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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Welcome Addition to the Series,
This review is from: Scandal Takes a Holiday: A Marcus Didius Falco Mystery Novel (Hardcover)
Marcus Didius Falco is not, despite his claims, visiting Ostia for pleasure, but to track down Infamia, whose scandalous column in the Daily Gazette gets him in trouble more often than not. He said he was going to visit an Aunt in Ostia, but he never returned and the only thing he leaves behind him are some personal effects and a trail of several odd clues.For instance, shortly before his disappearance, he attempted to take on various different jobs, even applied to the Vigiles. One of the last people to see him is a reclusive old sea merchant who claims, despite rumors otherwise, to have never been a pirate...piracy being one of the things that, officially, no longer exists. This sixteenth book following the adventures of Falco has several interesting twists. An informer (private eye) of some renown, he, along with his best friend Petronis and his love Helena find themselves in an increasingly dangerous situation, filled with Cicilain pirates, kidnapping and murder. The series is famous for its rich depiction of Ancient Rome and each one seems to focus on a slightly different area of the culture and history, teaching us a great deal. This time, as you may have gathered, it's piracy. It was interesting to see how the pirates were used by the Roman government, then declared completely stamped out, though, unofficially, everyone knew it was still going on. Also, the rules that these pirates abided by to make sure that their victim's families paid up showed them to be shrewd businessmen as well as criminals.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Great Roman Mystery from Lindsey Davis!,
By
This review is from: Scandal Takes a Holiday: A Marcus Didius Falco Mystery Novel (Hardcover)
In her newest Marcus Didius Falco mystery "Scandal Takes a Holiday" Lindsey Davis has made another hit. I usually don't read mysteries, but I make her books an exception because I like her ability to provide atmosphere. She is one of the best writers of historical mysteries and a good part of that is that after reading one of her books you actually feel as if you have been to Rome, Roman Britain, and North Africa or, in the case of the present work, the Roman port city of Ostia.In the current book, Falco and his patrician wife, Helena Justina, are involved in searching for a scandal-mongering scribe from the Imperial sanctioned Gazette who has disappeared, apparently in Ostia while visiting his aunt. The following enticing tale involves the protagonists in contact with pirates, various relatives, including Falco's shady father and scapegrace Uncle, and numerous shady characters in an ancient port city so vividly described that you can smell the salt air and hear the gulls cry. The ending, as always, results from twists and turns that leave the reader breathless. This is a great book to read when you want to relax from the trials of modern life. In the process the reader is reminded that such trials are only somewhat different (and in most cases a bit easier to deal with for us privileged Westerners) than those of the past. In essence difficulties in life always have and always will remain a part of the human condition. I recommend "Scandal Takes a Holiday" without reservation.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Funny and exciting historical mystery,
By
This review is from: Scandal Takes a Holiday: A Marcus Didius Falco Mystery Novel (Hardcover)
The upper class in Rome get their news from the Daily Gazette. It's mostly boring--events of the Emperor, some lies (rumors of pirates are untrue), but with a load of gossip. Except that gossip has gotten thin lately as the gossip writer has taken an extended vacation. So extended, in fact, that his fellow writers hire Marcus Didius Falco, an informant, to find him.Falco, along with his wife and assorted members of his family, head for Ostia, the port of Rome where Diocles was supposed to be visiting with his aunt. As Falco investigates, he finds evidence of multiple crimes--piracy that had supposedly been smashed by Pompey, professional kidnapping, and a strange mix of firefighting with professional building. Author Lindsey Davis continues her funny and exciting Marcus Didius Falco series in SCANDAL TAKES A HOLIDAY. Falco's relations with his aristocratic wife Helena and their respective families adds to both humor and to the character depth. As always, Davis's historical detail adds to the interest and engages the reader. I thought Davis occasionally got carried away with the family and a series of mysteries that didn't really relate to each other, making this novel a bit weaker than some of the others in the series. That doesn't mean that SCANDAL wasn't a completely enjoyable ride. I found myself laughing out loud several times and read through the entire novel in a single sitting.
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