In Lindsey Davis' latest installment of her ancient Roman mystery series, A Comedy of Terrors (#1,003), Flavia Albia isn't exactly thrilled to be spending Saturnalia trying to make the holidays joyous for her husband's two young nephews, now part of their household. Preparations are frantic as Faustus is determined to make the festivities happy for the orphaned little ones. Peddlers are out everywhere in Rome, trying to sell their trinkets, but the nut sellers are particularly persistent. Tossing nuts at everyone is part of the tradition, but this year, someone is muscling in on the trade with subpar goods. If the merchants won't play ball, they are coming to particularly nasty ends.
Although Flavia's husband is almost at the end of his aedile's term, when members of their own household are laid low after consuming Xeno's pies, Faustus sets out to find out who is supplying the rotten goods. It's well within his purview, but he's painting a target on his own home. With the household turned upside down by Saturnalian antics, it's too easy to make lethal threats look like innocent jests. Io, Saturnalia!
Flavia Albia and her husband have been through so much, it's hard to remember that they are still newlyweds, especially since they now have a ready-made family. Flavia is having some difficulty adjusting to life as a working mother, but she will do whatever is necessary to keep her independence. It certainly does make for entertaining reading!
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