SPQR XI: Under Vesuvius
A Mystery
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2.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
In SPQR XI: Under Vesuvius, things are going well for Decius Caecilius Metellus. He is Praetor Peregrinus, which means he has to judge a case or two, but those cases are outside of the City. His cases will be those dealing with foreigners, and all of Italy is his province. His first stop is Campania, "Italy's most popular resort district." Decius and his wife, Julia, are happy for a change of scenery. But the good times end when, in a town near Vesuvius, a priest's daughter is murdered. Decius must find her killer and keep the mob off a young boy who everyone blames but he believes to be innocent. Decius may have acquired more prestige, but he's also acquired more trouble.
With his SPQR novels, John Maddox Roberts has written a satisfying and entertaining historical mystery series. The stakes just keep getting higher in this latest atmospheric puzzle.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The brisk 11th Decius Metellus Roman historical (after 2006's SPQR X: A Point of Law) finds tensions increasing between Julius Caesar and Pompey. Series hero Decius has been elected praetor peregrinus, traveling magistrate in charge of all cases involving foreigners. A relaxing stay in a southern Italian town near the legendary volcano Vesuvius is disrupted by the murder of Gorgo, the attractive young daughter of the local priest. Anger quickly grows against her forbidden lover, Gelon, a Numidian, but Decius's instincts tell him that another is responsible for the killing. The solution owes more to a chance discovery than reasoned deduction, and the political upheaval of the time is more distant background noise than an immediate concern for the characters. Though the details and overall impression of ancient Rome aren't at the high level of Steven Saylor, readers looking for a crafty and entertaining journey to the past won't be disappointed.
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