The House of the Vestals

This a collection of short stories, easy to follow and different from each other. Each describes different aspects of the Roman world, from customs, festivities, beliefs and superstitions. This book is ideal for students studying English as a Second Language, or any kind of classroom. Students will find these easy stories informative, interesting and educative. My favorite mysteries were "The King Bee and the Honey" and "Little... Read Full Review

I've loved Steven W. Saylor's work even before he published under this name and his Gordianus series is better by far. This is actually a collection of 9 short stories, all of which were previously published in mystery magazines. All of the stories are good solid character pieces with mysterious happenings and detective work that makes sense for the time period involved (90-73 BCE). Several of the stories are told as stories... Read Full Review

A worthy contribution to the historical mystery genre (if such a classification exists), "The House of the Vestals" exhibits both the detective skills of Gordianus the Finder and the remarkable writing ability of his creator to telling effect.As Saylor himself points out in the foreword, some of his readers may have found themselves wondering what happened to the Roman sleuth between the years 80 BC (the setting of his first... Read Full Review

I can't get enough of Steven Saylor's Gordianus the Finder, and this marvelous collection of short stories was like opening a box of Godiva chocolates - each one is delicious! I have read nearly all of the Roma Sub Rosa series featuring the wonderfully human, intelligent, and dedicated Gordianus, and come to think of him almost as an extended family member. For other Gordianus-aholics, this collection of stories nicely... Read Full Review

Fans of Gordianus, the Finder will be happy to get a hold of this book right away. It includes nine short stories in chronological order to be read after "Roman Blood" (the first novel in the series). Saylor's writing is so rich, that not only will appeal to mystery and history lovers, but also to lovers of ancient tragedies. "Death wears a mask" shows Gordianus in a theatre where, all of a sudden, murder strikes; but we cannot... Read Full Review