Roman Scandi Noir

Jun 2022 / Oct 2022 / Mar 2023
The Grove of the Caesars / A Comedy of Terrors / Desperate Undertaking – Lyndsey Davis – Hodder & Stoughton, 2020 / 2021 / 2022
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These three recent entries in the Flavia Albia series show a darkness of tone that suggests that their author may have been excessively influenced by the Scandinavian noir detective subgenre. They all include elaborate murder scenes described in rather too much detail. Her depiction of Roman life is still amazing, but they are not for the faint-hearted.

The Grove of the Caesars is an unusually heavyweight entry revolving around a serial killer operating in the imperial gardens where Faustus' building firm is doing some renovation work. The status of women is a major theme – there are clear echoes of the me too movement - which perhaps explains the unusual vehemence with which Flavia pursues the case. It's a shame that the clues for the mystery don't dovetail as neatly as they usually do.

By contrast, A Comedy of Terrors is much more lightweight. Set during Saturnalia, the Roman Christmas, it introduces two foster children for Albia and Faustus (I knew that Davis would find a way around the plot awkwardnesses that pregnancy would cause…) which allows for plenty of comic home life scenes in between the investigations into a dangerous gang selling toxic nuts and a woman trying to get away from her criminal husband. There's not much mystery but the comeuppance for one of the villains is particularly satisfying.

Despite its title, Desperate Undertaking is not about the Roman funerary industry, but is set in the many theatres and halls of the Field of Mars where a series of grotesque murders takes place, each based on a famous Greek or Roman play. It will come as no surprise to learn that both victims and suspects include members of the acting profession. Unusually this story has strong connections with one of the earlier Falco books, which is nice, but meant that some of the revelations didn't land properly due to my foggy memory of something I read 25 years ago. I also wasn't fond of the gruesomeness with which Albia imagined the victims' travails, and couldn't quite shake my disbelief that no-one would notice an elaborate murder scene being set up in a public place.