I was so excited to jump into this book and explore ancient Rome while investigating murders with Flavia Albia. But…somehow, I lost a connection to the story. There were too many characters in this book that I had difficulty to associate them in the plot.

However, the important aspect of this book is an absorbing mystery and the lovable main character. At the top, this book contains many interesting historical information from the Cretan's myths to the theatres of imperial Rome.

This wasn't a perfect book for me but if you like mysteries and ancient Rome, this may be worth picking up. ( )

The tenth in the series. Flavia investigates from theatrical killings - theatrical in that they happen in the theatrical world and feature characters from one of Falco's old cases, and theatrical in their nature. It's rather a grim-dark book, without the usual Yakkity-Sax scene, but all's well that end's well...

This is the 10th book in the historical fiction detective series featuring Flavia Albia. The series consists of “hard boiled” crime fiction set in Ancient Rome… which makes it very amusing on a meta level, as well as in fact, since the author adds a great deal of humor to the story.

The book begins in AD 89. Flavia Albia is the daughter of Marcus Didius Falco, a private informer (i.e., private investigator), and now Albia, the oldest child of Falco and Helena, has taken on that profession as well. Albia, close to 30, and married to Tiberius Manlius, an aedile (magistrate) about to retire, is a lot like her father in other ways: she has his commitment to dogged perseverance to solve a case, his sense of humor, and his penchant for snarky commentary.

The story involves some gruesome murders, all staged in area performance venues to replicate the plots of some gruesome plays. And in fact, the first murder is of Chremes, who, along with his wife Phrygia led a touring theater troupe. Chremes, found in Domitian’s Stadium, had been crucified according to the plot of the play Laureolus, as announced in a flyer tacked to the stadium. The killer wasn’t finished though, and other lethal reenactments follow. In fact, it begins to appear as though Albia might be a target as well.

Evaluation: This is such a fun series. With Davis’s creation of endearing characters and the educational setting in Ancient Rome, she has created a winning combination. ( )