A Coin for the Ferryman

Rowe’s engaging ninth Roman Britain whodunit finds mosaic-maker and occasional detective Longinius Flavius Libertus in the midst of turbulent times. Libertus seizes an opportunity to free his slaves Junio and Cilla and adopt Junio as his son and heir. Meanwhile, his patron and protector, Marcus Septimus, plans a journey to the court of the increasingly insane Emperor Commodus, who has just renamed the ancient city of Rome after himself. The discovery of a hideously beaten corpse whose features have been rendered unrecognizable forces Libertus back into the role of sleuth, as Marcus’s travels, an approaching holiday and Junio and Cilla’s upcoming wedding impose a difficult deadline. While the villain’s identity is fairly obvious to the reader (though convincingly hidden from Libertus), Rowe’s skillful recreation of the places, customs and laws of second-century Britain as well as eloquent descriptions of her hero and his compatriots place this among the best in the series. (Sept.)