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Title: SPQR V: Saturnalia by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0-312-32018-3 Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin Pub. Date: 02 October, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.2 (10 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: SPQR V: Saturnalia
Comment: Saturnalia is not as strong as the earlier SPQR books, but the theatrics are quite dramatic (the predictions about Decius, the fight at the end) and the humor is wry and cynical. Saylor's Gordianus provides such an excellent "you are there" presence that I overlooked Decius for a while. But then his attitude began to grow on me. He doesn't apologize for virtue; he doesn't worship power; he doesn't fawn over the great men of the day (I enjoy his fine contempt for most of them). The mystery itself is only mildly challenging (in that respect, Roberts does better in his short stories about Decius). But there are some interesting insights into upper-class Roman habits and attitudes, and alternate views of people from Caesar to Pompey to Clodia. For fun, compare the Milo and Clodius of Roberts to the same characters in Saylor. I don't know who's more accurate, but the differences are fascinating. The trick of the narrative being told by an elderly survivor of the period (Decius in his old age) works quite well. SPQR is a bit like eating pound cake; the flavor increases as the series continues. There are more? How nice!
Rating: 5
Summary: Murder, Mayhem, and Scandal in Ancient Rome
Comment: ... I had just read the Steven Saylor "Roma Sub Rosa" series, featuring the lovably human Gordianus the Finder, so I felt a bit disloyal even picking up a Maddox Roberts book, but, WOW! am I glad I did. Roberts writes with effortless skill, a keen understanding of complex Roman politics and social hierarchies, and, best of all, a delicious sense of mystery. SATURNALIA, is a wicked tale of murder and adultery, set against the twilight of Rome's Republic. The scandalous Clodia is accused of poisoning her husband (all of this is based on historical events), and Maddox Roberts takes the opportunity to explore some of Rome's darker sides in the process. Roberts' hero - a Junior Senator with the unwieldy name of Decius Caecilius Metellus - is a wonder: patrician by birth, he is able to walk with equal confidence in marble halls, and the stinkiest streets of the Subura. I highly recommend not only SATURNALIA, but all the other novels in the SPQR series. You'll fall in love with Decius, and discover sides to ancient Rome you never knew existed.
Rating: 5
Summary: Another great book from Roberts
Comment: The fifth nover of the SPQR series is as good as all the others. Roberts using the same technique and the same elements that made all the other books of the series so popular. And guess what Decius is back to Rome.
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Title: The Temple of the Muses : SPQR IV by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0312246986 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 13 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Sacrilege : SPQR III by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0312246978 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 13 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Tribune's Curse: SPQR VII by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0312304889 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 05 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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Title: The Catiline Conspiracy : SPQR II by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0312277067 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 21 August, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The King's Gambit (SPQR, Book 1) by John Maddox Roberts ISBN: 0312277059 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 24 August, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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