Roman Games

June 28, 2010
Pliny the Younger turns sleuth in Macbain's less than successful debut, a whodunit set during the turbulent reign of the Roman emperor Domitian in the first century C.E. The emperor charges Pliny, a senator and acting vice-prefect, with discovering the truth about the murder of Sextus Ingentius Vespa, a senate colleague and informer whose bloody corpse was found in his bedroom. Those who might gain from Vespa's death include his son, Lucius; his concubine, Turpia Scortilla; and Ganymede, a handsome young slave who was no stranger to his master's bed. The stakes are certainly high, since Vespa's slaves face execution for murder if the real culprit isn't caught. Unfortunately, Pliny isn't a natural investigator, and the author's bloodless portrayal of him puts this book a step below the work of a first-rate historical writer like Steven Saylor. Hopefully, Macbain, a professor with a Ph.D. in ancient history, will match his knowledge of the time with better characterizations and pacing in the sequel.

September 1, 2010

A respected Roman senator turns sleuth to solve a baffling closed-door mystery.

It's 96 CE. Her husband already executed for atheism, Flavia Domitilla, niece of the Emperor Domitian, has been exiled to the island of Pandateria. With the wildly popular Ludi Romani (the Roman games of the title) only days away, Domitilla makes a bold move for freedom: a pleading message to the unpleasant Senator Verpa, who rebuffs her. Shortly after, Verpa is found murdered. His son Lucius blames house slaves. Respected lawyer and senator Pliny the Younger has the bad luck to be in the hot-headed (and perhaps paranoid) emperor's presence when prefect Parthenius begs off heading up an investigation. Pliny's teenage wife Calpurnia, pregnant for the first time, needs him, but the Empire needs him more. Against the backdrop of 15 crowded days, Pliny dutifully follows every lead. Verpa, well-known as an informer, had no dearth of enemies. Many of them turn out to be in his own household, including his concubine Scortilla and her attendant dwarf Iarbas. Nor does Verpa's son Lucius have a clean conscience. Others in the mix include puckish satirical poet Martial and a Vestal Virgin from Gaul with an unsettling secret. As if the tangle of the investigation were not burdensome enough, Pliny has to deal with the jealousy of Parthenius for his perceived intimacy with the emperor.

Macbain's debut novel convincingly re-creates everyday life in ancient Rome, weaving real and fictional characters with aplomb. But the formality of his prose keeps the hero at a distance.

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September 1, 2010

When Sextus Verpa, the emperor's number one informant, is murdered in his bedroom, Emperor Domitian wants the killer found and gives young, naive lawyer and senator Pliny the Younger 15 days to do the job. If he fails, Verpa's household slaves will be burned alive in the arena. MacBain, a scholar of ancient Greek and Roman history, leads the reader down the mean and dirty streets of Rome to find a conspiracy of hatred and greed that ends in an entanglement of diverse religious groups united by a mutual hatred of the emperor. VERDICT This debut is sure to appeal to fans of Steven Saylor and Lindsey Davis. Readers may also want to try Gary Corby's The Pericles Commission, which involves historical figures from the ancient world.

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