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“You read my thoughts, Helena. Better
face it. We think the same way; we're a pair.”
“Oh, I know that!” she roared. “Marcus--try deciding what you
want in life, so we can all get on with it.”
Chosen by readers, Rosina and George Harter
Plot Summary
Beer but no oysters… It's holiday
time for Falco and Helena - until a character he had disposed of
reappears, dead, and causes a diplomatic incident. Naturally
Julius Frontinus and Flavius Hilaris are thrilled that they have
Falco on hand to sort it for them.
Although Londinium is at the end of the world, it's
attracting all kinds of entrepreneurs: the best kind, the worst
kind, and lawyers. Most of the streets are not even paved, yet
they are as mean as in any city where the bad guys think they
own the place. Bad women lie in wait as well, and some of them
already know where hard man Falco has his soft spots. With an
angry wife, a moody sister, Maia's increasingly dubious suiters,
and a fractious Petronius, Falco has enough to contend with.
Then he gets lumbered with an outraged king, a traumatised
orphan, corruption, inefficiency, and British fast food outlets.
Plus Chloris. He knows Chloris. He knows her all too
well.
Personal tragedy and political crises vie for the attention of
both Falco and Petro, the one with a job he doesn't want, the
other with a task he can't admit, and both dogged by faces from
their past…
This is the one where travelling to do the research was
particularly costly, time-consuming and exotic!
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Reviews
By Jupiter, fabulous cover art in tones of imperial reddish
purple and golds highlights a strong story, a darker drama...
The Poisoned Pen Booknews As ever Lindsey Davis combines
an engrossing plot with pithy dialogue and a comic (though not
cartoonish) depiction of the past in all its gory splendour.
This is historical noir lite, with a healthy disregard for
pomposity. – The Guardian Falco fans will not be
disappointed... this novel manages to weave together history and
a good old detective story – Hello
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