Russo, Medical doctor for the 20th is sent to Britain after a long stint in Africa. Being unable to let bad situations be, he ends up buying a near dead slave whom, once brought back to health is totally useless. To be honest, I liked the wits of Russo, which reminded me of Lindsey Davis’s Falco but I could not stand the complaints and stupidity of Tula, the slave; hopefully, she will improve in the next books.

I <3 Ruso!! He's like House... in a toga :)

3.5 stars. Army doctor Ruso moves to the Roman Empire outpost of Britannia to start over. He soon finds himself a reluctant slave owner investigating the deaths of two prostitutes from a local watering hole.

Overall, this was an entertaining, engaging book. The characters are well-drawn and range from horrible, nasty characters to truly sympathetic ones. My only real problem with the book was that it did not read like it was set at the time of the Roman Empire, especially for the first several chapters. I had to keep turning back to the description on the book flap to remind myself of when this book was taking place.

What's a doc to do?

Father has died leaving debts. Brother has a very fertile wife. Stepmother is a bit of a over shopper. The less said about the ex-wife the better. And now, here he is at the end of the world.

Okay, Roman Britian.

But they dress werid.

Oh, and dead girls seem to like him.

Is this the best mystery I've ever read? No. But it's not the worst either. There are some wonderful touches of humor and the world feels real. It's a nice diverting read.

2nd reading: 4.7 stars

A.D. 117 Divorced army doctor Ruso, has decided that Britain is the place to be and so ends up in Deva (Chester). When not working, he rescues a slave, and sometimes investigates the disappearance of two female slaves who worked in the same bar. But will he find the guilty party, or even rescue his finances.
An enjoyable historical mystery

Love this series. So glad I found it.

Highly entertaining - not exactly a book of the best quality writing, but a nice, light read. Roman Britain is cool. The main guy is cool. It's basically a murder-mystery, Britannia style. I recommend it to anyone looking for a historical fiction/murder mystery fix. Now, I must go off and read the others. (Yes, there are more. Hurray!)

In a suspense filled historical novel of a physician during the Roman Empire, Ruth Downie creates a world of struggle amid humor and human connection. The book is well written, plot and character driven and truly enjoyable. Those who enjoy medical and health based writing - as well as history - will enjoy. It appears to set up the characters for the rest of the series - which I am looking forward to reading!

Everytime I picked this book up to read, I was immediately swept away by the characters and the setting. The story was a little slow in the beginning though, which is the reason it is 4 stars instead of 5. Loved the climax and the ending.