In the third part of the SPQR series entitled “The Sacrilege: An SPQR Mystery”, our hero Decius, after completing his military service in Gaul (then only Narbonne Gaul), returns to his beloved Rome, which reciprocates his great affection with further serious troubles.
In the book itself, I did not find any factual errors or major inaccuracies, as was the case in the previous two parts of the SPQR series, so in this respect the third part is even better than in the previous parts. The only inaccuracy that I spotted is the question of the ethnic origin of the Claudius family. In the first part we read that the members of the aforementioned family were of Sabine origin with a large admixture of Etruscan blood. In the third part, however, we learn that they were Sabines with a slight “Etruscan addition”, embraced by the fashion for “Etruscanism”.
The scenes of “murdering” and other related actions are, as always, described by Mr. Maddox at the highest level.
