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Publisher:
Century (Random House) |
Release
Date: 6 May 2004 |
ISBN:
1844134628 |
Awards:
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Format
Reviewed: Hardback |
Buy
it at Amazon US || UK |
Read
an Excerpt |
Genre:
Historical Crime [330BC Athens] |
Reviewed:
2004 |
Reviewer:
Rachel A Hyde |
Reviewer
Notes: |
Copyright
MyShelf.com |
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Poison in Athens
By Margaret Doody
Stephanos,
his marriage looming large on the horizon, is back for another case.
Some might say fresh from his travels around the Aegean with his
friend and mentor Aristotle, but Stephanos would beg to differ there
and cite pirate kidnapping and would show his wound. When he has
recovered enough, he unwisely treats himself to a night in a brothel,
but soon regrets this when he discovers a corpse in the house next
door. The murdered man was the center of a notorious case prior
to Stephanos’ cruise and was being sued for “malicious
wounding.” Now Stephanos is in trouble of his own, following
his disastrous night of illicit passion; not only is he a key witness
to a murder, but he was also present when Athens’ most celebrated
courtesan decided to commit blasphemy. It looks as though he won’t
be getting married for a long time (if ever), and what does Socrates’
long-ago trial have to do with it all?
This tale brings the authentic flavour
of Aristotle’s Symposium to life, as the philosophy school
debates on every subject under the sun including what it means to
be an Athenian. Margaret Doody knows how to bring Ancient Greece
to a vivid and pulsating life, which comes over as being refreshingly
politically incorrect (to us that is; no anachronisms here) and
barbaric, contrasting with its much-vaunted democratic pride. If
you want a thrilling read, this isn’t it; the pace is slower
than the previous three books and the whole plot takes its time
getting off the ground, but if you want to read about life in Ancient
Greece, then this book is surely for you. Another point in its favor
is in having impoverished Athenian citizen Stephanos as narrator.
He comes over as a wonderfully convincing man of his day, delightfully
pompous as ever and with a typical attitude towards women and foreigners
(apart from Aristotle of course) while he desperately tries to gain
money, useful friends and rise in society. We have had books set
during the spring and summer of the year 330BC, and now it is the
turn of melancholy autumn. A bit of editing and a speedier pace
would make for a more exciting novel, but surely nobody can fault
Ms Doody’s scholarly depiction of life in those far-off times.
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