A Mist Of Prophecies : A Novel Of Ancient Rome

Rating:
Summary: OK, But Could Have Been Much Better
Review: "A Mist of Prophecies" was a disappointment. Granted, it was an above average novel, but it had the potential to be much more.

The novel opens in Rome in 48 BC when the city is in tumult and the city government is hard pressed to maintain basic law and order. There is an alleged prophetess who goes under the name of Cassandra and who like her Trojan namesake is widely believed to be able to forsee the future. However, she is poisoned and detective Gordianus the Finder decides to try to figure out who's responsible for the dirty deed.

So far, so good. However, the plot unravels from there. Gordianus decides that the killer must have been one of the seven prominent women who went to Cassandra's funeral although it is not clear on what basis he makes that determination.

One problem with mystery novels set in past historical times is that the detectives are invariably private citizens who do not have any legal power to compel folks to talk to them. Nor do they have any sort of investigator's license to give them legitimacy. So, the authors of these novels generally have the suspects answer just about every question put to them by the hero except the one that would establish who done it. When a suspect refuses to answer a particular question, you know right then and there that this person is either guilty or a red herring.

In the case of "A Mist Of Prophecies," the reader can figure out who the villainess is early on in the book since the author, Steven Saylor, failed to establish a plausible red herring. The guilty party in this novel just about did everything possible to make it easy for Gordianus to determine her guilt so much so that she might as well as gone around in public with a target painted on her back.

While the mystery part is weak, the historical part is the novel's strength. The reader learns a lot about Roman history during this important time period in a way that holds the reader's interest. Additionally, the novel is well written and has richly drawn characters.

Overall, I give it 3 out of 5 stars, but it could have been so much better.

Rating:
Summary: Best in the Sub-Rosa Series!
Review: "Mist of Prophecies" is the latest installment of Steven Saylor's Sub-Rosa series. Immediately it is one of his best and most enjoyable works to date. The book is good enough to be read on it's own but is best enjoyed by checking out the previoius 2 novels, "Rubicon" and "Last Seen In Massalia", (Checkout the great review by the reviewer Booksforabuck.) Changed by the vicissitudes of time, we see our protagonist, Gordianus the Finder older and more worldly and confronted with the tragic death of his intriguiging lover Cassandra. A seeress of unknown origin who dies in his arms and who's prophecies were urgently sought after by some of Rome's leading matrons. At the funeral, no one attends except the very same group of women observing the funeral rite from a discrete distance. Here is an excellent view at the behind-the-scenes look at the feminine Roman mindset. There are numerous flashbacks that reveals the plot and Gordianus' state of mind in an interesting way that is at once personal and prosaic. Notice, as we age it is natural to reminisce and Gordianus does that in a such a way to make his dilemma of loss and pain all the more real and convincing. Looking back at the past plots from the earlier books (makes you want to re-read, the Venus Throw and Murder On The Appian Way), brings Mist of Prophecies in sharp focus to the state of affairs in Rome, (the fall of the Republic) and the rise of Ceasar.

The similarities between ancient Rome and our world and are so close that there is much to consider; economic upheavals with a poplulation deep in debt, war, rogue politicians causing trouble and plenty of grandstanding and intrigue to keep you awake at night. A must read. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Best in the Sub-Rosa Series!
Review: "Mist of Prophecies" is the latest installment of Steven Saylor's Sub-Rosa series. Immediately it is one of his best and most enjoyable works to date. The book is good enough to be read on it's own but is best enjoyed by checking out the previoius 2 novels, "Rubicon" and "Last Seen In Massalia", (Checkout the great review by the reviewer Booksforabuck.) Changed by the vicissitudes of time, we see our protagonist, Gordianus the Finder older and more worldly and confronted with the tragic death of his intriguiging lover Cassandra. A seeress of unknown origin who dies in his arms and who's prophecies were urgently sought after by some of Rome's leading matrons. At the funeral, no one attends except the very same group of women observing the funeral rite from a discrete distance. Here is an excellent view at the behind-the-scenes look at the feminine Roman mindset. There are numerous flashbacks that reveals the plot and Gordianus' state of mind in an interesting way that is at once personal and prosaic. Notice, as we age it is natural to reminisce and Gordianus does that in a such a way to make his dilemma of loss and pain all the more real and convincing. Looking back at the past plots from the earlier books (makes you want to re-read, the Venus Throw and Murder On The Appian Way), brings Mist of Prophecies in sharp focus to the state of affairs in Rome, (the fall of the Republic) and the rise of Ceasar.

The similarities between ancient Rome and our world and are so close that there is much to consider; economic upheavals with a poplulation deep in debt, war, rogue politicians causing trouble and plenty of grandstanding and intrigue to keep you awake at night. A must read. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: OK, But Could Have Been Much Better
Review: "A Mist of Prophecies" was a disappointment. Granted, it was an above average novel, but it had the potential to be much more.

The novel opens in Rome in 48 BC when the city is in tumult and the city government is hard pressed to maintain basic law and order. There is an alleged prophetess who goes under the name of Cassandra and who like her Trojan namesake is widely believed to be able to forsee the future. However, she is poisoned and detective Gordianus the Finder decides to try to figure out who's responsible for the dirty deed.

So far, so good. However, the plot unravels from there. Gordianus decides that the killer must have been one of the seven prominent women who went to Cassandra's funeral although it is not clear on what basis he makes that determination.

One problem with mystery novels set in past historical times is that the detectives are invariably private citizens who do not have any legal power to compel folks to talk to them. Nor do they have any sort of investigator's license to give them legitimacy. So, the authors of these novels generally have the suspects answer just about every question put to them by the hero except the one that would establish who done it. When a suspect refuses to answer a particular question, you know right then and there that this person is either guilty or a red herring.

In the case of "A Mist Of Prophecies," the reader can figure out who the villainess is early on in the book since the author, Steven Saylor, failed to establish a plausible red herring. The guilty party in this novel just about did everything possible to make it easy for Gordianus to determine her guilt so much so that she might as well as gone around in public with a target painted on her back.

While the mystery part is weak, the historical part is the novel's strength. The reader learns a lot about Roman history during this important time period in a way that holds the reader's interest. Additionally, the novel is well written and has richly drawn characters.

Overall, I give it 3 out of 5 stars, but it could have been so much better.

Rating:
Summary: OK, But Could Have Been Much Better
Review: "A Mist of Prophecies" was a disappointment. Granted, it was an above average novel, but it had the potential to be much more.

The novel opens in Rome in 48 BC when the city is in tumult and the city government is hard pressed to maintain basic law and order. There is an alleged prophetess who goes under the name of Cassandra and who like her Trojan namesake is widely believed to be able to forsee the future. However, she is poisoned and detective Gordianus the Finder decides to try to figure out who's responsible for the dirty deed.

So far, so good. However, the plot unravels from there. Gordianus decides that the killer must have been one of the seven prominent women who went to Cassandra's funeral although it is not clear on what basis he makes that determination.

One problem with mystery novels set in past historical times is that the detectives are invariably private citizens who do not have any legal power to compel folks to talk to them. Nor do they have any sort of investigator's license to give them legitimacy. So, the authors of these novels generally have the suspects answer just about every question put to them by the hero except the one that would establish who done it. When a suspect refuses to answer a particular question, you know right then and there that this person is either guilty or a red herring.

In the case of "A Mist Of Prophecies," the reader can figure out who the villainess is early on in the book since the author, Steven Saylor, failed to establish a plausible red herring. The guilty party in this novel just about did everything possible to make it easy for Gordianus to determine her guilt so much so that she might as well as gone around in public with a target painted on her back.

While the mystery part is weak, the historical part is the novel's strength. The reader learns a lot about Roman history during this important time period in a way that holds the reader's interest. Additionally, the novel is well written and has richly drawn characters.

Overall, I give it 3 out of 5 stars, but it could have been so much better.

Rating:
Summary: Uninformed and Uninspired!
Review: As a PhD candidate at Harvard specializing in Roman-Greco Studies, I can say with all certainty that what Steven Saylor knows about Roman history is something akin to what Richard Nixon knew about money laundering and cover-ups: next to nothing! This is the most contrived, ridulous kind of pulp fiction which, frankly, is tainting the Mystery genre by sheer virtue of its contrived settings and implausible, bombastic twists. Saylor -- a "hack" writer whose only credential is a humble BA from some southern school -- attempts to veneer a Mystery story over the only thing he knows anything about, namely history. And his knowledge of the latter is shaky at that! Saylor is a long way from finding his writer's "voice" and it doesn't seem that he ever will. Why any subsidy publisher would bet good money on such a weak effort is more of a mystery than even Saylor's books. Saylor's peculiar genre is a hybrid ad absurdum that may better qualify for the tag of "mutated" rather than a genuine cross-genre effort. By all means, save your money on this nonsense and donate it instead to your local Italian Cultural Center -- it will be money better spent!

Rating:
Summary: A Most Pleasurable Return of Gordianus
Review: For those long-time fans of Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa mysteries, "A Mist of Prophecies" is a deeply satisfying return after several years' gap between it and Saylor's "Last Seen in Massilia."

The shocking conclusion of Massilia is referenced, but Gordianus' problems with his own family take backstage to the chaos of Rome during Civil War. Both Pompey and Caesar have moved east to the ultimate battle between them for control of the Roman world. Left behind, the capitol seethes in financial collapse, rumor, and fear. Into this, a beautiful, half-mad seeress, Cassandra, explodes into Gordianus' life. Dying in his arms in the Forum, we then backtrack through Gordianus' meetings with her and her involvement in the intrigues taking place in the paranoid world in which Caesar and Pompey, far away, are determining Rome's future. In discovering why she died, we meet some of Rome's most famous women, each of whom may be a suspect and each of whom is deeply involved with the desperate civil struggle playing out all around them.

The women are sketched with particular vividness. We have met Fulvia and Clodia before in earlier novels. I particularly enjoyed Caesar's wife, Calpurnia, whose small but highly memorable part in the mystery makes her far more interesting than the little that is known from history. Old friends Milo and Caelius also help turn the plot.

Saylor easily balances the personal woes of Gordianus with the the larger canvas of war and intrigue. I found it consistently satisfying and, in its surprise ending, I suspect we may look forward to the next in the series as a completely different change of pace.

Although I missed actually seeing Caesar and Cicero in the novel (both are in the East), this is a fun, refreshing, and energetic read and - as always with Saylor - you will learn something about Rome. Enjoy it!

Rating:
Summary: Ancient Rome at its Very Best
Review: Gordianus the Finder is accosted in the marketplace by a beautiful young woman. She staggers towards him and dies in his arms. The woman is known as Cassandra by many, but this is not her real name, but a name given by the people who believed she had the true gift of prophecy. lots of people would pay handsomely for this gift, others would do anything in their power to supress it. Cassandra has had the ear of some of the most influential people in Rome, people who would stop at nothing . . .
Obsessed with Cassandra's death Gordianus sets out to investigate. What he uncovers has serious implications concerning some of the most important women in Rome and puts Gordianus in serious danger of losing his own life.
Saylor brings the sights, sounds and smells of Ancient Rome to life yet again, surely this is how it must have been.

Rating:
Summary: Winding down?
Review: I've really enjoyed Saylor's roman novels, but this latest continues the decline noticeable in the previous couple. The plot involves Gordianus' personal life in a fairly implausible way and the historical setting of this particular year in Roman history (i.e. the history of the city itself, not the republic/empire) just isn't as vivid as in previous installments. I'll probably get the next one, but more out of duty and a diminishing hope that Saylor will do something new - but plausible - next time.

Rating:
Summary: among Saylor's better efforts..
Review: If you haven't read any Roman historical fiction from Steven Saylor then I suggest you look immediately at the amazon.com reviews for 'Roman Blood', the first book in the series. 'A Mist of Prophecies' is best enjoyed only after reading Saylor's preceding novels. For those who have had the pleasure of doing so please read on.

'A Mist of Prophecies' is a somewhat contrivedstory of an enigmatic soothsayer, aptly name Cassandra. She enters the life of our Roman sleuth Gordianus (..actually, she and Gordy develop a "special" relationship). In the start of the book we understand Cassandra gets poisoned. During the rest of the book Saylor makes clever use of flashbacks to understand what actually happened. Saylor deliciously re-introduces all the evil ladies of Rome we got to know from previous books. These ladies obviously took a shine to the fortune telling Cassandra. Did one of them kill her too? Read the book to find out.

Bottom line: slightly fluffy but extremely enjoyable.