"Marcus Corvinus hates doing the household accounts but he'd rather do them than his latest assignment - investigating an attack on a foreign prince. Marcus tries to avoid involvement in politics but since he's "requested" to do so by the Emperor, there's little he can do. The prince is to be backed by the Empire in a coup against the Great King of Parthia. So it's not long before he's deep in the mire of political machinations being caught between Parthian politics (where assassination is practically expected) and Imperial bureacracy - which is impossible to baulk at.
This novel leads Marcus through diplomatic intrigues, high-class brothels, a lethal criminal gang and the spice trade where pepper can be worth a Great King's ransom. He meets an affable yet lying potentate and a drab and lying bureacrat. "
Alan J. Bishop, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Parthian Shot
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases - 10% Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30% How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
Tone of story
- very humorous
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
Time/era of story:
- ancient rome
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 80%
Kind of investigator
- amateur citizen investigator
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- politics
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- private investigator
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
Setting
City?
Yes
City:
- dangerous
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
