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cyrce's review against another edition
3.0
The follow-up to The Iron Hands of Mars, Poseidon’s Gold picks up almost immediately where the last book in the Marcus Didius Falco series left off, with Marcus returning to Rome after his last misadventure. The mystery that Falco is tasked with now? Clearing his dead brother’s good name when a soldier from his brother, Festus’s former battalion comes for his money. But things don’t quite go as planned when the centurion ends up dead and the last person he had a fight with happens to be poor Falco.
As much as I enjoyed having mystery back in the plot, this particular entry into the Marcus Didius Falco series didn’t grab me until halfway through the book. It’s disappointing that it wasn’t as interesting as the first in the series. Hopefully the next book will have less punishment for Falco in the first few chapters.
Spoiler
I feel a little worn from Falco being in punished in some way in each book. Becoming a murder suspect isn’t any better. But at least there was the feeling of a real mystery in this book, unlike The Iron Hand of Mars, which was just Falco on a fetch mission. It was what I loved about the first book and I’m glad to see it back again. Trying to find the real murderer can never be easy, of course, and the reason behind the centurion’s visit becomes clear once Falco’s erstwhile father comes back into the picture: Falco’s brother had been transporting art from Greece into Rome and the centurion was one of a syndicate that funded the operation! Unfortunately, the owners of the art Festus was transporting have decided to push the subject at the worst time.As much as I enjoyed having mystery back in the plot, this particular entry into the Marcus Didius Falco series didn’t grab me until halfway through the book. It’s disappointing that it wasn’t as interesting as the first in the series. Hopefully the next book will have less punishment for Falco in the first few chapters.
rosannelortz's review against another edition
4.0
In Poseidon’s Gold, Marcus is forced to deal with the artistic mess that his “war hero” brother Festus left behind at his death. Unbeknownst to his family, Festus had been using his time in Judea to run several merchant ventures; but one of the ships disappeared with its cargo, and now the investors want the Didius family to give them their money back. Fraudulent sculptures run amok, Marcus must confront his anger at the father who abandoned him, and Helena discovers that Marcus’s relationship with his brother’s girlfriend is a little more complicated than she would like. Lindsey Davis sheds a spotlight on the place of Greek sculpture in the Roman world and the derivative nature of Roman art.
missayme's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyable, well-paced. Historical setting nicely done without being laid on with a trowel.
grahamjohnson's review
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A swell mystery, the world has developed. Happy to keep reading.
dogearedandfurry's review against another edition
4.0
Although it felt like a long time before anything got going, this book sticks with what feels to me a pattern of a good book/so so book repeated through the series. This was a good one.
marimoose's review against another edition
5.0
The Didius boys! Finally, Falco's returned to Italy after that lengthy six-month trip to Germania Libera. Not that I had much to complain about in the previous book (I am still amused at the ending myself). But a Roman mystery is not a proper Roman mystery until one is in the city herself! Plus, Poseidon's Gold had to do with artwork and implicated murders.
It was much more riveting when it was Falco's innocence that was at question here, and even more so when he spent most of his time running around with a misfit band of artists, runaway slaves, crazy family members, and hated--though otherwise kindred--auctioneers. Oh, and Helena Justina, of course. Can I just say brava and finally over those two? Not that they're married yet, but I swear they will be!
The best character in this story was definitely Geminus, the frivolous auctioneer with problems on every side of Rome. And best supporting non-existent character? Definitely Didius Festus. Which goes to show that the Didius boys rocked the story.
I didn't think I could love most of these books continually, and with such high fervor! Now if only Borders would make good and actually send the backorder copy of the next book that I bought weeks ago...
It was much more riveting when it was Falco's innocence that was at question here, and even more so when he spent most of his time running around with a misfit band of artists, runaway slaves, crazy family members, and hated--though otherwise kindred--auctioneers. Oh, and Helena Justina, of course. Can I just say brava and finally over those two? Not that they're married yet, but I swear they will be!
The best character in this story was definitely Geminus, the frivolous auctioneer with problems on every side of Rome. And best supporting non-existent character? Definitely Didius Festus. Which goes to show that the Didius boys rocked the story.
I didn't think I could love most of these books continually, and with such high fervor! Now if only Borders would make good and actually send the backorder copy of the next book that I bought weeks ago...
didactylos's review against another edition
4.0
I like the way the family intrigues and backgrounds are coming to the front of this series.
assaphmehr's review against another edition
4.0
Poseidon's Gold is the fifth novel in teh Falco series, and the first in which we are introduced to his family and past. In the same vein, Falco's love life is also getting more complex.
Expect a novel that explores the ancient world's art trade, from sculpting and shipping to forgery and rapine.
Be aware that while it's not necessary to read the books in order, it certainly helps.
--
[a:Assaph Mehr|14422472|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1445823325p2/14422472.jpg], author of [b:Murder In Absentia|29500700|Murder In Absentia (Felix the Fox, #1)|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1457914061s/29500700.jpg|46845657]: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
Expect a novel that explores the ancient world's art trade, from sculpting and shipping to forgery and rapine.
Be aware that while it's not necessary to read the books in order, it certainly helps.
--
[a:Assaph Mehr|14422472|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1445823325p2/14422472.jpg], author of [b:Murder In Absentia|29500700|Murder In Absentia (Felix the Fox, #1)|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1457914061s/29500700.jpg|46845657]: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
futurelegend's review against another edition
4.0
Another enjoyable, beautifully-researched and bittersweet romp through the palaces and squalid back alleys of Imperial Rome, this time finding Marcus Didius back home from Germany to find an intruder in his mother's kitchen, intent on recovering a debt his dead hero brother left behind. Shame and scandal in the family? It gets worse when the intruder is found dead and even Falco's friend Petronius has him clearly in the frame. Can Falco solve the case and clear his name before the magistrate has him crucified? What does his shifty absentee father do? And will it all end with him having the wherewithal to marry Helena? I'm not telling. But it is a lovely send-up of the art market.