Apparently according to Goodreads I read this years ago and gave a 3 star rating but no written review. For the life of me I dont remember reading it so I'll consider this re-read a first read.

I don't know why I gave it 3 stars. Nothing happens in the first 200 pages. I understand this is the first book in a series so some groundwork has to be done for the protagonist but it's also a whodunnit but instead we are treated to the main character's money problems and army camp politics (which is a little bit interesting, I confess).

I found myself skipping pages. Never a good sign. Still, it's not a horrible book so I'll downgrade my original rating to 2 stars but saving it from the dreaded 1 star.

I've found a new series!!!! New mysteries, historical!! Never was a girl so happy. . . .Ruth Downie has brought me something to comfort my aching heart since all the Cadfael Chronicles have been read and re-read. . . .

This is the first Medicus: a crime novel of the Roman Empire and I enjoyed it. . . Gaius Petreius Ruso, is like Cadfael in that he is a healer, but the unlike the army Cadfael joined (God's), Gaius finds himself in the midst of the Romans on one of those inevitable roads that lead to . . . Rome. He coming from Gaul on some inspiring day in the 2nd Century AD, as one would if one wanted such a future.

Being the first book in a mystery series, bodies deceased are early encountered in his latest posting, Briton. He's not very likeable right off, a snooty sort, lots of judgments about the natives. But as the book moves on he sees the good in the people who come to him for help and healing, and as he unclenches, a reader can, too. He shows who he really is, and as an ambassador for the 2nd Century AD, for all things Roman, and a progressive who can see the value of diversity, a Reader discovers she's knee-deep in a great book!!!!

Yes. I will be reading the next one: Terra Incognita.

I liked this historical fiction, it shows the old times really nicely. I would say this is more of a historical novel than a detective story but still a good one.

Historical mystery set in Britain during the Roman occupation. Gaius Petreius Ruso is a "medicus" for the 20th regiment, stationed in Deva (now Chester, England). Upon his arrival, he has to deal with the body of a young woman found floating in the river, and then manages to become the accidental owner of a young female slave who he rescues from a disreputable slave trader.

This was interesting and I enjoyed getting to know Ruso and his slave girl, Tilla. I will definitely look for the next in the series.

Worst book I've read in years. Got it on Kindle - skimmed through pages and pages of pointless drivel with a - what is the male equivalent of a Mary Sue protagonist? It seems Downie's Roman "mystery" series is on the NYT bestseller list. If that's true, both of my books should be there too, just above hers.

I love period books, and while I thought Medicus was a nice and readable book, it could've been set in any country in any era. I never got the feel that I was reading a book set in ancient Britain. While the character talks a lot about the Celts, they are mostly just boring tribespeople with funny mannerisms.

The hero himself is quite modern. He buys a slave out of sympathy, beggaring himself. He is concerned about the plight of prostitutes. He frets about whether his slave Tilla has someone to talk to about her montly periods and a womanly shoulder to cry on. In short, while I thought he was likeable by modern standards, he didn't feel that authentic.

The mystery itself didn't really enthuse me...The mysterious death of the unidentified woman, was unsuspenseful, because the villain was telegraphed early on. I never really understood why the villain killed the women either. It was very vague.

Part of the interest in historical dramas is reading about the time period and the lives of the people. Although there was a flavor of ancient times, it just felt watered down and a bit modern.

Last fall, I stumbled upon the newest release in this series and was charmed by the light historical myystery set in the Roman Empire with the main character a Roman doctor. I was determined to go back and start from the beginning because I could tell that each book build on the last.

Medicus opens with Ruso lately arrived in Britannia and Deva. He is confronted with an unknown woman's corpse found in the river and bought a slave woman because she was being brutalized by the slave dealer. He identified the corpse as a working woman at a tavern inn just outside the fort walls and set the slave's broken arm. He wants to be done with both females and get on with his work at the hospital, but he also can't stop asking questions. And, he can't stop worrying about his family and the family farm back in Gaul that his father ran into multiple debts before he died. Ruso could use the job of chief medic or a bunch of wealthy private patients. Instead, he ends up in frustrating situations involving his new slave, Tilla, that tavern and its people, and the hospital administrator who is more than preoccupied with budgets, accounts, inventories, and Ruso's personal affairs.

Medicus start slowly as it developed the situation, the Roman world setting in a frontier province, Ruso and other characters, and, of course, the mystery. It meanders a bit and I had to snicker a fuew times about poor Ruso's ill fortune and how doing kindnesses for people tend to get him in worse trouble. While this is a light mystery, it doesn't stint on some of the darker sides of human nature or the historical times. This is an interesting blend of the Roman way that is clashing with the Brittain tribes.

I loved Ruso and Tilla when I met them in that latest book and it was enjoyable seeing how they meet and their early days of starting to work on problems and the mystery in their own ways.

All in all, it might not be strictly accurate for find appeal to a reader who wants serious historical fiction, but it was an entertaining story that gave a good idea of the world at the time. I can recommend it to historical cozy mystery fans.

3.5 stars

A good first installment. Ruso was amusing in his long-suffering-ness and I liked Tilla. My suspicions were pinned on the wrong character, as per usual. Simon Vance reads wonderfully, as always.

To da su povijesni romani jedan od mojih omiljenih žanrova već (više-manje) svi znate, ali ipak ću to ponoviti i to kako bih naglasila da sam upravo zbog toga što ih često čitam poprilično izbirljiva kad se radi o istima. Često se dogodi da se „provjereni“ autori povijesnih romana previše „zaigraju“ pa umjesto na povijesne događaje, naglasak romana stave na romantiku i ljubavnu priču.. E to ne volim i u tom slučaju često i prestajem s čitanjem.
Mislim, nemam ja ništa protiv romantike i ljubavnih priča „in general“, ali smatram da u povijesnim romanima naglasak ne treba biti na tom aspektu..(osim, naravno, ako se ne radi o povijesnim ljubićima, ali to je opet priča za sebe 

I thoroughly enjoyed this cold-case set in Roman Britain, with a cranky army medic, disaffected British girls, bad military command, a houseful of prostitutes, and problems for everyone… but mostly for Ruso.

I am being hard on this author, I know. I am a huge fan of Steven Saylor, whose Rome series was so great, I was sad when it ended. Saylor's character, Gordianus, is a detective who solves murders...all while living through the politics of Caesar, Cicero, Pompey, etc.

I guess I was expecting more Roman history in this series, but it wasn't there.
What I DID find was Gaius Petreius Ruso, a medical doctor, stationed in England. OK, then I changed my brain to take in this new character and new scenery.

I actually am finding it hard to even like Ruso. He is not the nicest person. He is struggling financially, on the bad side of the administrator, and goes into the 'murder mystery' almost being shoved...not wanting to bother with anyone or anything. He even doesn't like dogs... I kept thinking, this is a story that will change a grumpy man into a caring soul...yet I didn't see that happen.

Ruso does investigate the murders of women, which opens up the theme of the book...human trafficking and slavery.

What I was fascinated about was what Ruso, as a doctor, was up against during his time trying to treat patients. People would die of the flu, an infection most probably led to an amputation, and if you needed surgery most likely you wouldn't live. There was also a scene where a woman was giving birth and the baby was breach (or actually sideways) and if Ruso interjected to help, he says either the mother or the child COULD live but not both. Thank God for a midwife that saves both.

I am going to read the next Ruso book, because I love the history of the times, and also because I want to see if Ruso's personality grows on me.
Onward!! LOL

Started out well, but about mid-way through I started to lose interest. So a little disappointed as it sounded like right down my alley, some medicine, history, and murder. I liked the MC alright, but the story could have wrapped up a lot sooner. It just started meandering through the plot, with lots of characters but not much development of the majority of those characters. Even the historical detail couldn't hold my interest. This is a first in a series, perhaps it improves with subsequent books.
Ruso "escaped" his failed marriage by taking a post as a Medicus in a remote Roman outpost in Briton. Missing, murdered & injured slave girls, problems in a local bar/brothel, along with a controlling hospital administrator take up most of his time. He takes an injured slave girl under his wing, although she doesn't seem very useful or grateful as he is pulled into trying to solve who has murdered or taken the other girls. Some lightness is brought into the story with Valens his colleague and housemate. It all seems haphazard at times.