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The River God's Vengeance (SPQR) | 
 enlarge | Author: John Maddox Roberts
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Category: Book
List Price: £10.05
Buy New: £4.26
You Save: £5.79 (58%)
New (19) Used (9) from £4.26
Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 54694
Media: Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Pages: 304
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.9
ISBN: 0312323204
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780312323202
ASIN: 0312323204
Publication Date: February 2005
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Ready for immediate despatch from the UK.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Eighth Book in a Terrific Series February 28, 2007
J. Chippindale (England)
10 out of 13 found this review helpful
John Maddox Roberts is the pseudonym of Mark Ramsay, author of numerous works of science fiction and fantasy, in addition to his successful historical SPQR mystery series. He lives in New Mexico with his wife.
Anyone who is a fan of Lindsey Davis, Steven Saylor or David Wishart will love the SPQR series of books by the author. Once again we have an addition to the ever growing number of amateur detectives patrolling the streets of ancient Rome, solving mysteries and crimes. Not all at the same time, I may add, in fact not even in the same centuries. Decius Caecilius Metellus the Younger, a high-born bad boy, is the offering of the author and he is just as interesting, likeable and believable as the leading characters from the author's contemporaries.
The adventures of Decius have taken him from one end of the empire to the other, usually escaping from the trouble he has made for himself and more often than not ending up in more trouble. But Decius always finds his way back to his first love, Rome. With an impressive family name and a marriage to the niece of none other than Julius Caesar himself, Decius has finally stepped on to the first rung of Rome's political ladder, having been elected to the prestigious but somewhat lowly office of aedile.
As aedile, Decius's main responsibility is, to put not too fine a point on it, buy the adoration of the people by staging elaborate gladiatorial combats and games filled with wild beasts from all over the world and all out of his own purse.
He also has much more mundane tasks and when his official responsibilities demand that he investigate the collapse of a tenement building his sense of duty and fair play will not allow him to write it off as just another builder using shoddy materials. His findings implicate some of the most powerful men in Rome, but is our hero prepared to back down . . .
 Great addition to the series, but no real whodunnit. January 19, 2004
Jan Machielsen
23 out of 23 found this review helpful
Coincidentally, SPQR VIII came out just after Tom Holland's "Rubicon", a real account of the "the triumph and tragedy of the Roman Republic". Being a complete freak about everything Roman, I naturally bought and read both. I can recommend everyone to do the same because it makes you even more aware of the historical facts the series is built on. This unique blend of the SPQR series between fact and fiction is for me a real strongpoint. The Aemilian Theatre, which prominently features in this book, for example was mentioned in Holland's book, including a quote from Cicero on how dangerous the construction was.This brings me to the content of the book. Decius Caecilius Metellus has been elected aedile (an office for which had been running in the previous book). It is a most burdensome office because he is expected to host several expensive "munera", and has to supervise construction building, whorehouses and sewers. The collapse of a brandnew appartment building, one of the big "insula" Rome was famous (or rather notorious) for, leads Decius to an investigation into the corrupt world of building contractors. When his investigation implicates several important patricians (no great surprise here) things get dangerous. It truly is a great addition to the series, though unlike book VII it is not a real whodunnit. Already quite early in the novel it becomes clear who the bad people are, but unless you are a real detective buff this is no great problem. The action that follows and the historic detail make the book good enough. The downside, I think, of the SPQR series is that the author never really knows how to convey pathos. Even when 250 people get killed in the collapse of that building, it is stated really matter-of-factly. When reading you do not really feel anger or compassion or pity or whatever. But all in all, it truly is a great book. Though if you are new to the series, it is best to start with part I and work you were up from there.
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