Jane Finnis

This is a novel set in 91 A.D., in Roman Britain. This is a frontier world and the natives are restless.
A series of murders take place, trying to force the Romans from that part of Britain and hopefully encourage the rest of Britain to join in the rebellion.
The story follows Aurelia Marcellus who is running an inn near York, in the absence of her brother.
To my mind the heroine was too much of our age and sentiments didn't really ring true. The master manipulator behind everything seemed to be quite obvious and the ending seemed just a bit too convenient.
Probably 2 1/2 stars.… (mais)

A soldier staying at Aurelia's mansio on his way back to base at Isurium is murdered, possibly by his slave and possibly as part of a planned assassination of an Imperial tax auditor by the Brigantes around Isurium. Aurelia also receives a message from her cousin Jovina, whose husband is stationed in Isurium, ostensibly inviting Aurelia to her birthday party but actually asking for her help. Lucius forbids Aurelia to go as it is too dangerous.

A good story set against a believable backdrop of Roman settlers amongst resentful native British. I hope there are more to come in this series.… (mais)

Shadows in the Night:
Aurelia Marcella finds a badly-beaten unconscious man outside the mansio she runs on the outskirts of Brigantine territory in northern Britannia. Then news comes of many headless corpses being found on the roads. Is this the beginning of a full-scale native rebellion?

The author gives us a wonderful description of everyday life in ordinary and not so ordinary circumstances. I guessed the villain early on even if my attention was distracted briefly to other suspects.

A Bitter Chill
Lucius appears at the mansio to warn his sisters that he is going undercover in apparent disgrace and that a spy may come to seek evidence against him. After he leaves the Governor's very unpleasant aunt and uncle come to stay at the mansio while searching for their runaway son. A slave is killed in what appears to be an attempt to murder the Governor's uncle and Albia is found standing over the body holding a knife. Since the runaway son is her fiance and his parents do not approve of the match, she makes a very good suspect.

Overly complicated set-up, especially as the presence of the spy looking for evidence against Lucius is forgotten about for most of the book. There are hints that the Shadow of Death (the chief villain from "Shadows in the Night") may be manipulating events from afar, and I do dislike supervillains who keep popping up.

Buried Too Deep
A British farmer wounded fighting off sea-raiders is brought to consult Dr. Timaeus. A Roman settler also comes to call to buy some horses from Aurelia. Romans and British in the coastal district are each blaming the other for being behind the trouble with the sea-raiders. As Albia and her husband are now farming in the neighbourhood, Aurelia helps Lucius and Quintus investigate what is really going on.

Excellent exploration of Roman and British tensions amidst a convincing portrayal of everyday life.… (mais)

This was recommended to me as a mystery set in Roman Britain, since Roman Britain is a current reading focus. I think it is more of a romance than a historical mystery, and the people don't feel right for the era, especially the women. The social and class structure does not fit what I know of Roman life at this time. I found it dull, and I also was very annoyed that the Celts were all the bad guys, and the Roman soldiers were always in the right. I don't plan to read any more of the author's books Someone with more tolerance for standard romance than I have might enjoy it, but don't think it will tell you anything about life in Roman Britain.… (mais)