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Summary: Well-crafted Whodunnit set in ancient Rome
Review: "Roman Blood" is a whodunnit set in ancient Rome near the end of the Republic. It features Gordianus the Finder as the gumshoe. Gordianus a down-on-the-heels Roman detective is hired by Cicero an up-and-coming republican, lawyer/politician to gather evidence proving the innocence of a murder suspect he's defending. Gordianus's footwork unveils a not just the murder, but a political intrigue involving the highest levels of the dictator Sulla's regime.Whodunnits are pretty formulaic. This one reminds me a lot of the best of Ellroy mixing murder, money, and politics. The spin of setting it in ancient Rome makes it more interesting. Saylor writes well. His prose is tight, and graphic. The obligatory gratuitous sex is especially well done. His violence and action passages are just a little weak. In addition, the story is twisty enough, not to figure it out ahead of time. "Roman Blood" is good. It is a well crafted, murder mystery with enough information on ancient Rome to keep even serious readers of historical fiction interested.
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Summary: well-written historical fiction; ancient Rome comes alive..
Review: 'Roman Blood' is an excellent example of historical fiction where the words 'historical' and 'fiction' are given equal attention. Steven Saylor spins a "whodunnit" mystery based on real events, much like Margaret Atwood does in her excellent 'Alias Grace'. This is unlike the work of Lindsey Davis, an author whose popular Falco mystery series, while in a similar ancient Rome setting, is pure fiction (although the author clearly knows her Roman history). As for the story, hmmm... it's a bit complicated. Broadly speaking it is about a private eye (Gordianus) who is hired by a defense attorney (Cicero) to investigate the bloody death of a Roman citizen. The victim's son is accused of planning the murder and, if convicted, would suffer a most extraordinarily gruesome execution. In the end we witness the murder trial and its aftermath, both of which are rather ... surprising. Yet before then the reader is taken through the very colorful day-to-day events of Roman high-lifes and low-lifes; I found it all to be very educational, and the murder mystery element is very well presented. Compared to the works of Lindsey Davis, 'Roman Blood' is somewhat dry - it doesn't contain much humor, and the characterizations, while completely satisfactory, do not sparkle. Yet I actually prefer the work of Steven Saylor because of its historical accuracy and I find his prose to be richer (ie, it feels more like 'literature' versus 'popular fiction'). Bottom line: not quite James Michener material, but nonetheless a very accomplished piece of historical fiction. Recommended.
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Summary: Wow, a good Mystery
Review: Roman Blood was a great historical fiction that really made you feel as if you lived during roman times. The Mystery made me keep reading and now wanting to read the next books in the series. Normally mysteries are not my favorite kind of books, but this book definitely attracted my attention.
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Summary: Better history than mystery
Review: Steven Saylor's novel is aptly named -- a good deal of Roman blood is indeed spilled when Gordianus the Finder agrees to help a young lawyer named Marcus Tullius Cicero with his first case. Cicero has been hired to defend one Sextus Roscius, accused of killing his father, also named Sextus Roscius. The crime of patricide was punishable by death in ancient Rome, and neither Cicero nor Gordianus wants to see an innocent man executed. Saylor does a good job of bringing Rome to life; he includes many details, including descriptions of the narrow, winding streets, the oppressive heat of summer, and the intricacies of the Roman legal system, that create a sense of place and painlessly educate the reader. There are only a few places where the description intrudes into the story. Since the story is bound up with the political intrigue surrounding the rule of the dictator Sulla (80 BC), a knowledge of Roman history will help the reader keepthe characters and their motivations straight. Saylor does give an explanation of Sulla's rise to power and the atrocities he and his followers committed, but it comes late in the book and drags on for several pages, so this is not as useful as it could be. Readers not familiar with (or uninterested in) Roman history may have trouble getting into the book, but overall the setting is well-done and convincing. The mystery aspect of the novel was not as interesting as the historical aspect; the story is slow in places, and it was hard to care about the characters, especially since many of them lack redeeming qualities. Also, Saylor has an unfortunate tendencyto overemphasize key plot points, as if he doesn't want the reader to miss the fact that a certain discovery is a clue. Part of the mystery reader's responsibility is to find the clues on her own; it is the mystery author's job to confuse the reader about what is a clue and what is a red herring. Saylor doesn't seem to have mastered that skill. The end of the novel, which includes the requisite court scene with Cicero making his argument on behalf of the accused, seems to take forever to lumber to a conclusion. Read the book for its setting, but don't expect too much in the mystery department.
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Summary: Roman Blood a Little Risque
Review: Roman Blood is an extremely intriguing book and has great twists up until the very last page. However, it is definately not a book that I recommend to a younger audience because of the graphic nature of its sensual scenes.
Otherwise, it is a great book that I strongly recommend.
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Summary: Roman Blood is extremely good
Review: Roman Blood by Steven Saylor was well written and well researched. Saylor was able to blend his fictional writing with factual information in a very interesting way. Being the first book in the Roma Sub Rosa series, this book has led me to start reading the rest of the series. Roman Blood blends action and mystery. Gordianus the finder is a very intriguing character that will make you think more than you think you should. Roman Blood is a great book to sit down and read to. Its entertaining, but also, if you are interested in ancient Rome, it will give great information on everyday life and Roman government. Also, the ending is a doozy.
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Summary: i like this book
Review: I thought that Roman Blood was a pretty good book. I liked it because it was a mystery and mystery novels are usually the only books that I find interesting. My favorite character was the main character Gordianus the Finder. To me, he was like an Ancient Roman version of Sherlock Holmes. He seems to be more of the wise and curios type, although at some times he was a little boring. I also liked the novel because it gave me a much better depiction of the Ancient Roman lifestyle. It went into great detail about the streets and buildings which gave me a better image of Rome and its people.
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Summary: Roman Blood
Review: I thought Roman Blood was a good book to read if you wanted to learn more about Rome's history and how they lived their lives. Reading this book has taught me a lot about the Roman lifestyle that I would not have learned in a Social Studies book. Although some parts in this book were a little boring there were still some good events. My favorite part in this book is when Tiro and Gordanius were walking and they came across a fight between the gladiators. I thought it was interesting how Tiro wanted to stop and be a wittness because someone was lying dead in the street. I give this book 4 stars because it really relates to Roman history more than a Social Studies Book or a aritcle you would read in the paper.
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Summary: A good mystery book
Review: Roman Blood is a very good mystery book. Normally I don't like mystery books, but I really enjoyed reading this one. Another good thing about this book is that it does a good job describing ancient Roman life. The book did get a little boring at times. If you don't really like Roman history then you may want to not read this book.
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Summary: Roman mystery
Review: Roman Blood was a great a mystery book. It really showed the skill investigators of ancient times had to have. I like the twst and turns of this mystery book and facts about the murder of Sextus Roscius were uncovered. I didn't like the elaborate descriptions of the Roman buildings in the area. My favorite characters were Gordanius, Tiro, and Caecilia. Tiro seems to be portrayed as such a real person even though he is a under worked slave of Cicero. Gordanius is very open to any possiblities and very thrifty about his work. Caecilia shows a great a friendship to Sextus Roscius and has a great personality. Branden Huggins
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