Finished Business

With the opening sentence, “November in Rome sucks,” Wishart wastes no time in introducing modern colloquialisms into his 16th Marcus Corvinus mystery set in first-century Rome (after 2013’s Solid Citizens). For readers who can look past the jarring contemporary idiom, Wishart presents one of his better plots. When masonry falls on Naevius Surdinus, a former consul, crushing his head, his subsequent death appears to be accidental. But the ghost of Alexander the Great tells Surdinus’s niece, Naevia Postuma, that foul play was involved. Despite the bizarre source of Naevia’s suspicions, Marcus investigates and finds them justified. He must also figure out why the dead man sent his wife a letter, accompanied by a scroll, that contained erroneous information about Surdinus’s relationship with Marcus’s father. Wishart unfortunately doesn’t make the most of setting the action during the reign of the sadistic and capricious Caligula, which has been depicted better elsewhere. (Nov.)