Raiders of the Nile (The Ancient World) Hardcover Author: Visit Amazon's Steven Saylor Page | Language: English | ISBN:
1250015979 | Format: PDF, EPUB
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*Starred Review* Saylor’s long-running Roma Sub Rosa series affords astonishingly vivid views of the tumultuous first century BCE. Saylor has found an ingenious way of showing court intrigues, sea and land battles throughout the empire, and the most common (and lively) street life by creating a fictional detective respected by everyone, from the emperors and senators on down. Roman citizen Gordianus the Finder plays on his knowledge of human nature and politics to solve whatever he’s presented with. Now, Saylor skips back about 40 years (from Caesar’s difficulties with Ptolemy and Cleopatra in 44 BCE) to 88 BCE, when Gordianus, just turned 22, is staying for a time in luxurious Alexandria and is in love with his female slave. This attachment is the fulcrum for the novel. The slave, Bethesda, vanishes from a street fair she was attending with Gordianus. She has either been kidnapped by a band of pirates or has been taken as a slave for a much richer man. And in a twinning device entirely suitable to a Roman drama, the whole mystery is complicated by the fact that Bethesda bears an uncanny resemblance to a woman in the mime troupe whom she and Gordianus met after a performance. As usual with Saylor, a feast of details about Roman cuisine, street life, dress, and social strata is presented here, spiked with the contrast to Alexandrian customs. Another history-mystery that can be devoured on both levels. --Connie Fletcher
Review
“If you’re going to tour the ancient world, you could find no better guide than Saylor, who has proven his mastery of the form” —
USA Today on
The Seven Wonders“A vivid and robust writer, Saylor invests his books with exquisite detail and powerful drama.” —
The Philadelphia Inquirer on
A Mist of Prophecies“As always, Saylor excels at bringing the past alive, in particular by incorporating the political issues of the day into the action.” —Publishers Weekly (starred) on The Seven Wonders
“Vivid….Saylor has found a marvelous way to bring Roman history and mores alive. This is an excellent entryway to ancient Rome.” –Booklist (starred review) on The Seven Wonders
“Saylor's ability to re-create the classical world is always astounding, and The Seven Wonders is no exception. Expertly researched and beautifully written… A thoroughly enjoyable read.” –The Deseret News
“Steven Saylor’s engrossing series centers around Gordianus the Finder—a kind of Roman Sherlock Holmes.” –The Wall Street Journal on The Triumph of Caesar
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Books with free ebook downloads available Raiders of the Nile Epub Download
- Series: The Ancient World (Book 14)
- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Minotaur Books (February 25, 2014)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1250015979
- ISBN-13: 978-1250015976
- Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
In this enthralling novel, we meet Gordianus the finder, as a young man on twenty-two, living in Alexandria with Bethesda, the slave girl who has won his heart. Readers of Steven Saylor’s mystery series, set in ancient Rome, will be familiar with Gordianus’s resourcefulness as a detective. He is equally resourceful here, when Bethesda disappears and he discovers she has been kidnapped.
There are mysterious events, and the presence of Ismene the witch, a character who appeared in Saylor’s last Gordianus book, THE SEVEN WONDERS, adds a touch of the occult to the plot. But the book is more an adventure story than a mystery, and Gordianus’s courage and physical stamina are tested along with his mental acumen. There are terrible dangers, hair-raising escapes, and a well-fleshed out cast of characters that includes the street-smart young slave boy, Djet. Djet leaps off the page so fully alive and so appealing that I very much hope we encounter him in another novel. There is also Cheelba, a lion who I came to care about as much as I did the human characters. I loved Cheelba and the role he played in the story!
I appreciate the moral seriousness that Saylor brings to the subject of a romance between a master—Gordianus—and his slave. This question is not belabored in any kind of heavy handed way, but it is not ignored either. Since Gordianus is a good man, one the reader admires, it would be wrong to portray him as oblivious to the ethical aspects of such a power differential.
I have an abiding interest in the ancient world, and there were plot elements that reminded me of Roman comedies (which were patterned on Greek comedies). I found Saylor’s discussion of ancient novels in the Author’s Note extremely interesting, and a reminder of this author’s true erudition.
Steven Saylor’s “Raiders of the Nile” is a well-written, amusing and charming tale of the adventures of 22 year old Gordianus of Rome, who later will become Rome’s well-known fictional sleuth, solving many mysteries of Ancient Rome. Saylor’s invention of Gordianus resulted in many of his best books on Rome.
Here, Gordianus, who is on a long absence from Rome lasting over 2 years, and his slave Bethesda, get involved in a fanciful if not phantasmagorical, set of episodes in Ancient Alexandria and neighboring Nile Delta areas. Except for the mild sex scenes, hints of homosexuality, and the salty language of thieves, this could be (and is, in many ways) a great wide-eyed tale of adventure for pre-teen children. Indeed, the most charming and lovable character in the book is Djet, a 10 year old boy who accompanies Gordianus on many of the episodes, particularly the time spent at the Cuckoo’s Nest, deep in the Nile Delta. Sadly, Saylor drops Djet rather unceremoniously at the end of the story.
I have known Mr. Saylor personally for about 25 years and have probably read every word he has written. I admire his ability and him as a person, author, thinker, and citizen of the world.
This book, however, is not his best work, no matter how well researched and historically accurate it may be. I have no reason to question its historical authenticity and correct detail. It is the story line, the dialogue and the rather ridiculous scenarios in which the principal characters are involved with which I have issue. For me, it’s always a red flag when, at the end of the story, the two main protagonists meet (this time in jail) to reveal the real truths to each other, followed upon by 30 more pages of explanation about what really happened and why.
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