ARMS OF NEMESIS

Gordianus the Finder, detective par excellence of the Roman world, narrates the story of his attempts to find the murderer of a Roman patrician, cousin to Marcus Crassus; find the two missing slaves accused of the patrician's murder; and avert the slaughter of the remaining 99 slaves in the household. Harrison differentiates among the characters by using slight changes in inflection and by reading the narrative in a loud, matter-of-fact tone, which reflects the caustic nature of Gordianus. Saylor's elaborate description of Roman villas and countryside illustrates the tale, while Gordianus’s use of logic and deduction brings the mystery to its inevitable conclusion. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 02]