02-05-2008, 01:39 AM
Accepting them for what they are, historically flavoured fictional mysteries, I found them all quite fun. He builds nicely on the characters (Gordianus, Bethesda, the three children, and an assortment of recurring characters) quite well. The whole series spans a period of about 40 years, including Catalina's rebellion, Spartacus' slave war, the Pompey-Caesar civil war, etc. There are a number of fun short stories too. While I can't answer for the full accuracy of all the social customs, etc. described in the books, I will say that Saylor's gladiator references are a little inaccurate. Still, all the books are a lot of fun.
