antiquity, for example in the forum (pp. 49–52). Chapter iii, which analyses the architecture of Paschal's churches of S. Prassede, S. Maria in Domnica and S. Cecilia, unpicks Richard Krautheimer's thesis of a revival of the basilica form. Instead Goodson finds that the churches are not only closely related to contemporary architecture, but also that their materials and forms reveal the coherent vision behind Paschal's programme. Chapter iv turns to the chapels, baptisteries and monasteries that were attached to the churches, and their personnel. Goodson provides a close analysis of the development of the cult of saints and use of relics within Paschal's churches (chapter v), revealing the novelty of Paschal's programme of relic translations, and how it differed from Pope Paul's (pp. 758–62) translations in particular. Paschal emerges as a close reader of passion narratives, carefully selecting groups of saints connected through their martyrdoms. Finally chapter vi widens the focus to place Paschal and his programme into the political context of the day, especially the changes in papal relations with Carolingian Francia under Louis the Pious. The discussion is well-illustrated throughout with photographs, plans and two maps, and supported by two tables: table 1 (pp. 280–326) presents a very useful summary of the papal liturgical donations between 715 and 827 recorded in the Liber pontificalis (awkwardly, the key follows the table, on p. 326); table 2 provides an annotated transcription and translation of the S. Prassede Inscription of the Saints, superseding Goodson's earlier discussion of this. While the focus of Goodson's convincing argument is upon Pope Paschal and his use of his building projects to express his status and embody his authority, the narrow dates of the title do not do justice to her wide-ranging discussion of the history, church architecture and archaeology of Rome. This volume will be useful reading for anyone interested in an up-to-date survey of the topography and archaeology of Rome in the early Middle Ages, as well as forming an important addition to the literature on the development of church architecture, papal relic translations and Carolingian-papal relations.