A Roman Death (Crime Club) - Hardcover

O'Hagan, Joan

4.19

26 ratings by Goodreads

9780385249881: A Roman Death (Crime Club)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385249888 ISBN 13: 9780385249881

Publisher: Doubleday, 1989

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A young rake of Patrician lineage is brutally murdered in ancient Rome, and a woman is charged with the crime, but the great Cicero is determined to uncover the true nature of the killing

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About the Author:

Joan O'Hagan (1926-2014) was a published author of fiction. She grew up in Canberra and studied Classics at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. After working in New Caledonia and England, she lived most of her life in Italy. She returned to Australia in 1997, where she completed her final novel, 'Jerome & His Women'. For further details, please see: https: //www.joanohagan.com.

Review:

'Poison, poetry (both high-minded and salacious), marriage for money, marriage for love, gang-rape, cowardice in battle, scheming slaves, conniving aristocrats, malicious matrons casting magical curses, and (as if all this were not enough) a previously unknown oration by Cicero - there's so much going on, so expertly conveyed ...' - Steven Saylor
'An absorbing story, with fully drawn characters, a fascinating place and period, all given vibrant life in the author's best work so far.' -- Kirkus Review
'An original setting, carefully researched and vividly portrayed.' -- The Times Literary Supplement
'Religious beliefs and superstition in the ancient world play a key part in Joan O'Hagan's novel about mayhem in Rome ... The identity of the killer, in this excellent classical puzzle that is also a classic whodunit, is revealed in a splendidly contrived shock ending.' -- Gerald Kaufman, The Listener
'Who put the poison in Lucius's wine, what truth in the scabrous accusations? Cicero for the defence; an unusual treat, don't miss it.' -- Christopher Wordsworth, The Observer
'The contexts are all smartly timed ... beware of wicked terminal twists.' -- Stephen Walsh, The Oxford Times
'In this novel, excellent as a mystery and as a reconstruction of the life of upper-class Rome in 45-44 BC, O'Hagan tells a story of murder, magic, love, greed and intrigue, the plot of which could have come right out of an oration of Cicero.' -- Fred Mench, Fictional Rome: Authors & Reviews

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