Detectives in Togas
by Henry Winterfeld

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Book Summary Information

• ISBN13: 9780152162801
• Condition: New
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Book Reviews of Detectives in Togas

Book Review: Charming historical mystery
Summary: 5 Stars

Rufus disrupted Xantippus's class by writing "Caius is a dumbbell" on a tablet, provoking Caius to start yelling. In the blink of an eye, Rufus has been thrown out of the schoolmates, alarming his classmates. What's even more alarming is that the same message is scrawled on a sacred temple's wall the next day -- in Rufus's handwriting. This act of sacrilege will destroy Rufus's life, and for some reason he won't deny it.

The day of the defacing, Xantippus's house is robbed and the wax tablet is taken, but the robber leaves behind a beautiful golden brooch. The boys go to the soothsayer Lukos, but that goes horribly wrong when the soothsayer chases them out, and they leave behind Mucius, who then proceeds to fall into the Baths of Diana -- discovering that Rufus spent the night there before. The boys soon become enmeshed in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse centering on politics, money and revenge.

Henry Winterfield clearly had solid memories of being a teenage boys. His gaggle of young boys are entirely realistic -- they bicker, they make idiots of themselves, they make all the wrong decisions, they all have distinct personalities. With a cast including seven young boys from similar backgrounds, you would think that they would all be the same, but Winterfield manages to make each one unique. Xantippus is the crabby grandfather with a marshmallowy interior. He clearly cares about all the boys, but is impatient about their blunders.

Kids may leave this charming mystery with a wish to learn a little more about Rome (and to read the sequel, of course). And don't be surprised if you hear someone shouting, "Mike asinus est!"

Summary of Detectives in Togas

Ancient Civilizations Books

• Books > Subjects > Children's Books > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction
• Classics
• Mysteries & Detectives