Life is sweet for Flavia Albia and her soon-to-be husband Faustus. Buthis new job as a building contractor runs into a problem: At the Gardenof the Hesperides a barmaid went missing years before; now the workmenstart unearthing her bones.Albia takes on the task of finding outwhat happened. Five more skeletons are discovered. Despite the fact thatnobody seems to know or care who died,violent attempts are made tostop her enquiries.Soon Albia is exploring the world of Romanstreetlife,where bars are brothels,workers lead brutal lives,foreigners are muscling in on the gambling syndicates,and extortion iscommonplace. What's more there's little time to solve the mystery beforethe wedding day when Albia is expected to show Rome that her affairwith Manlius is a much more than a casual fling. The gods,however,haveother ideas...
Publisher: Hodder & StoughtonISBN: 9781473613393Number of pages: 416Weight: 320 gDimensions: 196 x 130 x 28 mm
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Davis's books crackle with wit and knowledge.She has the happy knack of making the reader feel entirely immersed in Rome.This excellent Roman mystery,enriched by Davis's characteristic wit and thorough understanding of the period,takes a darker turn as Flavia delves into Rome's poorest streets,rife with prostitution,exploitation,thuggery and murder.This is probably the best of the (Falco) stories so far,by turns brutal and brilliant,but always clever and witty with some sparkling dialogue and genuinely comic moments,offset by shrewd social comment and a surprisingly touching love story. It's set against a totally believable and colourful background,and rattles along at breakneck pace to a spectacular climax.
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