Customer Reviews

The Ides of April (Ray, Mary, Roman Empire Sequence.)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Part Agatha Christie, part Eloise McGraw ... this book totally blew me away! Mary Ray is terrific, practically creating a whole new genre of books - children's historical mysteries. The plot flows beautifully from one catastrophic event to another, creating a tale of incredible skill and baffling turns.

Not much has been written in the Ancient-Roman category anyway, and this book is made even more unique by its point of view - that of a slave. It exposes the so-called 'glamour' of Rome to be merely a circle of cruelty and struggle. This book is not for the very young, but discerning readers 12 & up will find this book absolutely wonderful. I can't endorse it too strongly!

People fantasize about the ancient world and as an ancient historian I'm often amused and annoyed by what these fantasies entail. This is especially true in books written for children and young adults where the nastiness (by our modern standards) of the ancient world are often overlooked and underplayed. Mary Ray's "The Ides of April" does a fairly good job of looking at the concerns of citizens, young people, and slaves in mid-first century Rome. While the murder mystery kicks off sharply I do wish she'd spent more time on the characters before the entire legal nightmare began so that we could be more emotionally invested in the characters. Likewise it ends a bit aburptly. I haven't read any of the other books of the series yet, but it seems like the same characters may not be encountered which is a pity. The characters are well done, they seem to grasp the mindset of the people of that time though I think holding onto a Greek identity when one is born a slave in Rome is a bit awkward. I'd recommend it to anyone between 14 and 20 who is interested in the ancient world or in power dynamics in history. For those of us who are older, it can be entertaining as well.

The thing about this book was that it felt _REAL_. It was hard to remember it was *just* a book.

You felt the danger; you felt the bruises on the ribs. You wanted the hero to make it. You just didn't find yourself doubting the realness of it.

Now, it's been a couple years since I read this, so perhaps I was just more gullible. But I don't think so. I still remember it, after all this time. Its magic was a special fete considering I had NEVER been interested in the Roman era or historical mysteries.

When the book was over, I wanted it to keep going.

An excellent historical mystery. I highly doubt you'll regret reading it.

I think that Mary Ray is a wonderful author and writer, with a great imagination a descriptive skills.
The plot was intriguing, and carefully thought over.
I could feel everything happening, as though I were right next to Hylas, the 17-year-old slave, and Camillus, the 18-year-old tribune.
There are intense scenes, but nothing that an 8-year-old can't handle. ALmost no romance, and there is a large dipslay of compassion, loyalty, and discerment in the two boys.
I thorougly enjoyed her book, though it was a LITTLE confusing. (but it was almost midnight when I read it, and my brain was half-way asleep by then).
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

As homeschoolers, we loved this book. It went along with our study of Ancient Rome - but would be exciting for anyone who likes historical novels and mysteries. The sequel, Beyond the Desert Gate, is also great!

I had hoped to use this book in my high-school history class but found that it does little in terms of imparting a solid sense of what life was like in ancient Rome. The mystery portion is okay, but my real disappointment stems from the weakness of the historical contextualization.

Since I am studying Ancient Times in school, I thought I should read this. This book is about a young slave boy, Hylas, growing up in a senator's home. When the senator is found dead in his chamber all accusations fall on the servants of the household. Will Hylas be able to prove the servants innocent? Or will all the slaves die, including Hylas' mother?

Mary Ray the author of this book, has done a fantastic job of writing this. The storyline makes you feel like you are a part of the book. It was so intriguing that I could hardly put it down. I highly recommend this book for someone who loves mysteries and suspence. I also enjoyed the sequel, Beyond the Desert Gate.

This was a very good book. Sometimes a bit of a slow read, but such and intriguing murder story set in anciet Rome you won't even think to put the book down! Great for everyone!

Mary Ray changes her style of writing from science fiction to historical fiction and writes the book The Ides Of April. Set in Rome just after the time of Christ, The Ides Of April is a murder mystery, which will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next. After a slave discovers his master, Caius Pomponius, was stabbed in the night all of the slaves of Caius Pomponius's household are rounded up to be murdered. All of them, that is, except Hylas, a young secretary for the household, and Assinius who elude capture. Hylas tries to find out who murdered Caius, with the help of his new friends, Camillus, a tribune, and Varro, an old man. Unfortunately, Hylas's mission isn't as easy as it sounds and he finds himself in a whirlwind of mystery and adventure. While The Ides of April was a fairly decent book, the author introduced many characters at once making the book a little challenging to follow. The beginning was a little boring because they were introducing the characters, rather than talking about the actual murder but as you get further on into the book it is more interesting because they really start solving the case. I think this was an a decent book, but it depends on if you enjoy Mary Rays slow paced adventure, style if writing as to whether you will really enjoy this book.

The Ides of April is a historical fiction story by Mary Ray. Ray uses her unique skill to write a beautifully laced murder mystery in Rome 62 AD. Hylas is a young slave in the household of Caius Pomponius, a Roman senator. One horrible night, Caius is murdered in his sleep and all the slaves are rounded up and sent to prison to be murdered, except Hylas and Assinius, who disappeared right after the murder. Camillus, a military tribune, Varro, a porter, and Caius's aunt, Matidia, befriend Hylas. Together they race against time to find the murderer, bring him to justice, and free all the slaves kept in the dank and rotting prison. Ray creates an interesting ancient murder story by intertwining the glory of the Roman Empire with the death and destruction that comes with it, but, unfortunately, she introduces too many characters with similar names all at the same time which causes much confusion to the reader and makes it hard for them figure out who is who and who did what. Ray also creates the characters as though to make them distant from the reader. She creates them without any feelings so that the reader cannot say, "Yeah, I can relate to that." But, all in all, this is a good book because of the way Ray adds a gripping plot and twists and turns at every page. This story will interest younger teens and adults. I highly recommend it.