A very enjoyable read. Probably the best place to start the series, as it gives a better understanding of the setting and characters than the later novels. I started with #6, and it was a little confusing at first. The main character is a doctor who gets involved in solving the murders of two prostitutes after one of them shows up dead in his hospital. It's not a heavy detective story as I find the culture clash between Britons and the occupying Romans is more the central part of the story.

I'm a sucker for anything set in Roman-occupied Britain. This is very much from the Roman side, but you get a bit of the natives' perspective, particularly the uneasy co-existence and the divisions between the more and less assimilated Britons. And it captures some of the ambivalence on the Roman side: while they look down on the Britons, they are Roman subjects and have legal rights.

It's a murder mystery, which is a nice change from most books set in this era, which tend to be military fiction. It's decent. It felt a little forced in places, and the ending is a bit "gloating evil genius confesses all." But on the whole, quite readable. And it was her first book; I may stick with the series since the reviews get better as it goes along.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. I don't know why I was expecting a more sophisticated "who-done-it" but I was. Anyway things I liked about the story, I liked the fact there was always something happening. It didn't drone on and on about minute details that had no value to the story. I rather liked the ending. It's one of those feel goods that supports the whole, "If you love something set it free..." mindsets.

What I didn't like... Even as busy as it was I was sometimes bored. In fact I considered a few times just skipping to the end to see how things turned out and moving on. I am a firm believer that life is to short to be wasted on books you aren't enjoying when there are so very many good ones out there. In the end, I was glad I didn't. The last 75 pages were worth hanging in there.

Would I recommend this book? I don't know, this would be good keep your mind busy on a plane or waiting for a doctors appointment material. It's not something I would recommend to anyone who is researching a realistic glimpse of the Roman Empire, or doings. It certainly isn't a fair or accurate portrayal of the Britannic people of the time, as the author notes there are few if any records written by the people of that time and place who were not of the Roman Empire. It would be impossible to guess how they really thought, felt, or survived.

So that's what I can tell you about this book without offering up spoilers. Enjoy.

Entertaining mystery set in Roman Britain. While consistent with what is known about Roman Britain, there was not much description of place or activities. Romans also seemed to speak with a British ‘accent’.

The novel is an ideal holiday read. Set in Britain under Roman rule, it tells a story of a Roman doctor-cum-detective character, Gaius Ruso. Quite enjoyable if you are in the mood for some light reading.

I like mystery, and I like historical fiction... this was awesome. The characters are interesting, and the plot is pretty twisty. Not only does Ruth Downie convey the era amazingly well - but she handles the crazy Roman politics too! This was great storytelling, with the perfect amount of humor to make the characters real. Loved it!

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.

Asterix meets McDreamy in this wanly imagined mystery about a doctor in Roman-era Britannia. I spent most this book pondering the strangely modern feel of Ruso's everyday life and work at the hospital doing rounds and clinic. Was this a carefully wrought statement about the commonality of experience through history (à la Wolf Hall) or just a failure of historical imagination? I quickly came to suspect the latter. There are a couple of nice touches here--Ruso's pesky scribe, his debts overseas--but overall the author's attempts to suggest a harried atmosphere fall short. Then there's the distasteful fact that the emotional centerpiece turns out to be Ruso falling in love with his female slave--or (worse, really) her falling in love with him. The book is less thoughtful about the idea of power dynamics in relationships than the average HR sexual harassment Powerpoint.

Five stars, five, and again five! Hurray for Medicus: it's the page-turner I've been looking for for a long time. I read it in an entire day because I couldn't put it down.

Set in Roman Empire-era Brittania, this is the story of reluctant hero , Gaius Petrius Ruso, a doctor in the local army hospital, who turns detective very much against his will. Humorous, lighthearted, colorful... This is Downie's first novel, and I hope she's planning a whole series of Ruso mysteries!

Mixing the genres of crime/mystery and historical fiction can be a fantastic combination -- Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose is an exemplar of this mix -- but the mixing of genres can't always achieve the level of Mr. Eco, nor do I ever really expect it to, but there are a couple of things that do need to happen for me to really fall in love with the product of such a mix.

First, I need to believe that the characters are grounded firmly in their milieu rather than being transplants from our time; I need the biases of the author, therefore, to be barely discernible if not entirely invisible.

Second, I need the investigatory part of the mix to be gripping. I don't care if it's a who dunnit?, a why dunnit?, a police procedural, a howcatchem, or anything else, as long as I care about the mystery itself.

Unfortunately, Ruth Downie's Medicus didn't meet either criteria for me, yet I still liked it well enough not to feel like the book was a complete waste of time. I did like the Medicus himself, for instance. Gaius Petreius Ruso was a man I'd be happy to share a glass of vino with, but then there is the problem because he didn't feel like a medicus of the Roman Legions so much as a doctor at some modern hospital, with many of the same attitudes and ethical stances as a man of our time. Ruso made it impossible to disappear into the historical trappings of Medicus.

And then the crimes, the murders of slave girls attached to the military post, were not really investigated, they were more discussed until their perpetrator got himself caught. Perhaps now that Ruso has "solved" one crime he'll be a more active investigator in future books, actually making the pursuit of future criminals compelling, but even that won't be able to overcome his anachronistic beliefs.

I can't see myself continuing this series, which is too bad. I had fairly high hopes. Still, it's not terrible, and if the things that bothered me aren't deal breakers for you, you may just love Medicus.

A very enjoyable first book in a mystery series set in the Roman Empire. The setting is unusual -- a backwater in Britannia -- and the characters of Ruso and Tilla very appealling. The villain is a bit predictable, but what sets this one apart is the use of humour, which is muchly needed. Four stars overall, recommended.

For the longer review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_M...

...The back cover made it sound so interesting and original - like a historical fiction mystery with men in short tunics with great senses of humor. It's really about a lonely, rather boring medicus (doctor) for the Roman Empire stationed overseas who stumbles upon a whorehouse, a couple of missing girls, and some bad oysters. Of course in the mix there is a beautiful, resilient, implausible slave girl - who was possibly once royalty or a healer or ???. Did I mention the doctor is in debt trying to save the family farm which conveniently lends itself to extortion?

The first 100 pages had me nearly comatose as our characters were painfully developed. Then the plot kicked in and had me guessing for a few minutes, until the introduction of a newish character who, to me,was clearly killer. I spent the last 50 pages waiting for the happy ending because well, everything else ended up neatly so why not the doc and the slave girl?

In the end it was tolerable but not something I'd recommend.