What is the theme in The Memoirs of Cleopatra: A Novel by Margaret George?

The quest for power is what drives the entire story. Cleopatra realizes this in herself and in others from a very early age. When she is thrown from the throne, she could easily have lived a life of luxury elsewhere but cannot give up her hope of regaining the throne. Toward that end, she has herself rolled up in a rug and taken to Caesar. Though she professes an abhorrence to the thought of having sex with Caesar, she prepares to offer herself to him if that's what it takes to garner his support in her quest for a return to the throne. Cleopatra's ambitions continue long after she is securely in control of Egypt, and it seems that her insatiability becomes her downfall.