Rome, 89 AD, December, and the Field of Mars is the site of some of the grisliest murders that the city has ever seen – and in the reign of the Emperor Domitian, that’s saying something. A husband and wife from an acting troupe are found dead – the husband crucified as the play Laureolus (where the leading actor was often replaced at the end with a real criminal and then actually crucified) and the woman dead ebing forced to re-enact a crucial aspect of the life of Pasiphae, the wife of King Minos – look it up, this is a family-friendly blog…

When one of the troupe comes to ask for his old friend Marcus Falco’s help, only to find him absent, Falco’s daughter, Flavia Albia steps up to find out what is going on. But the killer is far from over – and there are plenty of other horrors from the Roman theatre that have yet to be re-enacted…

It’s been a while since I tried a new historical author – and by historical, my meaning is per-Victorian – although it is a bit strange to call Lindsay Davis “new”. Her first Falco mystery, The Silver Pigs, was published in 1989 and she went on to write a total of twenty books in the series before, in 2013, switching to focus on Flavia Albia, Falco’s adopted daughter. I’m presuming Albia appears in the latter Falco books, as she is described here as being born in Britain and being adopted by Falco, and similarly I presume Falco must make appearances in her series, although he and his wife are on holiday in this one. This is the tenth in the series of Flavia Albia’s stories – the most recent, Murder In Purple And Gold was released earlier this year, which I know because I’m going to a talk by Lindsey Davis about that one next week. It only seemed fair that I take a look at something from the series beforehand.

As you may well be aware, there are quite a few series set in Ancient Rome or its territories, and I’ve tried a handful on the blog. To no great surprise to any long-term readers, I enjoyed Paul Doherty’s efforts, but nothing else grabbed me enough to make me want to keep reading. But while I might have read The Silver Pigs many, many years ago – I certainly owned a copy – I’ve never read any of these for the blog. And with thirty-four books to date, it’s long past time that I gave it a go.

And it’s certainly interesting. The tone is an interesting choice – the murders are brutal, some of the nastiest I’ve read about. Admittedly, the details aren’t dwelled on, but as with Roman theatre itself, there is some imagery that will linger with the reader. But on the other hand, some of other parts are played almost for laughs.

What is also very strange is the choice of language, notably in Albia’s narration. There are some words that she uses that didn’t feel… right to me for a book set in Ancient Rome. A reference to an officer’s “patch”, calling someone “squiffy”… it’s clearly a deliberate choice from the author and after a while, I got used to it, but it does strike me as a little odd having cut my historical mystery teeth on Messers Doherty, Jecks and Tremayne.

As I said, though, I got used to it. The plot concerning someone – referred to as “the undertaker” – murdering actors in excruciating ways does drag somewhat. This is quite a long book and it is filled with a lot of characters – too many for this old reviewer to completely keep track of, despite the convenient Dramatis Personae at the start. AS a mystery, it’s not really clued – Albia keeps asking around and eventually someone gives her the relevant information as to who the murderer might be – which then follows a fairly long section where the killer is hunted.

The lead characters are good company and there are some exciting sequences – dealing with the enraged bull, for example – but at the end of the day, it felt as if it was just a bit too long. But this is one book from thirty-four, and there’s certainly enough here for a re-visit (which is a good thing as my ticket for Lindsey’s talk includes a copy of her new book). So, dear readers, if you’re a fan of the series, where does this one fit? A high point? An average entry? Should I stick with Albia or head back to Falco? Do tell…