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Gaius Petreius Ruso is a doctor in the Roman army in that godforsaken outpost of Britannia. The natives aren't terribly friendly, and his own side is moderately barking as well. Ruso is a bemused and reluctant sleuth. He's in a state of some financial embarrassment at the moment (a family back home who appear to be a bottomless pit, and a loan to repay) and all he wants is a quiet life with some lucrative private work, a chance to finish his medical opus and a promotion to chief medical officer. Um, two chances -- fat chance and no chance! His problems start when he rescues an injured slave girl. She's not what you'd call communicative, or in the least grateful. And then Ruso, who has an unerring ability to be in the wrong place at the most unfortunate time, finds himself dragged into tracking down a serial killer who is bumping off the girls at Chester's bar/brothel/house of ill-repute. I don't often read historical mysteries, but I loved MEDICUS AND THE DISAPPEARING DANCING GIRLS. RS Downie has a wonderfully relaxed story-telling voice with the faintest trace of Carry On Mind That Chariot! The book's overlong, mind you, and the mystery is almost secondary for most of it. There's no sense of urgency -- Downie will get you there whenever she chooses to, so there's no good shouting at the messenger! This book's overwhelming strength is its wonderful characterisation. Ruso himself is harassed, a touch morose and really very honourable. Oh, and he's a little too trusting. He's saddled with Valens, a colleague and housemate who is bone-idle, but very handsome. And there's Priscus, the administrator from hell, who doesn't let a little thing like running a hospital get in the way of his meticulous records. One of my favourite parts of the book, in fact, is the cast list in the front, with wonderfully dry comments alongside the names. So you get little gems like Centurion Rutilius -- better at controlling men than women; the mortuary assistant's assistant -- a man doing his best; the signaller's girlfriend -- a local girl with plenty to say, and Ruso's stepmother -- a woman with a lot to answer for According to the front cover, this is the first Ruso and Tilla investigation. It's not giving anything away to say that it's not a conventional pairing in this debut book. But MEDICUS does have the makings of a highly entertaining series. Next time around, though, Downie won't be able to rely so much on the world-building to keep the reader amused, and she may have to step up the mystery element.
Reviewed by Sharon Wheeler, August 2006
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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