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Editorial Review:
Not so long ago, crime novels set in distant periods were something of a novelty -- but now that the genre is bulging with entries, readers have learned to be just as discriminating as they are in other crime fiction fields -- novelty is no longer enough. And that's why writers such as David Wishart are a boon -- his historical crime fiction is always adroitly written. Detractors (if there were any) might say there are no quantum leaps in achievement from book to book, but the sheer reliability pays dividends in Wishart's books.
Take In At the Death, for instance. This latest Marcus Corvinus mystery has all the hallmarks of Wishart's best work.
Ancient Rome. A young man from a good family has, apparently committed suicide. Marcus Corvinus is called in to provide an explanation for the death, and soon uncovers a murder plot. It transpires that the killing has a political element, and while Marcus is struggling with this, things are further completed by his unwilling role as nursemaid to a Gallic boarhound called (with perfect irony) Placida.
This is delightful stuff, with all the requisite historical detail set against the sardonic humour that has long been one of Wishart's specialities. In At the Death is both one for long-time Wishart admirers, and for those deciding to sample his work. --Barry Forshaw.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Hysterical and a good read This is the first of David Wisharts books I have read and also the first in the Marcus Corvinus Series. This has to be one of the funniest books I have read. I was laughing so hard I almost choked. I didn't think there was anyone to rival Lyndsey Davis in the Roman Mystery genre but I was wrong. David Wishart is up there with the best. Marcus Corvinus is asked to look into the suicide of a young fire investigator who ahs thrown himself from a tenement. It isn't long before he starts to unravel a mystery and... more info
Great except for the dog On Capri, Tiberius is finally getting close to death. In Rome, a young aristocrat has apparently thrown himself out of an Aventine tenement window for no obvious reason. The racing magnate Natalis is a friend of the boy's mother. He is no friend of Corvinus, but knows that if anyone can find out the truth, our hero can. Corvinus agrees, though he has a problem of his own - a dog Perilla has agreed to look after for a friend. I'm not a dog person and didn't find the doggy bits very funny- the dog is not... more info
Great, as always - but if I could suggest...? David Wishart's Corvinus novels are guaranteed enjoyment. They're well-plotted, the Roman background is evoked with great vigour and conviction, the mysteries are intriguing, the dialogue fast-moving and witty, the characterisation lively and entertaining. This one fully maintains the standard; and a feature that I found most enticing - especially as it holds the promise of more excitement to come in future books - is the unexpectedly sinister political dimension to the mystery, gradually revealed as the... more info
The Latest Marcus Corvinus
David Wishart was born in Arbroath, Scotland. He studied Classics - Latin and Greek - at Edinburgh University and after graduation taught for four years in a secondary school. He then retrained as a teacher of English as a Foreign Language and worked abroad for eleven years, in Kuwait, Greece and Saudi Arabia. He returned to Scotland in 1990 and now lives with his family in Carnoustie, mixing writing with teaching EFL and study skills at Dundee University. Marcus Corvinus (welcome back, it seems... more info
