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Series
The Ancient World prequels follow Gordianus before his established career as Rome’s Finder. The sequence begins with his youthful journey to the Seven Wonders in 92 BC, then moves to Alexandria, Egypt and Asia Minor during the opening phase of the Mithridatic Wars. These books are linked by travel, apprenticeship and early detection rather than by the Roman courtroom and civil-war politics that dominate the later Roma Sub Rosa novels.
Reading order
In 92 BC, the young Gordianus leaves Rome with the poet Antipater of Sidon to see the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Their journey takes them through the Greek east, Egypt and older centres of power where famous monuments sit beside local rivalries, private secrets…
Alexandria and the Nile Delta, 88 BC. Gordianus is living with Bethesda when bandits kidnap her after mistaking her for a wealthy man’s mistress. To recover her, he enters the criminal world of the Cuckoo’s Nest and is forced to take part in an attempt to…
Alexandria, Ephesus and Asia Minor, 88 BC. Gordianus receives evidence that his former tutor Antipater of Sidon is in danger at the court of Mithridates VI. Travelling into territory where Roman identity can be fatal, Gordianus and Bethesda disguise themselves and attempt to discover who sent…