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Scandal Takes a Holiday

Falco, Book 16

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Scandal Takes a Holiday

By: Lindsey Davis
Narrated by: Jamie Glover
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About this listen

This was a lonely place for anybody to be brought to die.

In the wealthy town of Ostia, our hero Falco appears to be enjoying a relaxing holiday. But when his girlfriend, Helena, arrives carrying a batch of old copies of the Daily Gazette - with the intention of catching up on the latest scandal - Falco is forced to admit to Petronius his real reasons for being there.

'Infamia', the pen name of the scribe who writes the gossip column for the Daily Gazette, has gone missing. His fellow scribes have employed Falco to find him and bring him back from his lazy, drunken truancy. However, Falco suspects that there is more to his absence than there might first appear.

©2004 Lindsey Davis (P)2014 Audible, Ltd Historical Fiction

Critic reviews

"This is the sixteenth Falco novel, and they have built up a large following. It is not hard to see why. They are amiable and unpretentious...The research that has gone into them allows the externals of Roman life to be presented in an evocative way. Yet the interior life of the characters remains reassuringly modern...Philip Marlowe in a toga." ( Times Literary Supplement)
"...an entertaining mystery" ( Sunday Telegraph)
All stars
Most relevant
Whether the fault of the narrator/performer (not really), the novel itself (not likely), or our horrid UK heatwave (8/2022), this 16th Falco outing did not hold my attention. This is a first and I am an avid fan of the author, Lindsey Davis; in for the long haul. As ever I liked the ‘dramatis personae’, the plans of locations, the humour, irony in its plenty, and the growth of characters – notably here an emerging Alba. Chapters are expertly and exquisitely crafted, and there is poignancy. Davis can populate a novel with a large number of characters and give them life and credibility. To see the way that Falco’s family is dealt with in this novel is a pleasure. So… perhaps it was the second UK heatwave of 2022 - bleaching the energy and attention span out of me. (Yes, this is as much a diary as it is a review). There is absolutely nothing to deter prospective listeners from taking to this novel. With the remaining Falco novels waiting in my library and the prospect of the Flavia Albia series there are good times ahead.

Where Characters Grow, a Novel Appears

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Superb as usual with excellent research bring Roman life alive
Jamie Glover though is too upper middle class to be Falco .

Scandal

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gradually going through all of this series. only problem for me is it isnt christian rodska (aka falco). a good entertaining story with lots of twists and changes. great for along layover waiting for my next flight

great escapism ,

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AD 76, and Falco plus many of his family are in Ostia. An investigator has gone missing and Falco wants to find him. Danger, family in-fighting, smuggling and pirates, usual sort of Falco adventure, and none the sort for that. Some marvellous descriptions such as 'Old Father Tiber was a widdle of rat's piss", atmospheric and fun. I have previously read and love this whole series and am rediscovering it through audio, in this case read by Jamie Glover. His narration is certainly good but unfortunately does not fit with the exuberance of character I associate with these stories. So it did detract somewhat from the overall pleasure.for this reader.
However, Falco is excellent, always recommended for anyone enjoying a fun filled, thrilling detective romp through the ancient Roman world. Wonderful.

"Wicked people sometimes lie."

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All theFalco stories are excellent and I have read all of them but am now turning to audio books to accompany other tasks. The earlier dramatised audiobooks are by far the best but the narrated books usually run a close second. This one however never really gripped me..mainly due to the lack of vocal characterisation. Julian Glover has an excellent well modulated voice but lacks a bit of earthiness for Falco I think. Newbies to Falco should start at book one and have the full enjoyment of working up to this one.

Excellent story….pity about narration

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