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Review
Praise for MASTER AND GOD -- - 'While this book is a departure from her usual Falco novels, the trademark charm, piercing intelligence and ready wit are as abundant as ever... dramatic and enthralling, all the more so for being full of historical fact. The characters are intriguing and three-dimensional, and the whole is told with a humour and insight which means the reader will find the book impossible to put down.' -- www.thebookbag.co.uk 'Davis's descriptions of Rome are vivid and lively...this is a great yarn' -- Daily Mail 'An intimate portrait of resilience, friendship and love' -- Sunday Examiner, Australia Praise for Lindsey Davis -- - 'Lindsey Davis ... brings her locations alive with the roar of cannon, the ache of hunger and the smell of fear' -- Guardian 'A fantastic historical whodunit' -- Daily Express 'Davis is adept at convincing us that her hero's anachronistically modern sensibility sits persuasively in ancient Rome' -- Barry Forshaw 'The plot is well-paced, with clever twists to keep the reader guessing' -- Times Literary Supplement 'The fans' expectations are higher than ever and are unlikely to be disappointed' -- The Bookseller 'Elegant and intelligent' -- Kirkus Reviews 'As gripping and enjoyable as usual' -- Literary Review
Review
Praise for MASTER AND GOD
(- )'The narrative is rapid and the story well told with much sharp-edged detail. You can open this book and step right into a convincing yet extraordinary past.'
(Independent )'Davis's descriptions of Rome are vivid and lively...this is a great yarn'
( Daily Mail )'While this book is a departure from her usual Falco novels, the trademark charm, piercing intelligence and ready wit are as abundant as ever... dramatic and enthralling, all the more so for being full of historical fact. The characters are intriguing and three-dimensional, and the whole is told with a humour and insight which means the reader will find the book impossible to put down.'
(www.thebookbag.co.uk )'An intimate portrait of resilience, friendship and love'
(Sunday Examiner, Australia )Praise for Lindsey Davis
(- )'Lindsey Davis ... brings her locations alive with the roar of cannon, the ache of hunger and the smell of fear'
(Guardian )'A fantastic historical whodunit'
(Daily Express )'Davis is adept at convincing us that her hero's anachronistically modern sensibility sits persuasively in ancient Rome'
(Barry Forshaw )'The plot is well-paced, with clever twists to keep the reader guessing'
(Times Literary Supplement )'The fans' expectations are higher than ever and are unlikely to be disappointed'
(The Bookseller )'Elegant and intelligent'
(Kirkus Reviews )'As gripping and enjoyable as usual'
(Literary Review )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
32 of 33 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
As a huge fan of the author Lindsay Davis I approached this novel with trepidation, Would this latest book live up to the authors previous works, after all this book does not feature her much beloved informer Marcus Didius Falcon. the answer is thankfully yes. A similar type of novel, again penned by Davis is A Course of Honour, the love story between Vespasian and Antonia Caenis. The Course Of Honour
From the start right through to the end, with was managed in two nights, I was gripped. The plot, the characters and the dialogue was snappy, enthralling and generally wonderful.
The hero, a veteran soldier, Gaius Vinius Clodianus finds himself in the Praetorian Guard protecting the increasingly paranoid Emperor Domitian. He does his best to fulfil his duty in an increasingly political Rome.
Whilst Davis has tackled other eras, Civil War England, but she is most at home in Ancient Rome. You can almost hear the sandals' on the pavement and smell the food available at the food stalls. She is a master at creating a image of the seat of Imperial rule. Warts and all.
From the start right through to the end, with was managed in two nights, I was gripped. The plot, the characters and the dialogue was snappy, enthralling and generally wonderful.
The hero, a veteran soldier, Gaius Vinius Clodianus finds himself in the Praetorian Guard protecting the increasingly paranoid Emperor Domitian. He does his best to fulfil his duty in an increasingly political Rome.
Whilst Davis has tackled other eras, Civil War England, but she is most at home in Ancient Rome. You can almost hear the sandals' on the pavement and smell the food available at the food stalls. She is a master at creating a image of the seat of Imperial rule. Warts and all.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This stand alone novel by Lindsey Davis (ie not a Falco novel) is set during the reign of the Emperor Domitian. Son of Vespasian and brother of Titus, he is poised to take power on the death of his brother. It is also the story of Gaius Vinius Clodianus, an investigation officer, and Flavia Lucilla, the daughter of a freed slave and hairdresser to the Emperor's family. After rescuing a priest from a burning temple and being noticed by Domitian, Gaius Vinius is promoted to the Praetorian Guards.
This novel follows the love story between Gaius Vinius and Flavia Lucilla as Rome settles nervously under Domitian's increasingly paranoid control. Davis is a consummate story teller and this book is no exception. There is war, battles, politics, intrigue, characters taken captive, Vestal Virgins tried and sentenced and all the glory and madness of Imperial Rome. As Domitian becomes more secretive, treacherous, crafy, vindictive and paranoid, there is a sense that the situation has to change and Gaius Vinius Clodianus and Flavia Lucilla are at the centre of the action as they endeavour to carve out a personal life in a despot's personal kingdom. Highly enjoyable and well told historical fiction from an author who knows this period and makes it come alive.
This novel follows the love story between Gaius Vinius and Flavia Lucilla as Rome settles nervously under Domitian's increasingly paranoid control. Davis is a consummate story teller and this book is no exception. There is war, battles, politics, intrigue, characters taken captive, Vestal Virgins tried and sentenced and all the glory and madness of Imperial Rome. As Domitian becomes more secretive, treacherous, crafy, vindictive and paranoid, there is a sense that the situation has to change and Gaius Vinius Clodianus and Flavia Lucilla are at the centre of the action as they endeavour to carve out a personal life in a despot's personal kingdom. Highly enjoyable and well told historical fiction from an author who knows this period and makes it come alive.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
I'm an admirer of the Falco series, although, like some other reviewers, I do feel it sagged a bit in the middle and I really believe that the author should stick to that style of book. Her other foray into "straighter" Roman history was a plodder but this one is just downright bad.
It sometimes has the feel of two books merged into one - a Mills & Boon romance set in Rome (rugged battle-scarred centurion finally wins court hairdresser) and a school guide to the Flavian dynasty (Agricola was upset at being recalled from Britain). Either may have fared better alone but the unhappy marriage fails to keep the reader's attention for more than a few pages at a time.
Things start off reasonably well in the Falco-like setting of the vigiles' station and the reporting of a domestic crime, soon followed by the burning of Rome which gives our centurion hero the chance to have a chat with the emperor and despot to be. After this things go all over the place. We then get potted histories of events and then a short scene with a bit of dialogue, then more description etc. There are some interesting asides on Roman morals and laws but somehow they don't fit comfortably into the general narrative flow.
Some of it reads like notes which have not been fully worked up into story form, e.g. the sections on Fuscus' Dacian campaign, the revolt of Saturninus and the chronicling of Domitian's descent into madness. Despite providing the novel's title he remains a very sketchy character and you really couldn't care what happens to him. You get no real feeling of his megolomania or cruelty which led to the damnatio memoriae after his assassination.
The love story is signalled from the start but this also fails to hold the reader's attention, - the characters being two-dimensional and the verbal sparring being better done in the Falco stories. I also find the littering of four-letter words in these and the military sections awkward and unnatural. As for the chapter written by the fly.... This sums up all that's wrong with the novel, no strong narrative flow, awkward jumps from teaching style notes to 'live action' and then just plain out of place.
I have a stong feeling that had this manuscript been handed in as a first novel it would have been sent back for some heavy revision and that it has only been published on the back of the success of the other books.
All in all a great disappointment but it should not discourage new readers from trying the Falco stories.
It sometimes has the feel of two books merged into one - a Mills & Boon romance set in Rome (rugged battle-scarred centurion finally wins court hairdresser) and a school guide to the Flavian dynasty (Agricola was upset at being recalled from Britain). Either may have fared better alone but the unhappy marriage fails to keep the reader's attention for more than a few pages at a time.
Things start off reasonably well in the Falco-like setting of the vigiles' station and the reporting of a domestic crime, soon followed by the burning of Rome which gives our centurion hero the chance to have a chat with the emperor and despot to be. After this things go all over the place. We then get potted histories of events and then a short scene with a bit of dialogue, then more description etc. There are some interesting asides on Roman morals and laws but somehow they don't fit comfortably into the general narrative flow.
Some of it reads like notes which have not been fully worked up into story form, e.g. the sections on Fuscus' Dacian campaign, the revolt of Saturninus and the chronicling of Domitian's descent into madness. Despite providing the novel's title he remains a very sketchy character and you really couldn't care what happens to him. You get no real feeling of his megolomania or cruelty which led to the damnatio memoriae after his assassination.
The love story is signalled from the start but this also fails to hold the reader's attention, - the characters being two-dimensional and the verbal sparring being better done in the Falco stories. I also find the littering of four-letter words in these and the military sections awkward and unnatural. As for the chapter written by the fly.... This sums up all that's wrong with the novel, no strong narrative flow, awkward jumps from teaching style notes to 'live action' and then just plain out of place.
I have a stong feeling that had this manuscript been handed in as a first novel it would have been sent back for some heavy revision and that it has only been published on the back of the success of the other books.
All in all a great disappointment but it should not discourage new readers from trying the Falco stories.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
EXCELLENT
aNOTHER EXCELLENT BOOK FROM LINDSEY DAVIS,AM PINING FOR MORE FALCO BUT THIS BOOK KEPT
ME HAPPY BACK IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF ANCIENT ROME. MORE PLEASE.
ME HAPPY BACK IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF ANCIENT ROME. MORE PLEASE.
Published 16 days ago by BARBARA DABILL
Masterly & Good
Lindsey Davis' latest offering isn't a new Falco, but it isn't all bad news, because I thought it was a really good read! Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mrs. D. J. Smith
Disappointed
Oh dear!! What a letdown after the Falco novels. May be the writer wanted to try something a little different but as a progression from the legendary informer it just doesn't work. Read more
Published 1 month ago by smiley494
Falco it is not.
Having read all the Falco novels I think I read this with preconceived ideas and I was a little disappointed. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Jonesy
Master and God Lindesy Davis
This is another excellent novel by Lindsey Davis. The descriptions as always excellent and the plot brilliant. Can't wait for the next book.
Published 1 month ago by Hill
It's not Falco but I still enjoyed it
This review refers to the Kindle version.
Having recently read all the Falco series, I would say that this novel is similar but there are several differences which may... Read more
Having recently read all the Falco series, I would say that this novel is similar but there are several differences which may... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bluu
Did Not Finish
I love Lindsey Davis' Falco series as a whole, so I thought I was a natural audience for Master and God. How wrong I was. What has happened to Lindsey Davis? Read more
Published 1 month ago by Hamstead
Another hit
Lindsey Davis has produced yet another sure fire hit with her latest book Master and God. Her books just keep getting better and better, whether fact, fiction or a combination of... Read more
Published 1 month ago by GEC
Disappointed
I was really disappointed by this book. I loved the Falco series and thought that this was a new set of characters following that same era. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mrs. G. Greenwood
Historical Fiction/facts
As a lover of the Roman Empire, I found this book to be excellent. The fictitious characters fitted in very well with the story, which was based on the history as we know it. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mr. G. Johns
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