(3) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. This latest entry in the Roman Mysteries series finds the four juvenile sleuths of 80 CE back in Rome, where they discover who is sabotaging the chariot races at the Circus Maximus. The suspenseful plot makes the most of the series' trademark cliffhangers and fast pace. Glos.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(4) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. The four young detectives of ancient Rome are back. Vacationing in an island villa, they uncover the identity of a poisoner. This entry gets bogged down in several characters' love lives, but, as always, the vividly evoked ancient setting adds depth and interest. Glos.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. This tenth Roman Mystery takes young amateur sleuth Flavia and her three companions abroad to Greece, where they seek to discover why their beloved tutor, Aristo, appears to have stabbed Flavia's "Pater." Though apparently setting up a love triangle and perhaps heading toward soap opera territory, the series nevertheless retains its trademark cliffhangers and authentic details of life in ancient times. Glos.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(4) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. When amateur detective Flavia and her friends decide to find out more about a widow who wants to marry Flavia's father, they link their investigation to Hercules's twelve tasks. Readers looking for Lawrence's usual fast pacing and vivid ancient Roman setting won't be disappointed; still, the contrived structure and not-very-compelling mystery make this a weak entry in a strong series.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. In Assassins, Jonathan goes on a secret mission to find his long-missing mother; in Dolphins, Jonathan, Flavia, and friends search for sunken treasure, in the process stumbling over the source of Lupus's muteness. As in the other Roman Mysteries series titles, these books are fast paced and compulsively readable, with heaps of atmosphere and information about life in ancient Rome. [Review covers these Roman Mysteries titles: The Assassins of Rome and The Dolphins of Laurentum.]

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. In Assassins, Jonathan goes on a secret mission to find his long-missing mother; in Dolphins, Jonathan, Flavia, and friends search for sunken treasure, in the process stumbling over the source of Lupus's muteness. As in the other Roman Mysteries series titles, these books are fast paced and compulsively readable, with heaps of atmosphere and information about life in ancient Rome. [Review covers these Roman Mysteries titles: The Assassins of Rome and The Dolphins of Laurentum.]

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) 4-6 Roman Mysteries series. Flavia and her friends solve a third mystery, this time involving kidnapped children, pirates, and escaped slaves. The setting--a villa outside Pompeii, just after the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius--is palpably evoked; the action is nonstop (with not so many gratuitous cliffhanger chapter endings as before); and the characters are well delineated. A light mystery that contains/disguises a wealth of detail about life in ancient Rome.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano