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As in the equally adroit Enigma, Harris takes a familiar historical event (there, the celebrated code-breakers at Bletchley Park, here the volcanic obliteration of an Italian city in AD79) and seamlessly weaves a characteristically labyrinthine plot in and around the existing facts. But that's not all he does here: few novelists who (unlike Harris) make a speciality of ancient history for their setting pull off the sense of period quite as impressively as the author does here. As the famous catastrophe approaches, we are pleasurably immersed in the sights, sounds and smells of the Ancient World, each detail conjured with jaw-dropping verisimilitude.
Harris's protagonist is the engineer Marcus Attilius, placed in charge of the massive aqueduct that services the teeming masses living in and around the Bay of Naples. Despite the pride he takes in his job, Marcus has pressing concerns: his predecessor in the job has mysteriously vanished, and another task is handed to Marcus by the scholar Pliny: he is to undertake crucial repairs to the aqueduct near Pompeii, the city in the shadow of the restless Mount Vesuvius. And as Marcus faces several problems--all life threatening--an event approaches that will make all his concerns seem petty.
Other writers have placed narratives in the shadow of this most famous of volcanic cataclysms, but Harris triumphantly ensures that his characters' individual dramas are not dwarfed by implacable nature; Marcus is a vividly drawn hero: complex, conflicted and a canny synthesis of modern and ancient mindsets. Some may wish that Harris might return to something closer to our time in his next novel, but few who take this trip into a dangerous past will be able to resist Harris's spellbinding historical saga. --Barry Forshaw
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. FROM THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF AN OFFICER AND A SPY AND THE SECOND SLEEP'A pulse-rate-speeding masterpiece' Sunday Times'A stunning novel . . . the subtlety and power of its construction holds our attention to the end' The TimesDuring a sweltering week in late August, as Rome's richest citizens relax in their villas around Pompeii and Herculaneum, there are ominous warnings that something is going wrong. Wells and springs are failing, a man has disappeared, and now the greatest aqueduct in the world - the mighty Aqua Augusta - has suddenly ceased to flow . . .Through the eyes of four characters - a young engineer, an adolescent girl, a corrupt millionaire and an elderly scientist - Robert Harris brilliantly recreates a luxurious world on the brink of destruction.'As explosive as Etna, as addictive as a thriller, as satisfying as great history' Daily Telegraph Through the eyes of four characters - a young engineer, an adolescent girl, a corrupt millionaire and an elderly scientist - Robert Harris brilliantly recreates a luxurious world on the brink of destruction. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780099527947
Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9780099527947
Book Description Condition: New. pp. 416. Seller Inventory # 5851482
Book Description Soft Cover. Condition: new. Seller Inventory # 9780099527947
Book Description Condition: New. In eng. Seller Inventory # ria9780099527947_new
Book Description Condition: New. A sweltering week in late August. Where better to enjoy the last days of summer than on the beautiful Bay of Naples? But even as Rome's richest citizens relax in their villas around Pompeii and Herculaneum, there are ominous warnings that something is going wrong. Num Pages: 416 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 129 x 27. Weight in Grams: 290. 2009. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # 9780099527947
Book Description Condition: New. A sweltering week in late August. Where better to enjoy the last days of summer than on the beautiful Bay of Naples? But even as Rome's richest citizens relax in their villas around Pompeii and Herculaneum, there are ominous warnings that something is going wrong. Num Pages: 416 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 129 x 27. Weight in Grams: 290. 2009. Paperback. . . . . Seller Inventory # 9780099527947
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 416 pages. 7.76x5.08x0.91 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0099527944
Book Description Paperback / softback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. Through the eyes of four characters - a young engineer, an adolescent girl, a corrupt millionaire and an elderly scientist - Robert Harris brilliantly recreates a luxurious world on the brink of destruction. Seller Inventory # B9780099527947