A Prisoner of Privilege

Starred review from July 15, 2019
Set in Roman-ruled Britain in 194 C.E., Rowe’s 18th series whodunit (after 2018’s The Price of Freedom) surpasses her own high standard. Libertus, a pavement-maker turned magistrate in Glevum (modern day Gloucester), visits the home of Josephus Loftus, the local moneylender, who wants to talk with Libertus. But when Josephus’s servant looks in on her master, she finds him dead, and Libertus quickly discovers evidence that Josephus was smothered with a pillow. His investigation comes as tensions remain high in Rome over who will be recognized as emperor; civil war broke out the previous year after the Praetorian Guard assassinated Emperor Pertinax. The expected arrival in Glevum of a retired member of the guard leads Libertus’s patron, Marcus Aurelius Septimus, to fear that his loyalty is being questioned. Three more killings—a strangling, a beheading, and a stabbing—raise the stakes. Rowe’s series remains a welcome complement to Ruth Downie’s Medicus mysteries, which provide a different perspective on Roman Britain.

August 1, 2019
Rowe continues her popular historical series set in ancient Glevum, the modern-day city of Gloucester, England, with the freedman and now town councillor Libertus featured in another gripping adventure. Libertus' patron, Marcus Aurelius Septimus, informs Libertus that one of Marcus' distant relatives is on his way to Glevum at the behest of the emperor, to investigate an accusation of treason. Such an accusation, if proven, can mean the brutal death of the accused, his family, and his slaves. But before the emperor's spy can arrive, the town's argentarii (money changer) falls at the baths, hits his head, and dies. When Libertus visits the man's house to pay his respects, he quickly discovers the man was murdered. But Libertus' attempt to investigate quickly turns disastrous when he finds himself firmly in the sights of the emperor's spy. Meticulously researched historical details, well-drawn characters, and a clever plot that will keep even the most seasoned reader guessing provide the appeal here.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)