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A review by otherwyrld
The Seven Wonders by Steven Saylor
3.0
It must be tricky trying to write a prequel to a long-running series. The author must take everything that we have learned about our protagonist and gradually cut it all away until what you have left is the essence of the character with none of the life experiences. To my mind, the only successful prequel I have read is Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe stories set in his early days in India.
Which brings us to this story - I have always enjoyed historical crime stories, and the Roma Sub Rosa series featuring Gordianus the Finder has always been a favourite of mine. So it was a bit of a shock to find a book set during his teenage years. Gordianus and his teacher Antipater set out to visit the Seven Wonders of the World. This they do so over the course of three years, and in each location Gordianus finds a mystery to solve and has a sexual adventure.
It was this element that was the most frustrating part of the book to me, as it was clear that this was a set of short stories that were later put together to form this book (something the author acknowledges in the author's notes). The framing sequence - the threat of war between Rome and various opponents - was underwritten, and only really forms the backdrop of two of the stories. So it feels like Gordianus goes and gapes at a Wonder, trips over a crime which he then solves, then has a bit of a romp with someone he has met during the story, the end.
The framing story only really comes together in the last story, set in Alexandria, and it's frustrating because the story seems to be left unfinished. However, in the very last page of the book, Gordianus happens to buy a certain female slave, and it's this final part that almost made me give it 4 stars, because any fan of these stories know that the heart of them is based on the love story between these two characters. It was too little too late though.
So an entertaining story, but in the end it fell short.
Which brings us to this story - I have always enjoyed historical crime stories, and the Roma Sub Rosa series featuring Gordianus the Finder has always been a favourite of mine. So it was a bit of a shock to find a book set during his teenage years. Gordianus and his teacher Antipater set out to visit the Seven Wonders of the World. This they do so over the course of three years, and in each location Gordianus finds a mystery to solve and has a sexual adventure.
It was this element that was the most frustrating part of the book to me, as it was clear that this was a set of short stories that were later put together to form this book (something the author acknowledges in the author's notes). The framing sequence - the threat of war between Rome and various opponents - was underwritten, and only really forms the backdrop of two of the stories. So it feels like Gordianus goes and gapes at a Wonder, trips over a crime which he then solves, then has a bit of a romp with someone he has met during the story, the end.
The framing story only really comes together in the last story, set in Alexandria, and it's frustrating because the story seems to be left unfinished. However, in the very last page of the book, Gordianus happens to buy a certain female slave, and it's this final part that almost made me give it 4 stars, because any fan of these stories know that the heart of them is based on the love story between these two characters. It was too little too late though.
So an entertaining story, but in the end it fell short.