Rubicon (Roma Sub Rosa) - Softcover

Steven Saylor

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1845292448 ISBN 13: 9781845292447

Publisher: Robinson Publishing, 2005

Synopsis

Caesar is marching on Rome: his intent, civil war. Pompey and the terrified Senate prepare to flee the city. The murder of a visitor to the house of Gordianus the Finder could not occur at a worse time - especially since the dead man is Pompey's favourite cousin and may have been a very dangerous spy. Pompey commands Gordianus to find the killer, threatening terrible penalties for failure. Amid the chaos overtaking Rome, through the worsening conflict, torn himself by conflicting loyalties, Gordianus must pursue the trail on a deadly journey into the thick of war - although what he finds will shake his sense of right and wrong to the core. Steven Saylor recreates a world without certainties, an empire destroyed by intrigue and internecine war, where murder and espionage pollute the ways of power and the towering figures of history are also the engineers of the empire's destruction.

About this title

Review:

Steven Saylor's seventh instalment in his Roma Sub Rosa series begins with a character saying, "Pompey will be mightily pissed." Scholars might argue that there is no evidence of this particular synonym for anger ever being used in 49 BC, but the author would no doubt respond that poetic license includes doing whatever it takes to bridge the gap for modern audiences. And indeed, the head of the Roman Senate is mightily pissed. Rome is on the verge of another civil war and the forces of Julius Caesar and Mark Antony have crossed the Rubicon River and are marching toward the capital. To top it all off, one of Pompey's favourite cousins has been garrotted to death.

Before Pompey flees the city, he asks Rome's greatest detective, Gordianus the Finder, to solve the murder. But Pompey has reason to distrust Gordianus, who may have an allegiance with Caesar. To force his loyalty, Pompey seizes the detective's son-in-law and makes him join his household army. By doing so, he ensures that Gordianus's involvement in the coming conflict will be a very personal one. Confused and troubled, Gordianus walks through Rome toward the house of his former friend and mentor, the poet Cicero. "All around me, I felt the uneasiness of the city, like a sleeper in the throes of a nightmare." Awakening from the nightmare, surviving the chaos and solving this whodunit will be the Finder's toughest battle yet. --Dick Adler

Review:

Saylor's scholarship is breathtaking, his writing enthrals. (Ruth Rendell)

Engrossing... Simmering with eroticism... An absorbing brew of Rome's decay. (The Venus Throw) (Publishers Weekly)

How wonderful, to have a scholar write about ancient Rome; how comforting, to feel instant confidence in the historical accuracy of a novel. (Sunday Times)

About this edition

• Publisher: Robinson Publishing
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1845292448
• ISBN 13: 9781845292447
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320