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Product Description
Book Description
When a sacret woman's rite in the ancient city of Rome is infiltrated by a corrupt patrician dressed in female garb, it falls to Senator Decuis Caecilius Metellus the Younger, whose investigative skills have proven indispensable in the past, to unmask the perpetrators. When four brutal slayings follow, Decius enlists the help a notorious and dangerous criminal. Together, they establish a connection between the sacrilege and the murders, and track the offenders from the lowest dregs of society to the prominent elite of the upper class, finding corruption and violence where Decius least expects it.
From the Publisher
"A justly acclaimed detective series." -PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
I WONDER SOMETIMES IF WE CAN ever know what truly happened. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
I WONDER SOMETIMES IF WE CAN ever know what truly happened. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but one major inaccuracy,
By A Customer
This review is from: SPQR III: The Sacrilege (Paperback)
Good plot, as usual, except Caesar did not have a wife named Pompeia.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Best so far,
By ilmk "ilmk" (UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: SPQR III: The Sacrilege (Paperback)
This one is the best so far of the series. Apart from the author's familarity with his main character, Decius, the supporting ensemble are all finely meshed and their personalities are comfortable to the reader. The continuing feud between Clodius and Decius makes for fine entertainment. The introduction of the slave Hermes is with a mildly irritating character, but, given he is in the fourth installment it is interesting to see how he will develop. JMR gives us a more stable influence on Decius' live with the daughter of Lucius Julius Caesar 'joining' forces but being tee-d up to be Decius' betrothal.The plot centers around Clodius' infamous disruption of the Bona Dea rites in 62BC, and this time knowledge of the period doesn't impact on figuring out the murders. In all actuality, the murders are irrelevant and JMR hardly bothers to clear them up, Decius just mentally confirming his own theory as the facts. It spirals off into an interesting and, perhaps, not unbelievable, early view on the coming triumvirate. All the time JMR is quick to downplay and perhaps poke fun at the staid glorification of ancient Roman legends such as Caesar. For example Decius' hilarity at Caesar's famous remark about his wife Pompeia's non-complicity. It tends to humanise these historical figures. JMR's novels are 'published' as Roman murder mysteries but they are so much more than that. A satirical look at a fascinating period of history (much echoed by Steven Saylor), his astute (and, in this installment, being given license for hubris) hero bounces through ancient Rome in a delightfully irreverent manner in his quest to know the facts about murders and the general shadowy political dealings of Republican Rome.
5.0 out of 5 stars
How convincingly realistic,
By tertius3 (MI United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: SPQR III: The Sacrilege (Paperback)
Decius Caecilius Metellus, scion of an old and noble Roman family, and a snooper with the best of them, is now a Senator. That only means he now can pry more easily into matters that bring him to the really dangerous attention of truly powerful opponents who are playing the lethal end game of the Roman Republic (c. 61 B.C). Here he comes up against the most powerful triumvirate Rome ever produced, but inexplicably he has the protective respect of Julius Caesar, one of its members. This story revolves around a sacred secret women's rite and why an up-and-coming popular rabblerouser, Clodius, would want to spy on it. As usual, from such a minor incident Decius gradually uncovers a colossal conspiracy against the Republic. I found it hard to keep track of the minor but crucial characters not only because they are numerous, but also because they frequently have similar names and certain of them are also busy changing those names during the action (practices explained in the highly useful end-glossary of the Latin terms Decius drops into the narrative). One unique aspect of these Roman mystery stories is that they are purportedly narrated long after the events by Decius in his old age, thus allowing him amusing and droll comments (in the manner of Suetonius) benefiting from historical perspective. Roberts has a light touch on otherwise grim happenings, many of which he is not making up. His use of Caeasar's famous quote about how his wife must be above supicion is deliciously ironic. I'd guess the more one knows of classical history the more fun is this genre of mystery novels (cf. McCullough's biographical use of Caesar, Saylor's use of Cicero's law cases). The current St. Martin series has a much nicer presentation than the original Avon pulps, but has no more "Roman" an appearance (e.g., no Roman numerals). A useful map is included although its central parts disappear into the book's gutter. Incidentally, a computer mystery game titled "S.P.Q.R." was published in 1996 (has an amazing virtual Rome and gameplay a la MYST I, but is unrelated to the Roberts stories).
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