A Mist of Prophecies by Steven Saylor (as always, spoiler warnings apply)

Boo. Hiss.

I didn't like this one as much as the others. First off, Gordianus cheats on Bethesda while she's sick (oh great, I sound like I'm reviewing a soap opera now), but that isn't really what bugged me most about this book. Nope, it was the continuity errors. Continuity errors.

Bethesda and Menenia "never got along?" Since when? I thought one of the reasons Gordianus liked Menenia was that she was good at handling the sometimes difficult Bethesda? When did that change? (When Saylor needed to create household tension.) Oh and Gordianus has never gone into debt? Er, I distinctly remember references to 'creditors' in the earlier books. Now, this one is a little more forgivable in that it seemed to come up more in his earlier career back when he used to live in the house on the Esquiline and before he became a little more prosperous (ie. before he had so many famous clients). And more recent books did mention him staying out of debt, so I sort of fanwanked that he had debt in his earlier career, but got out of it as things got better, then got back into it again when times got really tough in this book. Fine, but that's not the same as never having been in debt.

Both of the above though, I could forgive. But the last one, I can't. Clodia and Caelius get back together and are really in love. Not only does writing that line make me feel like I'm reviewing a soap opera again, but it is completely nonsensical. Caelius admitted to trying to poison Clodia twice in The Venus Throw. I just don't buy that Clodia would get back with a guy who you know, tried to kill her. Does. Not. Compute.

Cassandra and Ajax.
Has nothing to do with
this book except that
it has a character
named Cassandra in it.
But nice painting, no?

The rest? Well, Gordianus investigates the murder of a woman he had a brief affair with, Cassandra. Cassandra is not her real name, but it's the one everyone calls her, because she supposedly has visions. I don't know if I buy their affair or not. I can buy that Gordianus needed an escape, which seemed in large part an impetus for it. He's always had attractions to other women (and sometimes men), but has managed to control himself until now. I think Saylor does do a good job of showing the toll the civil war is taking on Rome. Even the rich women he visits in the course of his investigation are clearly on tough times and shown having to sell their dearest possessions just stay afloat or living in once-sumptuous mansions now in ill-repair.

His home life is tense as well. Things are tense because there's no money and there's the debts hanging over his head. There's trouble between him and Bethesda, hinted to be brought on by his rejection of Meto in the previous book. I kind of wish they had shown him telling them about that, because while it would have been soap opera moment to be sure, at least it would have been one I would have found more interesting. Hieronymus has moved in with them, and he sometimes entertains Gordianus, sometimes annoys him. I can see him being that kind of person, to be honest. Diana's baby son has seemed to have disappeared, which I could as another continuity thing, as he's just not mentioned. Now granted, he doesn't figure in the main plot at all but since there's more emphasis on his home life than in the previous books, it seems odd to not have him mentioned at all.

I like that Saylor was clearly trying to show more of influence women had in Roman society in this book, but it just felt overall sloppily written to me. Like he was just a bit off his game.