Venus in Copper

 
‘All I had in the world to worry about was two pastries in a hatful of dust. I put the hat down on a doorstep and laid my cloak over it. A gesture really; while I tried to cope.’
Chosen by readers, Rosina and George Harter

Plot Summary

     Deliberately conceived as a classic private eye dilemma: Trying to forget the indignity of being bailed from jail by his mother, Falco accepts a case from nouveaux riches private clients. Meanwhile he is trying to lure Helena Justina to live with him, which may prove extremely dangerous, given the notorious instability of Roman real estate. When the man he is protecting dies (mother was right: don’t lick your plate) our hero finds himself paid off and rehired by the chief suspect. She is a "professional bride", or according to her, a nice girl who does a lot of sewing (and who owns a parrot with a curious turn of phrase). There is a closed circle of characters, all with suspicious motives; they are seedily unpleasant and their friends are worse. While investigating, Falco meets for the first time, Thalia, the exotic dancer, and Jason her sinuous pet. The clinching evidence is medical, eventually deposited with the Vestal Virgins for safety: lucky they don’t know what it is.
     This is the one with the joke about Roman manicure sets that translators find very difficult.

Research Note: this has the famous turbot-cooking scene. It was tried out thoroughly, the series editor taking the part of Petronius holding the hot tray. See Photo Album, picture 6.

Reviews

Another redolent dip into corruption in Vespasian’s Rome … original and delightful – Sunday Times

If Damon Runyon had turned his hand to the characters of Imperial Rome instead of New York in the '30s, he might have come up with something along the lines of Marcus Didius Falco… What fun this is- The Drood Review of Mystery

An irresistible package of history, mystery, and fast-moving action, all punctuated by a sense of humour that few writers can match - Cleveland Plain Dealer

The Course of Honour | The Silver Pigs | Shadows in Bronze | Venus in Copper
The Iron Hand of Mars | Poseidon's Gold | Last Act in Palmyra
Time to Depart | A Dying Light in Corduba | Three Hands in the Fountain
Two for the Lions | One Virgin too Many | Ode to a Banker
A Body in the Bath House | The Jupiter Myth | The Accusers
Scandal Takes a Holiday | See Delphi and Die | Saturnalia
Alexandria