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It's 76 A.D. during the reign of Vespasian, and Marcus Didius Falco has achieved much in his life. He's joined the equestrain rank, allowing him to marry Helena Justina, the Senator's daughter he's been keeping time with the past few years. But that doesn't mean all is quiet for Falco, Helena, and their two young daughters.  By trade he is an informer, a man who looks into sticky situations, and he's been hired to pry his errant brother-in-law away from a murder investigation. Which means Falco must himself take it on -- requiring that Falco and Helena travel to Olympia in Greece under the guise of being tourists interested in the classic sites to investigate the suspicious goings on and the shady dealings of a fly-by-night travel agency. With two woman already missing from the packaged tour, things only get stickier when two more - including Falco's brother-in-law - disappear in what is Falco's most complex and dangerous case yet. ### From Publishers Weekly In Davis's engaging 17th ancient Roman historical to feature "informer" Marcus Didius Falco (after 2004's *Scandal Takes a Holiday*), Falco takes his deductive powers to Greece, where two young women tourists have died under mysterious circumstances. Accompanied by a large entourage, including his independent and sharp-witted wife, Helena, Falco soon finds that one tour, promoted by the shady Seven Sights Travel outfit, has a suspiciously high mortality rate. The long trail of corpses Falco uncovers puts the sleuth in danger of running out of suspects. While the way Falco unmasks the killer may be less than ingenious, the author's vivid picture of life in A.D. 76 and the sparkling characterizations, particularly the amusing byplay between Falco and Helena, will satisfy most readers. For those new to this popular series, which has a new publisher, Davis provides a short introduction to Falco and his world. *(June)* Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. ### From Booklist *Starred Review* If Sam Spade traveled back in time to A.D. 76, he'd be Marcus Didius Falco, the Roman sleuth at the center of Davis' mordant series. In the seventeenth outing, Marcus, who tackles crime on behalf of the emperor (and with the help of his tart-tongued wife, Helena), casts his cynical gaze on the case of two women who met their demise on tours of Olympia, Greece. Both women perished during excursions sponsored by Seven Sights, a dubious travel agency whose slippery host dispenses a litany of lies. Marcus focuses on the more recent victim, Valeria Ventidia, who was found beaten to death with a long-jumper's hand weight. Although there's no shortage of suspects among Seven Sights' colorful clientele, Valeria's shifty, jealous husband is at the top of the list. Davis provides vibrant period detail, from majestic Greek temples and teeming Roman slums to reprehensible rulers sporting tunics trimmed with gold. Some readers of this series may have difficulty accepting the hard-boiled veneer that Davis lays over ancient Rome, but for those willing to suspend disbelief, it makes a marvelous conceit. *David Pitt* *Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved*