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git_r_read's review against another edition
4.0
Mysteries can be hard to write I would imagine. Believable story and characters the reader relates to. One set in the ancient past would be even more difficult with the research and not letting modern-isms get in the way.
Mary Reed and Eric Mayer did an amazing job with all that it took to make this an intriguing story and mystery.
John is the Lord Chamberlain to the Emperor Justinian, in charge of the Emperor's Christian court while John worships, dangerously, as a non-Christian. His friend, Leukos Keeper of the Plate, is found murdered. John investigates the many suspects as well as walking the fine line that is the royal court.
I empathized with John and enjoyed the peek into the past. I absolutely look forward to reading more of this series.
Mary Reed and Eric Mayer did an amazing job with all that it took to make this an intriguing story and mystery.
John is the Lord Chamberlain to the Emperor Justinian, in charge of the Emperor's Christian court while John worships, dangerously, as a non-Christian. His friend, Leukos Keeper of the Plate, is found murdered. John investigates the many suspects as well as walking the fine line that is the royal court.
I empathized with John and enjoyed the peek into the past. I absolutely look forward to reading more of this series.
viktorreads's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was fine. Too many characters though which made it hard to keep track of what was happening.
expendablemudge's review
3.0
Rating: 3.25* of five
The Book Description: Byzantium, capitol of the 6th century Roman Empire, simmers a rich stew of creeds, cultures, and citizens with a sprinkling of cutthroats and crimes. John, Emperor Justinian’s Lord Chamberlain, supervises a Christian court while himself observing the rites of Mithra. Thomas, a knight from Britain; Ahasuerus, a soothsayer; and two ladies from Crete stir up events and old memories for John, who must discover how the visitors link to the death of a treasury official.
My Review: First Mystery Novel Syndrome: Introduce characters, drop them for north of two chapters, come back and explain why they're game-changers, drop them for north of two chapters, and then shuffle them off-stage unceremoniously.
Then kill people the main character doesn't much care about, and make them part of the final solution.
Describe dead bodies in such a way that the savvy mysterian will be wondering why the sleuth doesn't spot something immediately; explain this away with Backstory Stress Disorder.
Set your story in a transitional time in history, which allows you to do interesting things with characters' beliefs and ideas. Skate along the surface of this possibility. Offer simultaneously a little too much and nowhere near enough of the tensions this would naturally create between the characters, instead of within them.
But in the end, after getting past the utterly urpsome description of a man being gelded, this first mystery in an ongoing series is just on the knife-edge of good enough to keep me going.
The Book Description: Byzantium, capitol of the 6th century Roman Empire, simmers a rich stew of creeds, cultures, and citizens with a sprinkling of cutthroats and crimes. John, Emperor Justinian’s Lord Chamberlain, supervises a Christian court while himself observing the rites of Mithra. Thomas, a knight from Britain; Ahasuerus, a soothsayer; and two ladies from Crete stir up events and old memories for John, who must discover how the visitors link to the death of a treasury official.
My Review: First Mystery Novel Syndrome: Introduce characters, drop them for north of two chapters, come back and explain why they're game-changers, drop them for north of two chapters, and then shuffle them off-stage unceremoniously.
Then kill people the main character doesn't much care about, and make them part of the final solution.
Describe dead bodies in such a way that the savvy mysterian will be wondering why the sleuth doesn't spot something immediately; explain this away with Backstory Stress Disorder.
Set your story in a transitional time in history, which allows you to do interesting things with characters' beliefs and ideas. Skate along the surface of this possibility. Offer simultaneously a little too much and nowhere near enough of the tensions this would naturally create between the characters, instead of within them.
But in the end, after getting past the utterly urpsome description of a man being gelded, this first mystery in an ongoing series is just on the knife-edge of good enough to keep me going.
stephend81d5's review
3.0
easy going crime read based in 6th century constantinople and the first in the series, looking forward to the second in the series
thuja's review
2.0
I wasn't able to finish this before it had to go back to the library and I wasn't involved enough in the plot to want to renew it. The research that went into the book is evident and very interesting, but sadly none of the characters were developed enough that I wanted or needed to know what happened to them.
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