About this item
Ruso and Tilla's excitement at arriving in Rome with their new baby daughter is soon dulled by their discovery that the grand facades of polished marble mask an underworld of corrupt landlords and vermin-infested tenements. There are also far too many doctors--some skilled--but others positively dangerous. Ruso thinks he has been offered a reputable medical practice only to find that his predecessor Doctor Kleitos has fled, leaving a dead man in a barrel on the doorstep and the warning, "Be careful who you trust." Distracted by the body and his efforts to help a friend win the hand of a rich young heiress, Ruso makes a grave mistake, causing him to question both his competence and his integrity.With Ruso's reputation under threat, he and Tilla must protect their small family from Doctor Kleitos's debt collectors and find allies in their new home while they track down the vanished doctor and find out the truth about the heiress's dead father--Ruso's patient--and the unfortunate man in the barrel.
About the Author
Ruth (RS) Downie left university with an English degree and a plan to get married and live happily ever after. She is still working on it. In the meantime she is also the New York Times bestselling author of a mystery series featuring Roman legionary doctor Gaius Petreius Ruso and his British partner, Tilla. The latest book is a novella, PRIMA FACIE, published in July 2019.There are eight full-length novels:MEDICUS (the first story, AKA 'Medicus/Ruso and the Disappearing Dancing Girls') TERRA INCOGNITA ('Ruso and the Demented Doctor') PERSONA NON GRATA ('Ruso and the Root of All Evils') CAVEAT EMPTOR ('Ruso and the River of Darkness') SEMPER FIDELIS (at last, only one title!) TABULA RASAVITA BREVISMEMENTO MORIIn 2015 Ruth helped to put together 'A YEAR OF RAVENS: a novel of Boudica's rebellion' with co-conspirators Stephanie Drey, E Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, SJA Turney and Russell Whitfield. 2017 saw the publication of 'THE BEAR AND THE WOLF', a short story of love and danger on Rome's northern border, written with SJA Turney. IN 2019 she was a contributor to 'RUBICON', the Historical Novel Society's collection of Roman-era short stories.Ruth lives in North Devon with a husband, a fine view and too many cats. She is not the same person as the RS Downie who writes real medical textbooks. Absolutely none of the medical advice in the Ruso books should be followed. Roman and Greek doctors were very wise about many things but they were also known to prescribe donkey dung and boiled cockroaches.Find out more at www.ruthdownie.com
