The Graveyard of the Hesperides

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN: 1466891440
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Book Description
In first century Rome, Flavia Albia, the daughter of Marcus Didius Falco, has taken up her father's former profession as an informer. On a typical day, it's small cases---cheating spouses, employees dipping into the till---but this isn't a typical day. Her beloved, the plebeian Manlius Faustus, has recently moved in and decided that they should get married in a big, showy ceremony as part of beginning a proper domestic life together. Also, his contracting firm has been renovating a rundown dive bar called The Garden of the Hesperides, only to uncover human remains buried in the backyard. There have been rumors for years that the previous owner of the bar, now deceased, killed a bar maid and these are presumably her remains. In the choice between planning a wedding and looking into a crime from long ago, Albia would much rather investigate a possible murder. Or murders, as more and more remains are uncovered, revealing that something truly horrible has been going on at the Hesperides. As she gets closer to the truth behind the bodies in the backyard, Albia's investigation has put her in the cross-hairs---which might be the only way she'll get out of the wedding and away from all her relatives who are desperate to 'help.'

The Graveyard of the Hesperides

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1250078903
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336

A Garland from Hesperides

Author: Percy T. Ingram
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Immortality
Languages : en
Pages : 144

Book Description

Rewriting the Ancient World

Author: Lisa Maurice
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004346384
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 351

Book Description
Rewriting the Ancient World looks at how and why the ancient world, including not only the Greeks and Romans, but also Jews and Christians, has been rewritten in popular fictions of the modern world. The fascination that ancient society holds for later periods in the Western world is as noticeable in popular fiction as it is in other media, for there is a vast body of work either set in, or interacting with, classical models, themes and societies. These works of popular fiction encompass a very wide range of society, and the examination of the interaction between these books and the world of classics provides a fascinating study of both popular culture and example of classical reception.

Death on the Tiber

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN: 1399719602
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 503

Book Description
Rome is in chaos. The empire of a mobster chief is falling apart following his death. Rivals, fearsome relatives and associates are taking up position to vie for the spoils. With hideous murders in the streets of Rome, a lone female traveller arrives with an agenda of her own. But when her corpse is dragged out of the river bearing signs of foul play, Flavia Alba is drawn in, concerned about her fellow Briton's fate. Alba's quest to find the killer becomes deeply personal when she discovers a man at the centre of the plot is an old adversary of hers. Will she be obsessed by revenge? Can she let the past go, or will it consume her?

A Capitol Death

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN: 1250152712
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Book Description
In Rome, ruled by the erratic Emperor Domitian, Flavia Albia is dragged into the worst sort of investigation—a politically charged murder—in Lindsey Davis’s next historical mystery, A Capitol Death. A man falls to his death from the Tarpeian Rock, which overlooks the Forum in the Capitoline Hill in Ancient Rome. While it looks like a suicide, one witness swears that she saw it happen and that he was pushed. Normally, this would attract very little official notice but this man happened to be in charge of organizing the Imperial Triumphs demanded by the emperor. The Emperor Domitian, autocratic and erratic, has decided that he deserves two Triumphs for his so-called military victories. The Triumphs are both controversial and difficult to stage because of the not-so-victorious circumstances that left them without treasure or captives to be paraded through the streets. Normally, the investigation would be under the auspices of her new(ish) husband but, worried about his stamina following a long recovery, private informer Flavia Albia, daughter of Marcus Didius Falco, steps in. What a mistake that turns out to be. The deceased proves to have been none-too-popular, with far too many others with much to gain from his death. With the date of the Triumphs fast approaching, Flavia Albia must unravel a truly complex case of murder before danger shows up on her own doorstep.

Invitation to Die

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN: 1250248566
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 104

Book Description
Roman emperor Domitian throws a terrifying banquet for the Senators—one that everyone is certain they won't survive—in Lindsey Davis's Invitation to Die: A Novella of Ancient Rome. The emperor Domitian is paranoid, autocratic, and violent. And he has a special grudge against both the Senate and the Camilli. So when a strange invitation to a banquet appears given by Domitian, it's not good news for Aulus and Quintus, the Camillus brothers. Both are Senators, brothers-in-law of Marcus Didius Falco, a disreputable private informer with his own past with Domitian, and nephews to a man who plotted to depose Domitian's father. But they dare not refuse an invitation from mercurial and vengeful Domitian. And their concerns were well founded—Domitian has gathered the most powerful men in Rome for what is known to history as The Black Banquet. The place markers are tombstones with names on it, the servers are slaves covered in black make-up, and Domitian speaks only of death. Aulus and Quintus—like all the attendees—are sure they will not survive the night. Bestselling historical novelist Lindsey Davis explores one of the more famous episodes in the reign of the much-feared 1st Century Emperor, through the extended family of her most famous creations—the brothers-in-law of Marcus Didius Falco and the uncle to his successor, Flavia Albia.

A Comedy of Terrors

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Minotaur Books
ISBN: 1250241553
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Book Description
"Melds scrupulous research, arch banter, caustic characters, and strong plotting...Flavia Albia is delightful, trickster-y company to spend time with." -- New York Times Book Review In Rome, 89 A.D., poisonings, murders, and a bloody gang war of retribution breaks out during the festival of Saturnalia, and when her husband, Tiberius, becomes a target, it's time for Flavia Albia to take matters into her own hands -- in Lindsey Davis’s next historical mystery, A Comedy of Terrors. Flavia Albia, daughter and successor of private informer Marcus Didius Falco is twiddling her thumbs with no clients during the December festival of Saturnalia. But that doesn't mean all is quiet. Her husband Tiberius and the Fourth Cohort are battling organized crime interests that are going to war over the festival nuts. A series of accidental poisonings, then bloody murders of rival nut-sellers, and finally a gruesome warning to Tiberius from the hidden criminal powers to back off. Albia has had just about enough and combines forces with Tiberius to uncover the hidden criminal gangs trying to worm their way into the establishment at a banquet of the emperor Domitian.

One Virgin Too Many

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN: 1529374464
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
A lost child in a deadly lottery . . . A frightened child approaches Roman informer Marcus Didius Falco, pleading for help. Nobody believes Gaia's story that a relation wants to kill her - and neither does he. Beset by his own family troubles, by his new responsibilities as Procurator of the Sacred Poultry, and by the continuing search for a new partner, he turns her away. Immediately he regrets it. Gaia has been selected as the new Vestal Virgin, and when she disappears Falco is officially asked to investigate. Finding Gaia is then a race against time, ending in Falco's most terrifying exploit yet . . . Praise for Lindsey Davis 'Lindsey Davis has seen off all her competitors to become the unassailable market leader in the 'crime in Ancient Rome' genre . . . Davis's squalid, vibrant Rome is as pleasurable as ever' - Guardian 'Davis's prose is a lively joy . . . sinister and gloriously real' - The Times on Sunday 'For fans of crime fiction set in the ancient world, this one is not to be missed' - Booklist 'Davis's books crackle with wit and knowledge . . . She has the happy knack of making the reader feel entirely immersed in Rome' - The Times

Fatal Legacy

Author: Lindsey Davis
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN: 1529354757
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 498

Book Description
An unpaid bar bill leads Flavia Albia to her most bitter and complex case yet. Decades earlier Appius Tranquillus Surus wrote his will: it freed his slaves and bequeathed his businesses to them. He left an orchard to the Prisci, a family he was friendly with, on the condition that his freedmen could still take its harvest. The convoluted arrangement has led to a feud between the two families, each of which has its own internal strife. Endless claims and counterclaims lead to violence and even death. Lawyers have given up in exasperation as the case limps on. The original will has disappeared, along with a falsified codicil - and might there be another one? But is there a solution? Two youngsters from each side of the divide, Gaius Venuleius and Cosca Sabatina, have fallen in love, which could unite the feuding families. There is only one problem: were Sabatina's grandmother and father really liberated in the Surus will? If not, the stigma of slavery will stop the marriage and the dispute will rage on forever. Reconciliation seems impossible, but Albia will try. Her investigation must cut through decades of secrets, arguments, lies and violence to reach a startling truth. Praise for Lindsey Davis and the Flavia Albia series 'It positively crackles with knowledge of the city and its people, mixed with social comment, ingenious and bloody plots and sharp observational skills leavened by more than a smattering of genuine and sometimes earthy humour' Crime Review 'Fiendishly twisted mystery' Mail on Sunday 'Great fun, shot through with sharp observations' SHOTS 'In this witty novel by the mistress of Roman crime, the reader is transported behind the scenes of a Triumph into a fascinating world of actors, costumiers and animal trainers, all united in their hatred of the murdered man' Sunday Express Magazine