ENEMIES AT HOME, by Lindsey Davis

The Flavia Albia series, #2, set in ancient Rome. A delightful, cheeky spin-off from Davis's long-running Marcus Didius Falco series, we follow the cases of the young but widowed adopted daughter of Falco and his noble wife Helena Justina.
Albia and aedele Manlius Faustus must clear a group of slaves from certain death. Their master and mistress were brutally strangled while the slaves were in house. By Roman law, they will go to the Colosseum as bait for gladiators and animals: slaves as supposed to defend their owners even to their own lives.
In this era, slaves outnumbered free Romans many times. The "enemies at home" could often be the most dangerous. The nine slaves protest their innocence, but Albia is sure they're not telling the whole truth. Saddled with the aedele's whining, unwashed slave as straggling "protector", she criss-crosses the city's seven hills in search of evidence, along the way bumping up against organized crime bosses, snooty matrons, corrupt vigiles, and a bunch of slaves soon to be sent to the auctions.
It's another 5 for this talented author. If you're in the mood for a binge, this series - along with the Falco series - make entertaining, satisfying reading that you could beach binge for weeks.
Find the author at www.lindseydavis.co.uk
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