mbondlamberty's review against another edition
5.0
Fun and easy reads through which to learn Roman History - if you don't know your Cicero from your chickpea, this will help
csdaley's review against another edition
3.0
My least favorite of the Gordianus books so far. I really felt like I was plodding through it. I still enjoyed but I think that it was a just barely enjoyed it. I thought the first two books were plotted tighter with a more engaging central mystery. I will still be buying the 4th book but I hope that it returns to a faster pace.
awwhh's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
hoperu's review against another edition
3.0
I was somewhat disappointed with this book. Although I find the Catilinarian Conspiracy interesting, and I studied Cicero's speeches in college, I was bored with the political focus of this novel. Also, the action, such as there was, took a long time in coming. I didn't really get into it until the final 150 pages. The mystery of the headless bodies seems to be important to the various forms of manipulation that Gordianus fights against, but in the end is completely unconnected to the main action of the story. I suppose I might have enjoyed this more if I hadn't been expecting more of a true mystery.
cjelli's review against another edition
2.0
As historical fiction: well researched and evocative.
As a mystery: insubstantial and easily guessable.
Unfortunately, I was reading it for the mystery side, which is better balanced in Saylor's other novels.
As a mystery: insubstantial and easily guessable.
Unfortunately, I was reading it for the mystery side, which is better balanced in Saylor's other novels.
ulrikemaria's review against another edition
5.0
ok i love this book!!!!!!!! for lots and lots of reasons. here we go
this was actually the first steven saylor book ive read, i skipped the first two in the series to get to this one cause catilina is my favourite ancient roman politician & i had heard good things about this book!! now that ive finished it and enjoyed it so much, i think ill check out some of his others in roma sub rosa
i loved the way the mystery of the headless corpses and the second catilinarian conspiracy were interwoven!! i enjoyed the mystery a lot, i dont actually read much crime fiction, so the answer to the mystery was totally unexpected! it was good fun
steven saylor has been praised for his historical accuracy & i will add on to that babey! im no expert but i really loved seeing bits of writing & dialogue line up with my own research. especially as a queer person it was very gratifying & a great relief to have roman sexuality treated how it was at the time.
i just really loved how much gordianus loved his kids & wife. that was refreshing, especially considering roman attitudes towards cheating. i loved his and meto's relationship and how it changed over the course of the book. also love diana.
but god, a big reason i love this book is how it portrayed catilina! i already had Catilinarian Sympathies, but this book still totally changed how i saw him. the afterword especially made me a lot more sympathetic towards him. I'll definitely be checking out the books and essays mentioned in it that ive not already read. 'the conspiracy of cicero and catilina' oh my GOD.
this was actually the first steven saylor book ive read, i skipped the first two in the series to get to this one cause catilina is my favourite ancient roman politician & i had heard good things about this book!! now that ive finished it and enjoyed it so much, i think ill check out some of his others in roma sub rosa
i loved the way the mystery of the headless corpses and the second catilinarian conspiracy were interwoven!! i enjoyed the mystery a lot, i dont actually read much crime fiction, so the answer to the mystery was totally unexpected! it was good fun
steven saylor has been praised for his historical accuracy & i will add on to that babey! im no expert but i really loved seeing bits of writing & dialogue line up with my own research. especially as a queer person it was very gratifying & a great relief to have roman sexuality treated how it was at the time.
i just really loved how much gordianus loved his kids & wife. that was refreshing, especially considering roman attitudes towards cheating. i loved his and meto's relationship and how it changed over the course of the book. also love diana.
but god, a big reason i love this book is how it portrayed catilina! i already had Catilinarian Sympathies, but this book still totally changed how i saw him. the afterword especially made me a lot more sympathetic towards him. I'll definitely be checking out the books and essays mentioned in it that ive not already read. 'the conspiracy of cicero and catilina' oh my GOD.
shahrun's review against another edition
4.0
I did quite enjoyed this book (it took me so long to get through as I have recently started knitting again). I like the fact that the author has taken real historical events and woven his idea of what could have happened into the truth. I would read more by this author.
mrsmarch's review against another edition
2.0
Interminably wrong. Lots of themes, plots, and subplots, and Saylor's usual dexterity, but I think I lost a whole month on what I thought would be another charming, thrilling Roman mystery.
mamanrees's review against another edition
4.0
I accidentally read this one before [b:Arms of Nemesis|102712|Arms of Nemesis (Roma Sub Rosa, #2)|Steven Saylor|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316126310s/102712.jpg|1609422], but thankfully the stories don't follow each other so closely that I was confused reading book #3 without having read #2. I love Stephen Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa books for the completely opposite reason that I love the Brother Cafael mysteries. Brother Cadfael books are a light, fun mystery with just enough of a solid historical setting to make them really interesting to me but never enough history to slow down the story. The Roma Sub Rosa books are a solid, substantive historical fiction novel with enough mystery and intrigue to keep them fun and light. I enjoyed learning about Catilina's rebellion, and as in [b:Roman Blood|102720|Roman Blood (Roma Sub Rosa, #1)|Steven Saylor|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312011787s/102720.jpg|2569207] I found Saylor's depiction of Cicero to be fascinating and multi-faceted.