Marcus Didius Falco is a private investigator in Ancient Rome. These five books have been adapted for radio and I recall listening to a couple of them about twelve years ago. They were good enough that they stuck in my mind, so I jumped at the chance of getting them in one collection. Falco is voiced by Anton Lesser, who makes a superb street-wise, slightly world-weary Falco. The ongoing will-they-won’t they love story continues throughout the five books with Falco anxious to marry and settle down and Helena Justina happy just as they are.
The stories are:
The Silver Pigs:
When a young girl asks for his help, Falco is involved in a case of smuggling, cheating and murder involving lead ingots from Britain.
Shadows in Bronze: Rome, AD 71. This carries on from The Silver Pigs. Falco secretly disposes of a decayed corpse for the Emperor Vespasian, then goes to the Bay of Naples to investigate the murderous members of a failed coup. Falco is in love with the beautiful Helena Justina, the daughter of a senator and way above him in rank.
Venus in Copper:
Falco accepts a commission to help a family of freed slaves.
The Iron Hand of Mars:
Falco is sent to Germania, one of the most hostile and dismal parts of the empire to deliver a new standard, an iron hand, to one of the legions. He finds Helena Justina’s brother, and hopes to find Helena Justina herself, as she’s gone off in a snit.
Poseidon’s Gold:
After the trip to Germania Falco and Helena return to Rome to find Falco’s mum being harassed by a centurion from his dead brother’s legion. Apparently Festus dies owing a considerable amount of money in a shady deal involving a statue of Poseidon. When the centurion is killed, Falco is accused of the murder, and must sort out the mystery or be executed.
Highly recommended.
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I do love a hero who knits socks in his spare time. The Saint of Steel died and all his paladins ran mad. Only a few survived the shock and, three years later, Steven is still broken, but is gradually beginning to get his life back. Employed and sheltered by the Temple of the Rat, led by the indomitable Bishop Beartongue, the few surviving paladins of the saint are mostly tasked with suitable physical missions where violence is likely. Steven is acting as protector to a healer in a rough area of town. On his way home he sees a young woman being chased as a witch by the Hanged Mother’s priests, a particularly cruel sect. He saves her and then lets her go. Grace is a perfumer, trying to lead a quiet life as she’s run away from an unfair and two-timing husband. Steven and Grace meet again at an official palace event and are immediately thrown into a plot of assassination and false accusations. This is a romance but taut and exciting, as Grace’s landlady turns out to be a spy, and Grace is accused of attempted murder, again, by the Hanged Mother’s priests. This is a re-read via Audible. Christian Rodska reads very well, and I thoroughly recommend this in audio or written form.
