Directory of Authors:
Gertrude Atherton · Caroline Lawrence · Mary Ray · Jay Williams · Henry Winterfeld
- Golden Peacock
(Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1936, hardcover).
Spilling out her story in headlong fashion, sixteen-year old Pomponia, niece of the satirist, Horace, investigates the murder of her parents. Has she uncovered a plot against Augustus Caesar which will also threaten her own future? The first Roman Mystery told from a woman's point of view. Set in 20 or 19 BC; Horace, Vergil, Livy, Ovid, Livia, Julia and Gaius Macaenas appear. [★★★]
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The Roman Mysteries Omnibus
(London: Orion, 2005, hardcover; USA: Twenty First Century, 2004, hardcover). Omnibus edition containing the first, second and third novels: The Thieves of Ostia, The Secrets of Vesuvius and The Pirates of Pompeii |
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1. The Thieves of Ostia
(London: Orion, 2001, hardcover [US]; London: Dolphin, 2002, paperback [US]; audio cassette [US] [US] [US unabridged]; USA: Roaring Brook, 2002, hardcover; USA: Puffin Books, 2004, paperback). In 79 AD Flavia Gemina, daughter of a Roman sea captain and her three friends investigate the deaths of the dogs of Ostia. First in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] [UK] [USA] | |
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2. The Secrets of Vesuvius
(London: Orion, 2001, hardcover; paperback [US]; [US]; USA: Roaring Brook, 2002, hardcover; hardcover; USA: Puffin Books, 2004, paperback). Near Pompeii, Flavia, Jonathan, Nubia and Lupus try to solve a riddle which may lead to treasure amidst the famous eruption of Vesuvius. Second in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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3. The Pirates of Pompeii
(London: Orion, 2002, hardcover [US]; London: Orion, 2002, paperback USA: Roaring Brook, 2003, hardcover; USA: Puffin Books, 2004, paperback). In the aftermath of Vesuvius, Flavia and friends investigate the disappearance of refugee children. Third in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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4. The Assassins of Rome
(London: Orion, 2002, hardcover [US]; London: Orion, 2003, paperback [US]; USA: Puffin Books, 2005, paperback). A killer threatens Jonathan's father. Fourth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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5. The Dolphins of Laurentum
(London: Orion, 2003, hardcover; London: Orion, 2003, paperback; USA: Roaring Brook, 2003, hardcover; hardcover). The group tries to recover a sunken treasure. Fifth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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6. The Twelve Tasks of Flavia Gemina
(London: Orion, 2003, hardcover [US]; paperback [US]; USA: Roaring Brook, 2004, hardcover). Flavia makes background checks on her father's new lover. Sixth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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7. The Enemies of Jupiter
(London: Orion, 2003, hardcover [US]; paperback [US]; audio CD [US]; audio cassette [US]; USA: Roaring Brook, 2005, hardcover). In the capital the group hear that Pandora's Box is to be opened and race to prevent it. Seventh in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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8. The Gladiators from Capua
(London: Orion, 2005, hardcover paperback [US]; audio CD;. audio cassette). USA: Roaring Brook, 2005, hardcover; The friends go to see games at the Flavian Amphitheater and look for the missing Jonathan. Emperor Titus appears. Eighth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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9. The Colossus of Rhodes
(London: Orion, 2005, hardcover; (London: Orion, 2005, paperback [US]; audio CD; audio cassette). AD 80 finds the friends taking sailing lessons and traveling to Rhodes, only to encounter a criminal mastermind. Ninth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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10. The Fugitive from Corinth
(London: Orion, 2005, hardcover). In AD 80 the friends are in Corinth and discover that someone close to them has been stabbed. Tenth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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11. The Sirens of Surrentum
(London: Orion, 2006, hardcover; London: Orion, 2006, paperback; [US]). Flavia and friends spend the summer of 80 AD at a villa in Surrentum. Eleventh in the series. [not yet rated] | |
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12. The Charioteer of Delphi
(London: Orion, 2006, hardcover London: Orion, 2007, paperback). The friends are drawn into intrigues connected with chariot race gambling in the capital even as they attempt to assist a friend. A map of Ancient Rome is included. Twelfth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] [US hardcover] [US paperback] [US audio CD] | |
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13. The Slave Girl from Jerusalem
(London: Orion, 2007, hardcover London: Orion, 2007, paperback; audio CD). The friends struggle to prove the innocence of one of Miriam's childhood friends. Thirteenth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] [US hardcover] [US paperback] [US audio CD] | |
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14. The Beggar of Volubilis
(London: Orion, 2007, hardcover; London: Orion, 2008, paperback; audio CD). The group travels to the deserts of distant African Mauretania to recover a fabled gem for the emperor. Fourteenth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] [US hardcover] [US paperback] [US audio CD] | |
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15. The Scribes from Alexandria
(London: Orion, 2008, hardcover London: Orion, 2008, paperback). The friends must solve codes, riddles and other mysteries in ancient Egypt. Fifteenth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] [US hardcover] [US paperback] | |
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16. The Prophet from Ephesus
(UK: Orion, 2009, hardcover; USA: Orion, 2009, hardcover). In AD 81 the friends set out for Halicarnassus in Asia to investigate a disappearance, running into a great number of healers and holy men in the process. Sixteenth in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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17. The Man from Pomegranate Street
(London: Orion, 2009, hardcover). In AD 81 the friends return to Rome only to discover that Emperor Titus has died. As they investigate, many of the secrets in this series are finally revealed. Seventeenth and final in the series. Juvenile. [not yet rated] | |
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The Legionary from Londinium
(London: Orion, 2010, hardcover). Short story collection of six mysteries. Juvenile. [not yet rated] |
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The Ides of April
(London: Faber, 1974; New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1975, hardcover; Bethlehem Books, 1999, paperback). When Senator Caius Pomponius Afer is found murdered in bed, all the household slaves will be executed unless seventeen-year-old Hylas, the slave secretary, and military tribune Camillus Rufus, can find the real killer. Nero appears in this multiple point-of-view mystery. Juvenile. [★★★+] [ORDER] |
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The Roman Moon Mystery
(New York: Oxford University Press, 1948).
Eighteen-year-old night watch captain Aquilius Justus and his corporal, Umbrio, investigate the murder of a wealthy Senator while Marcia, a young Nazarene believer, reaches certain conclusions of her own. A multiple point-of-view mystery that throws light on the situation of early Christians in Rome. Set in 58 AD; Nero appears. Juvenile. [★★★]- The Stolen Oracle
(London, New York: Oxford University Press, 1943).
Fourteen-year-old Gaius Hortensius Decimus and his friend Rufus Lentulus must discover who has made off with the sacred, oracular Sibylline Books to save Rome's future and prove their innocence. Set in 21 BC; Augustus, Horace, and Gaius Macaenas appear. Juvenile.
(Students of American vernacular may be interested to find already in 1943 on page 139 the word "nark" used as slang for police informant.) [★★★] - The Stolen Oracle
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Detectives in Togas
(New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1956; 1990, paperback). Originally published in Germany as Caius ist ein Dummkopf: Eine lustige und spannende Detektivgeschichte für Kinder and translated by Richard and Clara Winston. [ORDER] | |
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Mystery of the Roman Ransom
(New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1971; 1990, paperback). Originally published in Germany as Caius geht ein Licht auf: Ein neues Abenteuer des römischen Schuljungen aus Caius ist ein Dummkopf and translated by Edith McCormick. [excerpt] [ORDER] |
See also Wearing Your Own Toga and Roman Festivals.
Copyright © 1994-2014 by Richard M. Heli.
Permission granted to reprint so long as this notice is preserved in its entirety and I am informed prior to the re-use. Published since June 1994. Contact
