A Gladiator Dies Only Once (2006) - Plot & Excerpts
Nine stories of Gordianus the Finder’s early career, showing the relationships and decisions that shaped him into the well-connected and -respected figure he is in the later novels. In “The Consul’s Wife,” consul Decimus Brutus, hires Gordianus to ascertain whether his wife is placing coded messages in the daily news about his upcoming murder (Saylor is very good at writing wealthy, beguiling Roman femmes fatales). In “If a Cyclops Could Vanish in the Blink of an Eye,” Gordianus solves (or does he?) an odd occurrence having to do with some missing clay figurines in his own house. In “The White Fawn,” Gordius ventures into the not quite friendly territory of Sertorius, the general who set up his own Roman state in Spain, to track down a senator’s grandson who may have joined the rebel. In “Something Fishy in Pompeii,” Gordianus solves a case of inchoate copyright infringement at a garum (pickled sardine sauce) factory – one of the details of food and festival that bring the ancient world to life in Saylor’s books. In “Archimedes’s Tomb,” Cicero hires him to solve the murder of a friend at the tomb he discovered. “Death by Eros” is a tale of unrequited love and murder by a state of Eros. In the titular story, the detective solves the puzzle of how a gladiator who died in front of an audience in the arena could be seen alive and well later. “Poppy and the Poisoned Cake” features a son who may or may not be an attempted parricide, and another Roman femme fatale. The last story, “The Cherries of Lucullus,” is one of the more fascinating. Famed epicurean and general Lucullus, famous general and epicurean, hosts Cicero, Gordianus, and some others to dinner; he wants Gordianus to ascertain whether his old one-eyed gardener, who looks after his very rare cherry trees, is actually his old enemy Varius. It’s not exactly a mystery, more a character study, but it evokes Rome and the Roman world with believable detail and research. Saylor’s Rome is always enthralling; there is as much history as drama, which is essential. These are not modern people merely draped in togas, but Romans, enjoying the games, food, culture and mores of their time. Saylor weaves information and suspense with an expert hand.
Unlike Saylor's eight novels about Gordianus the Finder, this is a collection of nine short stories about the private eye in ancient Rome. It is his second collection. As with all of the other works, this collection is well-researched and an enjoyable crime/mystery genre. Some of the stories have Gordianus encountering famous historical characters, such as the Cicero. Set in the last decades of the Roman Republic, the intrigue among senators and other political figures are actually take place during Gordianus' early career as an investigator.Murder, money fraud, political intrigues, Some of the puzzles that he must unravel turn out not to be crimes at all, as in some of his novels. A flavor of the content can be gleaned from some of the titles: "The Consul's Wife," "Something Fishy in Pompeii," "Archimedes's Tomb," and "Death by Eros," Saylor closes the collection with a chronology and some historical notes. As always, a reader of Sayor's works will learn a good deal about Roman history and daly life, in addition to enjoying some fine mystery writing.More here: http://www.sulisinc.com/sulisblog/201...
What do You think about A Gladiator Dies Only Once (2006)?
In this book, Steven Saylor presents nine short stories from the early years of Gordianus, the Finder, a kind of Sherlock Holmes of the Roman period. Besides the mystery behind every story, which the author weaves very well (for it is not easy to create something intriguing in less pages!), there are fabulous descriptions of life in Roman times – the races, the gladiator games, the expensive foods. This is my first Steven Saylor book and I must say that it “opened my appetite” for his novels – I bet they are more “delicious” in terms of period details!
—Margaret
Steven Saylor developed a passion for all things "Roman" as an adolescent. He's spent years reading and researching everything he could find on this time period and writes stories based on historical events and characters. He doesn't sugar-coat the past nor does he write under the influence of any religious dogma. If you're easily offended by depictions of gladiatorial games, bloodshed, and sexual attractions and situations, do NOT read this series. If however, you're an adult who accepts that ancient people approached life differently and relished food, entertainments and pleasures (when they could), then get comfortable and enjoy some good stories. Life was hard in ancient times and this author tells it like it was!
—Denise
A collection of short stories from Gordianus the Finder's earlier investigative years. Some interesting and some rather trivial. This is a good book for those who have read several of the more traditional novels in the Roma Sub Rosa series. I would not recommend if you have not read at least 3-4 others.Saylor does a good job to futher develop the Gordianus character and especially his relationship with his son, Eco. He also is able to highlight some historical elements of the Roman empire that he misses out on in the other novels - for example, Roman cuisine and Gladiator battles.
—Rob
