Anna of Byzantium is a historical novel by Tracy Barrett originally published in 1999. The novel places Anna Comnena in the convent where she was exiled by her brother and Byzantine emperor John II after her failed attempt to poison him. Anna relates how she was groomed to be the Byzantine empress from birth and how her grandmother, her father Alexius' most trusted advisor, persuaded him to remove Anna from the imperial succession. Anna and her mother the Empress Irene Ducaena unite to ensure that John, Alexius' son, will not rule as the puppet of his grandmother. Upon receiving the throne, John proves he will be manipulated by no one; instead of death, John chooses to exile Anna and Irene. A historical novel is a novel in which the story is set among historical events, or more generally, in which the time of the action predates the lifetime of the author. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Anna Comnena (December 1, 1083 - 1153) was a daughter of the Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus, and is the first known female historian. ... This article is about an abbey as a religious building. ... Byzantine Empire (Greek: ) is the term conventionally used since the 19th century to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ... An emperor is a (male) monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. ... Mosaic of John II John II Comnenus (September 13, 1087 - April 8, 1143) was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. ... Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus Alexius I (1048–August 15, 1118), Byzantine emperor (1081–1118), was the third son of John Comnenus, the nephew of Isaac I Comnenus (emperor 1057–1059). ... Irene Ducaena (1066 – February 19, 1133) was the wife of Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus, and the mother of the emperor John II Comnenus and the historian Anna Comnena. ...

In the novel, the manuscript of the Alexiad, which Anna had worked upon in the library at Constantinople, is brought to her to continue at the convent, though in history, she didn't start writing until she arrived there. The Alexiad is a book written around the year 1148 by the Byzantine historian Anna Comnena, the daughter of Emperor Alexius I. In it, she describes the political and military history of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of her father (1081-1118), making it one of the most important... Map of Constantinople. ...